@RNR1972 said in #19:
> I guess you have around 1750-1800 OTB rating. So, I advise you to study study strategy.
1750 FIDE equals about 2250-2400. 2000 equals about 1500+. Also, having a high OTB rating at these ties is hard as if you started during lockdown then you haven’t had the time to get it up so comparing it to OTB is pointless. Comparisons like this will make sense in about 1-3 years.
@OMMISH If it comes to your question, there are many answers. You can of course do puzzles, but I think there is more to that. After the puzzle, if you got it wrong, check the correct line using stockfish. Don’t do hundreds of puzzles a day - you’ll start to get tired and eventually you’ll get every single puzzle wrong. However, doing puzzles isn’t everything. I think building a good, non-dubious repertoire is important, to get good positions from which you can build on. Just picking some opening isn’t good enough. It depends on your playing style really. It depends on the following:
Aggressive or positional?
Aggressive: go for the attack. Gambits are great, and there is another really good way to get attacks which is to find a positional opening from which you can launch an unexpected attack and crush your opponent. For example, I play the Queen’s Gambit even though I’m an aggressive player. However, I can stand a dynamical and positional battle. If your constantly eager to attack, I wouldn’t play some boring e4 opening either. I think the Evan’s Gambit is easily defeated as black, Scotch gambit isn’t much of an attack either, so I think some of the openings that are best for an aggressive player are the King’s Gambit, The (sort of) mysterious Danish Gambit, or any other gambit/attacking like openings. Playing against the King’s Indian Defence is always fun if you play d4, with attacks galore. If you can stand a positional battle but prefer to attack, most definitely go for d4 (Queen’s Gambit or Catalan), e4 (Ruy Lopez). This is an ideal repertoire for the attacking player. As black play something that equalises and gives you attacking chances, so probably something like e5 against e4 and the KID or Nimzo-Indian against d4.
Positional: go for a calm game. Avoid attacking stuff and try to get positions with tons of manoeuvres. Try to play something like the Giuoco Pianissimo, a really boring QG with no attack or a Reti/English sort of thing. As black you can play the Caro-Kann, or a specifically solid French - both are good lines to opt for as they both stop a messy position from appearing on the board. Blocked positions where you can have a comforting practical battle are always nice as a positional player (at least I think that because I’m not quite a positional player). You should be able to find nice, concrete plans which may be your advantage over the opponent. Aim for an equal middlegame and always examine the position carefully to see if you can avoid unnecessary complications. Find a solution to playing against gambits because they could get you out of the book and get you into a sharp position which you are likely to make a blunder in.
Of course you should play consistently and with care, avoid ub and bullet. Play blitz and analyse the game afterwards.I suggest 3+2. This way flagging is minimalized. Test openings in blitz and play rapid to test how much you spend time on each move. Try to think quite a bit, not just 10-30 secs a move. This won’t help you win - you have to keep thinking to the last second. Don’t panic under time pressure either. Study middlegame strategies and positions, and you gradually you will master this part of the game. Study endgames as well.
I hope this helps you achieve your goal.
