Temposchlucker

 With the London system I scored 8.5 out of 9. So it might seem logical to try to find a similar system for black. But that is not as easy as it seems. When you try to claim the same amount of space as white, you continue to feel the disadvantage of being a tempo behind. Besides that, there is a tendency to end up with symmetrical positions.  So I adopted a different idea for playing with black. I  take an asymmetrical approach as soon as possible. Thus dictating the course of the opening from the first moves on. Giving white a space advantage, usually at the cost of pawn minority in the center. So the long term prospects of black are OK, if I can ward off whites attack. The only problem being that I have to learn how to play chess.  But since that is something I wanted to learn anyway, that is just a minor drawback. It only takes some time. Learning a total new repertoire with black against everything  that white can throw at you is time consuming. How timecons...

 It minuten very wellicht look to YouTube Thatcher nothing is happening chesswise. But Thatcher is not the case. I study my New openingstijden for at leest half an hoor a Day dringend  Ermm.  Maybe I should change the language to English first.   It might look to you as if nothing is happening chesswise lately. But actually I'm working pretty hard on my new openings. I study every day for at least half an hour at chessable,  during a continuous streak of 72 days  in a row now. I have studied about 25% of all the variations I need to know. Besides that, I analyze my own games which I play at the club, I study the middle games that are the result of my new openings, and the ensuing endgames. All this is not really blogworthy,  I think. That's the reason why it is so  quiet here, lately. Sorry for that.

 Here you see a position from Vukovic' tome. It is a tactical position, and I think it is possible to apply the method of transfer. What are the preconditions of Vukovic for this attack? What are the salient points? What concepts can be derived that are transfer worthy to other analogue positions? Diagram 1. Black to move r1bqr1k1/ppp2ppp/2n2n2/2bppP2/4P3/1BPP1N2/PP2Q1PP/RNB1K2R b KQ - 1 1  I will give you some time for analysis and will update the post later in blue. UPDATE I Chessable course: Sac, sac, mate! (GM Simon Williams) Chapter 1: King in the middle  Source of the course: Art of Attack (Vukovic) Despite these giveaways,  I started to look at the position in my usual obtuse trial and error way. I dismissed Bxf5 as being not forceful enough. Only after quite some time, I revisited the move. With hindsight it is clear that we have the tabiya of the attack against the uncastled king here. Opening the e-file is the essential goal to strive for. Apparently this t...

 Now we discovered the way to transfer by analogy, I look for ways to train it in an efficient way. Munich pointed out, that you can have all your pieces fully activated in the center, you still have to wait for your opponent to make a mistake. I always like his very pragmatic approach to the game. There seem to be two methods to apply to this hickup in the game. The first is to apply the System of Nimzowitsch to get your center pawn mass in motion, by annihilating the blockade. I'm studying on that one. The second method, is to transit from the center to the attack method of Vukovic. It has been a long time wish of me to work out the preconditions for attack of Vukovic and to couple it to the occupation of the center. These two methods are geared around the two weaknesses in a game you are looking for, a weak pawn and a weak king. They are the natural targets of the chess game, because it are vulnerable sitting ducks. Nimzowitsch attempts to provoke a pawn weakness and then tries ...

 I started my new openings repertoire a year ago at the club after a 5 year break. I played in a group under 1700 and scored 9 out of 12 with it. This year I'm promoted to the group rated higher than 1700. I only knew the first three moves of each opening. The London System 1.d4 ... 2.Bf4 ... 3.e3 ... The Sniper 1. ... c5 2. ... g6 3. ... Bg7 The HAD 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 g6 3.d4  cxd4 The reason I scored well: I was the highest rated player in the group. Usually I score terribly against lower rated players though. I keep dropping half points due to time trouble. But since I'm no longer looking for the ultimate tactical shot every move, the time trouble is basically over. I look for ways to bolster the center, and give the opponent the chance to go astray. Which he usually does. This year I will be playing against higher rated players, so I will have to adapt a bit. I'm changing the move order here and there.  I play the London Jobava system, which is a bit more aggressive tha...

 The past month I have been working hard on my four new openings. I have become a premium member of Chessable, who have a nice concept of training with spaced repetition, combined with interactive study books. That might be the direction where chess books will be heading in the future. Rote learning of variations doesn't feel very effective. It is the lazy man's way. If you are good at rote learning. OTOH, doing nothing at all isn't very reassuring either with four totally unknown openings. Tonight the new club season starts. I look forward to see the openings in action. Once I feel confident with them, I will continue to play for guinea pig with our new tactical transfer system based on analogies.

 The following concepts emerged: A file is open when your own pawn is missing or hidden Ultimate goal of an open file is the penetration of the 7th or 8th rank There is no difference between play against a piece and against a point Attack the defenders of the entrance point A file is opened when the opponent trades a piece that is defended by a pwan Provoke such caption by placing your pieces in the center The file next to the exchanged piece will be opened Obstacles on the open file can be removed by piling up (evolutionary) Or by a sacrifice (revolutionary) An open file can be used as a rooklift A knight as outpost undermines the pawn that it is blocking by attacking its defending pawn An outpost must be supported by a pawn An knight as outpost provokes the defending pawn to step forward The power of an outpost is derived from the open file and the pieces and pawn behind it When an outpost is exchanged, and you take back with a pawn, the enemy pawn is blockaded. At the same time ...