Most Popular
1500 questions
18
votes
3 answers
Does GM Larry Kaufman's "principle of the redundancy of major pieces" truly exists? Or could this effect be caused by the number of Pawns instead?
The following is an extract from The Evaluation of Material Imbalances by GM Larry Kaufman. I put in bold characters everything that was important for this…
Fate
- 4,778
- 2
- 35
- 69
18
votes
6 answers
As a Beginner, is playing a lot of tactics chess (puzzles) a good way to improve?
I am pretty new to chess, and I play lot of chess puzzles: trying to find the best move for a given situation (which will not necessarily end-up with a checkmate).
Is this a good way to learn chess or should I play more normal games?
Romain
- 667
- 8
- 15
18
votes
5 answers
Tactical difference between chess and Chinese chess
Is there any difference in tactics between chess and Chinese chess? If so, which one is the most fun? What are the important things to learn from it?
Nelson
- 183
- 1
- 1
- 5
18
votes
2 answers
Is game analysis based on "squares" instead of "pieces" of any value?
Most all analysis I've seen in chess focuses on pieces development, and not the development of unoccupied spaces. Is there any value in analyzing game play in this way, and if so, how is this done?
NOTE: The way I look at it is: there are four types…
blunders
- 4,137
- 3
- 26
- 39
18
votes
3 answers
Is the pawns only variant a draw?
In the pawns-only variant of chess, each side starts with 8 pawns and a king on the usual squares, no pieces,
with other rules being the same as in regular chess, including promotion.
While general consensus is that chess is a theoretical draw, with…
Aravind
- 895
- 7
- 13
18
votes
5 answers
What is the better way to stop blundering all my games?
I am on the road that starts from the "Beginner" stage, trying to leave this "town". I know and understand the rules, I also understand most of the "classic" tactics. I am able to reproduce some mating patterns (and to understand them I think).
But…
pim999
- 385
- 4
- 8
18
votes
8 answers
Why don't chess engines take into account the time left by each player?
Firstly, I am not suggesting that there is anything wrong the way engines are implemented at the moment, by analyzing only the current position regardless of time left by the players. This is great and it gives us a nearly perfect estimation of the…
ihavenoidea
- 299
- 2
- 5
18
votes
1 answer
Why does India get three teams for Open and Women's sections in the 2022 Chess Olympiad?
The 2022 Chess Olympiad is hosted in Chennai, India. Why does India get to field three teams while most nations get the usual one team per Open and Women's sections?
qwr
- 3,674
- 13
- 39
18
votes
3 answers
Was there a chess piece—elephant, knight or rook—rendered as a being looking into two directions?
I have found a chess set of unknown origin with ducks as pieces. Simple ducks for pawns, king and queen crowned and big, okay, but then, for rook, knight and bishop, I don't know.
There is a duck carrying a book or a small chest with both wings, a…
Pattmann
- 217
- 2
- 7
18
votes
6 answers
Software for opening repertoire practice
I am developing an opening repertoire for white based on d4 and c4. I think this is going all right, but what I am looking for is a chess program that can exercise my repertoire knowledge.
Essentially, I want to be able to enter variations, and let…
firtydank
- 5,767
- 3
- 28
- 51
18
votes
4 answers
How do you solve vague mate in two problems?
I am a big fan of solving mate in N problems and believe they help tremendously with i.e. visualization. The only issue I seem to face in certain problems are when they are very vague. For example this one from the famous Polgar book. How can one…
miniHessel
- 551
- 3
- 8
18
votes
14 answers
Is there an equivalent to “a knight on the rim is dim” in other languages?
When explaining chess to beginners, I often use the famous rhyme, “a knight on the rim is dim”. Is there any equivalent (rhyming) phrase in other languages?
I will accept any answer which shows at least one equivalent phrase in another…
hb20007
- 1,082
- 6
- 20
18
votes
1 answer
How do you register a FIDE rating?
I want to register a FIDE rating, but I can find nothing about that on the official website. How do I register an official FIDE rating?
Jisu101
- 396
- 2
- 10
18
votes
5 answers
Are pawns pieces?
I thought I heard somewhere that pawns are not pieces but just called pawns. Then, I heard from some other places that they are. I think they are but what is the exact definition of a pawn?
Andrew May
- 197
- 1
- 6
18
votes
4 answers
Why do children move so quickly?
I played a game against a 6 years old child where I launched a strong attack against the poor child:
[fen ""]
[white "Me"]
[Black "6 years old child"]
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Be7 5.c4 Qc7 6.Be2 a6 7.O-O Nf6 8.f3 Bc5 9.Be3 Qb6 10.Nc3…
user27142