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| Jul-26-07 | | Tactic101: Thanks for the advice, <Sneaky>! This will certainly help me in my future games. |
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| Aug-02-07 | | zanshin: <sneaky> I see your strategy of playing the chessbookie long shots is paying off. It's working for me too, but I can't seem to pull the trigger on making a *large* longshot bet. Keep up the good work! |
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Aug-05-07
 | | Sneaky: This is one facet of chess that I like. Playing blitz games that really require NO THOUGHT AT ALL ... just pure instincts. I have more respect for full-length OTB tournament games, but 2 minute games have their place, as well. FICS Sneaky-NN
1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. e4 e6 <Black has already mishandled the opening, in my opinion. From White's point of view, it feels as if I'm playing a stodgy old Orthodox Defense, except with an extra tempo.> 4. Bxc4 
click for larger view<Black has made things pleasant for me. To play good chess you have to be rude, pushy, obnoxious, and as unpleasant as possible.> Bb4+ 5. Nc3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c6 7. Nf3 Ne7 8. O-O O-O 9. Rb1 <getting back to what I said recently about he problems with developing Black's queen's bishop, this move makes sure that it's even MORE of a problem> Ng6 10. Ng5 h6 11. Nf3 Nh4 
click for larger view<when my opponent puts a knight on the edge of the board, I try to make sure he ends up keeping that knight there, looking goofy, until he spends a turn moving it back to a sensible square.> 12. Ne5 Nd7 13. Ng4 Nb6 14. Bd3 f5 15. exf5 exf5 
click for larger view16. Nxh6+! <never allow a sacrifice like this when playing bullet chess! the attacker doesn't need to be 100% accurate--but the defender must be!> gxh6 17. Qh5 Qf6 18. Bxh6 Rf7 
click for larger view19. Rxb6 axb6 20. Bc4 Ng6 21. Re1 Ne7? <it's easy to criticize but the game was "morally" lost before this blunder. it's just not easy to defend a position like this with 30 seconds on your clock> 22. Bg5 Qg7?? <now he totally commits suicide, but 22...Qg6 23.Bxf7 Qxf7 24.Qxf7+ Kxf7 25.Rxe7+ leads to a hopeless ending> 23. Rxe7 1-0 final position:
click for larger view |
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| Aug-05-07 | | micartouse: Cool game. Nf3-e5-g4-h6! I am dying to try that maneuver now. Looks sort of like this: Alekhine vs Lopez Julio, 1945 |
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| Aug-12-07 | | refutor: Sneaky...here's an anti-Meran line from the old days...Petrosian even used it (albeit only once and unsuccessfully) 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 e6 5.e3 Ne4!? with an eventual ...f5 i know the stonewall isn't everyone's cup of tea, but either is the Shirov-Shabalov attack...whaddya think? i know i know, if i really don't want to play the Meran i should play 3. ...f5 or 1. ...f5 ;) |
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Aug-12-07
| | Sneaky: <refutor> Yeah I've encountered that myself. Like you say, the Stonewall isn't for everybody. Personally I hate to attack the Stonewall because it lives up to its name. It's one tough nut to crack. On the other hand I don't enjoy playing a Stonewall setup, it seems to me that people who play it are relying on their opponents to do something irrational out of frustration, and that's not my style either. Perhaps White can try to make things sharp with opposite side castling? E.g. after 5...Ne4 the game may continue 6.Nxe4 dxe4 7.Nd2 f5 8.b3 b6 9.Bb2 Be7 10.Be2 O-O 11.Qc2 Nd7 12.O-O-O!? 
click for larger viewYes, probably a reckless time to choose to castle long, but at least the game won't resemble the normal "do nothing" Stonewall games. Of course the normal Stonewall player will probably relish this strategic choice, like I said, they rely on their opponents to try something irrational. |
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| Aug-13-07 | | Ziggurat: <Sneaky> I know exactly what you mean about the bliss of "no-thought" online blitz. In fact, it often happens that I play while on the phone, win, and have no recollection of the game afterwards. When I play through the game I usually discover that I've played superficial but fairly strong and "good enough" moves. The good games played in this way look like the game you posted above. Of course, this doesn't usually work well against strong opposition which will not allow you to play natural moves all the way. The working memory has to be activated in these cases :-) |
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Sep-06-07
| | Sneaky: My winning streak on FICS finally ended.
The rules were simple: I would type "seek 2 12" and play whomever accepts the challenge. I won an incredible 21 game in a row. I jokingly say "I broke FIscher's record." :-) Most of my opponents were rated in the 1200-1600 range, some even lower, but the rules were that I'd play the first one to accept. Then on the 22nd game I drew a player named aschi (rated 1246). I was lucky to have even gotten a draw in that encounter, I made a horrible blunder. Thus, the streak has ended. It's been fun. Off to start a new one now... username=Sneaky |
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| Sep-07-07 | | Judah: You still have an unbeaten streak... |
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Sep-07-07
| | Sneaky: True!! How many more games do I need before I beat Capablanca's record?? ;-D |
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Sep-07-07
 | | TheAlchemist: Didn't Tal have something like 95 in a row in the 70's? |
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Sep-07-07
| | Sneaky: I always thought Capa had the "no loss" record? Did Tal break it? Somebody around this joint knows the skinny, that's for sure. Maybe ask square dance, he knows a few things about Capa. Record or not, Tal did have amazing win streaks--which is incredible considering his almost suicidal "burn all bridges" type style. The old adage "the best defense is a good offense" is trite but true. If you attack somebody hard and swiftly, soon they are the ones begging for the draw. You know what's also weird? You'd think I'd be rated 1900 or 2000 by now with all of those wins, right? I mean let's face it--even an expert would have trouble duplicating my stunt. But performance rating doesn't mean doodly-squat. Because FICS uses this rating system that involves the controversial "Glickman method", my games have very low influence on my rating lately because I've been playing so much. So each victory is just a point or two if I win (and a point or two if I lose). I think I shot up 70 points from my stunt, from 1490 to 1561. Big whoop-dee-doo. :-/ |
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Sep-07-07
 | | SwitchingQuylthulg: Poor <sneaky> appears to have lost a game... although perhaps there's some inside thing related to it that means it shouldn't count? Dulszi-Sneaky
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e5 5. Nb5 a6 6. N5a3 Nf6 7. Bg5 Bb4+
8. c3 Be7 9. Nd2 d5 10. Bxf6 Bxf6 11. exd5 Qxd5 12. Qf3 Qa5 13. Ndc4 Qd8 14.
Rd1
Here it seems our hero thinks for a minute and then resigns. I wonder why, since it doesn't look hopeless - he's losing his castling rights but that's hardly decisive in blitz?:
click for larger view<sneaky>, was that just a connection problem or similar? |
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Sep-07-07
| | SwitchingQuylthulg: Oh no, he just lost another one... unless it's his younger brother playing with his identity? Artakin-Sneaky
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e5 5. Nxc6 bxc6 6. Nc3 Nf6 7. Bc4 d6
8. O-O Be7 9. f4 exf4 10. Bxf4 Be6 11. Bxe6 fxe6 12. e5 Qb6+ 13. Kh1 dxe5 14.
Bxe5 O-O 15. Rb1 Rad8 16. Qe2 Nd5 17. Nxd5 Rxf1+ 18. Rxf1 cxd5 19. Qg4 g6 20.
h4 Rf8 21. Rxf8+ Bxf8 22. h5 Qe3 and our hero resigned in view of 23.Qxe6#
click for larger view |
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Sep-07-07
| | Sneaky: <SwitchingQuylthulg> You're right-- I might have resigned in a tenable position, I was just so outclassed in the opening and felt demoralized. I saw something like Qc7; Nd6+ Kf8; Bc4 Be6; Bxe6 fxe6; Nac4--if White can't play Nxe5 next he surely can play O-O and Re1, while I'm all in a knot. 
click for larger viewSo I showed him some respect and gave up. In retrospect I probably should have fought on. By the way my next game I got some revenge, I rematched him and won with beautifully picturesque Arabian mate: 
click for larger viewBlack to move. He stared at it for a minute or two.
<Sneaky> Gotta move? <Artakin> Fresh out. (Artakin vs. Sneaky) Artakin resigns 0-1
Blitz rating adjustment: 1552 --> 1559
So the new count is "one". :-) Oh well... |
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Sep-09-07
| | Sneaky: Typo note, in my previous post I meant "White to move; he stared at it for a minute or two." Of course if it was Black to move it would be mate. We both had the same idea: harass the enemy with rooks & knights. I arranged my pieces into the "arabian setup" which forced resignation--that black knight went from Nxg2 to Ne1(!) to Nf3, and it's curtains. He could have done something similar to me at the same time, but instead he chomped with his rook on g7, which is simply harmless. The arabian-mating net is a very important setup for beginners to remember. |
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| Sep-10-07 | | Robin01: Looks like you win the bookie betting contest. Congratulations! Now off to gambling rehab!:) |
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Sep-11-07
| | Sneaky: I can't stress enough how easy it was to win this prestigious race. -- Homer Simpson |
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Sep-15-07
| | Sneaky: ♖♘♗ Sneaky's Guide to Online Chess Etiquette ♗♘♖ - Don't blindly say "good game" (or "gg") after a game. This can be construed as obnoxious. For instance suppose you play me and fall into a cheap opening trap, and you resign on move 9. I type "gg" to you. If that is a compliment, surely I am the only person that I'm complimenting--ergo, it sounds disingenuous. Instead, say "handshake." - When I lose due to my opponent's skill (as opposed to my own blunder) I often say "Well done." That's about the biggest compliment anybody ever gets on a chess server. - Don't offer a draw in a hopeless position. E.g. if you are playing the rook in a R+P vs K ending, you should not offer the draw, even if you achieve the Philidor position. Clearly your opponent knows that he can have a draw anytime he wants, so if he plays on you're forced to suffer. - If you offer a draw in a reasonable situation, and it's refused, don't be quick to follow it up with another offer. Wait for the situation to materially change before you make the offer again. - After the game, don't bombard your opponent with post-mortem analysis unless he indicates that he wants to discuss it. This is especially true of blitz games--as many players believe that "analyzing blitz chess" is an oxymoron. Type "would you like to go over the game quickly?" to test the waters. - If you lose a game, don't immediately sign-out of the chess server. Children run away pouting when they lose; show more character than that. If your opponent has a comment to make about the last game, let him make it. I can't tell you how many people miss my post-mortem comment and all I see is "That player is no longer here." - Takebacks are NOT how chess is played. Little children playing chess know this very well, but for some reason a number of adults can't seem to figure this out. If you make a mouse slip, make a mental note of it. Then, after the game, explain to your opponent "Kf1 was a mouse slip." That way he'll know you were not such an idiot you actually would play such a move--and at the same time, he knows that you have character enough to take your lumps. |
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| Sep-23-07 | | Tactic101: You may want to add a few more things to this:
However strongly you feel, never accuse your opponent of computer cheating. Instead, find a moderator and tell him your suspicions, along with reasons. Don't boot your opponent from the table without giving him a reason. Tell him "Sorry, have to go" or something like that. And if lost your game/s, be a man and say "You played really well. Hope to play you again". Otherwise, this can seem just plain rude. Don't chatter on your oppponent's time. Do it on your own if you want to talk. This just distracts your opponent. You won't be caught dead doing this in the tournament hall, would you? Don't ask your opponent to resign, even though he's obviously lost. It's his choice, not yours. Similarily, resign when you're lost. Don't force your opponent to wait for for minutes on end before he can claim victory by time. The same holds true for OTB chess. |
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| Oct-01-07 | | Hesam7: <Sneaky: Kramnik didn't play the opening in his usual mild-mannered fashion. In playing 5. Bg5, Kramnik made a bid for one of the sharpest double-edged attacking lines in all of chess, the "Botvinnik variation" Queen's Gambit Declined Semi-Slav (d44) It was Svidler who said "No thanks, no wild positions today -- let's just push wood."> OK here is what Kasparov has to say:
<Mention should be made of how much Black's opening logic has changed today. He often avoids the Botvinnik Variation by playing 5...h6, not through fear of it, but because he knows: in the fight for an advantage White is unlikely to play 6 Bxf6, and with 6 Bh4 he himself will most probably offer a pawn sacrifice - in a version more advantageous to Black! This is sound pragmatism: why should Black ask for trouble, if White is going to do so first?!> -- Garry Kasparov, Revolution in the 70s, pg 316. |
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Oct-03-07
| | Sneaky: Hesam, very interesting. Thanks for that. |
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Oct-04-07
| | Sneaky: <Tactic101> I agree with all of those points, especially about computer-help. Sometimes you feel pretty sure, just like you get hunches playing poker, but you never know FOR SURE. |
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| Oct-04-07 | | micartouse: <Sneaky> Thanks for the etiquette ideas - it's important to me either via internet or OTB so it's always nice to see someone else's ideas. My thoughts: <Instead, say "handshake."> This is a great idea which I never thought of! I don't mind typing "gg" if it was a real struggle, but it's awkward to say so after a massacre. <If you lose a game, don't immediately sign-out of the chess server.> I have left after defeats recently, but for a different reason; I resolved to stop and analyze my losses before continuting. However, I can see how it might be obnoxious so I will try to keep playing or at least chat a little before leaving. I'm always afraid nobody wants to talk, although I love sharing post-mortem impressions when invited. <Takebacks are NOT how chess is played.> I make exceptions for Kf1 or ... Kf8. Sometimes I even ask if they want a takeback if I'm pretty sure it was a slip. Often opponents decline on principle! <Tactic101: Similarily, resign when you're lost.> I try to take a balanced approach to this. Resign when there are no practical chances of saving the game, including time and tricks. Usually common sense is a good judge and opponents will respect a few last minute cheapos before you throw in the towel. :) |
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| Oct-05-07 | | Red October: when a move seems like a mouse slip i allow a take back by my opponent... but i never ask for one |
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