The Complete Beginner's Guide to Chess

Chess Mastery: From Zero to Hero - Master Rules, Openings, Middlegame, Tactics, and Endgame Essentials all in one course

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40.5 hours
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Aug 2023
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What you will learn

Be able to appreciate the fundamentals of chess - opening, middlegame, endgame and within those the most common and important ideas

Be able to get a complete overview of the key fundamentals of chess in terms of the Opening, Middlegame and Endgame phases of the game

Be able to know basic opening traps such as the Fool's mate, Scholar's mate and many others

Be able to know basic endgame mating patterns such as two rooks vs King, Rook vs King, Queen vs King

Be able to know basic middlegame mating patterns such as back row mate and Smothered mate

Be able to see Chess is a way of maximising your value chain - opening, middlegame, endgame and other skills like psychology, maximising win probability

Be able to know the basic pawn structures which often result from many different openings such as the Isolated Queen's Pawn, Doubled pawns, Hanging Pawns

Be able to know about the major world chess champions and their value-chain strengths such as Steinitz, Lasker, Capablanca, Fischer, Karpov, Kasparov

Be able to understand many of the chess terms, and games and puzzles in Netflix Queen's Gambit popular series in a detailed episode by episode manner

Be able to know how to handle the basic opening traps of Chess and how to set them up for unsuspecting opponents such as an early Queen to h5 attack

Be able to appreciate the most important fundamentals of Kingscrusher's more advanced courses and be able to advance onto them later like a jigsaw puzzle

Be able to appreciate the rules of chess for both casual play and later tournament play so you don't risk losing games uncessarily

Be able to see plenty of examples of the most important chess tactics which will win you many games and enable you to see the true beauty of chess

Be able to use Opening Systems which can be largely independent of what the opponent does such as the London System, Torre Attack, Colle System

Be able to know the basic ideas and plans of major Chess openings susch as the French Defence, Sicilian Defence, Nimzo Indian, King's Indian, Slav Defence

Be able to make use of fun exciting chess gambits which can help stretch and train your tactical abilities such as the King's Gambit

Be able to make use of key middlegame tactics such as forking, skewering, double attacks, discovered attacks, removing the defender, deflections and more

Be able to leverage essential endgame concepts and positions such as "Rule of the Square", Triangulation, the Vancura Defence, the Lucena position and others

Be able to appreciate strong middlegame processes which prioritise forcing moves and enable you to calculate potentially many moves ahead

Be able to leverage many important crystalised improving tips and winning tips gained from years of experience of Kingscrusher

Be able to appreciate the instructive value and importance and humour of many famous chess quotations from masters of the past in their thoughts

Description

Welcome to The Complete Beginner's Guide to Chess! Are you a newcomer to this enthralling game, curious about the rules, and how the pieces move? This comprehensive course, crafted by FIDE CM Kingscrusher, is designed just for you.

What You Will Learn:

Starting from the very basics of chess, this course aims to build a solid foundation for your chess understanding. The course is divided into three main sections – Chess Openings, Middlegame, and Endgame. Each section is further divided into Introduction, Beginner, and Intermediate levels. This structure helps to ensure that each stage of your chess understanding is built on robust principles.

Course Features:

  1. Fundamental understanding of chess rules and piece movements.

  2. Study of various Openings and tactics, including major Opening Gambits.

  3. In-depth exploration of Middlegame tactics and key Endgame positions.

  4. Multiple examples and explanations to reinforce learning.

  5. Utilization of a "concentric circles" model to solidify understanding.

Chess Openings Covered:

We will explore Opening "Systems" that you can use independent of your opponent's moves, major Openings that every player should be aware of, and dynamic Opening Gambits to improve your tactical understanding.

Middlegame Tactics:

Learn about Forking, Pinning, Skewering, and other crucial tactics.

Endgame Concepts:

Delve into essential Endgame concepts like the Opposition, King and pawn vs. King, Triangulation, and more.

Who This Course Is For:

This course is perfect for anyone completely new to chess or anyone wanting to solidify their understanding of the game's basic principles. If you've been inspired by The Queen's Gambit and want to take your first steps in the world of chess, this course is for you.

Content

Introduction - Course core philosophies and my own general rules for lessons

Chess Logical divides: Opening, Middlegame, Endgame and Concentric circles model
The importance of a growth mindset and wanting to learn from losses
Why so many newcomers to chess recently? Netflix Queen's Gambit series
The Concentric circles learning model used in this course

Introduction to How the Chess Board set up

What the pieces are called officially and officially and their relative value
The Relative value of the pieces and Algebraic notation symbols
How the Chess board is set up
Files and Ranks and Diagonals explained
How the board is set up
What style of real world chess board should you go for?
Chess coordinate quiz

Introduction to How the pieces move and capture

How Pawns moves forward until they get blocked
How Pawn captures diagonally in a normal case
How pawns capture - a clearer board example #2
En passant - How pawns capture diagonally in a very special case of "En passant"
When can a pawn move forward
Pawn "promotion" ability introduction
Pawn promotion example #2
Gentle Rook introduction on fairly clear board
Rook movements on a more cluttered board - Example #2
Bishop example on fairly clear board
The Queen and how she moves and captures
The Knight - how it moves especially in a central position - Example #1
Knights can jump over other your pieces and opponent pieces - Example #2
Knight example #3 jumping and capturing
Introduction to how the King moves
King capturing example #2
King in Check from an opponent's rook - Example #3
King in Check from an opponent's knight - Example #4
King in Check from an opponent's bishop
King in Check from an opponent's Queen
King in Check from an opponent's Queen that can be captured
King in Check from an opponent's rook that can be captured
King in Check from an opponent's pawn
When King's meet example
King in check from a rook that is supported by a bishop
Comparing and contrasting the pieces
The player with the White pieces goes first
An introduction to checks
Check example #2 - Examining the options
Double check - a case where the king has to move
Discovered check - a case where the opponent's last move reveals a check
Introduction to checkmating the opponent's king
Introduction to philosophy of "castling" - put beyond defeat before attack
Castling introduction - Castling Queenside or Castling Kingside
When castling Queenside seems impossible but actually is possible
Castling is not legal if a rook or King has moved previously!
Cannot castle into check example
Cannot castle when obstructed example
Cannot castle from being checked example

Introduction to Tactics: Making wise captures

Making wise captures - Example #1
Making wise captures - Example #2
Making Wise Captures - Counting Attacking vs Defending pieces - Example #3
Making Wise Captures - Removing a defender - Example #4

Intermediate Tactics - Making wise captures for deeper positional considerations

When winning exchange pieces not pawns
When winning exchange pieces not pawns - Benko vs Fischer example game
When losing exchange pawns not pieces
When under a heavy King-Attack exchange off attacking pieces
When in a cramped position, exchange pieces to relieve it and avoid bad piece
Material balance in theory isn't everything to decide advantage
Material balance in theory isn't everything to decide advantage - Example #2
Manage Elements of position- Material, Time, Space, King Safety, Pawn structure

Intermediate Level: Key rules of chess and rules when playing in tournaments

Rule of Chess #1 - the Chessboard is setup with the White square on the right
Rule of Chess #2 - White moves first
Rule of Chess #3 - Pawns must promote or underpromote on reaching 8th rank
Rule of Chess #4 - Each move should be made with one hand only
Rule of Chess #5 - The Touch move rule
Rule of Chess #6 - Touching the opponents pieces or pawns
Rule of Chess #7 - Adjusting pieces in a legal way
Rule of Chess #8 - Method of castling - Move King first two squares then rook
Rule of Chess #9 - Same hand for pressing clock
Rule of Chess #10 - As legible as possible chess scoresheet
Rules of Chess #11 - Respect opponent - do not annoy or distract them in any way
Rule of Chess #12 - Don't take mobile phone with you to a tournament
The FIDE rules handbook pdf - worth checking out

Introduction to the key ways of winning games of Chess

Checkmate
Opponent resigns
A win on time when playing with chess clocks

Introduction to the key ways of Drawing games of Chess

Ways of Drawing #1 - Perpetual check
Ways of Drawing #2 - Stalemate and a tip on how to avoid this
Ways of Drawing #3 - Insufficient mating material
Ways of Drawing #4 - 3-fold repetition
Ways of Drawing #5 - the 50 move rule (no pawn move or capture made)
Ways of Drawing #6 - by mutual agreement

Introduction to Chess Notation

Introduction to Notation
Notation of Descriptive mentioned in Queen's Gambit Netflix - every square named
Concise Algebraic notation - Example #1
Forsyth-Edwards Notation (FEN)

Introduction to "Chess Openings" : Basic traps and pitfalls to be aware of

The reasons for being aware of traps and using them or avoiding them safely
Fool's mate
Fool's mate pattern in Teed vs Delmar - Example #3
Fool's mate pattern in "Queen's Gambit" - Beth Harmon vs Mr. Gantz - Example 2
Fool's mate pattern - Greco vs NN - 1623
Early Queen Move Trap
Scholar's Mate
Scholar's Mate - Rook fork variation
Defending e5 in a bad way with f6 traps to be aware of
King's Gambit fxe5 trap
Légal Trap aka Blackburne Trap
King's pawn Opening: Blackburne Shilling Trap

Intermediate level: More advanced Chess traps by Opening alphabetically

Introduction - check the underlying tactical ingredients even if never play them
Albin Counter Gambit Trap AKA Lasker Trap - features "Underpromotion" example
Caro-Kann Defence Trap
Three Knights opening Nxe5 trap
King's Pawn Opening: Fried Liver Attack
Petrov Defence gone wrong - Opponent copies your moves without thinking
Queen's Gambit Opening Traps (also name of Netflx series :) )
Queens Gambit declined - the "Elephant trap"
Queen's Gambit: Cambridge Springs Trap (can start with Elephant trap!)
Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defence: Mortimer Trap
Ruy Lopez: Noah's Ark Trap
Sicilian Defence: Bobby Fischer Trap (occured in game vs Reshevsky)
Sicilian Defence Smith Morra Gambit - Siberian Defence Trap
Stafford Gambit Trap
Vienna Game traps

Beginner Level: Important Opening principles to be aware of

Key Guiding Philosophy - Put yourself beyond defeat before going onto the attack
Try and develop pieces
Try and develop pieces Example #1 - Morphy vs Carpentier - 1849
Try and control the key central squares
Try and control the key central squares - Greco vs NN Example #1
Try and castle early
Try and castle early - Paul Morphy vs Schrufer example #1
Don't be too greedy in the opening at expense of development and K safety - #1
Don't bring out queen too early
Don't leave pieces unprotected
Don't leave pieces unprotected - L. Christiansen vs A. Karpov - Example #2

Intermediate Level - Openings - Introduction to Systems, Openings, Gambits

What is the concept of "imbalances" of an opening?
What are main lines and variations?
Online Opening Databases - the use of Research methods to minimise bias

Intermediate Level: Names of the major opening "systems/setups"

Introduction - Systems/Setups - pros and cons
Benko's Opening (System)
Colle System
English Opening - Botvinnik System
Kings Indian Attack System
London System
Nimzo-Larsen Attack (System) aka Larsen's Opening
Torre Attack System
Van Geet Opening aka Reverse Tango System and a bunch of other names!

Intermediate Level: Names of Major Openings (not "systems" or Gambits)

Caro-Kann Defence - Brief Overview of named variations and systems
English Opening
French Defence Brief Overview
Grünfeld Defence
Italian Game - Basic introduction, key traps and ideas for excitement
King's Indian Defence - Introduction and example game
Nimzo Indian Defence
Ruy Lopez - Introduction Part 1
Ruy Lopez Main Line moves - and Black's 3rd move alternatives
Sicilian Defence Brief Overview of 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 and 2.Nf3 e6 variations
Sicilian Defence - Brief overview of 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 and 2.Nf3 without d4
Sicilian Defence - 2.Nf3 Black 2nd moves and alternatives for 2.Nf3 for White
Slav Defence Basic Introduction

Intermediate Level: Names of Major Gambits to be aware of

Introduction - Why play Gambits?
Why Love Semi-Open Files (AKA Half-open) and tempo which gambits often provide
Albin Counter Gambit
Benko Gambit
Blackmar-Diemer Gambit (for 1.d4 surprise and also 1.e4 vs Scandinavian defence)
Danish Gambit
Evans Gambit (was on a tv advert!)
King's Gambit basic introduction and philosophy
Queen's Gambit
Reti Gambit - With 1.e4 against French Defence
Smith Morra Gambit vs Sicilian Defence
Staunton Gambit

Introduction to "Chess Middlegame" : Important processes and skills

Compensating for being human philosophy
What is the Difference between Processes and Patterns?
Prioritisation of forcing moves - Check all Checks, Captures, and Major Threats
What is Chess Calculation?
Calculation 3 Golden Rules - Weakness of last move, Common Squares, Effects
Weakness of last move Example #1
Weakness of last move Example #2
Killer Common Squares Example #1
Killer Common Squares Example #2
The "in effect" clause - Discovery effects Around the board - Example #1
The "In effect" clause - Example #2
The "in effect" clause - Open vs Closed Games- pawns and their role - Example #3
The love of winning squares - the 3 golden rules all have in common :)
The love of winning access to key squares - Example #2
Chess Evaluation - especially "downsides" of opponent e.g unprotected pieces
Chess is a single turn game - Overwhelming the Opponent with multiple threats
The art of checkmate - taking out escape squares of opponent's king
The art of checkmate - Example #2 - sometimes quiet moves better than loud moves
The art of checkmate - Example #3 - Escape squares taken but need a new check!
Facts Awareness - Not always playing forcing - sometimes quiet move better
Facts Awareness - Be aware of threats and traps but sometimes calculate further!
Be aware of the defensive heros to take out of the equations
Celebration of "Downsides" - Classic Downside - Unprotected Pieces
Celebration of "Downsides" - Classic Downside - King Safety Issues

Beginner Level: Chess Middlegame: Important Middlegame Tactics to make use of

Forking Introduction aka Double Attack
Fork Example #2
Fork Example #3 - Tigran Petrosian vs Boris Spassky
Fork Example #4 - Tigran Petrosian vs Vladimir Simagin
Fork Example #5 - Mikhail Botvinnik vs Alexander Kotov
Pin Intro- Relative, Absolute, Rebelling against Relative pins, Celebrating Pins
Pin Example #2 - The Elephant Trap
Pin Example #3 - Rebelling against a Relative Pin - Popov vs Petkovski
Pin Example #4 - Forcing a checkmate - Nimzovich vs Rubinstein
Pin Example #5 - Forcing a checkmate making use of pins
Skewer Introduction and Example #1
Skewer Example #2
Skewer Example #3 - Nigel Short vs Rafael Vaganian
Skewer Example #4 - Garry Kasparov vs Stefano Tatai
Skewer Example #5 - Bobby Fischer vs Edward Stepans
Discovered Attack Introduction
Discovered Attack Example #1 - French Defence Trap
Discovered Attack Example #2 - Richard Reti vs Savielly Tartakower
Discovered Attack Example #3 - David Bronstein vs Efim Geller
Discovered Attack Example #4 - Bobby Fischer vs Boris Spassky 1972 Rd 8
Discovered Attack Example #5 - Garry Kasparov vs Anatoly Karpov
Removing the Defender AKA Removing the Guard AKA Undermining Example #1
Removing the Defender - Example #2
Removing the Defender - Example #3
Removing the Defender - Brunoethler vs Richter Example #4
Removing the Defender - Cukierman vs NN - Example #5
Deflection - Example #1
Deflection - Jan Timman vs Artur Yusupov - Example #2
Deflection - Murray Chandler vsa Yehuda Gruenfeld - Example #3
Deflection - Zukertort vs Blackburne - Example #4
Deflection - Velimirovic vs Csom - Example #5
Decoy Example - Bjornsson vs Mikhail Tal - Example #1
Decoy Example - Nimzovich vs Mieses - Example #2
Decoy Example - Yasser Seirawan vs Judit Polgar - Example #3
Decoy Example - Rene Letelier vs Bobby Fischer - Example #4
Decoy - Iivo Nei vs Tigran Petrosian - Example #5
Interference tactics AKA Disconnection AKA Spanner - Introduction example
Interference Example #2 - Miles vs Pritchett
Interference Example #3 - Piket vs Kramnik
Interference Example #4 - Kramnik vs Topalov
Interference Example #5 - Koskinen vs. Kasman
Clearance AKA Line Clearance AKA Opening Connections - Introduction Example
Clearance AKA Line Clearance AKA Opening Connections - Introduction and example
Clearance AKA Opening Connections - Example #3 - Raymond Keene vs Briant
Clearance AKA Opening Connections - Example #4 - Sergey Karjakin vs Komiliakov
Clearance AKA Opening Connections - Example #5
X-Ray Tactic (Pieces going through each other) - introduction and example
X-Ray Tactic - Bobby Fischer vs Arthur Bisguier - Example #2
X-Ray Tactic - Max Euwe vs Johannes Loman - Example #3
X-Ray Tactic - Vassily Ivanchuk vs Loek van Wely - Example #4
X-Ray Tactic - Shakhriyar Mamedyarov vs Magnus Carlsen - Example #5

Intermediate/Advanced - Important Middlegame tactics - further training examples

Fork Example - Helping promote a pawn to queen - Boris Avrukh vs Gata Kamsky
Fork Example - Levon Aronian vs Christian Seel
Fork Example- Vishy Anand vs Garry Kasparov
Fork Example - Raymond Keene vs Mikhail Botvinnik
Fork Example - even pawns can fork :) - Mikhail Tal vs Pliss
Pin Example - Taking a defensive hero out of equation- Nimzovitch vs. Nielsen
Pin Example - Forcing the win of material - Xie Jianjun vs. Yu Lefu
Pin Example - Gaining exclusive access to a key square- Bronstein vs Goldenov
Pin Example- Gurvics vs Pampin (Tricky!)
Pin Example - Taking out a defensive hero- Karaszev vs Klamen (VERY TRICKY!)
Skewer Example - Wolfgang Unzicker vs Mikhail Tal
Skewer Example - Magnus Carlsen vs Vishy Anand
Skewer Example - Boris Spassky vs Viktor Korchnoi
Skewer Example - Vladimir Kramnik vs Hikaru Nakamura
Skewer Example - Donato Rivera vs Bobby Fischer
Discovered Attack Example - Richard Reti vs Efim Bogoljubov
Discovered Attack Example - Visser vs Speelman
Discovered Attack Example - Nisipeanu vs Oral
Discovered Attack Example - Bobby Fischer Smiled with this one :)
Discovered Attack Example - Tigran Petrosian vs Aleksandar Matanovic
Removing the Defender Example - Tseshkovsky vs Garry Kasparov
Removing the Defender - Sergey Karjakin vs Nigel Short
Removing the Defender - Uhlmann vs. Schwartz
Removing the Defender - Adams vs. Whiteley
Removing the Defender - Inkiov vs. Jovanic
Deflection - Esteban Canal vs NN
Deflection - Mikhail Botvinnik vs Paul Keres
Deflection - Maia Chiburdanidze vs Malaniuk
Deflection - Mikhail Tal vs Yuri Averbakh
Deflection - Lputian vs Balashov
Decoy - Boris Spassky vs Orest Averkin
Decoy - Viktor Korchnoi vs Mikhail Tal
Decoy - Bent Larsen vs Boris Spassky
Decoy - Anthony Kosten vs Murray Chandler
Decoy - Vasilios Kotronias vs Vallejo Pons
Decoy - Judit Polgar vs Lars Bo Hansen
Interference Tactic - Anatoly Karpov vs Judit Polgar
Clearance Tactic - La Bourdonnais vs Alexander McDonnell
X-Ray Tactic - Anna Bjorg Thorgrimsdottir vs aria-Anna Stefanidi

Beginner Level: Chess Middlegame: Checkmate Patterns

What are Checkmate patterns and why are they useful to be aware of?
Back Row Mate: Magnus Carlsen World Champion vs Wesley So - Example #2
Back row mate Example #3 - Bird vs Zukertort
Back row mate Example #4 - Orbaan vs Kramer
Back row mate Example #5 - Averbakh vs Ragozin 1954
Smothered Mate Pattern: Introduction and Example #1
Smothered Mate Pattern - Example #2
Smothered Mate Pattern - McConnell vs Morphy - Example #3
Smothered Mate Pattern - Paul Morphy vs NN - New Orleans 1856 - Example #4
Smothered Mate Pattern - NN vs Gioachino Greco - Example #5 - 1620
Anastasia’s Mate Pattern - Milica Milosavljevic vs Marija Rakic
Arabian Checkmate Pattern - Isidor Gunsberg vs David Janowski
Blackburne Checkmate Pattern
Blind Swine Mating Pattern
Boden's Mate Pattern - Esteban Canal vs NN
Corner Mate - Myers vs Poliakoff
Damian's Mate Pattern
Double Bishop Mate Pattern
DoveTail Mate Pattern (Killer Common Squares - Support Style Checkmate)
Epaulette mate - Magnus Carlsen vs Sipke Ernst Example
Greco's mate - Nigel Short vs Ivan Sokolov example
Hook Mate - Frank Marshall vs William Ewart Napier
Kill Box Mate Pattern
Légal’s Mate Pattern
Lolli's mate AKA "Thorn Pawn Checkmate" :) - Blackburne vs Steinkuehler
Max Lange's mate AKA Clever Bishop and Queen working together :)
Mayet's mate Pattern (Type of Killer Common Square mate - Bishop supports rook)
Morphy's Mate Pattern (Rook cuts escape squares and bishop delivers check)
Opera Mate Pattern (named after Paul Morphy's famous Opera game)
Pawn Checkmate Pattern (aka David and Goliath)
Pillsbury's mate - Rook checks and Bishop cuts off escape squares
Queen's Mate
Réti's mate - Reti vs Tartakower game featured this implementation
Rook mate (box mate)
Suffocation Mate AKA Semi-Smothered Mate
Swallow's tail mate AKA Guéridon mate
Vuković's mate - Howard Staunton vs Elijah Williams example

Intermediate/Advanced - Important Middlegame Mating Patterns - further examples

Back row mate Example - Lawrence Cooper vs Igor Ivanov
Back row mate Example - Shapiro vs Silman
Back row mate Example - Judit Polgar vs Evgeny Bareev
Back row mate Example - Luke McShane vs Mirumian
Back row mate Example - Davidovich vs Aguado
Smothered Mate Pattern - NN vs Gioachino Greco - 1625
Smothered Mate Pattern - Bird/Dobell vs NN
Smothered Mate Pattern - Bischoff vs Mueller
Smothered Mate Pattern - Paul Morphy vs Jefferson Bryan - 1859
Smothered Mate Pattern - Hendriks vs Welling

Intermediate Level: Chess Middlegame: Important pawn structure elements

Philidor once said "Pawns are the soul of chess"
What is a pawn structure aka pawn formation?
Is it important to experience the pros and cons of different structures?
Pawns can't go backwards - irreversibility of decisions - Plaskett vs Adams
Pawns can't go backwards - A Probing Strategy Example - Fischer vs Addison
Do we need to literally occupy the center with pawns? Reti vs Capablanca
What makes pawns weak - in terms of dependencies
What makes a good pawn structure? Appearance vs Function - Short vs Timman
Piece and Pawn Harmony - Karjakin vs Adams - Example #1
Piece and Pawn Harmony - Kasparov vs Adams - Example #2
Piece and Pawn Harmony - Nimzovich vs Capablanca - Example #3
What is a "Pawn breaks" AKA "Pawn Lever" ?
What is a Structural "Hole" in pawn structure and strategic bishop exchange
What is a "Minority Attack"?
Thorn pawns and winning probability - Lorenz vs. Orlov - Example #1
Thorn Pawn - Kramnik vs. Anand - Example #2
Thorn pawn - Morales vs. Sanchez - Example #3
Thorn Pawn - Ivanovic vs. Popovic - Example #4
Passed pawns and winning probability - Example #1
Passed pawns - Torre vs. NN - Example #2
Doubled pawns - DOWNSIDE example
Doubled pawns - UPSIDE example - Mikhail Botvinnik vs Grigory Levenfish
The Isolated Queen's Pawn - UPSIDE example
The Isolated Queen's pawn - DOWNSIDE example
Backward pawns - UPSIDE example
Backward pawns - DOWNSIDE example
Hanging pawns - UPSIDE example
Hanging pawns - DOWNSIDE example

Introduction to Chess Endgames : Important Themes and Roles of pieces

Passed pawns: Classic passed pawn breakthrough every Chess newcomer should know
Ensure passed pawn safe journey - Yasser Seirawan vs Garry Kasparov
Making aggressive use of King - Tal vs Lisitsin
The power of a rook on the 7th rank - Capablanca vs Tartakower

Beginner Level: Chess Endgames: Important and Common Checkmating patterns

Checkmating on the Back Rank - Example #1
Queen and Rook - Example #1
Queen and Rook - Example #2
Queen and Rook - Example #3
Two Rooks and King vs King - Example #1
Two Rooks and King vs King - Example #2
Two Rooks and King vs King - Example #3
Checkmating with the Queen - Example #1
Checkmating with the Queen - Example #2
Checkmating with the Queen - Example #3
Checkmating with Lone Rook - Example #1
Checkmating with Lone Rook - Example #3
Checkmating with Lone Rook - Example #2
Checkmating with Two bishops - Example #1
Checkmating with Two bishops - Example #2

Beginner Level: Chess Endgames: Important concepts and famous positions

The concept of the Opposition - Example #1
King and pawn vs King - White to move - Example #1
King and pawn vs King - Black to move - Example #2
King and pawn vs King - Example #3
The concept of the "Rule of the Square" to determine if a king can catch pawn
The concept of the "Rule of the Square" - Example #2
The concept of the "Rule of the Square" - Study by Richard Reti - Example #3
King and pawn vs King - Triangulation example - Lev Alburt vs Garry Kasparov
Rook and pawn vs rook - The Vancura Defence
Rook and pawn vs rook - The Lucena position - Building a bridge
The Philidor position (rook and pawn vs rook) - Example #1
The Philidor position - Pawn on 5th rank to start with - Example #2

Intermediate Level: All game phases: Learning from the World Chess Champions

Chess captures the cultural context and history of the time - and technologies
Adolf Anderssen - "The Immortal Game"
Paul Morphy's Iconic Game - The Opera Game
Steinitz - 1886–1894 - the 1st official World Chess champion
Lasker - 1894–1921 - 2nd official World Chess champion - game vs Bauer
José Raúl Capablanca - 1921–1927 3rd official World Chess champion
Alexander Alekhine - 1927–1935 || 1937–1946
Max Euwe - 1935–1937
Mikhail Botvinnik - 1948-1957 || 1958-1960 || 1961-1963
Vasily Smyslov - 1957 - 1958
Mikhail Tal - 1960-1961
Tigran Petrosian - 1963-1969
Boris Spassky - 1969-1972
Bobby Fischer - 1972-1975
Anatoly Karpov - 1975-1985
Garry Kasparov - 1985-1993

Chess Tips for Improving and Winning

Improving Tip : Self Analysis of own games
Improving Tip: Play with slightly stronger opponents
Improving Tip: Experiment with different ways of gaining experience
Improving tip: Be wary of external feedback mechanisms
Improving tip: Models of how to Prioritise knowledge and understanding
Winning Tips: Disclaimer - take care of the Golden Goose and not just the eggs!
Winning Tips: Piece activity, King Attacks, Pressure, Opening Middlegame link
Winning tips: Opening choice, Opening Stats, and not pretending to be Kasparov
Winning Tips: Be aware of context and Art of War principles

Interesting lessons and instructive games from Netflix Queen's Gambit series

Episode 1 - Game 1 : Beth's first lesson - a pitfall to avoid
Episode 1 - Game 2 - Another Pitfall to avoid in opening
Episode 1 - Game 3 - A passed pawn breakthrough
Episode 1 - Game 4 - A nice checkmate
Episode 2 "Exchanges" - Beth vs Cooke
Episode 2 "Exchanges" - Townes vs Beth - Tactics in an endgame
Episode 2 - Beth Harmon vs Harry Beltik - ( Nezhmetdinov - Kasparian 1955)
Episode 3 "Doubled pawns" - Caro-Kann Discussion showing upsides - Cincinnati
Episode 3 - Benny allows doubled pawns in opening and beats Beth in US Champs
Episode 4 - Beth follows a famous game of Bobby Fischer vs Bent Larsen
Episode 4 - When winning exchange pieces not pawns - Anand vs Kasparov
Episode 4 nicknamed "Middle game" - Bernstein vs Capablanca - back row mate
Episode 4 - Vasily Bogov vs Beth Harmon (based on a game of Leonid Stein)
Episode 5 nicknamed "Fork" - Smyslov vs Botvinnik featured game
Episode 6 - Beth is shown chess "problem" by fictional Hilton Wexler - mate in 3
Episode 6 - Beth beats Benny Watts (game 1/3) - based on Kasparov vs Van Wely
Episode 6 - Beth beats Benny in blitz Simul (gm 3 of 3) - Morphy "Opera" game
Episode 6 - Paris Tournament (1967) - win which follows Averbakh vs Tolush 1963
Episode 6 - Paris Tournament (1967) Hung over Beth loses to Borgov the 2nd time
Episode 7 - Shaibel's wall has a mate in 3 puzzle
Episode 7 - Moscow Invitational vs Hellstrom - Topalov vs Kasparov 1995
Episode 7 - Beth Harmon vs Vasily Borgov - the Final Encounter

Famous Chess Quotations around the Opening, Middlegame and Endgame

Famous and Instructive Chess Opening Quotations
Chess MIddlegame Quotations
Famous and Instructive Chess Endgame Quotations

Conclusions

Weak link in chain model - keep concentric circle growing :)
Bonus Lecture

Screenshots

The Complete Beginner's Guide to Chess - Screenshot_01The Complete Beginner's Guide to Chess - Screenshot_02The Complete Beginner's Guide to Chess - Screenshot_03The Complete Beginner's Guide to Chess - Screenshot_04

Reviews

Anthony
July 13, 2023
Great course. The King Crusher shares his love of chess and his secrets. Killer common square and weakness of the. last move I am using in my games along with a whole lot more.
Michael
July 12, 2023
So far, the instructor is hard to follow in terms of his fluency and articulation. However, I can attest to learning so early in the course.
Christopher
June 30, 2023
4 stars because it's really for advanced beginners. My first Kingscrusher course was the Tactics one which is a 5 star and FUN and oddly enough, very good for advanced beginners. (it really helps demonstrate the awe and majesty of the game which is very exciting.....) This course is a bit of a slog compared to that. Needs more precision and "hand holding" especially for beginners BUT, he is a delight. I will continue with his openings class next. A suggestion: why not explicate two books that have been suggested: Simple Chess by Michael Stean and Art of the Attack by Vuykovic. I read them both on Kingscrucher's suggestion but it's too hard on one's own. KINGCRUSHER: use those as your text books and "hold our hands" page by page!!!! Now THAT would help us all improve. It's too hard to concentrate and understand principles and set/re-setup the board at the same time. You could do it in flash on your computer screen etc. and refer to page numbers and the like.
Cezary
June 16, 2023
It is to early to judge cause first two lectures are just an introduction but it is all clear and layed out without confusion
Harry
May 19, 2023
tryfon doesn't just have a wealth of knowledge. he is a cool and charismatic teacher. i'm most impressed
Mike
April 28, 2023
Looked at all the other offerings and resonated with this Teacher, I like the calm energy he projects and really like his introduction/overview which convinced me that he was the right Teacher for me as a beginner. I'm sure the other courses are good, but this Teacher really impressed me on the first overview.
Tom
April 26, 2023
I feel that this is an excellent course that gives you a good foundation to build on. It is easy to skim through the early chapters if you are not a complete beginner, and then focus on the rest of the course until completion.
Mark
April 26, 2023
Don't usually rate this early on. But I was expecting quite a pretentious approach. Despite having a psuedonym like King Crusher. The presenter seems chilled out friendly, softly spoken and quite zen about his passion. I like how the big picture is delivered prior to all the technical detail.
Val
March 22, 2023
I am only at the beginning but the fact that the instructor is a bit tenuous to understand made me want to continue and improve
Tom
January 7, 2023
Great overview... for beginners and experienced players alike. He goes into wonderful levels of detail, and keeps things fun and interesting.
Ibtisam
January 1, 2023
He explained that the bigger the loss the bigger the lesson is. And thats hits me in spiritual aspect so hard.
Michael
August 31, 2022
I enjoyed his sense of humor and teaching style. It was exactly the kind of introduction to chess I needed. An overview of everything and enough information for me to know where I want to take my learning when I finish the course.
Robert
July 3, 2022
I have taken a significant number of classes and have a very high bar for giving good ratings. With tha context, I can recommend this as one of the most organized and well presented courses. The teacher have an advanced deep understanding of the game, but delivered the topic in a manner that transfers that knowledge to basic learners, but enough Aha moments even during the intro section. KEY DIFFERENTIATORS: * the teacher loves the topic to very being. Just watching someone so skilled presenting a rare lifetime experience in our lifetime. * I find the underlying concepts and principals applicable to other areas 0f life. Learning is a life long journey to enjoy, progression thru concentric circles, etc. (for me it’s learning to play the guitar, mastering trading in the stock market, Qigong …) * attention to detail * well thought out prepared visuals in sync with the dialog. He invested a lot of time, thought, life energy in preparing the material. For reference: I already knew how to play chess, but learning how to think chess - big difference!
Mike
June 11, 2022
Learned how to play years ago.. but never took the game seriously. Close to retirement and want something to keep me sharp, but found I didn't really know the game. this course gives not only the basic skills to play but also goes into advanced ideas that I have found very helpful. Now instead of losing most of my games online, have been able to win a lot more. Making Playing a fun hobby, instead of a nightmare
Pratik
May 17, 2022
All of his courses are just awesome. I can't stop myself from writing a review. Awesome content and teaching. No one provides such a good content in such less price. I don't have words to explain how great his courses are.

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Related Topics

4044560
udemy ID
5/12/2021
course created date
6/27/2021
course indexed date
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course submited by