Chess, Music, and Martial Arts

Good things comes in threes. And what chess federations stand for is no exception. The Hip-Hop Chess Federation goes by the same trilogy of ideals. One look at their website (click pic for the link) will quickly give you the impression they are reputable enough that they gather considerable attention in major news outfits. And I really like the logo. It says a great deal about fusing chess and hip-hop. But I sure wish they have some correspondence or live chess game area in their website so people could have a hands-on playing with them.

I say, whatever gets people in the game and get them out of a not-so-good alternative, I am all for it!
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The Month That Was

It has been a month or so since I've gotten back into the habit. I am almost finished with the mini-tournament I joined in Schemingmind (the remaining ones are pretty much decided). If ratings are any indication, my efforts in improvement has paid off. I have made considerable increase in my ratings after the month-end calculation, which unlike this month, did not include any defaults on time. I think my attention to opening theory has paid off well, and it's such a boost in confidence. True, I have been losing more games than winning, but if your games are mostly with higher-rated players, winning just a few of them is enough to boost your rating. Which I think I mentioned here. Not that I won't play with lower-rated players, since if everybody does that then no one will play anyone anymore. But I think a good sprinkling of games with higher-rated players is a good way to develop discipline in the game. They have gotten to where they are by developing such discipline themselves, and it won't be a bad idea emulating them in this respect. But with that aside, chess is fun, and should stay a fun thing to do, with friends near and far.

Happy gaming everyone!

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ChessOps - A Basic Chess Opening Guide

As I have beeen discussing opening theory lately here and here, let me just point you to an internet resource that I have used extensively. Chessops is a free internet resource that allows you to explore various openings. In their own words:

An interactive series of +8,000 unique board positions, from first moves through to full development of pieces, covering all major openings, defences and variations. Each page has an explanation and a notation list. Also +1,000 transposition pages.

The site features an interactive chess board that you can use to visualize the moves as you go through the tutorials and lessons. You make a move on the board, and if that move is in their database of opening moves, the move is reflected and an explanation and some additional information on the idea behind the move is provided. Then you proceed to make a move on the other side of the board, and more information is provided. The system will also tell you if there are alternative moves that you can make, corresponding to alternative opening lines, while the default or "orthodox" line is provided as the move to make if you choose to let the system show you the next move.

In addition, the site has plenty of resources pertaining to the game, such as categories of openings, annotations, history of the game, and more.

Another nice feature of the site is that it will not provide a move that is not part of the opening theory, and will simply return an error message saying "You can do better than that!" Thus, it confines itself as an opening resource, so there is no danger for you to overstep the line between opening books and unauthorized assistance should you have been using it during a game (usually in correspondence chess).

Each opening line presented usually comes with alternative lines, with its pros and cons. For one that is intent in gaining a deeper understanding of opening theory, it would be best to explore each of the alternatives before proceeding in making your moves. It also provides you a way of developing your own game repertoire. I also keep it interesting by guessing a move before actually checking to see if I did the correct one (been seeing improvements in the way that I have minimized the "incorrect" moves).

Check out the site. I am also featuring it permanently on the sidebar.

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1st Team Philippines Monthly KO Tournament

The 1st Team Philippines Monthly Knockout Tournament in Schemingmind has just recently concluded. What should have been monthly took a year to finish! And so I think we need to reconsider the time controls we use on this one. The championship round is between two of our higher-rated players (as expected). Below are the two championship games played.






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Game Tips - Use of Opening Databases

Most correspondence chess sites allow the use of opening books/databases as part of the resources available to a player during a game. This resource is often ignored or underused by most players, especially those new to the game or have only begun to take chess a bit more seriously. A variety of reasons account for the neglect of opening books and resources. For some, they simply don't know that such a resource exists. For others, the use of such databases for the initial times can be a daunting task. One opening line has its "main" or what is considered as best line, and then it can branch into secondary lines, each with its own merits. Some opening lines also transpose to another type of opening depending on the responses by the other side.

Perception also play a role why opening theory is neglected. Some people think it is a case of rote memorization, one that they would happily do without, thank you, I want to "play" chess, not "memorize" it, goes the reasoning.

True, many have succumbed to the memorization of opening lines, with some even advocating that there is no other way around it. And so for quite some time, especially to those looking from the outside, chess has been reduced to a mental game of recall, rather than its true intent of a game of strategy and tactics.

But despite such negative connotations, opening theory remains an important aspect for any chess player, even the casual ones. However, getting the most of it requires studying it right at the very start. Memorization can get you to a point, but beyond that is a myriad of alternative lines that you are better off doing it right the first time: learning opening theory for the principles that it teaches. Here are a few tips I learned along the way to get the most out of opening theory resources:

1. Limit your number of games, and play those with ample time limits. Understanding opening theory will require time, and you would do well to be focusing on fewer games. It's also important that the time controls allow enough time for you to fully appreciate the moves that you are making, rather than rushing from one game to the next. Personally, I also prefer playing rated games as opposed to unrated ones, so I can maintain the realism of playing with consequence. If you can choose, choose to play those whose ratings approximate yours. It would not do you much good to be too pressured with learning opening theory while at the same time coping with the arsenal of a higher rated player.

2. Get a good opening theory resource. It can be a static resource that you can find in a book or the internet, or an interactive one like ChessOps (see sidebar link), which I found very useful and one I use regularly. For me, a good resource should explain the overall idea for the opening, shows the "best" line, along with a few alternatives, and explain the general idea what a particular move intends to accomplish. If it's possible, get one that mixes principles of good moves in the tutorial as well (not moving twice in the opening, castling early, etc.), so as to hit two birds with one stone.

3. Keep it simple. For white, stick to no more than two types of opening, and choose those that are the most common and most fundamental. For my case, I chose to play only d4 as white, because the response can already result in as many number of opening types as there are games. For black, I always do a Sicilian (c5) whenever possible (usually it's possible with an e4 opening and others), or a symmetrical Queen opening (d4 d5). You would do well to stick to a couple of openings for quite some time, since you would still need to understand the subtleties of the alternative lines and transpositions.

4. Stick with the most common line of play first. This is also called the "main" or "orthodox" line, unless you are forced by the responses to adopt the alternative lines. By learning the main lines, you would usually understand along with it the basic principles of piece development and points of control much better than with the alternative lines, since the latter tends to put a "twist" on the main line to make the response more unpredictable. Of course, sticking with the main line carries a greater chance of losing to a better player, which should be just fine if your intention is to learn.

5. Decide on a move first before consulting the opening book, BUT always consult the opening book no matter how sure you are. Deciding on a move first makes you think without bias, which you can then validate if your reasoning is right or wrong when you do consult the opening book later.

6. Replay the game everytime it's your move (one of the learning advantages of correspondence chess). Get a feel of where you are the last time you made a move. Go back to the start of the game if necessary to refresh your mind, especially if it has been days before you last made your move.

7. Take note when there is a deviation already from the opening line of play, and make a private note of it in your game if it's possible. It marks the end when you can reach for a reference and so you are already on your own. However, check thoroughly if that is really a deviation from opening line or merely an alternative move, in which case you can still follow the opening theory for that alternative.

8. You may be tempted to try a "better" response, but I would suggest you don't. Learn the rules first, break them later.

9. Do a short post-analysis of the opening moves once a deviation was already made or the game is already in the middlegame. This will preserve the lessons of the game for you while it's still fresh.

10. Enjoy the game! A positive attitude is definitely necessary to fully appreciate what you are doing. Otherwise it becomes a chore, something chess shouldn't be.

Learning opening theory will allow you to fully appreciate chess. Don't neglect it.

Happy gaming!

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Your Favorite Chess Piece

In a game steeped in history and tradition, characters can take on a mythical or personal meaning for players. And I get to wonder if current chess players have a particular piece they associate themselves with more than the usual attention. A piece whose every move is more important for you than any of the other pieces. Or one that you would probably forego sacrificing for no sane game-related reason, if at all possible (of course, you can't give up the King, but you get my drift). A piece that gives you the rush and see your very self embodying it. Then, I get to wonder what is it that makes one associate with a piece? What personality traits does it probably reveal? Could it be something that one can use to better understand a person?

Well, here's my take on what I think a piece reveal about a person:

King - the standard-bearer. The embodiment of a principle. People who see themselves in this piece think in terms of abstract virtues and world-level views. They see grand plans. They consider elaborate sets of conditions. Where he is determines to a great extent the outcome of things big and small. And of course, it comes with a sense of detachment. A sense of entitlement for protection and privacy.

Queen - the General. The Strategist, who will only come out when the stage is set to sweep down on the opponents in one major blow. Some literature actually says that the modern day Queen piece is actually a male in earlier days of chess. This is very much so in Shatranj, a chess variant.

Rook - the Commander. He clears the way for the General. The blunt tactician.

Bishop - the Silent Support. His strength lies in the ability to collaborate and ease the entry of stronger pieces, or put in jeopardy a major opponent piece .

Knight - the Rogue. A stealth. He can take you out of a bad situation, but he is also a continuous threat for being unpredictable.

Pawn - the ultimate underdog.

How accurate did I described you? Let me know by leaving your comments.

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I, Captain - I Report

The first few posts after the "revival" of this blog has been mostly teasers of what's to come in future posts. And I hoped that it helped to provide a sense of anticipation. For my part, it has helped to sharpen the focus of what I will be doing and blogging about in the next few weeks and months. But before I proceed any further, I think it's only proper that I look back to a memorable event that transpired last year.


Sometime February 2007, Austin, the webmaster of schemingmind.com, informed me that someone anonymously gave me a one year full membership in the site. As I have mentioned before, the full membership carries with it several benefits that I was really excited to utilize. These included the capability to create teams and mini-tournaments; join more than one team; and play unlimited number of games.


The very first day of being a full member, I was able to create a national team (Team Philippines) and had a couple of recruits to join me. Likewise, I created a couple of mini-tournaments to cater to varying levels of expertise of players in the game, of which I happily joined a couple. It felt good not to be limited by the maximum game quota, but in the back of my mind I have to be careful not to overextend myself. This is a topic I discussed also in my series Discipline in Correspondence Chess (please check the sidebar for the link).


Sad to say (in a way), real life beckons and just a few months after, I had been too busy to even play games at the site. Not that I mind, when the cause is the anticipation of my second child. However, I have a responsibility not to let such generosity go to waste. I arranged with Austin for the transfer of my full membership and team captainship to a teammate that I fully trust will be able to handle the activities of the team.

More than a year after, I am glad to report that Team Philippines has at least maintained its initial number of members before I became "inactive". There are some that simply no longer returned, but their places were filled up with new blood. For my part when I was able to get back on track (it's a girl!), I did my best to attract new members into the team by challenging my countrymen that just registered in the site, and so establish contact with them. More than half of them responded to my invitation to join Team Philippines.

So, for that generous soul that gave me (and my teammate) the opportunity to enjoy a full membership at Schemingmind, thank you very much. I hope you are able to see that it did not get spent for nought. May your tribe increase! Read More......

Chess Variants: An Introduction

Like a good song that has been around for quite some time, the popular form of chess as we know it is bound to have its own sets of "remakes" and "versions". It can even be argued that the chess we have right now is actually a derivation of an older form of the game. Current practice, however, does not actually make a distinction between whether a "variant" was a predecessor of the modern form of chess or was derived from it.

Some variants were conceived to solve a problem. It is said that Fischer Random or Chess960 is actually an attempt to remove the "advantage" of those who have mastered opening theory, thereby providing a game of chess that is intended to be more challenging and at the same time friendly for those new to the game. Others were popularized out of nostalgia, especially for those kinds that were perceived to be the predecessor of modern chess. Still others came about as a byproduct of the imagination and fun-lovingness of its creators. Some variants actually goes to elaborate lengths that a new set of somewhat complicated rules had emerged.

Of course, none of these innovations are not without its fault, especially for one who have a deep appreciation of chess in its natural form. And I have to say, having played a few of them, they aren't easy! It takes a whole lot of mental conditioning and immersion to be able to even play the games well. But if my experience are any indication, knowing a couple of these variants are a fun way to appreciate chess in its fullness, as well as take a respite from the usual lines.

As the number of these variants far exceed my ability (and interest) to know each one well enough to write about it, I will soon be featuring a couple of players who are avid fans of the variants they have chosen to play. Instead of the usual "Here are the rules, the pros and cons, and you can go on now" kind of writing, the writers will take you down on a journey, from how they first got introduced to their variants, and how they came to love it and stick with it (or hate it, if that's the case). I hope their experiences will entice you to dip your toes into these new rivers, as I have done lately. As this is intended to be a regular feature, I will be adding links in this post regarding variants as I feature them. Check them out:

• Suicide/Suicide 960 - a fun way to lose!
• Chess960/Fischer Random - no more opening lines!
• Shatranj - did this game started it all?

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