35 Vital Chess Principles | Opening, Middlegame, and Endgame Principles - Chess Strategy and Ideas

[@ChessVibesOfficial]

Stuck at 1000 elo? Not anymore: chessvibes.net/

[@johnny196775]

I am curious if you mean this for beginners, or, if you don't intend this for absolute beginners, why would you suggest castling is a vital principle, let alone in the first ten moves? I thought you were doing great until then. Perhaps it is a generational thing (I am 56); I admit I haven't even watched a game in decades, so maybe state of play has changed so dramatically that it is necessary now? Also, in the 70's a night was worth 3.5 while a bishop was worth 3. I bishop is limited to half the board. Nights can reach every square. I don't know where you learned that bishops are worth more than nights, but if that is what people think today, I should get back into play and clean the place up! What a joke.

[@kendricklamarlover247]

@@johnny196775 typically bishops are regarded as being more valuable since 1. They can traverse the board in one move and 2. They can protect more squares then the knight can and that's even better when you have the bishop pair, while knights have to jump, skip and hop to get across the board and can't protect more than four squares at a time

[@johnny196775]

@@kendricklamarlover247 If that is what they are telling young chess players, then I should get back into the game and clean the place up... because that is very poor reasoning.

[@ednelson2501]

@@kendricklamarlover247 I see bishops and knights as, equal value. A bishop's defensive style is only matched by a queen. A knight has it's own abilities. I see both knights as, more like specialized defensive pieces. That balances, for what they change on attack. Where they are specialized attack, hold position pieces.

[@PaulRees77]

@@johnny196775 Bishops have been considered a little more valuable than knights since way before the 70's. This is not a new idea.

[@teoflandoliokeefe5483]

One good tip that I've realized after years of playing is that you should think of Chess as a single player game, and therefore always plan out the moves for both sides. It can be easy to tunnel vision on your own side, but if you always prepare yourself by thinking "what would I do if i were my opponent" you often can perform better and formulate more complex ideas.

[@jasonbaxter1201]

But what about the time?

[@aaronlui8477]

@@jasonbaxter1201 just play longer games :)

[@ventsyv]

3 minor pieces vs queen - I think most casual players would prefer having a queen as it's easier to play.

[@shriram9933]

@@ventsyv yes queen can hang around the whole board and give different sort of forks, when position opens up

[@daddydealz6088]

Same goes for poker for poker has a more mental game than chess is more of an intellectual game poker is a game with intelligence but you also have to be able to understand the way normal people think and you can win based off of other people's emotion I would say chess has the second most intellectual game after poker

[@isaachimself]

0:46 Principle 1 - Control Center 0:57 Principle 2 - Develop Pieces 1:16 Principle 3 - Knights before bishops 1:24 Principle 4 - Don't move the same piece 2 times, while developing 1:36 Principle 5 - Don't bring queen out too early 2:03 Principle 6 - Castle Before move 10 2:16 Principle 7 - Connect your Rooks 2:33 Principle 8 - Rooks should go on open or half open files 3:09 Principle 9 - Knights on the Rim are Grim 3:25 Principle 10 - Try avoiding doubled Pawns 3:56 Principle 11 - Avoid Isolated Pawns and Double Isolated Pawns 4:26 Principle 12 - Avoid Backward Pawns 4:49 Principle 13 - Don't trade your bishop for knight; without good reason 5:27 Principle 14 - Avoid moving the pawns in front of your castled king 5:50 Principle 15 - Don't open the center if your king is not castled 6:12 Principle 16 - 2 minor pieces (Knights/Bishops) are generally than 1 Rook and 1 Pawn 6:44 Principle 17 - 3 minor pieces is better than a Queen 6:55 Principle 18 - Rooks are very strong on the 7th rank 7:19 Principle 19 - Doubled Rooks on an open file are Very Strong 7:38 Principle 20 - Bishops are better in open positions -Knights are better in closed positions 8:16 Principle 21 - Best way to deal with flank attack is counter attack the center 8:39 Principle 22 - Capture towards center of board 9:03 Principle 23 - Utilize King during end game 9:22 Principle 24 - Rooks go behind Passed Pawns 10:00 Principle 25 - 2 Connected Passed Pawns on the 6th rank Will beat a Rook 11:06 Principle 26 - Attack Base of Pawn Chain 11:31 Principle 27 - Knights are best blockaders of Pawns 12:00 Principle 28 - If Position cramped, Trade Pieces Principle 29 went on vacation 12:39 Principle 30 - When Ahead material, Trade Pieces but not Pawns 13:17 Principle 31 - When Down material, Trade Pawns but not Pieces 13:57 Principle 32 - Opposite colored bishops are dangerous in middle game - 15:15 Opposite colored bishops are draw-ish in end game 15:43 Principle 33 - Don't play "Hope chess" 16:44 Principle 34 - When you see good move - Pause and look for better move 17:11 Principle 35 - Know when to go against Principles

[@ibrabazzara8765]

despite watching this many times, I’ve just noticed that principle No 29 has really gone on vacation 😂😂😂

[@SnowBoy1008]

Principle 29 might be vice versa of 28

[@962Pixels]

17:55 Principle 29 - Trade your passive pieces for your opponent's active pieces. (In the spreadsheet) Even though it surely did go on vacation...

[@reginagoodbody213]

Principle 31: didn't he say rather trade pieces than pawns?

[@Luke-ot1ql]

👍

[@LudosErgoSum]

I want to add: 36. Don't play "Defence chess" which is essentially you trying to NOT LOSE. You only defend and try to protect and preserve your pieces, but there's no attacks or any goal to checkmate your opponent. I see this in a lot of players that are afraid of losing.

[@rewdwarf123]

Unless, of course, it sucks your opponent in and you then counter-attack.

[@AntheInEcht]

@@rewdwarf123 or your name is Petrosjan

[@mikyl-fo8rh]

Strong offense is best defense as you have your opponent defensive rather than offense.

[@MimMdance]

Against a good player you can become trapped by your own pieces, suffocated, which is such a frustrating way to lose. I rather go all out.

[@angrypidgeon1714]

wrong. These are tactical principles. Strategic principles are Sun Tzu. Therefore the warrior shall place himself beyond the posibility of defeat, and the opponent will present the opportunity for victory (by mistakes). However a good defense is an offense, or rather taking of strategic points. Strategic points are places of most options

[@Mark.shortz01]

1. Control the center of board 2. Develop pieces quickly 3. Knights before bishops 4. Dont move same piece twice in opening 5. No queen too early 6. Castle before move 10 7. Connect rooks 8. Rooks should go on open or half open files 9. Knights on the rim are grim 10. Avoid double pawns 11. Avoid isolated pawns 12. Avoid backward pawns 13. Dont trade bishop for knight 14. Avoid moving pawns in front of castle king 15. Dont open center if king is still there 16. 2 minor pieces are better than rook+pawn 17. 3 minors is better than queen 18. Rooks are strong on 7th or 2nd rank 19. Doubled rooks on open file are very strong 20. Bishops are better in open, knight-closed 21.deal with attack on flank with atk on cntr 22. Capture toward cntr with pawns 23. End game, king is valuable 24. Rooks go behind passed pawn 25. 2 connected pawns on 6th rank beats rook 26. Atk base of pawn chain 27. Knights are best blockaders of pawns 28. If position is cramped, trade pieces 29. When ahead, trade pieces but not pawns 30. When down, trade pawns but not pieces 31. Opposite colored bishop pieces dangerous 32. End game, games are drawish 33. Dont play hope chess 34. When you see good move, stop and look for better move 35. Know right time to ignore principles

[@DarDarkh]

Thanks

[@SimpleThings4u]

Thanks

[@nickgood3998]

21 .deal Is a hotlink😭

[@wasp7969]

thank you

[@josephsalmonte4995]

Thank you mate 👍

[@bswan7914]

Great list! I can totally relate to #34 "When you see a good move, look for a better move". Against lower-level players, I have often turned a winning game into a draw with a single move. Other times, I have excitedly taken a piece only to be checkmated on the next move. Ugh! Never let your let your guard down in a game of chess. As GothamChess said, "chess is a game of one blunder".

[@ChessVibesOfficial]

Haha exactly right

[@ChidiUma]

Nah fam. Mine’s a game of 9 blunders

[@aesaehttr]

One blunder lol true. Savielly Tartakower was quoted for saying: "the winner is he who makes the next-to-last mistake." The opposite attitude is also true. David Bronstein was quoted for saying: "in chess, as in life, opportunity strikes but once."

[@rondid]

When I see a good move move I mostly play it and don't look for a better one, maybe I'm wrong but clock's ticking and I think it's best to play a good move than overthink and get flagged. Time management is a big issue for me.

[@andycopeland7051]

@@ChidiUma hahahahaha me too

[@8stormy5]

I also love Levy Rozman's principles of "Checks, Captures, Attacks" for analysis importance, and "disprove the move" in calculation (the latter basically means you should never justify how a move could succeed, but instead justify why the move can't fail)

[@rvqx]

I don´t play hope-chess, i play hopeless chess.

[@bastawa]

same here!

[@aesaehttr]

"I'm going to move here...i hope he doesn't see it!" -Ben Finegold

[@bastawa4569]

@@aesaehttr In my case it's like: I already moved, I hadn't seen how bad it was. I hope the opponent won't see it!

[@indyjoe6]

Lol

[@drewpocernich2540]

@@bastawa4569 same.

[@-ChrisD]

This is one of the best beginner level instructional/informational videos I've seen. Spoken very clearly and well articulated. Great job!

[@mbc-xe8rb]

For a ""beginner+" player like me this was a perfect video. Clear, logical, and brief/helpful explanations! Thank you so much! 👍

[@bulbasaurbrutal5137]

You are a wonderful enthusiastic chess friend!

[@CASLOAcademy]

Nelson is the best!!!!!

[@oscarwaterman6137]

My elaborate notes *General principles* Look for a better move when you see a good move Know the right times when to ignore chess principles (so basically know why you use the principles) *Opening* Control the center Go for kings safety Develop pieces: first knight, then bisschop, queen not immediately because you may have to move your queen and you miss out on the chance to develop other pieces Develop pieces on side you want to castle When developing your pieces, don’t move already developed pieces if possible Connecting rooks is powerful after you have castled and you have developed your pieces *Middle Game* Put rooks on open files or half open files (half open file is file with one pawn) knights have more options in the centre Avoid double pawns (two pawns on the same file) Avoid isolated pawns (if no pawn is next to his file) Avoid backward pawns (pawns that have no protection from side pawns) Don’t trade bishop for knight without good reason Avoid moving pawns in front of castled king Don’t open up the center if your king is still centered (because your king can get exposed) 2 minor pieces are better than rook and pawn 3 minor pieces are better than queen Rook is strong on 7th rank Double rook on open file is strong (e.g., can prevent opponent from placing rook on open file) Bishops are better in an open game, knights are better in closed game (closed game can be a game with pawns that block bishop lines) Deal with a flank attack (from pawns) with a counter attack in the center Capture towards the center if you have the option to capture a piece with two pawns Attack the base pawn of a pawn chain (pawns that are protected by each other) Trade pieces to open up a cramped position (when pieces are blockaded and can not move) Opposite coloured bishops are dangerous in the middle game because you can not do anything with your bishops against his bishop. His bishop with his queen are particularly dangerous *Endgame* It is strong to protect passed pawn (= a pawn that could walk freely to 8th rank) with a backward rook 2 connected pawns (= two passed pawns next to each other on the same rank) always beat a rookand one pawn gets a queen. Knights are good to blockade passed pawns Trade pieces when you are up in material but don’t trade pawns. E.g., if you are up 2 points in material with a rook against a knight, the rook becomes more valuable after you trade pieces because it can then capture pawns. - The opposite of that is also true, try to trade pawns when you’re down material In endgame, opposite coloured bishops (without queen in the game) can easily result in draw

[@mzukhology5177]

Tnank you for these, i have copied them. I will go over the tips and practice. I have always been sad that no one has ever taught me how to play chess. Then a few days ago it hit me: THE INTERNET!!! Again, Thank you.

[@davidramljak9961]

For the end game the 2 connected pawns ONLY beat a rook if they are both on the 6th rank, otherwise rook takes them. Other than that very nice summary!

[@phichetc5300]

2111111111212

[@ACE-yo1in]

✔️

[@3300flavio]

Thanks

[@dipoa2]

This is a great video. Loved how you sped through the principles whilst still making the points. You're a good teacher. Keep it up!

[@billyndolo4348]

He is.

[@murderah17]

Let's play a game Dipo. I will win many times against you, trust me.

[@y0h0p38]

​@@murderah17 Insecure?

[@alkaholic4848]

Also don't forget to try to force your opponent into breaking the principles. Eg try to put them under pressure to double up their pawns, try to pressure them into moving their knights to the edge of the board, pressure them into moving the same piece multiple times during the opening, etc.

[@yoobyoob2764]

when you're in 100 elo, you don't even have to put pressure, they do that on their own lol (me included)

[@LloydM-oh4uk]

I love playing with doubled pawns or an uncastled king

[@Fireball_Roberts]

Something that helped me was to look for attacking moves as a way to interrupt the opponent if you need to escape danger or develop a stuck piece. If I can safely threaten one of my opponent's pieces, many times he needs to defend it or move it, which can buy me an extra turn, and with the board a little bit different on my next turn it can sometimes give me better move choices without the opponent having made much progress, if that makes sense.

[@saudade7842]

Yeah, that's really good at buying time. One example for me would be when one of my opponents had me in a but of a tight spot, but his queen was out, and while I could not take it at the time, I could harass it, so I did, and I shut down his attack for a while while I kept moving my pieces further into his territory, putting him on the defensive. That was a really satisfying win and I learned a lot from that game

[@KumarBendrake]

I really enjoyed how you were thorough yet succinct. 35 important principles in less than 20 minutes. Great job.

[@JohnFKennedy420]

Oo succinct, someone went to college! Lmao

[@stevenshockley3665]

@@JohnFKennedy420 someone went to college and someone else has an inferiority complex

[@MacAutoDiag]

Succ

[@twinpeaksVVV]

I would add Principle #36. Always think twice before moving a pawn because you can't move it back. If you make a poor move with your other pieces you can move them back, but pawns only go forwards. A lot of beginners make pawn moves when they can't think of any other moves and often they do it with little thought. I think beginners tend to underestimate their pawns.

[@lezty]

Most important principle is not move your King pawn until you're high enough in ELO

[@Marsbars-iz3iv]

Im new to chess and what do you mean by that other than the obvious?​@@lezty

[@heyitsmorenike_]

@@lezty what is ELO?

[@lezty]

@@heyitsmorenike_ It’s a Number that shows the strength of a player

[@lezty]

@@Marsbars-iz3iv below 1300 elo. Try to never move the pawns in front of your king after you castle no matter how much the opponent provokes you. You only move them when you have no other choice.

[@tonysu8860]

A nice collection of "Vital Chess Principles." Yet, if there are many out there that prefer memorizing fewer Principles, A number of the listed can be summarized and taught as 1. Identifying or striving for dominance of a network of squares (White vs Black). Dominance means having the "Good Piece" that can take advantage of that network of squares vs your Opponent having the inferior piece, suffering from lack of Dominance (And hopefully you'll never be in that inferior position yourself). 2. Similar to the first rule, Identifying or striving for dominance of individual critical squares. This is usually a bit more difficult than the first rule because this requires understanding of various pawn structures and being able to recognize why certain squares are more valuable than others. A short list of possible reasons are... Unassailable because the opposing pawn structure has weaknesses. A piece on a particular square can have "blocking qualities" like plugging an open file so your opponent can't use it. A critical square for a particular piece for a particular combination pattern. A particular square that can enable transit to another critical square or multiple possible squares. 3. Mobility can be a crucial winning (or losing) characteristic. The only reason why for instance a Queen is worth more than any other piece is because she can move to so many squares on an open board... Otherwise, she is like any other piece on the board, a piece of wood (or plastic). Therefor, for each and every of your pieces, strive to enhance the absolute number of possible squares it can move to, but balance that thought with the first and second rules because the quality of squares also makes a difference. So, what leads to an advantage in Mobility? Stuff like dominating the center, control of more space, control of open lines like files and diagonals. And, this can become complex as advanced technique can require certain piece and pawn strategies or even sacrifices that lead to necessary mobility that was originally denied. 4. The inverse of the above 3rd principle is also extremely important, and numerous successful strategies can be built on simply restricting the scope of your opponent's pieces and denying them access to a network of files and critical squares. The above few principles encapsulate the underlying principles of Chess, but may suffer compared to this author's 35 Vital Principles by being less specific with concrete examples. The idea of these are that hopefully the Student learns how to think of chess strategically with all pieces working in coordination rather than as individual, disconnected moves.

[@nileshseban1335]

👍

[@vanessajazp6341]

Whenever your opponent has a single bishop in the end game, you neutralize it by keeping your king off of that bishop’s color (as much as possible).

[@moosakt8876]

very good tip, Learned it from my expierience

[@Dodo-ur7cq]

@Rusty Highlander yes, not just king but the other pieces

[@zorkan111]

​@Rusty Highlander No, not pawns. If the opponent has only one bishop, most of the time it's better to keep your pawns on the same color as the opponents bishop. Pawns control squares on diagonals, just like bishops do, so if you form pawn chains on the opponents bishops color, you severely limit them. Likewise, if you only have one bishop, try to arrange your pawns on the opposite color of your bishop. That way your bishop won't get cramped by your pawns. That leads into another point. The strength of the bishop largely depends on the pawn structure, so when an opportunity to trade bishops arises, look at the pawns to judge the value of that trade.

[@anshik.k.t]

Can someone tell what to do if opponents rook is taking my pieces one by one?

[@zorkan111]

@@anshik.k.t Don't leave your pieces undefended.

[@davidwhite2465]

That was really valuable. I knew just about all these rules, but really useful to see them all together. A couple of them, such as three minor pieces are better than a queen, I had suspected, but wasn’t sure. A couple of them, such as when to exchange pieces and when to exchange pawns, was new. Great video. Keep it up!

[@rhyspowell9426]

Principle 5: Dont move your queen too early Nelson: So i took that personally

[@HOWITZER169]

Yo I got that reference xD

[@aesaehttr]

When i beat that guy i took a screen shot and posted it to Facebook. Lol

[@moltenshard]

Chess Vibes’ name is also Nelson lol 😄

[@martinplayer23]

🤣🤣🤣

[@martinplayer23]

@@aesaehttr I also beated him😂

[@brazenzebra]

Fantastic video! Thanks. Can you give us some more principles, or even tricks? Some principles I've learned as a novice: 1. Beware of focusing too much on your own attack. You may miss major threats from your opponent. Stay vigilant! 2. Beware of intuition. It lies! You must calculate, calculate, caculate. 3. Beware of sneaky moves from your opponent in a winning endgame. You may be suckered into a stalemate.

[@psykonauta]

Bad intuition lies. Real intuition is right only 100% of the times

[@williamschlass6371]

@@psykonautatrue but how do you distinguish between good and bad intuition except for calculation or hindsight?

[@yusufdemirok8108]

good job keep playing

[@TonyMontana-tm7ul]

This is one of the best explanations chess videos I've seen

[@ChessVibesOfficial]

Glad it was helpful!

[@aaronsahipakka3224]

This! Most people just assume that chess newbies know every term etc., this guy explained everything very clearly and quickly. Earned my like

[@HM-yq3cn]

no doubt

[@rachelwangcal]

AGREE

[@lemagicienannonyme7289]

I'm playing hope-hope-chess : hoping my opponent plays hope-chess and then blunders

[@JW-qd3ol]

lmao

[@wallis1981]

lmao

[@HM-yq3cn]

this made me laugh

[@gabirican4813]

Thanks!

[@gabirican4813]

You are welcome.

[@nobodycouldhavethis]

This video has helped me so much, and I've still got 5 or so more to understand and add to my game. Having said this, I want more! Give us more like this!

[@ChessVibesOfficial]

I've got a part 2 in the pipeline that will happen at some point soon-ish. Appreciate the feedback! Glad it's helping 👍

[@shamilcarela1699]

00:46 1.Control the center of board 00:58 2.Develop pieces quickly 01:16 3.Knights before bishops 01:23 4.Dont move same piece twice in opening 01:37 5.No queen too early 02:03 6.Castle before move 10 02:15 7.Connect rooks 02:33 8.Rooks should go on open or half open files 03:08 9.Knights on the rim are grim 03:26 10.Avoid double pawns 03:57 11.Avoid isolated pawns 04:28 12.Avoid backward pawns 05:00 13.Dont trade bishop for knight 05:28 14.Avoid moving pawns in front of castle king 05:49 15.Dont open center if king is still there 06:13 16.2 minor pieces are better than rook+pawn 06:42 17.3 minors is better than queen 06:56 18.Rooks are strong on 7th or 2nd rank 07:20 19.Doubled rooks on open file are very strong 07:38 20.Bishops are better in open, knight-closed 08:18 21.deal with attack on flank with atk on cntr 08:38 22.Capture toward cntr with pawns 09:04 23.End game, king is valuable 09:23 24.Rooks go behind passed pawn 10:03 25.2 connected pawns on 6th rank beats rook 11:04 26.Atk base of pawn chain 11:33 27.Knights are best blockaders of pawns 12:00 28.If position is cramped, trade pieces ///// 29.When ahead, trade pieces but not pawns 12:40 30.When down, trade pawns but not pieces 13:17 31.Opposite colored bishop pieces dangerous 13:57 32.End game, games are drawish 15:44 33.Dont play hope chess 16:44 34.When you see good move, stop and look for better move 17:12 35.Know right time to ignore principles

[@fexzi4074]

Thanks

[@danno1800]

AWESOME! Thanks - much appreciated…

[@wopan14]

Danke!

[@brenorocha6687]

I've been trying to play against a chess app in the level hard and had been repeatedly beaten by it in the opening. On my first game after watching this video I did significantly better. Thank you!

[@ChessVibesOfficial]

Nice work!

[@olivernordin]

Great video. I had missed some of these basics

[@e.m.9590]

1m subs and three likes?! XD

[@dwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww]

I’ve taught myself a lot of rules playing chess & it’s great seeing most of these rules in your video. Personally, one thing I don’t abide by is developing pieces asap. I’ve learned to develop my pawns in early game to really take control of the games direction, they are integral to many of my wins. I’ve never looked at chess strategies, how I play is based solely on my own experiences, which is likely why I’m a 1500 level at my very best. However, I enjoy this aspect of chess, which is developing my own strategies, I don’t want it to turn into a game of pure memorization. So I will continue to break any rules I want 😁

[@paulbali9998]

wow, that was super useful. even the ones i knew implicitly - it's good to have them confirmed explicit. will enjoy applying the new ones!

[@ChessVibesOfficial]

Glad it was helpful!

[@itismethatguy]

Yeah earlier i exchanged bishop for a knight sometimes didnt know that bishop was better….

[@tomvonneefe4269]

Wow I was skeptical about a Top 35 video but this was very amusing and helpful. I haven't even seen this guy play but I know he's good. I learned more in 20 minutes than all my games I've played. Thank you so much for the tips. They feel like secret weapons.

[@thegenuine9173]

I'm

[@MrMrneil1]

actually, it helped that I've been in these situations before, making it a lot easier to 'relate to'.

[@k46_clips]

Yeah he is really good

[@Flexy59]

@@MrMrneil1 100%! for most of them i immediately remembered a recent scenario where i subconsciously understood that principle but didnt actually consider it as such at that moment, really a good video

[@andrewhenriques6806]

Enjoyed this Video very much,

[@toddinhali]

Fantastic instructional video! I knew nearly all of these, but never had them explicitly explained and validated. The three or four I didn't know will really help my end game.

[@GameGoalsRulesLife]

My undestanding of these principles are: Who controls the most of board has biggest chance to win (either by developing pieces or by area denial of spaces, i mean using rocks in files or half files, basically spheres of infuence). That is why the center of the board is important. Use 3 pieces to develop game fast, to control and influence space fast. Be fast. Always look for better positions, by having "high ground" opportunities to win will become visible. Never forget the weak link. The king is my vulnereable link, it must be protected, must be casttled, but defend it after i attack my opponents king. An attack is by itself a defense, it puts pressure on my opponents. What do you think?

[@corradog7015]

Great video! Especially the middle game principles. Knowing some of the general ideas of what to do in the middle game greatly helps minimize the moments of confusion about what to do once all my pieces are developed and my king is castled.

[@ChessVibesOfficial]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for the comment, Corrado!

[@grantojeh1251]

The middle game can be very confusing !

[@ltisenotem]

Solid advice. Only several games in, bouncing around 700-800 elo. Trying to learn openings, but this is really helpful seeing the principles of the game, thanks!!

[@johnhinkleman9757]

Yeah principles are so much more important for a beginner than theoretical opening knowledge. If you just keep an eye on the board and develop to control the center, openings should be no problem for you

[@itsPenguinBoy]

Excellent! I recognised many but I never thought about pawns capturing towards the centre, counter-attacking in the centre being the best response to a flank attack, knights to block pawns, OR the one about when to trade pawns

[@travelfreak2]

Pawns capturing towards the center was the first rule I ever learnt at age 14

[@andycopeland7051]

Hey did you ever break out of 800??

[@itsPenguinBoy]

@@andycopeland7051 hell no

[@andycopeland7051]

@@itsPenguinBoy I'm still struggling and floundering in that range myself after a year of trying semi-seriously. I just gotta learn more, get better. Good luck man it's worth the pursuit. Happy new year, God bless you

[@itsPenguinBoy]

@@andycopeland7051 I honestly think there is a ceiling to my level of play... I love learning strategies, including very advanced ones, but during a game I don't think my spacial processing, or capacity for organised memorisation, ever allows me to follow the lines I would like to, a seemingly obvious blunder always takes me down first. When I have hovered at the higher end of my range, it has required constant revision of openings, strategies, positions, but I never seemed to retain it long enough to move on to newer information, and improve my playing to the level of my understanding. With certain things, it seems, I will always forget as quickly as I learn, and that's ok, because I enjoy the experience of playing chess and don't need to be big winner. I love teaching kids chess and see them get better than me, and have non-chess-playing-friends being already close to my level for casual games.

[@danielnillo]

this was awesome. thank you. just starting to explore chess beyond the surface level. very clear and helpful. Will be making adjustments immediately.

[@LibreChess]

Wow, this is incredibly insightful! Thank you, Nelson for breaking down those principles in such a clear way.

[@RayCincy]

another aspect of rule 27 i just realized about knights being great blockaders of pawns is that if they do jump forward on the rank behind the pawn it also protects the square the pawn might push to! :)

[@tomsmall1244]

Thanks!

[@ChessVibesOfficial]

Thank you, Tom!!

[@tomsmall1244]

@@ChessVibesOfficial No problem! This video is super helpful! I’m a struggling 800-900 player and I think I will do much better with these principles!

[@Aurelian76]

Amazing - thank you so much. Amazing how 18 minutes fly when you're watching a good teacher explaining things.

[@andycopeland7051]

Watched your videos all night. Man you have a lot of great information that is paced well and easily digested. Please keep it up man you're doing great. Thank you

[@k46_clips]

Really a great tutor

[@howardhill3395]

Love how you explain, demonstrating basic principles visually & with reasons. Thank you.

[@wolfie5]

Knew most of these - but the knights in closed - bishops in open positions info was very useful thanks.

[@far2ez539]

Yes. I was pleased to see that tip. I recall reading it ages ago in a book by, I believe, GM Nimzowitsch, that I haven't seen many mention since. Another great tip he had was about doubled pawns. In particular, he noted that the true weakness of doubled pawns is the space _in front of_ the two pawns, as well as the front of the two pawns. The square in front of the two pawns is weak for two reasons: (1) a blockade on that square stops both, and (2) that square has already been inherently weakened by the adjacent pawn traveling to that file. Additionally, he noted that the forward pawn is weak for two reasons: (1) the adjacent files lack a defender for it (because it _was_ the defender of that square), and (2) it cannot be protected from behind by a rook (because the backwards pawn blocks the rook). Interestingly, he argued that a doubled pawn structure stops being a net weakness if you can address these two problems (defending the forward-pawn and the blockade square), and even argued that it is overall a net-benefit in that scenario (as it offers far more protection against minor pieces -- Knights especially).

[@joepiazza3756]

Another thing to add about blocking pawns with knights is that when you move the knight away it isn't the easiest for the pawn to immediately move up since the square it would enter if it moved up 1 space is in the Knight's vision.

[@FantasyFantasy934]

Wouldn’t that work for a bishop, queen and rook too?

[@FantasyFantasy934]

My personal preference is bishop blocking as if the opponent wants to use an adjacent pawn to attack the blockading piece, my bishop would be covering that square and attacking the pawn

[@ac3121]

16:48 how is that check mate can the pawn kill the knight to protect the king. Not trying go against the grain just curious trying to learn

[@geraldGUMP]

black pawn cant move cuz of queen

[@ahuman32478]

Another good principle to note is "responsibility pins". It's when an opponent's piece must stay in a certain area to prevent checkmate or an immense loss of material. The piece's responsibilities keep it confined "aka" pinned to an area. For example, if I have my rooks lined up, getting ready to back rank mate my opponent's king, my opponent's rooks MUST stay on the first rank to prevent checkmate. That means I can get a piece like my bishop onto the second rank to help attack rooks and attack the king without worry about it being captured, because the instant one of the rooks goes to the second rank to capture my bishop, I can deliver back rank mate.

[@marianodemiguel3442]

I can not thank you enough for this youtube. I was so rusty and struggling. Following your suggestions i was finally able to beat my PC normal mode! I realized I have been doing so many mistakes. I am finally organized. Very condensed information, everything is important.

[@susiekluwgant1266]

Thanks

[@ChessVibesOfficial]

Thank you!

[@Silverpicker]

As a new chess player, I gotta say this was a fantastic primer. Very helpful. Thank you!

[@SkullBeast3000]

Verified but no response?

[@alastairdivers4069]

Thorough, yet succinct. And as others have said, well articulated. Really enjoyed this video and no doubt will come back to it. Thanks for your work here. Haven't played in decades and only as a kid. Now keen to learn to play properly and teach my niece and nephew!

[@3Kefka6Palazzo9]

One move I find to work often (for reference I have played roughly 4,000 chess games, still new) I play Rapid Chess, it is possible to mess with your opponents mind by starting out with your tactics very quickly or very slowly. Either way you know what you will do but if you rush your opponent rushes yet our plans are already predetermined, then I slow down mid game and my opponent does make many hope mistakes. I can also start off slow making my opponent think I take caution and mid game go very quickly with a plan that is flexible enough to work even if something unexpected should arrive. Great video by the way.

[@Rammbock]

Thanks. I have actually intuitively adopted all the principles over time. Principle 21 is the one I'm struggling with, as is EVERY beginner: "attack". This is what makes you an intermediate player: being able to plan an attack, i.e. predict more than 2-3 moves.

[@brick7719]

Double pawns are beneficial in this particular situation (4:19). Queen is in a great spot to take advantage. p×c4 leaves black in a bad spot. Mate in 5, at worst.

[@mbc-xe8rb]

I have watched and re-watched this several times. . What a great and helpful overview for those of us who are still learning! THANK YOU!

[@dio8636]

I've enjoyed playing chess for a while, but am only just now starting to learn some theory. This video has been the best so far! Quick, straight to the point, and many pieces of info in one place. Thanks man!

[@FredPlanatia]

A related thought to principle 35 (know when to ignore chess principles): these principles can give contradicting advice. In a given position, you need to weigh which of the principles is more important in that situation. I guess some calculation and a lot of experience helps you to decide which principle is more important in a given situation.

[@rodolfoangelini]

Valeu!

[@ChessVibesOfficial]

Thanks, Rodolfo!

[@dewar2002]

This is fantastic. So much great info packed into a relatively short video.

[@mathew96385296]

This is an incredibly well done video. Very concise and nice fast pace. Thank you for not wasting time.

[@catskillyeti2405]

Best informational video for chest and helpful information. If you came across so far, thank you sir!

[@nathanfisher4687]

Just seeing this now - sharing with everyone I know. Was a 1650 player at 15 in 1990. You nailed a lot of good ones. Two I didn’t know. I think you need a follow up video with more of these. Call them bonus rules. I have a few. 1) generally speaking, do not exchange a ‘good bishop’ for a bad bishop 2) create open lanes for bishops to increase their value 3) attack supported pawns with minority attack 4) keep tempo, or fight to get it 5) create space, when possible 6) support all pieces, when possible. Don’t leave hanging pieces 7) understand tactics like forks and pins

[@paulkanja]

so chess noob here,, is Ne4 at 12:00 bad?

[@esquerdocorrimao4021]

@@paulkanja no, its not at all

[@paulkanja]

@@esquerdocorrimao4021 thanks :)

[@mitch6602]

@@paulkanja yeah it really is he was wrong after you do that he takes you bishop with his bishop after you move your queen (you cant take he will take with the knight) so after you move your queen he take your knight you are 2 pieces down and saving the rook is hard so yeah thats REALLY bad but keep trying to get better trust me its worth it

[@spark5010]

@@paulkanja After Nxe4 I think White can play Bxe7 forking Queen and rook, so Ne4 is bad

[@AnovaLisaDragonfly]

This is probably the most valuable chess video I’ve seen to help me improve my game. My 11 yo son has started to surpass my skill level, so I need to up my game, LOL. Thanks for this vid!

[@ChessVibesOfficial]

Glad it helped!

[@k46_clips]

It is very valuable I learn a lot from the piece

[@kapilagrawal5777]

Awesome video for beginners as well as intermediate players. Now need to practice a lot to sink in these valuable principles. Thanks :)

[@kayasper6081]

I am a rather regular player (1600) and although most of these principles I know, it is really good to have them all mentioned together, thanks! I'll suscribe

[@davegrenier1160]

Yes. I've found the best chess books to revisit are those that cover the principles. You can't go wrong by re-enforcing the basics.

[@Benyad23q]

when

[@Blitz_tz]

aronbadu lixu

[@hendo1877]

you’re not 1600

[@kayasper6081]

@@hendo1877 What makes you think that? Wanna play?

[@Hannibalzulu77]

I really appreciate this video. I am an intermediate chess player who is trying to up my skills, and finding videos with a lot of good intermediate chess philosophy is harder than I expected. I keep finding either really obvious basic stuff for beginners or extremely advanced tactics that still feel like they are beyond my skill level for now. I especially loved the rook file advice principles because I've gotten good at developing bishops and Knights, but besides castling I feel like my rooks don't get developed or used until the endgame.

[@Beasly1]

Do you need a chess coach?

[@sohaibalam786]

Rating?

[@abhiudaypratapsingh9872]

1. Control the Center of the Board 2. Develop your pieces Quickly 3. Knights before bishop 4. Don’t move the same piece twice in your opening 5. Don’t bring out your queen too early 6. Castle Before move 10 7. Connect your Rooks 8. Rooks should go on open or Half-open Files (Open files are totally vacant files/ no other color piece should be there) (Half-open files have one other color piece) 9. Knights on the rim are grim. (Do not put knights on the side, try to put them in the center for more moves) 10. Try to avoid double pawns 11. Try to avoid isolated pawns 12. Try to avoid backward pawn 13. Don’t trade a bishop for a knight without a good reason 14. Avoid moving pawns in front of your castled king 15. Don’t open the center if your king is in the center 16. Knights and Bishop > Rook and a pawn (Knights and Bishop = 6 points and Rook and Pawn = 6 points. But 2 minor pieces are better than a rook and a pawn) 17. Knight and 2 Bishops (or 2 knights and a Bishop) > Queen (Similar reason as that of the 16th Principle) 18. Rooks are powerful on the 7th Rank 19. Doubled rooks on an open file are Very Strong 20. Bishops are better in Open positions. Knights are better in Closed positions 21. The best way to deal with an attack from a flank is to attack at the center 22. If you have the option to capture a piece with two different pawns, generally you wanna go toward the center of the board 23. In the end game, the king is also a valuable piece to capture and win over the game (Do not let the king lie somewhere it’ll become a target for a series of checks) 24. Rooks should go behind pass pawns 25. Two connected passed pawns on the 6th rank will always beat the rook 26. Attack the base of the pawn chain 27. Knights are usually one of the best blockaders of pawns 28. If your position is cramped, then you should try to trade pieces to open it up and give you more options 29. When you are ahead of materials, you can trade pieces but do not trade your pawn 30. Opposite of 29: When you are losing (Down material), trade down all your pawns but do not trade your pieces. 31. Opposite color bishop game- is dangerous in the Middle game and Draw-ish in the endgame. 32. DON’T PLAY HOPE CHESS (Don’t play with the hope that your opponent does something blunder, or you hope that your opponent doesn’t see something) 33. When you see a Good move, stop! Go see a better move. 34. an outstanding chess player knows the right time to ignore chess principles.

[@SamFickelHomeLending]

When I saw 35 in less than 20 mins I didn't think you'd be very detailed, but was pleasantly surprised with your performance. Well done!

[@sunrevolver]

When I play a cutie, I develop feelings instead of pieces

[@fyezahmed1947]

😂

[@locutusdborg126]

Since most players are male I assume you are gay, not that there's anything wrong with that.

[@sunrevolver]

@@locutusdborg126 maybe or may not be.. didn't know a male can be a cutie as well

[@sunrevolver]

@@ddist0rtt dat... is illegal...

[@ralphzoontjens]

As the host said: Stay sharp, play smart.

[@evansmoak7182]

This is the 1st helpful video on chess that I've seen. Every other one goes so fast and assumes I understand all the terminologies. I've only been playing a couple months and this video is very helpful. Subbed.

[@clashdevil2925]

Following these principles Learning 3 opening for both sides not hanging pieces And practicing your tactics can alone help you get to 1600-1800

[@rajat895]

Well explained! Been looking for content to improve my middle game

[@ChessVibesOfficial]

Glad to hear it!

[@stephenweller1681]

Thanks again for this video! I learned so much from it.

[@N2O_The1000thElement]

I like how you used pratical positions rather than just a position that is completely winning for the side that you’re on

[@snatchX626]

based on experience, principle 34 is really important 😏

[@cedricmichaud552]

The one where you see the greatest WGM being mated ^^

[@ephemera...]

Agreed

[@ephemera...]

@@blablabla7796 way to bring the conversation down dude.

[@blablabla7796]

@@ephemera... it’s a common internet name. I’m sorry if you didn’t like my meme.

[@Mayank-mf7xr]

It is a famous quote from Emanuel Lasker.

[@Tomasz_Siwiec]

Very instrucial, condense knowlage. Made nice shortly to the point. Thank You very much, learned a lot.

[@coachwilliamsakadr.gambit5334]

You're the Man Master Lopez. This is great and easy for my students to see. "Stay Sharp, play smart and take care."

[@DEEPAK-jj3sn]

Dear sir, your session on Top 35 chess principles is worth working as it is gist of all 100 chess principles. You also nicely elaborated each of them making it really interesting and worth considering. Each chess player should take a note of them and try to implement at actuals. It will surely provide right direction playing chess and a road to chess master. Your each video session is conducted in a nice professional way. Looking forward for such session. Thanks and regards. Dmbhangaonkar

[@Artem_Babych]

Thx for the table, in the end, I copy it and will mark each of it with a bit of time

[@thiagodefreitas6075]

I've recently reached 2000 rating and I've never seen such a instructive video! Congratulations!

[@samuelrichard8849]

I just reached 3000. You think you're good?

[@darealdovahkiin3652]

@@samuelrichard8849 someones ego is insecure

[@bendeguire6965]

@@samuelrichard8849 I hope you are doing ok man

[@joshuadavis5899]

Wow how long do you play I've been at it for a year and I'm at 1000

[@tannerwaagmeester792]

But neither of you see rook f1 in principle 32

[@borgdrone88]

Great video. I missed on the of the most important principles I learned from Igor Smirnov. To take is a mistake. Meaning, you should never without a good reason exchange your pieces that help develop your opponents pieces. I see this mistake a lot under 2000 elo.

[@teddiegauta651]

since watching this video. i've gotten a lot better because i can somewhat read the board better now. i appreciate this video. great work.

[@luciusthomas4017]

Thank you. 5 years, I still suck, but I can beat everyone I know. There are several points that I know will help me improve more. The double pawns on the 7th, I never learned that. Although there are a handful I could probably tell you or were left out rather. All in all, a treasure of knowledge. Thank you!!

[@luciusthomas4017]

7th not 6th lol

[@kevinlee7083]

Thank you this is inspiring! I want to learn how to properly play and understand chess but theres just too many strategies lol. Thank you for helping me understand at least basic concepts. As you explain each concept the game starts to take more shape and i began to see each piece differently. It makes more sense and the board no longer looks like just a bunch of squares. I can actually see the territory and its advantages.

[@richardcly3]

Great video!!! I know I'm late lol but just getting into it. Thanks a lot

[@robijnverlinden7328]

The worth of the pieces varies with every move. The strict system with points is an approximation for beginners.

[@adammcallister9675]

This. A closed bishop is worthless whereas an open knight is worth the same no matter.

[@md.zabirshams6776]

Well..The best part was the "Hope Chess" Part. :D.

[@cornelio78]

agreed 😆 that's me some years ago

[@durgapun9475]

@@cornelio78 p

[@pixelbogpixxelbog2090]

I play so much hope chess... sometimes I attack enemies queen with my queen by putting my queen hanging and i hope they dont see it. It works around 66% in my elo(1000), and around 90% in bullet :)

[@davisglanton9871]

@@pixelbogpixxelbog2090 keep doing that if you never want move up in elo lol

[@BrisLS1]

You always have some kind of hope for what you hope your opponent does. You just have to have a plan for if they don't. Not every trap is as "Hopium" as Scholar's mate. Fried Liver has won me a ton of games lately.

[@denusklausen3685]

Less of a principle but more of a heuristic: when your opponent plays a move, look at the board and see what has changed, what is attacked, what is maybe no longer defended, what does this move possibly set up. Most importantly, speed: is my attack faster than theirs? Is this checkmate threat actually a threat or does my king escape? Can I give up some pieces to deliver checkmate? A principle that wasn't mentioned (credit to Levy): PP on the PP (put pressure on the pinned piece) and generally pins are strong, a classic pin in low elo is getting a rook on the first rank with check forcing the king on the second and picking up the opposite rook. Pieces can be pinned without actually being pinned; if a knight is the only defender of a square that will fork the king and the queen, then that knight essentially is pinned (lets call it quasi-pinned), and you should probably pressure it. Also a good thing to remember that early queen moves can be punished by attacking the now undefended c pawn for instance, and premature bishop moves can lead to the opposite bishop picking up the b or g pawn and trapping the rook.

[@VicktoRUrosAndrijasevic]

Great! I wish I had this kind of info when I was starting! 🙂😉

[@Hippie_steve]

Was doing pretty rough at first but after coming and watching these principles I’ve been able to get 2 checkmates! Great video!

[@asswhole4195]

Hundreds of chess principles? Well I hope you do more videos on them!

[@ChessVibesOfficial]

Haha yeah a lot of them are pretty obscure and don't show up a lot in games so I tried to just focus on the most common. But yeah if there's enough interest will definitely do a part 2!

[@stevea1936]

@@ChessVibesOfficial I was just about to ask if you were going to do a second video. Would be really cool!

[@darylallen2485]

@@ChessVibesOfficial ::waves hand and invokes force powers:: - You WILL make a part 2 of chess principles. 🤣

[@ephemera...]

@@darylallen2485 It worked! He did.

[@manishkumarshukla4389]

I liked your mocking of hope chess😁. "I'm gonna hope he would do it, I'm gonna hope he did not see it." That was nice😁👌 I used to play hope chess. but after watching this video, I learned my mistakes. Thank you🙏

[@jacobdancey145]

Bishop tip: when in the endgame, keep a king on an opposite colored square as the bishop, it is also wise to protect said king with a pawn.

[@MimMdance]

Another good tip once your opponent and you only have valuable pieces left is to lock a bishop and a pawn (the pawn behind) and keep playing with other pieces. If the opponent has no pawns bishop or knight around to break that lock it might have to sacrifice a rook to do it. I hope I explained well.

[@WARRENBUFETT]

Man. You're a great chess teacher.

[@h4ckluserr]

Hey there! I've got a question about #34, please. I'm still learning. You moved that knight into that smother check. It seems like the easy response would have been for black to take it with the pawn in front of the king. Is the gain here that the King is opened up for more pressure?

[@alexdavisspecial]

The pawn moving from out of in front of the king exposes it to white's queen, so it is doomed even if it does take the knight.

[@LeventK]

Remember. The only thing in chess that doesn't have an exception is the "there will always be exceptions" rule.

[@mahsincast8490]

There are two points that i want to add: 1. After mentioning principle number 28 you jumped into 30 which makes 34 principles in the end. 2. there is a greate principle that i think you didn't mention at all and that's trading your worse placed pieces for your opponents better placed ones.

[@philosophicallyspeaking6463]

Well done! This is what I've been looking for to pass on to people who want to do more than play 'hope chess'! The absence of this basic material from the educational tenets of the chess curriculum is now chronic. I was taught this 'reasoned' way more than 50 years ago. I routinely check out chess videos (purportedly made for beginners, novice, and advancing players) to recommend to people so 'I' don't have to teach them, and in all that time I never once heard mention of these tenets as 'chess principles' which is how I teach. Its a bad teacher that attempts to impress their students by evidence of jargon and rubric, and that's what most competent chess players do. They teach the movement of the pieces and then jump straight into abstracted strategy with no mention of when or why. You never hear anybody bother to explain what or why you should do things in chess that are generally advantageous any more. The facility of foundations is assumed premature or past due, as it were needing no apparent explanation or not for beginners at all. I teach principles to beginners, first and foremost, who otherwise would be asking the same questions...why?

[@a.i.l1074]

Thank you man, I get overwhelmed as a beginner sometimes but this is just a logical and fun game