i bought the book endgames beginner to master and go through that from time to time... i've read it like 5 times but always forget things sometimes.. most of the time...
ok i'm not gonna read through all the posts before so someone else might've mentioned everything i'm about to say already
there is theory hacks endgame course for free on chessable(link: www.chessable.com/basic-endgames/course/6371/) but from your original post it looks like what you want is not to be better at endgames but to be better at trading down to an endgame, i cant really help much with that except try to make safer moves and don't trade more unless you are actually up on material
in this game you traded off the rooks on move 32 when you were just down a pawn, it was probably losing anyway but trading rooks was what ended the game a lot quicker, instead you could've tried to hold on to all your material until your opponent blunders(if you want to play on from there a pawn down your only hope is if your opponent messes up)
in this game you simply overlooked the fact your opponent could trade their pieces for your pawn
sorry if this is no help whatsoever endgames aren't exactly my strongpoint either
there is theory hacks endgame course for free on chessable(link: www.chessable.com/basic-endgames/course/6371/) but from your original post it looks like what you want is not to be better at endgames but to be better at trading down to an endgame, i cant really help much with that except try to make safer moves and don't trade more unless you are actually up on material
in this game you traded off the rooks on move 32 when you were just down a pawn, it was probably losing anyway but trading rooks was what ended the game a lot quicker, instead you could've tried to hold on to all your material until your opponent blunders(if you want to play on from there a pawn down your only hope is if your opponent messes up)
in this game you simply overlooked the fact your opponent could trade their pieces for your pawn
sorry if this is no help whatsoever endgames aren't exactly my strongpoint either
That doesn't keep sense. Show game where it happened only then one can tell how to play it properly.
Also, if your 'endgame' definition is one having 13 points on either side, then you should look forward to Silman's Complete Endgame Course.
Also, if your 'endgame' definition is one having 13 points on either side, then you should look forward to Silman's Complete Endgame Course.
> Then I took some of the games used to generate that insight:
>
> lichess.org/SLcJP4Ei/white
>
If you check the opening explorer percentages on the lichess database, by the end of move 4 you were already screwed. Fix that opening,
> lichess.org/crDx4wmC/black
>
Move 5 is Qe7 in that opening. But i see that you trade just for the sake of trading. You lack understanding of initiative and you have poor understanding of pawn structures.
> lichess.org/udUJKm8e/white
Same stuff
>
> lichess.org/LROOreuk/black
Yep, trading just because. Watch this. Trading just because trading in move 29 BxN, costed you .1, its not much, but check that position, even material right?, but notice the difference between the quality of your rooks and queen vs the quality of his rooks and queen.
Who is attacking? You. That is called initiative. If you keep the pressure, he cant attack. The engine was giving you -1 (you were black, 1 point advantage, and 1.5 because he capture it wrong) on even material because you had a passed pawn. He cannot attack it if you wont let go the attack yourself.
But what happens just after? Ra7. Notice the drop on the advantage. 1.9 points, you almost gave 2 pawns worth because you stopped your attack.
I mean, you have to value your attack. As you can see, its worth points. I have gotten positions with +7 or more on even material, just because i had a strong attack and very good piece activity.
Who cares about a lousy pawn if you have a mate treath? You dont need to protect the pawn because the moment he goes hunting it, he soften his defense and you strike.
So first, go ahead and search whatever source you can about initiative and how to maintain it. You will never get good if you dont improve at having and maintaining initiative, It is your main problem.
The second you need to search, its about pawn structures, you are setting them up wrong. I mean, we all do, and sometimes you cant do much about it, but, at least you will be able to avoid certain unfavorable structures when possible.
And lastly, You gotta value the pieces. a bishop is worth more than a knight in late game. If it has to be done, by all means, trade a BxN, but dont trade your centralized bishop for the backrank knight, come on.
If the knight is in an outpost, take it down, if its a key defender, go ahead but on the backrank? where is just messing the connection of the major pieces with no attacking prospects?
Your centipawn loses are because you dont understand what you are doing.
Trading just for trading also reduces your chance of mating, its easier to mate with 3+ pieces than with 2. If you factor in that you have only like 2 pieces at the end, drop the initiative and have a bad pawn structure, its a recipe for disaster.
Im not telling you not to trade, what im telling you is that you trade because you can, and more often than not, you are the one trading.
Trade when an opponent piece is strong and yours isnt.
Trade when the exchange will give an opponent a weakness, either a bad pawn structure, to deviate defence of other places, misplace a piece, or even just a tempo (thats how you build initiative to begin with, being 1 tempo ahead).
Dont trade your strong piece for his weak piece unless you have to. If he is not treatening you to capture you nor forcing you to move Leave the piece there. Most exceptions are when you can capture a bishop with your knight. If he can move at any point, most of the times you do have to capture, because, as i said, bishops are stronger in the late game.
I mean, check your games with the engine, specifically when you trade or when you propose a trade, you will see a trend that you lose points, not necessarily because you lost the exchange, but because you traded a good piece for a bad piece, or a piece that you should have kept. Dont traje just because you can. Trade when it gives you something in return.
However, there are certain techniques to be able to exploit that advantage, make sure you study how to dominate a knight with your bishop too.
Your problems are not the endings themselves. Are those topics i mentioned. Your ending goes south because those mistakes you make will give you a bad endgame result by themselves. When you combine them, i mean, you shouldnt even win endgames at all. That combination of mistakes is deadly, for you.
>
> lichess.org/SLcJP4Ei/white
>
If you check the opening explorer percentages on the lichess database, by the end of move 4 you were already screwed. Fix that opening,
> lichess.org/crDx4wmC/black
>
Move 5 is Qe7 in that opening. But i see that you trade just for the sake of trading. You lack understanding of initiative and you have poor understanding of pawn structures.
> lichess.org/udUJKm8e/white
Same stuff
>
> lichess.org/LROOreuk/black
Yep, trading just because. Watch this. Trading just because trading in move 29 BxN, costed you .1, its not much, but check that position, even material right?, but notice the difference between the quality of your rooks and queen vs the quality of his rooks and queen.
Who is attacking? You. That is called initiative. If you keep the pressure, he cant attack. The engine was giving you -1 (you were black, 1 point advantage, and 1.5 because he capture it wrong) on even material because you had a passed pawn. He cannot attack it if you wont let go the attack yourself.
But what happens just after? Ra7. Notice the drop on the advantage. 1.9 points, you almost gave 2 pawns worth because you stopped your attack.
I mean, you have to value your attack. As you can see, its worth points. I have gotten positions with +7 or more on even material, just because i had a strong attack and very good piece activity.
Who cares about a lousy pawn if you have a mate treath? You dont need to protect the pawn because the moment he goes hunting it, he soften his defense and you strike.
So first, go ahead and search whatever source you can about initiative and how to maintain it. You will never get good if you dont improve at having and maintaining initiative, It is your main problem.
The second you need to search, its about pawn structures, you are setting them up wrong. I mean, we all do, and sometimes you cant do much about it, but, at least you will be able to avoid certain unfavorable structures when possible.
And lastly, You gotta value the pieces. a bishop is worth more than a knight in late game. If it has to be done, by all means, trade a BxN, but dont trade your centralized bishop for the backrank knight, come on.
If the knight is in an outpost, take it down, if its a key defender, go ahead but on the backrank? where is just messing the connection of the major pieces with no attacking prospects?
Your centipawn loses are because you dont understand what you are doing.
Trading just for trading also reduces your chance of mating, its easier to mate with 3+ pieces than with 2. If you factor in that you have only like 2 pieces at the end, drop the initiative and have a bad pawn structure, its a recipe for disaster.
Im not telling you not to trade, what im telling you is that you trade because you can, and more often than not, you are the one trading.
Trade when an opponent piece is strong and yours isnt.
Trade when the exchange will give an opponent a weakness, either a bad pawn structure, to deviate defence of other places, misplace a piece, or even just a tempo (thats how you build initiative to begin with, being 1 tempo ahead).
Dont trade your strong piece for his weak piece unless you have to. If he is not treatening you to capture you nor forcing you to move Leave the piece there. Most exceptions are when you can capture a bishop with your knight. If he can move at any point, most of the times you do have to capture, because, as i said, bishops are stronger in the late game.
I mean, check your games with the engine, specifically when you trade or when you propose a trade, you will see a trend that you lose points, not necessarily because you lost the exchange, but because you traded a good piece for a bad piece, or a piece that you should have kept. Dont traje just because you can. Trade when it gives you something in return.
However, there are certain techniques to be able to exploit that advantage, make sure you study how to dominate a knight with your bishop too.
Your problems are not the endings themselves. Are those topics i mentioned. Your ending goes south because those mistakes you make will give you a bad endgame result by themselves. When you combine them, i mean, you shouldnt even win endgames at all. That combination of mistakes is deadly, for you.
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