Unlocking the Secrets of Grandmaster-Level Chess Puzzles | Tips & Strategies | GM Naroditsky

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Welcome to this exciting video where we will explore the fascinating world of high-level chess exercises on the Chess.com tactics server, with a rating range of 2800 to 3100. I am thrilled to share with you my step-by-step approach to solving each puzzle, as well as some valuable tips and techniques that will help you become a better chess tactician.
Whether you are a beginner or an advanced player, this video is perfect for anyone looking to improve their chess game. I will share with you a host of strategies that will help you tackle even the most challenging puzzles with ease. By breaking down my thought process and providing a detailed analysis of each puzzle, you will gain a deeper understanding of how to approach and solve these high-level chess exercises.
Throughout this video, you will learn a range of techniques and strategies for becoming a better chess tactician. From identifying key patterns and tactics to recognizing common mistakes and pitfalls, we will cover everything you need to know to become a skilled and confident solver.
So, what are you waiting for? Join me on this exciting journey and discover the secrets of solving high-level chess puzzles like a grandmaster. Watch now and take your chess game to the next level!
Join Chess.com: chess.com/membership?ref_id=1715324
Edited by ‪@ClydeBarber‬ (check out some of my original music on YT)
#puzzle #grandmaster #chess

[@charlesvaughan8423]

Daniel Narofriendsky

[@willwcbb]

Narrow dick ski lol

[@leo-um6yt]

dit

[@yessir6427]

@@leo-um6yt dit

[@rickybobby9679]

​@@yessir6427 dit

[@KakhsXe]

@@rickybobby9679 ditter

[@NikushimiDouble]

It is very fitting that as Danya talks about how GMs make mistakes, he also claims that 75% accuracy range would result in getting one out of five puzzles wrong.

[@renukakumari3740]

ya, it should be 1 out of 4

[@44r0n-9]

I think he was just saying he gets between 1/5 and 1/4 puzzles wrong. I'd assume he knows 4/5 is not 75% :D

[@JCChavz]

Only Daniel can casually throw in a Schrödingers cat analogy and make it work 😅👏

[@alexanderbrown2717]

Eternity somewhere. ♥️know♥️ Jesus Christ loves you! 1 John 5 KJV 13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. 1 Corinthians 15 KJV 1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; 2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. 3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: Romans 5 KJV 9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. Romans 3 KJV 24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; Titus 3 KJV 5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

[@charnielduterte3796]

in the computer field we have something same called the 'don't-care' logic state

[@astridwerewolf1648]

Both his cats were alive though!

[@incognitocappucino1972]

Daniel, the way you explain these puzzles makes them seem like nothing more than an intermediate puzzle. Your teaching skills are insanely good.

[@alexanderbrown2717]

✝️ Jesus Christ loves you! John 5 KJV 39 Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. ♥️know♥️ 1 John 5 KJV 13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. 1 Corinthians 15 KJV 1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; 2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. 3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: Romans 3 KJV 24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;

[@Suho1004]

I love the idea of "quantum calculation," toggling the position of a piece back and forth as you go through similar lines.

[@bensekgwari3267]

This is some of the best free chess content you can get out there, especially since Danya takes the time to walk is through his thought process which just incredible, considering that some of us never really have converstaions with GMs let alone jave one explain sum comlex nuances regarding chess. Thanks bro, please keep em coming. You got love from South Africa!!!!

[@drunkenhobo8020]

I used to be stuck at 1,600 puzzle rating before I watched Danya's other puzzle videos. Now I'm stuck at 2100. Hopefully this video gives me a new ceiling!

[@dimifisher7942]

At 1900 here

[@maximix5447]

2900 here😎

[@musical_lolu4811]

@@maximix5447 _cap_

[@maximix5447]

​@@musical_lolu4811 my username is xMaximix. you can check if you want

[@robinstrong1641]

My puzzle rating is more than double my player rating. Still not sure if that’s a good thing or not, but I blame Danya! 😂

[@judsongordy8872]

I can't believe I got a puzzle correct that Daniel got wrong and because I actually saw a response that he missed Bg5. I've watched all of his videos and this is definitely a first. He is still 10000 times better than me at puzzles, but I'm still proud lol.

[@sajjadnaderpour4512]

As I'm never gonna stop playing chess, also I'm never gonna stop watching u danya I have learned a lot thanks

[@DavidEmerling79]

I feel that what comes out of his mouth is exactly what is going on in his head - which is kind of amazing that he can so clearly convey his thought process extemporaneously with his thinking. HOW he thinks, for me, is where the greatest learning occurs. He is thinking things that have not even entered my mind. I think he is the best chess instructor on the internet. There are other streamers out there who may be more entertaining - but they're usually not as instructive.

[@TheChessProfessor]

Danya - the king of instructive educational chess content.

[@dave4468]

Very instructive!! I have been pausing before each one and trying them on my own and then comparing my thinking with yours. The 3rd one is particularly instructive, and I am glad we got one with a result like that. It shows it’s not about getting it right or wrong, it’s about assessing and improving your tactical ability and improving holes in your thinking. Thank you so much for this!! I would love for more of these. I can do puzzles on my own, but comparing my thought process with a GM is such a rare opportunity. Thank you again

[@nellsummers7921]

Loving the energy and context you bring to the table as always Danya. Great content thanks

[@yannigogo2863]

So many variations and openings we’ve learned from you Danya , Thank you for doing what you doing !!!

[@travisbosco8469]

Another outstanding video! It's fantastic to get the perspective of a GM, and your in-depth explanations are very helpful.

[@cyin974]

I really love this series, it's hard for us to fully appreciate high-rated puzzles sometimes because we simply overlook possible variations that can arise which are not shown in the puzzle main moves.

[@Andrew-hn4cu]

I love this. I love you danya. The joy of seeing you released a new vid is unmatched

[@martinhh763]

Woah danya you really are helping me improve a lot with all your content thanks man

[@dromadrosis]

This was like seeing a magician revealing how his tricks work. I could watch for hours, Daniel! Thank you so much!

[@shanastroskyphazer8172]

That was awesome Danya ! Thanks !

[@desmundreid3368]

This was a solid class of Calculations. I definitely needed this lesson.

[@user-zj7rw3rz8i]

I cannot believe that series is a year ago, incredible content

[@RobFlesher]

Best chess channel on KZbin! Thank you Daniel!

[@eliaspetrov]

Great video! As always. Thank you.

[@Forever-yc3tp]

More puzzle vids! Nice, like watching these

[@chessbopolz156]

Your videos are so instructive as usual

[@dennismays5692]

Thanks very much for the instructive video!

[@sapereaude120]

I hit 2400 puzzle rating in July 2021, then 2500 in October 2021, and finally got to 2600 earlier today. Was so happy to hit 2600! And so happy to see a new puzzle video! What a good day :) Thanks Danya for all that you do for us.

[@averagebro413]

what's your normal rating

[@mehome4163]

Thank you for the very instructive insights. In my opinion Danya is the best instructor at all. And I like his sophisticated way of talking. Thanks again and cheers!

[@cccrit]

been wanting another one of these!

[@juliojimenez4347]

Danya more of this plss!! GM Puzzle's are underrated!! would help us very much!! :D

[@Mammothman567]

The scariest thing about this video wasn't the skill of Daniel but the fact that the last puzzle solving videos came out a year ago D:

[@Vl_OLET]

i love these, please make more

[@johndoh1000]

This was so awesome!!!

[@pranjalsrivastava4260]

Love your content danny!

[@therandomrat5238]

When the last video of this series came out, I was having a lot of trouble breaking 2300 puzzle rating. Now I'm 2700 and having the same problem again. Hope this helps, and I'll update this in a month! EDIT(20/03/23): Broke to 2800! Just spend more time on each puzzle, 5-10 minutes atleast and try to categorise them according to what you think might it be about, e.g, mate in 2, weak backrank etc then calculate. Helps build intuition as well. Hope to reach 3000 by the end of the year!

[@mahri9022]

Same I’m 1500 elo right now and been stuck on 2600 puzzles. Any tips?

[@therandomrat5238]

@@mahri9022 @Mahri Hey sorry for the late reply, I'm now 2790. I had a big bar around the 2600 range too, and I think that's where the biggest "change" occurs. From the 0-2000 range, for the most part you can play them out with as little as 10 seconds of thinking. But when you reach the 2000-2500 range, you notice the puzzles are a combination of earlier patterns. Maybe it has elements of both smothered mate and a weak backrank, or maybe it's a mate in 3 but the first step is a forcing non check move. So what tends to happen is that you see what potential patterns might be there, but fail to calculate. It sounds simple, but try spending more time on a single puzzle, I average around 5-7 minutes. It helps in learning and more importantly retaining the patterns well, as you'll feel horrible after making a mistake after 10 minutes of calculation so you'll be more likelier not to repeat it in the future. I firmly believe this is the way all the way from 2500-3000 rating. Sorry for the rant and hope it helps! EDIT: Also don't be dejected if you go up and down a lot. It roughly takes double the time to go from 0-2500 to 2500-3000. Don't worry too much about day to day variations too, somedays you lose 50 others you gain 50. Happens to the best of us.

[@mahri9022]

@@therandomrat5238 thx man rlly appreciate the insight

[@jaswik2023]

@@therandomrat5238 I think unless you do a puzzle within 2-3 minutes you won't be able to use it in your games yet, definitely not rapid but it still would be useful to do them perhaps my style has been to committ after 2-3 minutes this way I can actually do three-4 puzzles in 10 minutes instead of getting one right

[@jaswik2023]

I'm at 2650 rn

[@jacobleedgaard5968]

These are fantastic!

[@Tinil0]

What always amazes me about GM-level mastery is just how fast he answers "What escape squares does the queen have?". If I take less than 2 minutes meticulously checking every single square and seeing if it is threatened I blunder every time. He seems to just innately have "threatened squares" always available in his brain while it takes legitimate mental effort for me to highlight all the attacked squares in my mind and I STILL can easily make mistakes. Even realizing that something like an ability to mentally construct the chessboard and "highlight" squares being attacked might be a useful skill to build took me way too long.

[@musical_lolu4811]

Dan Heisman in the old Novice Nook chess articles would talk about this stuff. Titled players from NMs and above tend to have this uncanny skill down pat, the ability to know almost instantly how many legal moves or mined squares there are in a position.

[@musical_lolu4811]

Look for Danny Rensch's 'full board awareness' videos to get an inkling of how to train up this stuff. It's basically about board vision and visualisation e.g. knowing instantly what color a square is, naming squares controlled by a piece (especially the knight), visualising long and deep lines, etc.

[@wfrp4fanboy329]

I'd love to see you solving high levelled lichess puzzles!

[@tuckeyuk]

I love these puzzle videos!

[@owenkelliher4927]

At 31:20 in the variation with Qa5+ Ke7 we have Qc5+ and it's a forced mate. For example, Ke8 Qxc8+ Ke7 Bc5+ d6 Bxd6# is a nice variation. The pawn on e5 is incredibly strong at boxing in back's king.

[@ricardf1857]

Not only I learn top quality chess, but also some nice english vocabulary. I Never heard succinctly before, nice precise word.

[@jimgu2578]

Great video! Super fun to follow along ❤

[@jaaasoncosta]

hand down danya is the best chess educator! instructive and fun

[@Plota5.]

Danya you are THE BEST !!

[@gengar678]

Love it, another great video thank you. Bit funny was the statement I mostly get 75 percent right so every 5 I do I get 1 wrong....

[@l0vr036]

I enjoyed this video!

[@aminea8990]

thank u daniel

[@arnavrawat9864]

THIS IS THE BEST THING EVER

[@luciengrondin5802]

15:53 "Long variation, wrong variation" Never heard that one before. Good to know.

[@louismyers8845]

Thank you for this great instructive video! Also encouraging to see that you are human and make mistakes too

[@42cpulaski]

Just hit 54 on puzzle rush survival!!! Thanks for the help with these videos!!!!

[@davidborger9711]

There's a calculus theorem that can be extrapolated to chess puzzles (online): the existence and uniqueness theorem, meaning the puzzle must have a solution and there is necessarily only one correct

[@atharvatripathi9919]

Your videos have helped me a lot only a month after I started watching your video I got from 1400 to 1600

[@calebwilmot8851]

In the first puzzle, I thought I found the solution with Qxg7+ forcing the queen trade with the idea of trapping the black bishop in the corner and winning it Qxg7+ Qxg7 Nxg7 Bh2 Nh5 and white will win the bishop after Kg2. However after Nh5 black plays e5 with a brilliant idea. The line continues Kg2 fxg3 fxg3 Ke6 Kxh2 and in this position black has g4!!! And despite having a ton of space, white’s knight has no escape and the game will most likely be a draw by repetition 🤯🤯

[@f3dor0vsergey]

i thought about this "solution" too, thanks for the line

[@yessir6427]

that line blew my 1400 rated mind, if white does not make a draw, white knight eventually is trapped. e5 and g4 are some gm level moves

[@maximix5447]

I calculated this too but why play Nh5 immediately? your knight isnt getting trapped so you can just go Kg2 trapping the bishop. The problem is simply that black is going to take on g3 twice and in the end black has 3 pawns for the piece. The pawns are weak so white ist in danger of losing but white is certainly not winning because knights suck at defending against passed pawns

[@calebwilmot8851]

@@maximix5447 I double checked... Stockfish seems to think the knight is trapped with or without Nh5. Black will put his pawns on e5 and g4 either way and the knight has no way out.

[@faznaz7455]

@@calebwilmot8851After g4 where is the repetition? White must check immediately with Ng7 Kf7, then what is the move? Edit: Oh i see the draw now, it’s incredible that Kf7 loses but Kf6 is a draw. Intuitively i ruled out Kf6 because of Ne8 and i thought the knight escapes but runs to the Queenside but after Ke7, it’s inconceivable that the knight can be trapped if it runs half the board to c7. Incredible geometry of trapping a knight in such an obscure jail. All the knight can do is hide and repeat in the enclosed box. Many masters would miss this incredible idea.

[@csakennyitakartam]

I'm happy to see that Danya's process is pretty much the same as mine (probably my accuracy doesn't match his, though, lol) Quite funny that my puzzle rating is way higher than my rapid/blitz, but no wonder

[@chessnerd1055]

Solved all of those but one on my own but still nice to see how a gm thinks, hopefully this will help me reach a 3500 rating in puzzles and maybe 2300+ in bullet/blitz/rapid

[@incognitocappucino1972]

Daniel: explaining a puzzle over the course of 10 minutes to figure it out and explain good puzzle habits Computer in 2 seconds: Engine go brrrrrrrrrr

[@codymoore1765]

This dude is too good

[@walterbrownstone8017]

You should do plenty more videos on puzzles. However, you should do a video on different levels of grinding. You need to stop at a lower level puzzle and give the viewers an estimate of how many times you've seen this puzzle before. It's a ton of puzzle grinding so you need to know how to make it fun!

[@juandavidgarcia2249]

Danya, I just came from watching a movie w my gf in a cinema. It was about murder and this type of stuff, so nice to get in bed and forget all the anxiety watching your videos. Thank you

[@laurynastruskauskas6586]

2days ago i reched 51 in puzzle rush survival and im really proud of that

[@ScorpionG4merBr]

It's actually crazy I saw Bg5 15:25 but because he didn't even consider it, I thought "he's a GM, if he's not even mentioning it, it must be a blunder" and it was the move.

[@alexgabriel5877]

plz more puzzles!

[@astridwerewolf1648]

My calculations were same as yours, lol even the one you got wrong, I though same pattern as yours!

[@BabyCakesJunior]

King 👑

[@finsterladen792]

I love chess puzzles. I'm 1800 rating blitz, but 2700 puzzle rating xD

[@lewismaddock1654]

Interesting that Danya said that "It's not just because a puzzle is rated 3000 doesn't mean just a 3000 can solve it." conversely, there were puzzles that I've done that were rated 1400 which were matches between GMs, and when looking at the source, GM resigned even though he was winning. (H James Plaskett (2480) vs. Dragoljub Velimirovic (2530), 1985.) That doesn't mean I'm better than a 2480 GM, it just means knowing it's a puzzle it's rated at that 1400 level, because you expect a queen sac.

[@kodokushi6015]

32:17 What about if instead of Qb4, you play Qa3, simultaneously threatening Qf8# and Bb6 discovery, winning the queen on f3? I can't find any refutation, although black does get 3 minor pieces for the queen.

[@bradharper641]

#Suggestion: Can you make a video where you solve composed endgame studies?

[@biharek7595]

26:17 Schrodinger's queen

[@AnthonySettergren]

Drawing those orange arrows is helpful. Is that a feature that can be done on mobile? I feel at a disadvantage not being able to draw those.

[@ironmaz1]

The one at 17:00 was pretty hard, I could not solve it without board editor... of course Danya solves it in 20 seconds! ^_^

[@repacharge6318]

Me on the last puzzle of this video: hmm... okay if 1. rxa2 1.qxa2 2.ndc4+, if 2. ke6 2. qxc6+ 3. ke7 3.qd7+ 4. kf8 4.qxf7#. So instead if 2.ke7 2. qxc7+ 3.ke6(3.kf8 4. qxf7#) 3.qxc6+ 4.ke7 4.qd7+ 4. kf8 5. qxf7#. The knight on c4 and rook on f1 are unsung heroes in this attack! But that's not all because after 2.ndc4+ black has 2. kd5 2qxe6+ 3.kd4 3.rf4+ 4. kc3 4.na6+!! absolutely beautiful move right here, i'd highly recommend going over this line. 4.kb3 (4.qd4 5.qxd4#) 5.qxf3#. Chefs kiss. I admittedly used stockfish for this. I remember in my calculations having a refutation for 2.kd5, but I just completely forgot it. Back to the start though. 2.ndc4+ 2.kc5 is where it gets tricky. 3.qxc6+ 3. kb4 (3.kd4 transposes into the previous line) 4. nd3+. If 4.kb3 5.nd2+! I am proud of finding this move, as it is was not easy for me to visualize, but after 5. ka2, 5.ka3, or 5.ka4, 6. qa6#. If 4.kc3 5.ncb2+! 5. ke4 only move 6.rf4+ 6. ke3 7. qe4#! Brilliant sequence! With that, whichever way the king moves, black is sure to get checkmated! so blacks only option is to play 2.qxc4, after which 3. nxc4+ followed by moving the queen out of the way ensures a winning endgame! Brilliant! *unpauses video* Danya: Yeah so 2.Qxc6 is clearly winning, no need to even calculate further. GODAMMI-

[@erykkryszewski5803]

Why the video quality is so low? Anyway - great video my friendo, one day i will be as good as you!!!!

[@joshuamitchell5530]

First puzzle I’ve ever seen Danya get wrong.

[@sprcow]

"That's gotta be the move", words that I really struggle to accept as a red flag in my own thinking. Chess is so unforgiving sometimes, and those concrete calculations just don't care if a move LOOKS good! 😅

[@cameronhendricks5967]

13:54 for my blindfold chess narrators of different youtubers

[@whitesoxMLB]

I thought the first puzzle's solution would be Qxg7, forcing a Queen trade. Black's Bishop is not only hanging but trapped, and White can take it safely once the Queens are off. Maybe this isn't enough to compensate for Black's pawn advantage?

[@flatterswhite]

the problem is that you can force black to give up their queen

[@amuricanmayo]

White will have one pawn and a knight bro, u cant win with that

[@whitesoxMLB]

@@flatterswhite But a good puzzle won't have multiple winning lines, so it's helpful to investigate why other lines are mistaken.

[@archiebellega956]

Qxg7 Qxg7 Nxg7 fxg3 kxg1 gxf2 Kxf2 ?(question, not blunder) I'm not sure on how winning you are since you only have 2 pawn left.

[@flatterswhite]

@@whitesoxMLB I see my bad

[@emrevurgun8328]

I've gotten pretty good at puzzles after doing them a while my puzzle rating is 3000 but my rapid is in 1600s what should i do to increase my actual game rating? more playing and analysis enough?

[@Chris-zf5jz]

Danny, I wonder weather you feel kind of exhausted after solving a couple of puzzles? When I solve 2-3 advanced puzzles, I need to take a break because my brain is aching 😁 But I guess you simply have more stamina :)

[@musical_lolu4811]

He's been at this since preteen years.

[@drunkrtard]

Qg7 is a win w puzzle 1 right?

[@Speedster___]

For the puzzle after M3 why not na4?

[@fascinatingfactsabout]

It took me like 5min to figure 2nd puzzle and then I turn on the video and Danya says: "It seams to be a forced mate...I think I got it..." like in no time at all :D So much difference between 1400 and 3000+ player :D

[@gnikdroy]

The second puzzle doesn't deserve a 2800 rating. I am around 2000 and also solved that instantly. I am also confident other 2000s would also be able to solve it very quickly. Not to mention, that puzzle wouldn't even get a 1700 rating on chesstempo standard mode.

[@samscomments6422]

Re: puzzle rating vs "difficulty", I'm sure it's a lot simpler. I'd bet a body part that the puzzles are treated just like players. The rating goes up as it stumps and down as it's solved. It can hang out at the wrong rating for a bit if weak players get lucky or strong players miss something. At least that seems like the easiest way to code it. I'd bet that the puzzles KZbinrs solve have a rating dip caused by the video for a few weeks.

[@retrogamer3907]

The last one, I almost immediately saw rook takes a2

[@slagorourke]

I can hit 2400 giving myself unlimited time, 2200 at rapid time control thinking time, 2000 blitz. Most of this video was waaay over my head, but nice to see the GM thought process.

[@chessgains8075]

you're 2200 in rapid and this was way over your head? Yeah right that makes no sense.

[@slagorourke]

@@chessgains8075 You entirely misunderstand. I'm talking about puzzle ratings, not playing strength.

[@chessgains8075]

@@slagorourke oh okey

[@duchieu235]

danya's cam is so pixelated man. it's fine on stream idk what's wrong here

[@peristiloperis7789]

The puzzle you missed is very hard. I'm 2700 on lichees and I got it wrong too.

[@AnthonySettergren]

i saw rxa2!!!!

[@smashu2]

Qxg7+ on the first one I think the endgame is winning that is my instinct. the bishop is trap.

[@smashu2]

Apparently I was wrong...

[@faznaz7455]

The knight is also trapped. So white has to repeat and check in the trapped box with the knight.

[@rafaelpaquete3350]

my puzzle rating is 2300 and rapid 1200, is this normal?

[@rakrius7839]

Daniel Kristy Krabs

[@ChessJourneyman]

75% equals 3/4 ;)

[@mahri9022]

I’m about 1500 n been stuck at 2600

[@musical_lolu4811]

Forcing moves.

[@alanjohnson901]

Long variation, wrong variation. 🙌

[@bkokohut1980]

You're super smart and explain things perfectly well..... your microphone does its job just as well as you do as a teacher.... any chance of speaker a little softer?

[@tbones2583]

Wtf??

[@anosvoldegard9563]

1

[@mortalkombaty7960]

Hikaru is a better chess player than you. Please just get over it.

[@yessir6427]

cringe

[@musical_lolu4811]

bruh stop copypasting