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1500 questions
18
votes
6 answers
Why does the engine dislike white in this position despite the material advantage of a pawn and other positional factors?
After a trade that sacrified a bishop and a knight for two pawns and a rook, the game reached the following position: (White to move.)
[FEN "2r2qk1/1b1n1pb1/p4n1p/1p4p1/4P3/1BN2P2/PPP3PP/R2Q1RK1 w - - 0 17"]
At this point the engine was evaluating…
Aloizio Macedo
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18
votes
3 answers
How many pawns make up for a missing queen in the endgame?
My partner and I are newbies, and recently found ourselves in this position:
FEN 8/8/8/6kp/p5p/8/K/6Q w
[FEN "8/8/8/6kp/p5p/8/K/6Q w - - 0 1"]
I expected white would easily win because of the queen (and point) imbalance, but white never made time…
ladenedge
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18
votes
1 answer
Stockfish is considering a move in a book by GM Mihail Marin as a blunder
In the book English opening volume 1 by Mihail Marin at this position
[fen "3nrrk1/bppq2p1/p4p1p/2Pp4/1P1P3N/P1BQ2P1/5PKP/4RR2 w - - 2 21"]
1. Qg6 (1. Ng6)
He suggests Qg6 whereas stockfish suggests Ng6 and evaluation drops from +4.3 to +1.1 after…
Shreyash Talpade
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18
votes
2 answers
What is the process for amending the rules of chess?
I read the whole document issued by FIDE containing the Laws of Chess, but nowhere does it say how (or even if) the rules of chess can be amended.
Is every change to the rules supposed to yield a new variant? But then, what about minuscule changes…
Labba
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18
votes
2 answers
How much material is needed to force the capture of a lone queen (for example in horde chess)?
In horde chess, the following starting position is used:
[FEN "rnbqkbnr/pppppppp/8/1PP2PP1/PPPPPPPP/PPPPPPPP/PPPPPPPP/PPPPPPPP w - - 0 1"]
The goal of White is to checkmate Black; the goal of Black is to capture all White's pieces. The main…
wimi
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18
votes
6 answers
Can one side force a loss in regular chess?
Chess is unsolved, so there is no known optimal strategy for one side to force a win or a draw.
However, is there an optimal strategy to lose? Consider a variant where checkmate results in a loss, but all other rules are the same as regular chess.…
Victor
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18
votes
2 answers
Which gambits have been most successful?
Besides the Queen's Gambit (which isn't really a gambit anyway), which gambits have been most successful as far as winning percentage and usage at high levels of play?
Andrew Latham
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18
votes
4 answers
What's the etiquette for giving checkmate on board?
I wonder what is considered to be a polite way of giving mate on board. Should one announce the checkmate? If so, should one press the clock after making the move, or stop it, or simply do nothing?
Or should one press the clock silently as if it's…
Kostya_I
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18
votes
2 answers
Do some chess players actively train moving the pieces on the board quickly?
Having spent the last couple of days watching the Rapid and Blitz World Championships I became, once again curious about the following subject.
In some circumstances, especially in blitz games, it can be a slight but significant advantage to be…
quid
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18
votes
4 answers
Has there ever been a grandmaster-level win where a queen did not move nor get taken throughout the game?
Has there ever been a grandmaster-level win where the queen of the side that won did not move nor get taken throughout the game?
I feel like this is possible even at such a level as the side whose queen does not move could still castle but would…
TheSimpliFire
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18
votes
2 answers
Do the official rules of chess forbid promoting a pawn to a piece of the opposite color?
Not that it would be everyone's first choice, but it is possible to concoct positions where having an extra piece block your opponent's moves and thus gives you an advantage (think blocking an escape route for a checked king...)
yrodro
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18
votes
3 answers
Improving the observation skill & making less blunders
I've noticed that the most common reason for me to lose a game is not lack of knowledge but failure to observe whats happening on the board. This is specially true for rapid games but it happens in slow chess as well. In a recent game i moved a rook…
X X
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18
votes
7 answers
Was this “caterpillar” strategy a good way to advance my pawns?
I recently played an endgame as Black in which I thought up a silly, but effective, to advance my doubled pawns. Here is the relevant part of the game.
[FEN "8/6p1/2p2kp1/1p1p4/p2P2K1/P1P5/1P6/8 w - - 0 1"]
1. Kf4 g5+ 2. Kg4 g6 3. Kg3 Kf5 4. Kf3…
Rewan Demontay
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18
votes
6 answers
Does the FIDE 75-move rule apply after checkmate or resignation?
75 move rule says
9.6 If one or both of the following occur(s) then the game is drawn: (...) any series of at least 75 moves have been made by each player without the movement of any pawn and without any capture.
This rule can be read to mean that…
Lesser Hedgehog
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18
votes
4 answers
Position from the Dutch Defence / Blackmar-Diemer gambit
In the Dutch Defence, the following gambit isn't very popular anymore.
[FEN ""]
1. d4 f5 2. Nc3 d5 3. e4 dxe4 (3... fxe4 4. Qh5+)
The same position can arise from the Blackmar-Diemer gambit if black plays the rare 3... f5.
[FEN ""]
1. d4 d5 2. e4…
Dag Oskar Madsen
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