@wargh Much appreciated! I'm here to help. The offer is extended to you as well.
@War_Machine_V2 Hmmm. That's an extremely involved question!
You're as correct to say that, as I'd be to say that moving a paint brush produces a painting.
-The paint must be produced.
-The canvas must be produced.
-The paint brush must be produced.
-The easel must be produced.
-A picture in the mind's eye must be produced.
-An intent to put that picture onto a canvas must be realized.
-An understanding that you can't paint things in the background before you paint things in the foreground, and many other such fundamentals must be observed.
But when we speak about 'painting', more than 'brush to canvas', there is a chief idea that actually seems to stand in the forefront, and that is the idea of "art" and "creativity".
When we see the tactical aspect of chess, we can add the mathematical and scientific aspect of "invention" to the equation as well.
Chess is the dream.
Chess is the imagination.
Chess is the intent.
Chess is the vision.
Chess is the plan.
Chess is the creativity.
Chess is the invention.
"**CHESS IS EFFECTIVELY DREAMING AS FAR AS THE TACTICS ALLOW.**"
- Onyx Chess
"When chess players stagnate/slump/plateau, it's often because we've put 'the dreaming process' on atuo-pilot." - Onyx Chess
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Yes. We're dealing with brand new content here.
There is a reason that you can hear someone explain 2+2=4, replicate it, apply it, answer 3+3=6 based on what you heard explained, and do math for the rest of your life through your own understanding.
There is a reason that you can't listen to 100s of hours of chess lectures and replicate the effect when it's time to make your move in your game.
There is an entire creative mandate involved, and that creative mandate hinges a lot on understanding, and perception, and efficient evaluation of a board position.
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Bad News? There is something different with GM brains that they can calculate as powerfully as they do. They are inhuman, and most of us will never do what they do. It's physically impossible.
Good News? While tactical capacity is the key to elite chess, it is not the key to good chess. There is plenty that can be learned and applied that we are leaving untapped. There are plenty of resources that remain completely unused... *particularly* when we accept the false premise that "what separates us from GMs is their tactical proficiency."
While that premise has *some* truth, it's not the whole truth, and it's certainly not the relevant truth.
Leaving aside the physical capacity to calculate...the relevant and more direct truth is the following statement:
"What separates lower-rated players from GMs, is the fact that GMs can name 5 things a piece does where it sits, while lower-rated players can only name 3." - Onyx Chess
This impacts the efficiency of the communication between their pieces...
...and effectively...
**...THEY ARE GETTING 5 MOVES FOR EVERY 3 MOVES THAT YOU MAKE!**
In addition to the obvious tempo advantages, particular tactical combinations are available to them that are invisible to us. Not because they're long or sharp or deep, but simply because GMs stay aware of where every piece is and the 5 different ways that it influences the board.
This is the primary reason we can't compete with GMs.
Their inhuman capacity to calculate is NOT!
When we get this through your minds...we can begin to access a powerful resource that all GMs depend upon, but none of us even know to look for, practice, or apply.
When we understand this, we can focus on learning to name 5 things each piece does, instead of the 3 that we're used to.
This is the Onyx Chess approach to chess improvement.
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I'm not sure why I'm typing this when this is all available through instruction and on-board examples in multiple videos. Some ideas are a little bit outdated, but for intents and purposes, most of these videos are a good watch. After imbalances, we'll tackle invention and creativity:
Watch from 36:30 for a small sample:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxfZeYek9Ik&list=PLwoSSBBPePE3kvVA_PLIXmrBuP3hhwhKz&index=3&t=0sEntire playlist is found here:
www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwoSSBBPePE3kvVA_PLIXmrBuP3hhwhKz