Intermediate player: How can I improve my game and go further?

Experts tend to say that you should focus on tactics.
And it’s really all you need for now. It helped me improve my game a lot.
Most of the games are decided by very simple tactics. The more of them you see, the higher chances you will win the match.

@PTX187 said in #8:

Learn -> Study -> Staff Picks
When did that feature come though?

I enjoy watching YouTube videos of IMs/GM analzying master games or player lower rated subscribers. Some of my favorate include GothemChess and his "Win At Chess" series, GM Ben Findgold's "Great Players of The Past" and IM John Bartholomew "Standard Chess and Chess Fundamentals"

I am most definitely not a strong player, but I have improved a little by following these principles:

• slow down
• before thinking about my move - consider what is my opponent trying to do?
• before moving - consider opponents response and where this will leave me?

Unfortunately I rarely follow my own advice which is why I am not a strong player.

I do like Arihol's comments re chess.com. I stopped playing there because they have 10/0 in the same rating category as 30/0 and even 60/0 which doesn't make sense to me. Also I am somehow in the top 7% but ranked about 750,000 which doesn't make a lot of sense either.

@Akbar2thegreat said in #12:

When did that feature come though?
I don't know

@Epko99 said in #1:

Hello ...

Hi

I create this post to try to understand how I can improve my game, I am currently at level 1523 and it has been an incredible improvement, considering that almost a year ago I was at my lowest score ever which is 739.

Yes, it's a big improvement.

... I notice is that I don't understand the exact moment to "hit" my opponent and above all I have poor calculation skills and general vision of the board, sometimes I have no patience and I lose a piece because maybe I have not seen the bishop at the bottom of the board.

So basically you answered your question how to improve.

I consider myself a defensive player but as soon as he has the opportunity to attack, I try to finish the game quickly.

I wouldn't call that defensive style.

What I ask you is: what should I do to improve my game and raise the level? Recommend everything, videos, books, whatever.

Puzzle collection books (such books are usually very tough so you should solve only easy puzzles), Silman's Endgame course, analysing your classical games.

Also on what I have to practice and for how long I have to do it.

As have been said practice board vision, memory, calculation and patience. Nothing comes overnight. You need at least two years of training before you can speak of chances in lichess open arenas.

@PTX187 said in #15:

I don't know
Oh, I thought I was only one who didn't know about the arrival of the feature.

How Long Do You Have To Do It ? ................ Why ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, The Rest of your Life IF YOU WANT TO NOT IF YOU HAVE TO. If you Love Chess it might Love you back a bit' but only if you do heh' ... Study Play Play Study ... @Epko99

@Epko99 said in #1:

I generally know the tactics but the thing I notice is that I don't understand the exact moment to "hit" my opponent and above all I have poor calculation skills and general vision of the board,

Well, dont get discouraged, thats exactly the hurdle at that level. Everyone gets stuck there for a while until they figure out what to study next. But luckily for you, we are here, so you dont have to figure it out, we can explain it.

There are exactly 4 topics you have to study.

But im going to explain it a bit further so you get the point.

At that level, everyone knows how to move the pieces and to mate, but sometimes the actual game is understood as a battle between 2 armies or something among the lines.

The game is all about square control. I know you understand this at some level, but probably have not actually thought deeply about it. When you are able to identify the key squares in the given position, you can predict the opponent moves, as he will also fight to control them, and ultimately, the one who gets control of the key squares will usually win. And key squares are so important, that in order to get control of those squares, you spmetimes have to let something go.

So go ahead and read about middle game, which is all about square control. Its not about tactics. The tactics just open up when you control those squares, The tactics you get might arise by coincidence, but the reality is that you set them up by controlling squares prior. Tactics aside, square control and identifying them is the most important part of the middle game.

2.- Is an extension of this. To get control of the key squares, you need pieces, but you need specific pieces given the position, as not all of them can actually control said key squares..

Sometimes you have to let go the exchange in order to get uncontested control over the squares. Said in other words. The pieces have "predetermined values" (rook = 5, knight 3, bishop 3.25~, queen 9, pawn 1). But the reality is that the values vary according to the squares they control. If the key square is dark, and your only piece is a light square bishop, that bishop has a value of 0. If the rook is in the corner trapped, it has no value, its useless. if the pawn is in the 7th rank, or controls the only square where a knight can land, it is more valuable than 1 point. So always value the pieces according to the key squares they control, not their predetermined value.

So, if you give material, but the opponets extra material has no play, it is as if there is no material advantage at all.

But in essence, there are 3 valuable things in chess. 1.- raw material. If you are ahead and are not going to be mated in the next couple of moves, once you stabilize the position, you will just probably overwhelm with material.

Position, aka control of key squares. If you control them, you dictate the flow of the game, regardless of material imbalance in certain positions.

Tempos or development. If you have extra develpment, you have extra tempos to launch an attack, and you should arrive earlier than the defenders because, well, you have tempo advantage.

You know this, but the key point is this. Those 3 things have value. And that value is interchangeable, unless you have a direct source on whats the exchange rate, you will have to learn the hard way, like i did. But in essence:

• You can exchange material for tempos or control of key squares.
• You can exchange tempos to gain material or position
• You can exchange position to get tempos or material.

The hardest part is to evaluate any given exchange of this 3 things, to know if its actually worth it. But once you get the hang of it, at least partially, you will be able to calculate to a good degree if you can make a piece sacrifice for an attack, give the exchange up to get an attack on your own, if you have the tempos to grab a piece and return to the defense, and keeping the game roughtly even despite the material imbalance. So understanding material imbalance will help you to get control of the game.

Obviously you wont play like alphazero, but here is an example on what im saying.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dT6CR9_6l4&t=1s&ab_channel=GothamChess

3.- Initiative. You know what it is,if you dont, google it, but if you do, i can bet you that you dont try to maintain it. It changes hands like a basketball in your games. You have to try to maintain it specially if you willingly sacrificed material for tempos for instance.. Material for tempo is an equal exchange, you give up material, you get to attack first and your opponent gets the lesser position, but if you make useless moves, aka, losing the initiative, the opponent will stabilize and overwhelm you with the extra material.

Study about maintaining the initiative. Its so powerful that you can win games when down material. or will give you advantages from seemingly equal positions. This forces the opponent to respond defensively, giving him no room of winning at all.

And 4. Counterplay. Counterplay means that you are making threats, that you are attempting to win the game, or having a win condition, your attack is making progress.

There are many times where your opponent is attacking you, and you are parrying succesfully. but your game is 100% defensive. Your chances of winning are zero. Maybe the game is drawn, but you never got a chance to win. Those types of play are excellent for the attacking player, as there is almost no risk to lose, winning is a posibility, and draw at worst.

So you always need try to create counterplay, or chances of winning for yourself.. Maybe there is a moment where the opponent is squeezing you, but he made a lazy move and he let go a bit. Instead of making the "safe move" to solidify your position and dont allow him any extra attacking chances, thats the initiative he let go, and you try to seize it by making an aggressive move that will force him to defend and get his pieces to defensive positions, removing them from the attack.

Or, if you payed attention, you can for instance, do a "lesser exchange" say, trade your useless rook for his dominant bishop, get the control of the key squares, and he now will be on the defensive, unless he gives the material back, but you are creating your chances of winning, instead of a 1 sided game.

But at the end of the day. The game is all about dominating key squares and creating winning chances out from an equal ish position. There is a lot of trial and error to understand the different ways you can get control (or not letting you opponent get control) of said squares. But if you are able to identify them, calculating is easy, as you know what they are trying to control and you can counter, or if you know where the key squares are, how to shuffle your pieces also becomes easy, as you have a goal.

However, if you dont know what they are trying to control or what their game plan is, you wont know which line to calculate as suddently all moves become candidate moves. You have no idea.

Learn to identify key squares and the methods to get control over them. Thats it.