I am a beginner in chess and have been playing for quiet a while but i want to improve . ( not just for me but for all the ppl out there ) what will be the first things to learn ? And if it is possible could you guys discuss what helped you all to improve chess ?
If i were to ask on behalf of all beginners which chess book would you suggest for us ?
If I was able to wipe away all my chess bumbling’s and start all over again (what a dream!), I would begin by going on google and studying chess notation first to be able to read chess material. Once I felt good on that I’d likely get books or google chess databases where I could play over the masters of the past through present so I could see how to play properly. While doing that I’d likely make note of their openings, and which appeal to me, from which I’d later use to pick up some openings to learn from and focus on when I did decide to play. Note, I’ve not played any games myself yet. Next I’d buy a comprehensive book on endgames, and locate a chess engine and play through all the materials of those endgames, figuring out why certain ideas do or don’t work against perfect play (hence, engines!). I’d likely spend a significant amount of weeks to months on that until I felt fairly comfortable in how to execute basic mates, pawn and king endgames, rook endgames, minor piece endgames, ect. I wouldn’t have mastered much of that, but I wouldn’t feel completely lost in those scenarios. After that I’d get a good puzzle book like Laszlo Polgar’s mammoth book of combinations and short games and start working through that while deciding which openings I want to play and focus playing through master games of those openings, noting particular themes, middle game ideas, ect. I might begin playing my first games within a year or so from first deciding to pick up chess.
But, nobody in their right mind would do that, I know I certainly can’t see myself doing that, I would spend years haphazardly studying and playing many games at various time controls, often speed chess, maybe looking over some games we thought we played like Fischer only to realize the engine says otherwise and then get frustrated and lose a dozen speed games and basically slowly pick up a few good ideas here and there while picking up bad ones as well- and 20 years later see yourself sitting where I am now! What do you want to do, be like me or maybe try something else? :)
-Jordan
i will say that you should play classical time format and analyse each and every game and you can buy the book bobby fisher's 60 most memorable games
It's too long to read.
1861 player calls himself beginner ... And Here am I who tell his friends that he is good at chess
@Prastab
If I were to teach the game to an adult friend (children are a different case) I wouldn't start by recommending any book, other than perhaps this one which is entirely free and fun because of its interactive nature: https://www.chessable.com/smithys-opening-fundamentals/course/21302/
Instead, I would start by giving this person a general framework to underpin that person's relationship to chess.
And that framework would simply be: chess is a game of errors.
I would then say that when one evaluates errors in chess, one does so using three concepts: 1- inaccuracies, 2- mistakes and 3- blunders.
I would then say that deep understanding of these concepts is not immediately necessary but that we would first concentrate on blunders, and of this category of errors we would concern ourselves chiefly with "avoidable" or "obvious" blunders first.
Then I would explain that the only way to quickly understand what is meant by an "avoidable" or "obvious" blunder is to analyze each and every game to firstly identify them and secondly understand why they are so frequently committed by lower-level players.
Then I would introduce the concept of "safety" and demonstrate how simply one can minimize occurrences of "avoidable" or "obvious" blunders by always subjecting a move to a "safety analysis".
With time, the concept of "blunders" would more generally be explained and illustrated, before moving on to "mistakes" and very later on "inaccuracies".
I would simultaneously explain the concept of "activity" by demonstrating how the scope and range of pieces is affected by structural elements of the game, for example a bishop trapped behind its own pawn chain, a rook commanding an open file, the difference between a centrally placed knight and one placed on an edge of the board.
The student would then be in a position to understand the fundamental objective of the opening - the first of three phases of the game - which is to achieve "king safety and quick and harmonious piece development".
I would then explain that without "harmony" between pieces, i.e. all members of the team working towards a common objective - "safety" and "activity" are hamstrung and lack the final magic ingredient that drives one towards victory again and again...
Then, I would provide my student with a very basic opening repertoire (1 for White, 2 for Black) and a few annotated master games related to that opening to illustrate ideas, plans and associated tactical motifs. I would also have my student watch relevant YouTube videos on a daily basis.
I would also have my student drill randomly generated basic tactics on a daily basis.
Once all of the above had become well-integrated in my student's chess-routine, then I might suggest any of dozens of recognized books for beginners from classics such as Tarrash's "The Game of Chess", Capablanca's "Chess Fundamentals", Chernev's "Logical Chess" or something more recent like Nunn's "Understanding Chess Move by Move" or perhaps Silman's " Reassess you chess, 4th edition". Having said that, I think my student could go very far, for a very long time, simply diligently going through the little selection of master games I would have provided, as long as the effort was real and coming from an engaged, questioning and active mind.
"Chess Fundamentals" - Capablanca
"My System" - Nimzovich
As tpr said, Chess Fundamentals by Capablanca is a really nice book that IMO every serious player should read thoroughly.
Go through 2 pages per day and you can finish it in 2 months.
What i would do is endgames first as everyone says that.. and i agree to. i have a book about endgames and since it is written in the era of chess engines it already has engine lines and i found the material a good start as well as coherent. u can check it out(understanding chess endgames by john nunn) after endgames though i dont know what i should do openings or middlegame. ope this advice was useful
You are so high rated and you call yourself begginer
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