Reached 2000 in all variants :-p

@JSorel37
Well done buddy, if i were to give you some advices
Those would probably be to play some faster time controls too!
I mean, not really but for fun you can do try some faster tcs!
Anyways congratulations on your achievement
I too reached 2000+ all variants 5-6 months ago!
:D

Wow!!!

good for you. you are special.

@Parth0512 said in #11:
> @JSorel37
> Well done buddy, if i were to give you some advices
> Those would probably be to play some faster time controls too!
> I mean, not really but for fun you can do try some faster tcs!
> Anyways congratulations on your achievement
> I too reached 2000+ all variants 5-6 months ago!
> :D

Hi @Parth0512 , thanks! Actually, I almost always play 3 2, it suites me well :-) Congrats too for reaching 2000+ in every variant!

@hardbitten said in #13:
> good for you. you are special.

That's very kind, but I don't think so :-)

Three-check : I started with some patetic losses like this one: lichess.org/JXrTq0hLODmQ :p My main tip is this one : usually it's not a good idea to sacrifice a piece for juste one check. Otherwise, it may be interesting to sacrifice even a lot of material for 2 checks. The analysis showed sometimes wonderful variations with many sacrifices. I think that 3-check suits well to tactical players.
With black, I started with 1... e6, then switched to 1... c5 and 2... e6, which gives more space to black imho... and space is very important.
Keep in mind than if you can give a check with your queen, you'll be able to give a second check right after.
This is one of my nicest wins: lichess.org/uwUXIGlm ; in the final position, black is hopeless.

Crazyhouse : really interesting variant, with no endgames and fantastic tactics. I used to answer e5 to 1. e4, but switched to 1... Nf6 and 2... d5!? in case of 2. e5. I still don't fully understand why this works... I suppose it's about building some kind of fortresses around black king. Queen sacrifices happen much more frequently than in normal chess. Initiative is very important.

Thanks a lot

@Haymarket said in #19:
> Congratulations!
>
> Do you have opinions on rating comparisons between variants - is the "smartness" or cunningness level at certain rating points same across all variants, or do you need to plan more profoundly in one variant than in another at the same rating level?
> I guess all variants should supposedly be inflated vs chess which has overwhelming majority of players, but have you noticed differences between (other) variants?

Thanks :-)
Very interesting question. I have not the definitive answer, but here are some ideas :

1. In lichess, getting to 2000 in chess960 is much more difficult than getting to 2000 in standard chess. 2300 blitz correlates well with 2000 in chess960

2. The more a variant is different from normal chess, the more difficult it is to get to expert level (2000) for a player already expert in normal chess... of course :) Likewise, this difference make it easier to get an expert level for someone who is not expert in normal chess. In my experience, antichess is the most different variant, followed by atomic.