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I made a religion

And here are the commandments.

1.- You shall play for the initiative.
2- Make a plan before you move so your moves have purpose.
3.- You will fight for center control.
4.- You will Develop your pieces fast.
5.- Do will not move the same piece twice during the opening unless you are forced to do so.
6.- You shall not block in your bishops.
7.- You shall create a castle for your king.
8.- You shall not bring the queen to the open unless is safe.
9.- Your rooks must control open columns.
10.- If you must lose material, get something for it if possible (position, or development work).

And many other rules.

If you are losing, dont play defensively. Look for counterplay.
Exchange pieces if it helps your development. Dont exchange them if it slow you, or accelerate your opponent's development.
Pieces belong on squares that give them maximum control of the board.
knights towards the center.
Calculate forced moves first.
Don't sacrifice a piece without good reason.
If you only have one bishop, put your pawns on its opposite color.
Double rooks or double rook and queen on open files and/or columns.
If your opponent is cramped, don't exchange until you can punish.
Keep an eye for tactics and combinations.
Assume your opponent's move is the best move always.
If in doubt about a loose piece/ sacrifice being a trap or a blunder, test his might. Accept it.
Sometimes key squares are vacant or not controlled. Control them first.
Attack with several pieces. with 1 piece rarely is mate, with 2 can often be easily defended in a move.
Once a pawn formation is set, beware of altering it prematurely, it cant be undone.
Rooks behind passed pawns.
When ahead, first force your opponents pieces to the defense. Once everything tied up. Look for an exchange to weaken his position. Do not, i repeat, do not expose your king before that.
Rook endgames are to common. Study them
Bishops are worth more than knights in the endgame. Try to keep both.
A knight works better with any piece than another knight..
A defensive opponent cant attack. Play aggressive.
Ratings dont count for a thing in a game. Dont get intimidated.
Your opponent made a move for a reason (usually). Find it before you move.
Always play to score. If you cant win, look a way to force a draw.
Everyone blunders. Better players just blunder less often.

Chessmen.

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