How to apply what I've learned in tactics to a game? - Chess Forums

Yawn-khriztoph-Dodo

Jun 18, 2019

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#1

I'm almost 1900 in tactics I can see them fairly well. I just can't seem to find/or force them in a game. SOMEONE PLEASE HELP...

kindaspongey

Jun 18, 2019

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#2

"... This book is the first volume in a series of manuals designed for players who are building the foundations of their chess knowledge. The reader will receive the necessary basic knowledge in six areas of the game - tactcs, positional play, strategy, the calculation of variations, the opening and the endgame. ... To make the book entertaining and varied, I have mixed up these different areas, ..." - GM Artur Yusupov

Yawn-khriztoph-Dodo

Jun 18, 2019

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#3

Ok I'll look at it, thanks!

kindaspongey

Jun 18, 2019

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#4

That particular book is pretty demanding, and may or may not be what you want at this point. To me, the point is that your problem may be, in part, the result of insufficient attention to nontactical issues.

Yawn-khriztoph-Dodo

Jun 18, 2019

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#5

So how much do you think it has helped your game? Yes I looked on Amazon he has many books, with good reviews. What title do you recommend?

kindaspongey

Jun 18, 2019

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#6

I would not be a good indication of what you could expect. For one thing, I have not done more than browse through the books, and, in any event, my rating seems to be well below yours. You may want to look at these threads with comments by people who seem to have been working on the books.

https://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/yusupov-and-the-older-lower-rated-player

https://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/yusupovs-award-winning-training-course

I suggest that you look carefully at available samples and reviews before buying. If you do decide to go for it, you should probably know that the correct reading order is Build 1, Boost 1, Evolution 1, Exam 1, Build 2, Boost 2, Evolution 2, Build 3, Boost 3, Evolution 3.

mariners234

Jun 18, 2019

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#7

Yawn-khriztoph-Dodo wrote:

I'm almost 1900 in tactics I can see them fairly well. I just can't seem to find/or force them in a game. SOMEONE PLEASE HELP...

Sometimes I'll see a position, and because I know it's a puzzle, the first thing I'm calculating is a crazy sacrifice I'd never seriously consider in a real game.

Sometimes in a game I'll assume there are no tactics, and make a move based on general considerations without calculating anything forcing.

In some sense, both of the above are mistakes. When solving a puzzle, don't just guess a move that look like a tactic, try to justify it with calculation to the extent you'd actually play it in a real game. And in a game, don't ever assume there are no tactics. Always do at least a little bit of calculation of forcing moves.

Puzzle solving has two main benefits:

1) You learn new patterns.
To make sure you're actually learning, save puzzles you've missed or puzzles you find interesting. Review them later.

2) You reinforce good calculation habits.
In puzzle solving and in games, you're ideally looking for forcing moves, and being thorough in your calculations.

mariners234

Jun 18, 2019

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#8

But yeah, like spongey is suggesting, "tactics flow from a superior position"

So to get to use tactics it helps to know some openings, strategy, and endgames too.

drmrboss

Jun 18, 2019

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#9

Step 1. Create tactical position by yourself.( positional understanding)

Step 2. Apply tactics.

Almost all tactics trainers lack step 1, that is why people who have good tactics do not play effectively in real game.

How to do step 1?

In this position , playing Rc1 is planning to apply step 2 tactics with Bxa6( overloaded piece).

In this position Step 1 is a3!!.

Then you see b4 tactics( pinned pawn).

This is just one move tactics. Deeper tactics requires more deeper positional understanding ( step 1) to create more complicated tactics (step 2).

Yawn-khriztoph-Dodo

Jun 19, 2019

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#10

Marines234 That makes sense thanks. I dont have the ability to calculate that deep in my head yet but I'm working on it!

Yawn-khriztoph-Dodo

Jun 19, 2019

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#11

Marines234 That makes sense thanks. I dont have the ability to calculate that deep in my head yet but I'm working on it!

Yawn-khriztoph-Dodo

Jun 19, 2019

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#12

Yawn-khriztoph-Dodo wrote:

Marines234 That makes sense thanks. I dont have the ability to calculate that deep in my head yet but I'm working on it!

drmrboss if you have time could you play me a game so I can see what you mean?

eric0022

Jun 19, 2019

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#13

Yawn-khriztoph-Dodo wrote:

I'm almost 1900 in tactics I can see them fairly well. I just can't seem to find/or force them in a game. SOMEONE PLEASE HELP...

It's more difficult to execute a winning tactic (even if by a small increase in advantage only) on the board than solve a tactic in the tactics puzzle series, probably for these reasons.

1. You know that there exists a winning line in a tactics puzzle (why else would it even come up as a puzzle?) and all you need to do is to calculate several possibilities. In an actual game, no one is there to tell you that a tactic exists. Most of the time, no tactics even exist.

2. Tactics puzzles are a compilation of compositions and/or past games of players and hence there are lots of puzzles for you to train from. There are probably a greater number of existing tactics puzzles in the world than the number of chess games you have played in your entire life.

It does take observation and patience to spot a tactic. Sometimes, even what appears to be a tactic is actually a bad move.

eric0022

Jun 19, 2019

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#14

A position from one of my recent few games (at the time of writing) against one of my local chess friends.

Black has just played Qd8-e7.

eric0022

Jun 19, 2019

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#15

Here is a game with some tactics involved at two instances in the game. I won this game as White on Chess.com against one of my chess club friends two years ago, having barely escaped a potential turnaround of the game around move 25.

eric0022

Jun 19, 2019

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#16

Yet another position in which I was White in the game. I ended up winning a game I should not have, because Black missed this one winning tactic in the actual game (in defence, Black had approximately 32 seconds left). Try to find out what Black should play. Black to move.

ykshendra

Nov 25, 2023

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#17

eric0022 wrote:

A position from one of my recent few games (at the time of writing) against one of my local chess friends.

hey ive been doing good at solving puzzles but get stuck during the actual game can you suggest me on how to think ahead and apply the knowledge of puzzles

Black has just played Qd8-e7.

eric0022

Nov 26, 2023

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#18

marinnkitagawa wrote:

eric0022 wrote:

A position from one of my recent few games (at the time of writing) against one of my local chess friends.

hey ive been doing good at solving puzzles but get stuck during the actual game can you suggest me on how to think ahead and apply the knowledge of puzzles

Black has just played Qd8-e7.

.

There is no magic secret to this, and I did this the long and hard way. I tried to look out for tactics during my early days and just played randomly to see if they worked.

.

I lost too many games by doing so, but the moment I scored a win out of a tactic, I gained belief in it, and started to realise that the tactical training turned out to be applicable in my games.

.

Once the first occasion worked, I continued to attempt it - it takes me fewer losses to get to the second success - and so on.