No, not the rules. I know those. I am interested in a simple, preferrably fun/interesting, book or site on picking up the basic strategies, etc, that one needs to truly learn the game. I learned to play when I was about 8-9 years old, but never learned openings, strategies, etc., only playing against friends with similar skill levels. By the time I was twelve or so I’d moved on to other pasttimes (like girls), so never really progressed. Now I’d like to be able to teach my kids to play properly. So in that way, it may be a bit of a two pronged request.
There are literally tons of books and loads of information on the web about chess.
Ms. Somnambulist recently took up chess and we found the ‘Idiot’s Guide To Chess’ excellent…
However, there is only one real way to learn and that is to play - and against people. Chess programs are good for some aspects but it’s basically tedious compared with playing against real opponents. There are games groups such as at Yahoo where you can get games but I recommend a site such as Gameknot.com. You can join for free and there are people of all abilities. Games are played through correspondence so you have time to make moves (although some people prefer to play quicker games).
Give it a try (you can join for free), look me up and maybe I can offer a few tips over a game?
Start by learning the end game. Learn how to mate with all combinations of pieces and a lone opponent king and you will learn how pieces work together. I suggest getting Chessmaster software and going through the exercises. When you play, stick to one opening so you have a constant framework to see how a game develops. Start with one basic tactic like the “pin,” and try to find an opportunity every turn; you can use Chessmaster to identify all the possible pins to check your analysis. Once you can see pins, move on to forks. You can do exercises until your blue in the face and never recognize them in a real game unless you play real games.
I found Chess for Dummies a good primer, but what really made me good was playing one or two matches a day over lunch with a crowd of observers. We had three boards set up, so three games would be going simultaneously, with eight or ten people total eating lunch and swapping in and out between games.
King Charlemagne brings up an interesting point: learning to name things properly is half of the learning process. Know about the technicalities, tactics, and endings that happen so often that they have names–they’re named because they happen so frequently; you’re bound to encounter them early and often. Pins, forks, “walking” a king with two rooks, castling, en passant (rare, but good to know), Fool’s Mate, Scholar’s Mate… all good things to learn about.
Playing hard against equally matched opponents is good, but it’s also good to play a “learning game” with peers, where after each move your opponent makes, you suggest an alternative that could potentially do more damage to your plan. This way you each learn to see both sides of the board. And it’s always fun to get your ass handed to you by someone who really knows what they’re doing.
If there was only one book I could recommend, it would be Irving Chernev’s Logical Chess.
I would agree with KidC on most of what he said. By learning the endgame, I think only as it is realted to mating…mating with K&Q, mating with R, back-rank mate, etc. Learn mating patterns… a good book for this is The Art of Checkmate by Renaud and Kahn.
And tactics, greater depth in endgames and openings will come, but the steepest learning curve early on is in identifying tactics.
A few general strategy rules:
[ul]
[li]In the beginning, move knights before bishops.[/li][li]In the beginning, move your queen last, after moving other pieces (a “piece” is a non-pawn).[/li][li]Keep strong pawn structures, where pawns protect each other. avoid pawns on columns with no pawns directly on either side. If you end up with a weak structure like this, try to trade away the weak pawn.[/li][li]Castle early.[/li][li]Keep your king protected, surrounded in the corner behind pawns.[/li][li]Learn how to count: queens are worth 9 points, rooks 5, bishops 3, knights 3, pawns 1. So if you have a queen, a rook, and 3 pawns and your opponent has two rooks, a bishop, a knight and 3 pawns, you have 9+5+1+1+1=17 points (14 of which are in pieces, 3 in pawns), and your opponent has 5+5+3+3+1+1+1=19 points (16 of which are in pieces, 3 in pawns).[/li][li]Keep your rooks on the back row, and on open files, i.e. on columns where you don’t have a pawn, or better where neither player has a pawn.[/li][li]Keep your bishops in corners, where they have lots of room to move/control.[/li][li]Keep your knights forward, where they are attacking key squares, or can quickly be brought to bear.[/li][li]Own the center (the middle four squares, and less so the surrounding 12squares). Do this by either planting pieces/pawns there or planting pieces where they attack those squares.[/li][li]If you’re ahead in pawns, trade pawns. If you’re behind in pawns, try not to trade.[/li][li]If you’re ahead in pieces (see counting above), trade pieces. If you’re behind in pieces, try not to trade.[/li][li]If your opponent plays aggressive, play conservative. If he plays conservative, play aggressively.[/li][li]If your opponent is strong in the middle, attack along the flank(s) (sides). If your opponent is strong on the flanks, attack in the middle.[/li][li]If you’re losing, make wild aggressive risky plays. If you’re winning, play conservatively.[/li][li]Learn a couple openings.[/li][li]Learn basic endgames.[/li][/ul]
Now, you can beat me at least, but that’s not saying much. As a kid, I could beat everyone amongst family and friends, and boy did I think I was hot. So I started playing competitively, and realized I was really just middle of the road.
Others mentioned it, but I should’ve put on the above list:
[ul][li]Avoid Skewers, Pins, Forks, and create the same against your opponent.[/ul][/li]Here is one site defining those terms with pix.
What KidCharlemagne said. Chessmaster may well be the best teaching tool you can find. Play the computer. Think about the move you’d make, and then let it make a suggestion. Also replay some of the great games step by step. Try to figure out why the guy did what he did. There are some which are annotated.
Play. Enjoy. Then when you get better, play better.
Hey there, Somnambulist. Truth is I haven’t played Chess in almost twenty years, except for the last 6 months where I’ve been teaching my 6 year old son. So I’m afraid I’m way outa shape. My game of choice nowadays is Go, which is much more complex in strategy than Chess, but much simpler in rules. Even that I don’t play much, work being what it is.
Thanks for kind words on the art thing; it’s actually making a little money, but a very little.
One other chess tip: it’s key to think ahead as many moves as you can. And to do that, you really need to be able to appreciate what your opponent wants. So, work on not just thinking about how you can attack and where the opponent is weak, but also think about how the opponent could attack you and where you’re weak.
