French Attack exchange variation question

I have a question about the French Attack exchange variation that I haven't been able to find covered in the BlackMood Openings starter course. After the initial exchange leaving pawns on d4 and d5, how should we handle our f8 bishop if white's next move is Nc3? The recommended position for this bishop is d6, but of course this will block the queen from protecting the d5 pawn which is now under attack. Trying to add protection to the d5 pawn and then move the bishop to d6 seems to interfere with the overall setup recommended in the course in various ways:

1) Moving Nf6 blocks the f7 pawn, and GM Avetik repeatedly recommends against putting the knight in this position during the course
2) Moving Ne7 puts the knight in the recommended position but blocks the f8 bishop from going to d6
3) Moving the pawn to c6 blocks the b8 knight from its recommended position

So is there a good adaptation for the aggressive setup recommended in the course for this scenario? I'm never quite sure how to play this and I see it fairly often at my level.

Replies

with nc3, we play bb4 instead of bishop on d6. for more info look at this thread :

https://chessmood.com/forum/main-channel/french-exchange-after-5-nc3-3467

Hi, very interesting point. I had exactly the same problem in one of my otb games. Silly cate suggests playing Bb4 pinning the c3 knight. But this line comes after the sequence:

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 exd5 4. Nf3 Nc6 5. Nc3 Bb4

If I am not wrong, Dave is asking for the reply against 4.Nc3, on the 4th move, not on the 5th. That is:

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 exd5 4. Nc3

During a streaming game, I saw Gabo made the move 4…c6, which protects the d5 pawn and allow us to play Bd6 on our next move, and continue with Ne7-Bg5, etc. I guess this is the right sequence to play. (Obviously, we cannot play c6 if we already have our knight on c6, so c6 is valid only against 4.Nc3 and not against 4.Nf3 followed by 5.Nc3, for which we have to switch to the plan with 5…Bb4)

By the way, I read in previous forum messages that a French attack main course is programmed in the future. Anyone has an idea on when can we expect to have this step-by-step course? I've been using the simplified French attack with Blacks, and I'm now in a point in which I have to decide if I keep playing French or if I should move to the main reccommendation for Black and play Accelerated Dragon against 1.e4

The Power of Self-Belief in Chess

Replies

Inspiring and motivating...thanks so much for sharing...most of these stories are unheard but they carry more weight and value that should steer the chess world in the right direction...we are privileged to have a team of quality support emotionally and realistically...thank you so much

90% of my failures belong to this problem...Thanks a lot for choosing such common and important themes and of course for your motivation! 

2.0 begins

Rapid time management and focus woes!

Hi everyone,

I know many of you hereon Chessmood are much higher rated than me, but I'm hoping to get some advice from anyone who's battled similar challenges at the lower ELO levels. I've been stuck around 600 ELO for a few months now, bouncing between 600 and 550, with occasional dips down to 520. I primarily play rapid games with a 15/10 time control.

Here's the problem: My gameplay consistency suffers due to time management issues. If my opponent plays blitz-style, I feel pressured to respond quickly, which often leads to blunders. Conversely, if the game progresses slowly with both of us using the full time, I find myself losing focus and making careless mistakes late in the game due to fatigue.

An additional twist:  While I find middlegame tactics interesting, I confess to having a particular fascination with queenless endgames.  Perhaps this is affecting my overall approach to the game.

Looking for advice:

How can I improve my time management skills in rapid games? Are there specific strategies for handling opponents who play blitz or slow down the pace?
Do you recommend any training exercises for maintaining focus throughout a longer game, especially considering my fondness for queenless endgames (which can be quite tricky!)?
Any general tips for breaking through a rating plateau around the 600 ELO mark, while also incorporating my interest in improving queenless endgame technique?
Thanks in advance for your insights!

Replies

Hello,
Although i may not be able to answer all of your questions, i can try and give you suggestions on some certain topics.
First of all, when your opponent plays bullet/blitz style, don't be tempted to play a move! Control your impulses, and unless the move is in theory, try to look for anything that could be possibly wrong with that move. I suggest refraining from blitz games for this, try to develop the discipline to not impulsively play a move (this topic is covered in blunderproof course, section 10.)
Don't try to overthink each position/move, they might cause you possible time trouble. 
I don't have a specific strategy maintain focus on longer games, other than just playing more and more games. For the first time, it will be hard, but it will be more natural to you the more you play and focus longer.
To break through 600 elo mark, i suggest reading the study plans for beginners: https://chessmood.com/chess-study-plans/for-beginners
If you wan't to play queenless endgames, try to play some set positions on queenless endgames (either you create one or find a drawish position) with a training partner. You can find one in the forums if don't have one. Alternatively, you can play these positions against some bots. (for me, its the maia bot)
Hope i helped you with something!
 

Dear Csaba,

We just checked the courses that you worked on and we realised that you just started Tactic Ninja. Please concentrate solely on this course, do one section each day, learn the patterns. 
Read and follow the study plan since it is created for you, one step at a time. https://chessmood.com/chess-study-plans/for-beginners
💪Then everything will be easier, but do them in the order layed out in the program. Tactic Ninja is the course that will impact more your progress. May the Chessmood force be with you! 😃

Lifetime plans

Dear ChessMood members,

this is my first post - so i hope its in the right section (sorry - if not). 

I am about 2000 Fide and want to get serious with my chess - so i follow the forum a lot and all the activities from chess mood. My aim is to reach CM or FM title - which is a big dream (i know - i know).

I decided to apply for a lifetime pro membership and filled in the form (i hope it was sent - but i think so). I guess i will get my answer in the next week (and fine so - its sunday :)) - but i am not sure, what to do now. The lifetime accounts will get up in price and i am not sure if i have done everything correct. 

Could you give me some tipp - should i just wait or buy the not pro lifetime and hope to upgrade. I understand its a great obligingness from the founders and investors of chess mood to give such an opportunity.

So i hope you understand my question as its meant - in a polite way.

best wishes and hope to see you at the board

Manfred

Replies

Hi Manfred!

🤗 Welcome to the forum!

Yes, we received your application and you will be contacted by our happyness department.

Thanks!

The hero bishop video

    I recently watched one of the chessmood videos on YouTube called “the hero bishop” about Nepo's win against Mamedyarov. In many classical and blitz games, my opponent plays a bad move but I don't know how to punish it. My question in the initial position after bishop to f1. Why can't Mamedyarov play Rb4 applying pressure to the b2 pawn and keeping an eye on e4. I don't know if I'm being stupid and the rook is getting trapped, but I feel like Rb4 would be really annoying for white, and I pretty sure Rb4 is a bad move but those are the types of positions I freeze in because I don't know how to deal with “annoying moves”.

Replies

Chess on busy days

Hey everyone, I'm struggling to find time for chess during work days and often ill find myself playing chess during 11pm. Any tips on balancing chess with work? Been doing the 9 games strategy but it just takes too long.

Replies

Hey,
This Should be helpful to you 
https://chessmood.com/blog/raise-your-chess-rating-by-cutting-your-losses
If you don't have enough time, don't play 9 games in a day. Don't play too much chess, Prioritize sleep and focus on your health. Maybe if you have spare time on weekends or holidays, you could play more games.

Why does Magnus Carlsen resign in this game?

Hi,

I am a total newbie to chess, please help me understand why Magnus Carlesn resigns the following game:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZQmbRTtAUg

He can still try to take the black bishop, with the white queen, one square to the right, but he resigns.

If he will take the black bishop with the white queen it will end up, as much as i can see, with him being in disadvantage of 1 rook, in comparison to the black pieces, but is this the reason he resigns? 

Replies

Yes, this is the reason. At the GM level, they just resign when they're a rook behind without compensation even in blitz.

Hello Roi!

Yes of course the reason is lack of material. On GM level player may even resign being 2 pawns down, but in this case its a rook and pawn. Especially in and endgame there is no chance.

At GM level being down one piece without compensation is like being down a queen at 1600 level

Next Step After 'Under 2000': Advanced Openings or Middlegame Mastery?

Hi Chessmood community, 

I have just finished the 'Under 2000' section, also including the U2000 openings. What should I focus on next: 'Advanced Openings' or 'Middlegame Mastery'?

Replies

Hi Stephane! 
What's your level, time availability, etc.?
Do you like playing the Whitemood and Blackmood openings? If these are the openings that you are playing, for how long and how well do you understand them?😅

Modern Maroczy bind

Hi i was played an interesting line in the accelerated dragon maroczy and im not sure how to face it. It start 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 g6 5c4 Nf6 6 Nc3 d6 7 Be2 Nxd4 8 Qxd4 Bg7 9 0-0 0-0 10 Qd3!. After Qd3 i am not sure what to play. If its covered in modern maroczy i am not sure where. Let me know if u know where to look or if u know how to match it. I even saw on chesssbase a game Giri-Carlsen where Giri crush carlsen. tx guys take care and enjoy chess!

Replies

Hi 10 Qd3 is discussed in Section 4 - 9 O-O. The Queen on d3 is vulnerable to Nc5 gaining a tempo.

Coach Avetik gives two choices 1) Be6, Nd7-c5 and a5-a4 playing like normal Maroczy Bind.

More aggressive is 2) Nd7-c5 and then Bxc3 to break White's queenside pawn structure, then target the pawns.

There's also an explanation of what to do if White sacrifices the e4 pawn and goes for a direct attack since we've traded off our Bg7.

how to play this variation from anti sicilian

If black bishop on g7 non knight on f6 we can play f5 from lesson.

Example 1. 0-0 b5 2. Bb3 a4 3.a3 possible 

i meet many times about this case and make me blunder more 

after this position i never happy from white even we development quickly

Replies

Hello "Fighterpilot Chess" 😃,

The pgn you made really confuses me. Please provide us with a correct one.

First of all: 

6. O-O is obviously not good in that position, because it allows black to take over the center with 6… d5. 

Secondly, if black 6… b5, you obviously can't play 7. Bb3, because your bishop will simply get trapped.

But you recommend  black to play 7… a4, which is of course an illegal move. In normal chess, pawns can't fly from a6 to a4 in one move. Anyway, after a4 you said white should play a3, which would lose the bishop by the teleported pawn on a4.

At this stage of your chess career, you should not focus on the finest details of the openings, but on more basic stuff.

I would recommend you to go to the “Learn chess” section on lichess: ( https://lichess.org/learn#/1 ). You will learn how the pieces move, how they capture and a other basic chess rules.

I hope this helps you.

P.S. Please learn english, or just use google translate ( https://translate.google.com/ ). If you don't use proper english, people will not fully understand you.

I think you are just playing a wrong move order, because with e6 we usually don't put the Bishop on c4 but on g2… 😀

French Attack

I suggest adding a "take test" option for the Whitemood opening in the French Attack. It would be beneficial for practicing the French Attack with white pieces. Thank you for considering this suggestion.

Replies

The French Defense for White already has a “take test” option, is this what you are saying?
https://chessmood.com/course/french-defence

Why don't we play the hyperaccelerated dragon?

Why do we play 2… Nc6 instead of 2… g6 in the sicilian? We are allowing a Rossolimo, which means more studying for us. Why don't we play 2… g6 and avoid that? I assume there is a reason, because your opening courses have been really good, I'm just eager to know it.

Replies

Hi Neo,

Yes, you are right, we could do that. But we don't focus on playing tricky lines or fast recipes for winning. We want you to develop, to grow as players and Rossolimo is a great battlefield to be tested in. Also the 2..g6 has some very good lines as White along with the initiative, and it is not our cup of tea once you play against a prepared opponent. 
But the main reason is to play a very sound opening that allows you to grow as a player.😃

Anyone else notice?

When white plays d4 and we play e6 they always switch and play e4. I guess Nobody wants to play against the Dutch.

Replies

“Always” is really an exaggeration.

Usually, only 10% plays that. 

NEW ARTICLE: A Secret Weapon for Handling Tough Positions and Bad Moods

Replies

Thanks 

Awesome!

That's a very nice story, thank you for that!

wow .. thanks

Well I have a story also. It goes like this: When I was playing against one of my friends (Alexander Soll) rated 1,800 I was in a bad position but then I remember your story about how if you smile and straiten your back it would improve your mood and therefor improve your chess game. So I tried it out and .... It worked my situation improved drastically even though I was low on time. I still managed to find the right move to escape a check so I wouldn't lose time. This saved me the game. Thanks again for the advice Best of Wishes Mikeythehuggable

And after a few years we saw a GM named Kazbek Primbetov......😱

I am very grateful for your articles and your course content. I myself am coming to ChessMood because of a good friend who had many amazing things to say about your approach to teaching and developing a positive mindset! Recently I had a very frustrating moment in my chess life and realized I needed something different. The moment I saw Avetik and watched the opening course, I knew that ChessMood was the way to go if I truly wanted to improve myself AND my chess. Thank you so much for all you do.

I personally find that smiling on purpose makes me feel very disoriented and hazy. I've tried it a few times as an experiment and I find my brain just goes blank. I think it's the mismatch; your brain knows you're doing it for no reason and gets confused.

Puzzled by Stockfish recommendations

Hi all,

While reviewing a game today there were a couple of instances where I didn't understand why the suggested move from Stockfish was better than the move that I had made.  I'd welcome your thoughts 👍

First instance:

There was a fairly typical scenario with black (me) having pawns on h7, g7, and f7 and the white queen threatening the g7 pawn.  I played g6, thinking that the h & f pawns defend the g pawn.  Stockfish prefers casting.  

I can see that with casting my king defends the g7 pawn but I'm sure that I read/watched/heard some advice saying that it was a bad move to castle into an area where the opponent was already attacking.

What would you do here and why?

Board layout: https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/106314479371?tab=analysis&move=25

Second instance:

Embracing some of the learning from Tactics Ninja I managed to make a discovered attack / double attack combination!  Yay for me!  (Note that the attack by the pawn on the knight was just a bonus - I fully expected white's queen to capture the pawn)

Whilst I didn't expect white's Nc4 move I can see what he was thinking - removes the knight from the attack and also threatens my bishop on a3.  I proceed with my intended Bxh1 capture of the rook.  However, Stockfish prefers Qd3 - forking the knight on c4 and the rook on b1 ("You overlooked a better way to win a rook.").

Surely if white Nxa3 then he captures the aforementioned bishop and also protects the rook on b1, so the fork misses both targets. 

Is it that the fork isn't the real issue and that the real advantage is that this speeds up the checkmate moves that I made on my next turn?

Board: https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/106314479371?tab=analysis&move=39

Thanks for any feedback.

Replies

Hello!

For the first one, the reason castling is better is that the queen cannot do so much by herself. And with castling, you protect the square, and don’t create any weaknesses.

This one is amazing! The reason Qd3 is better is because of an insane tactic.

1… Qd3 2. Rd1 (Most natural to me.) 2… Qxc3+3. Ke2 Qc2+ 4. Kxe3 (After here I missed the amazing tactic.) 4… Rxb3+!! 5. cxb3 Bc1+!! ( the idea is to deflect the rook from the defence of the d3 square.) 6. Rxc1 Qxb3+ and Black takes the queen next move.

This is a very complex and insane tactic (report anyone who find this in less than 3 minutes ;) ) this is needlessly complicated. The route you chose was simple, and definitely good enough.

The only reason Qd3 was better was because of this tactic, as otherwise White would get a piece for the rook. 
In this case, if this tactic didn’t exist (The Qh3 was defended) your move is better.

If you have any question let me know!

Hi, just wanted to add a couple additional thoughts, but take them with a grain of salt as I am no expert!

For your first example, it seems to me an additional thing to consider is where you eventually want your king. Given your pawn structure at the time it seems like you would eventually want to castle king side. The pawns on the queen side wouldn't offer much protection. Maybe d7 would be an option? But the bishop there complicates that. Leaving the king where it is seems like it would leave it unnecessarily exposed. So if king side castle is the best option, moving that g7 pawn has the disadvantage of weakening the king if you eventually do castle there. And castling immediately saves a turn in having to do it later.

For the second position, beyond the tactic described in the other response, it's worth noting that after Qd3 another reason white can't just capture the bishop with Nxa3 is that then you could just proceed to mate the opponent in exactly the way you ended up mating them. The knight on c4 is protecting the d2 square that you eventually used when mating the opponent. So the move Nxa3 after Qd3 is the same blunder that they made in the actual game that allowed you to complete the checkmate. But please note that in an actual game I'm sure I also would have just done Bxh1!

WhiteMood Openings / petroff defense

Dear chess coach, i recently played a correspondence game in the petroff defense 4.Nxf7, which just end up in a draw, but with some luck. do you really advise this gambit (4.Nxf7) for standard game (maybe not correspondence but OTB) under 2000 elo fide ? by the way here was the game 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nxf7 Kxf7 5. d4 c5 6. Bc4+ d5 7. exd5 Bd6 8. O-O cxd4 9. Qxd4 Re8 10. Nc3 Nbd7 11. Nb5 Nb6 12. Bb3 Re4 13. Qd3 Bf5 14. Nxd6+ Qxd6 15. Qf3 Bg6 16. c4 Nxc4 17. Bg5 Ne5 18. Qc3 Kf8 19. Rae1 Nxd5 20. Qa5 Nf6 21. Rxe4 Nxe4 22. Be3 b6 23. Qa4 Nc5 24. Qb4 a5 25. Qf4+ Qf6 26. Bxc5+ bxc5 27. Qe3 Nd3 28. Bc4 Qf5 29. b3 Re8 30. Qd2 Qf4 31. Qxa5 Qd4 32. Qc7 Qe5 33. Qd7 Qe7 34. Qd5 Qf7 35. Qd6+ Qe7 36. Qd5 Qf7 37. Qd6+ 1/2-1/2

Replies

Well against the Petroff, we offer the course from the main repertoire targeted to players from 1800 to GM level. 

https://chessmood.com/course/petroff-defense
That said, the Whitemood openings are a fast road to get a complete, easy to understand and to remember FIRST repertoire and it can be played until 2000 perfectly. I used the Nxf7 many times in rapid, blitz, OTB, against strong oposition. It is also good for beginners to play a pawn down and try to build the attacking attitude needed in chess. Some friends of mine spent all their life playing this Nxf7 and believe me, they are vicious attackers!
That said, you played this game in a correspondence game and in correspondence people can check their engines and it is not the best idea to sacrifice a knight for 2 pawns at the beginning against an engine. Regarding correspondence, we are not fans of correspondence play because the engines do the work instead of the player. 

If you have the time and will to do the required work, by all means use the main line of our main repertoire. 
I hope this helps, by the way what is your elo? ?

For what my experience is worth, I beat a 1700-FIDE (before the rating revamp) player in the cochrane gambit in classical OTB chess and had a winning position on move 8, so it works surprisingly well!

English course, Bisguier - Karpov, comment to move 26. Rd2

I would like to ask a question with respect to the comment on the game Bisguier - Karpov. The comments are makeing things much clearer. However there is a moment I do not "understand".

It happens after move 24. by White which is Bc1. Here Black moves back with the bishop to c4. 24….Bc4 (instead of exchanging the white squared bishop - which is a strategical objective when playing against this IQP but does not exploit the concrete position). It follows 25. Rc2 an Ba6.

Here the comment says: White cannot defend the d4 pawn…if 26. Rd2 it follows 26….RxN, which leaves the rook on d2 undefended. However after 27. QxR QxR it follows QxR (d5) because the rook is unprotected after the queen leaves a5 and this position seems unclear, e.g. Qe1+ leads to an equal position (Stockfish).

Therefore it is recommended to play - after 26. Rd2 - Nxd4 (instead of RxN).

Please feel free to comment / correct my ideas. 

(If i'm wrong I will be happy to do some 50 squats with pleasure.)

Kind Regards, Kurt

Replies

Dear Kurt,

 there is no Bc1 move in that position, 24th move of White is Bc1. Please, when asking the questions write the squares carefully so it's easier to understand the Question 🙂 I was struggling for a few minutes, to find 24.Bc1

Dear Kurt, in the given position you are right, the Rook on d5 is hanging. So that position is just bad for whites in general, but doesn't lose in a concrete way, thanks for being careful!

good luck!
 

MoodCoins

Hello Guys..

Do any of you know how to purchase courses with MoodCoins? Can the purchase only be completed if we are PRO or ESSENTIAL members? Or can we do this even we only have a free account?
Thanks..

Replies

Anyone can buy courses with moodcoins! 
To buy courses, pick your course and select “Or get lifetime access” then click “Buy the course” and in “Choose your payment method” the last option will be to buy with moodcoins. Select that.

$1 = 1,000 moodcoins. Select courses like the SLP course cannot be bought with moodcoins.
for more info: https://chessmood.com/moodcoin

Homework

Hi, 

In the opening courses, Avetik reffers to homework, but I could not find it. I searched in the forum but only in pro members responses, so where can I find them?

Replies

It’s in the pgn files. That is the homework. The section is called “PGN files” or something similar. However, some courses like the Czech Pirc don’t have it yet.

My 1 question

Can anybody tell me what is the steinitz basic rule mentioned in the 3rd game of 100 strategical masterpieces at around 6min50secs..i was not able to hear it properly

Replies

“Never advance your pawns without any real need."

 “The Modern Chess Instructor”  is Steinitz’s book, Lasker spends some time on Steinitz in “Lasker’s Manual of Chess."

I thought I had a bullet list of his principles somewhere, but, as usual, I can’t seem to find it.      :/