what are some I guess main rules I should follow in a chess game?

1.Castle or always be one move away from castling

2. Are there any tactics I can exploit?

3. Hanging pieces?

4. What is my plan?

5. What is my opponent's plan?

6. Can I stop my opponent's plan?

7. Can my opponent stop my plan?

8. What can I do to prevent my opponent from preventing my plan?

9. Is this trade good for me?

10. If I move X pawn here, will that weaken my structure, leave me vulnerable?

11. Did the opponent's move leave him/her vulnerable?

12. Much more than I forgot lol

MrDisinfectant beat me to it. I would've said pretty much the same thing.

A good tool to have is prophylactic thinking, which is effectively asking yourself what you think your opponent's plan is, and how you can prevent that from happening.

Like always ask yourself "why did my opponent make that move? What are they trying to accomplish?" And then see if you can stop them from achieving their goals.

Ben Finegold´s tips for beginners:

1. Get your pieces out and castle

2. Two bishops, what else? (Trade a knight for a bishop and get the bishop pair)

3. Never play f3 (or f6)

4. C4 is explosive

5. Nf5 is a great square for the knight, or as Ben would say, Knife f5

6. If you play g6 (or g3) you should play Bg7 (or Bg2)

7. If you have a pawn on the seventh that can't be taken for free, it's worth more than a rook.

8. Always play Bf8 (or Bf1)

9. Move your king up in the endgame

10. Always retreat (like a Frenchman)

11. Always repeat

12. Never resign

13. Never trade

14. Always trade bad pieces for good pieces.

15. Sacrifice the exchange (or: sacrificing the exchange is not sacrificing)

16. If your king is two squares in front of your pawn, the only drawing move is King takes pawn (the Finegold rule)

17. If your opponent plays f4, always play exf4

18. If your opponent's pawn is on b5, play a4

19. Double up on the bubble up  (put two rooks on the same file)

20. As Lisa Simpson would say: A blockaded bishop is of little value.

21. Opposite colored bishops is not always a draw. Especially if there are still rooks on the board.

22. If you open with e4 (or d4) and your opponent lets you, you want to play d4 (or e4)

23. Put it in h

"64 Commandments" of Chess by Bruce Pandolfini...

https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell/64-commandments-of-chess-by-bruce-pandolfini

Oh, so good rules for a beginner.

My Lord, it's strategic advices already.

They would be useful even for a very advanced player.

test