Chess960-SP287: The edge pawn debate continued

Cool more high quality games to study from Mark's blog that do not contain tactical blunders, just strategic errors:
http://chess960frc.blogspot.com/2011/04/parallel-games-ii.html.
It's particularly cool because last month I tried really hard to prove that the edge pawn is safe in all 960 positions (there is no benefit in taking it):
http://chess960jungle.blogspot.com/2011/03/chess960-opening-survival-guide-edge.html.
I did pretty well in what was a lot more difficult than it needs to be. That said there were a few "holes" in my proof that I could not plug and still have not plugged whatever! Unfortunately nobody came to my aid to help me unbind them. So here are more practical cases of the edge pawn under threat. Should be a lot of fun.

SP287 Game 1: edge pawn gambit accepted

SP287 Game 2: edge pawn gambit declined

Game 1 Analysis:

An great chess960 game for studying how white assists black in achieving a draw pretty much right out of the opening. Remember that the roles of the colors in Chess is for white to try and find a win, and black to prove a draw or wait for an error. For some reason almost every single move of white's encourages a draw and black should be only to happy to play along. Amazingly, I almost have to redefine my definition of symmetrical play after seeing this game:
http://chess960jungle.blogspot.com/2011/04/chess960-sp139-questions-of-positional.html
There is a  third rule of symmetrical play that this game highlights and that is that white must not steer the symmetry in a direction where it is they that looses the initiative. That's what happened in this game!

White's drawing moves:

• 2.Bxa7?! Why capture the least significant edge pawn when the opponent can do exactly the same? Is it not better to continue development for the sake of more tangible pressure?
• 4.Nb3?! Why would white give away the initiative in a symmetrical opening if they are already playing a drawish line? Better to keep the initiative going with 4.e4 or even the dubious initiative move 4.Qh3 (attacking the edge pawn and threatening potential lines against the king at the expense of sidelining the queen). If white has the initiative at least there is a chance to play for a win. This particular move Nb3?! is fascinating from the point of view that white temporarily breaks symmetry with a complementary Zwischenzug type move that gives black the initiative and forces the line back into symmetry.
• 7.d4?! This is the start of a series of move that set's up a hedge-hog pawn structure that looks drawn because there is no play for the only remaining bishop. 

Looking at the way white played, it almost looks as if they were deliberately aiming for a draw perhaps because of the tournament table who knows. If that is the case then hat's off to them. The game was played to extremely high technical standards without major strategic or tactical errors. It is interesting how soon the kings centralize in a such a stalemated mid-game. The endgame drawing sequence was extremely sharp tactically and well played. Although most of the game looks like a draw, the subtleties are beyond me I have to admit and perhaps Peter Leko would be the best to comment considering he has actually played a Chess960 game against Bobby! (can anyone find that game!?)

Note: See this post for how to play this SP with more energy:
http://chess960jungle.blogspot.com/2011/04/chess960-sp287-how-to-play-opening-with.html

Game 2 Analysis:

Game two is easy to analyse because it contains a couple of strategic errors and no tactical errors:

• 7.BxN? In a position where the game will open up, it is suicidal to exchange away one bishop unless the benefit of having two knights balances the exchange. In SP287 this is highly unlikely. Without the dark bishop, white's queen will have to do the job of being a queen as well as being a dark bishop. It is too much.
• 19.O-O? With black's bishops bearing down on the c-side you can understand that white is nervous. However it is already lost for white because black's bishops can so flexibly re-deploy either to attack the c-side or the g-side. Even worse, white castles into open attack, because as soon as he has done so, black begins the attack with 19....h5!

Chess960: SP145 and Spinning Wheels

The Spinning Wheel Illusion

Ok chill out, relax and simply enjoy the spinning wheel illusion. Notice that the wheel spins consistently while you read these sentences. The thing about standard chess that is missing is this. The generalized form of chess (Chess960) is like a spinning wheel. I'm going to stretch the mind a bit but think of the starting positions of Chess960 like an integrated system of positions that are like a wheel that is spinning really fast. This idea is just a creative analogy.

Now imagine that the wheel is just slightly out of balance because white plays first. If the imbalance is not addressed in each specific starting position, the black player suffers for the vibration only a little bit or so drastically that the entire wheel flies apart. But if black addresses the imbalance with just the right counter weight, the wheel spins absolutely perfectly all the way to the end of the game. It is in black hands! They are the one that must restore balance in the very slight imperfection of the Chess960 opening. Symmetrical moves are the way that the concept of the spinning wheel of Chess960 can be appreciated. Remember that it is only a conceptual tool to help with being imaginative and creative.

A couple of posts ago I showed what happens in some positions when both players play symmetrically but no tactical problem emerges just a positional issue for black. Here at SP145 we get to see what happens when the spinning wheel ruptures! SP145 is a classic SP on so many levels. Here are the highlights:

• The queen can come out early!
• Correct queen placement is a structural question, not really a tactical question
• The rook in the corner can be captured by the bishop in the corner with equality
• A multitude of exchange sacrifices at black's disposal to effect equality

SP145: Restoring balance to the spinning wheel

The green squares show the path that the queen can take with safety in many configurations. She can actually come out early and restore balance for black if needed! She acts a bit like a counter weight on a wheel. Try to follow the reasoning as to why each green square is possible for the queen. The reasoning has to do with harmonius development:

1. The knights to c3/f3
2. Leaving the centre pawns unobstructed
3. The bishop configuration produces many structural "holes" that need to be filled

Because we are all standard chess players, we are conditioned to think that the queen must not come out early. However in Chess960 this starting position amongst others will show that this assumption is wrong.

SP145: The spinning wheel of symmetry that so totally ruptures at high velocity:

SP145: Black adds a counter weight to restore the balance of the spinning wheel!

Here are a few ideas to contemplate:

1. Example one is out of symmetry despite the visual appearance of symmetry
2. Example two is in symmetry despite the visual appearance of asymmetry
3. Example two shows the queen acting a bit like a counter weight on a flywheel
4. Once the queens balances the position, it almost looks like classical chess
5. The idea is that black's queen placement restores a balanced structure

Just analogies and curiosities. There are so many aspects to this amazing SP. I simply cannot go into them all.

Enjoy

Chess960: Elementary opening transition tactics

Here's a beauty tactic from the same game as the previous post. I missed this one as well!

Black's dilemma is that both his knights are forked due to a typical Chess960 remnant where the corner knight is undefended. At the time I thought "ok how can I trap the queen after she takes the corner knight? There must be a way!?" However because I was concentrating so hard on how to trap her, I missed the obvious!

SP140 black to play: find the drawing move

1.      ... NxB   the only move and the obvious beginning
2. QxN?  ... e4!   the sneaky little move!
3. KxN? ... Bg3+! winning the queen

Likewise RxN?...Bxh2+! so black's remaining knight cannot be captured! White's only real alternative is:

3. Qd5  ... Bf4!  withdraw the queen but then the rook falls!

Just get out of here it's too sneaky and very funny! White is now bankrupt and depressed. The only option white has is:

4. KxN  ... BxR   take that damn knight but gone is the rook
5. Qxe4 ... d5    and black is R v N+P up in material.

Chess960 is truly weird at times but then again it can put a smile on your face even if you miss the tactic. Turns out that black's corner knight is poison if white tries to take it. So the drawing move for black is NxB.

Chess960: Opening Puzzle No. 1

Just a nice "simple"!? little tactic that I overlooked today! Don't cheat and do not stress if you don't see it - it's really simple once you see it but it's one of those typical "computer" discovered tactics that I tend to discover after the game in analysis. The clue is too look for all the undefended squares or under-defended squares in white's position before you start calculation. Once you find them, note down their common element. This is one of those typical Chess960 "oddities" where black wins something more than mere material:

SP140 black to play: find the 5 move combination

White's un-defended and under-defended squares are:

1. b2 (un-defended)
2. h2 (under-defended)

The common element that binds them is that they are on dark squares. The answer is hidden somewhere on this page.

...RxB!, BxR...Qc7, BxP+...NxB, g3...Qb6+, e3...Qxb2
 and black get's a really good position that is just a wittle bit odd! 

Chess960-SP139: Questions of positional symmetry - part 1

Chess960 makes you think about symmetry in the opening quite a lot. The reason is that sometimes there seems to be a single standout best opening move and so black thinks "well if white plays it, why don't I?"

The answer regarding symmetry is simple but deep. Since white plays first, if both players play identical moves one of two situations will eventually arise:

1. White will exploit a material gain situation and so black must break symmetry
2. White will exploit a positional gain situation and so black must break symmetry

Note: There is a  third rule of symmetrical and that is that white must not steer the symmetry in a direction where it is he that looses the initiative. This can only occur when white breaks symmetry temporarily by handing black a complementary Zwischenzug type move like this example:

http://chess960jungle.blogspot.com/2011/04/chess960-sp287-edge-pawn-debate.html

In SP139, there seems to be an interesting case where if both players play a very natural and safe first move and proceed by symmetry, white does not get a tactical exploit but instead get's a positional exploit. However I'm not good enough a player to prove categorically how good white's position becomes. Take a look at the final position. It is amazing how white's single tempo advantage at move one translates to a more developed position in the end. Here is the game scenario:

SP139: 1. c4 (a natural first move for both sides)

This line has been double checked by Rybka4-960 although human eyes tend to find c4 before the machine does. There are other good choices. My first reaction was 1.d4 to release the e1 bishop, but it has it's own set of problems. 1. c4 is not an aggressive move and does not release a bishop quickly, but for the sake of this discussion, it does achieve a number of "naturally" good things:

1. develops Nc3
2. contests control of the centre
3. leaves open a contest of black's control of the long dark diagonal
4. allows the dark bishop to control the c1-h6 diagonal which will open after g6
5. blocks white's diagonal attack line Be8-Bb5+
6. does not impede any of the other pieces
7. allows solid pawn structures down the track
8. gives the corner knight a developing square c2 that does not block the b-pawn

Ok now that we agree it is a natural first move, the example above shows what happens when black simply says "hey if they do it, why not I?"

The important point is the final position in the example. If you fast forward to the end and pause the replay, you can see what white has obtained for the opening symmetrical line. As far as I can see (which is not very far), white has a number of nice features positionally speaking:

White's advantages in the final position:

1. more control of space
2. a path for his king to centralise g2-f3-e4
3. the minor pieces do not impede pawn advance

Black's advantages:

1. the bishop is better developed than white's

So if there is anybody out there that understands chess, tell me what you think. Has black's decision to follow symmetry in SP139 doomed them to a miserable game? Another great contemplation is to look at the original starting position at move zero, and try to see how white causes the positional gain from symmetry. I think the answer is because white's rook is on b1 and this gives white the initiative once the breaking move b4 is played.

At some other time, I'll try to find examples of where white get's a tactical situation that forces black to break symmetry. I think those examples are more common than this positional example.

Chess960: A Dice and Random.org

It's been described in quite a few places I think but I might as well do it again for my own benefit. I was down at the cafe the other day, people had chess set's but no dice! What better way to play Chess and have fun than with a dice down at the local cafe? If you go over to the wonderfully relaxing site http://www.random.org/dice/?num=6 you can throw a dice as many times as you like. How can a Chess960 position be generated out of that?

 = SP860

Step 1: Dark square bishop

The dice said '4' and so we put the bishop into the 4th dark square:

Step 2: Light square bishop

The dice said '1' and so we put the bishop into the 1st light square:

Step 3: The Queen

The dice said '6' and so we put the queen in the 6th available square:

Step 4: The first knight:

The dice said '3' and so we put a knight in the 3rd available square:

Step 5: The second knight

The dice said '5' but there are only four available squares. So we reject and roll again. This time the dice said '4' and so we put the knight into the 4th available square:

Step 6: The rooks and the king

We put the dice away because there are only three squares left. With those three squares you put the king in between two rooks:

Step 7: Mirror the white position for black

Done

Now if you are sitting in a cafe with a chessboard, a friend a dice and a mobile phone, you can even write down the SP by typing RBKNRNBQ into Google. Google says it is SP860. If you don't have an internet connection then calculate the SP in your head using Mark Weeks clever technique:

http://chess960frc.blogspot.com/2010/11/calculate-sp-numbers-in-your-head.html

The hardest part about this little exercise, is that you need some money to pay for the espresso. OK I'm kidding. The hardest part is working out the SP in your head!

Here's how to do it courtesy of Mark's blog:

Step 1: What are the sequence of K, R, N?
Answer: RKNRN

Step 2: Find the KRN sequence in the table:
0 NNRKR 000
1 NRNKR 096
2 NRKNR 192
3 NRKRN 288
4 RNNKR 384
5 RNKNR 480
6 RNKRN 576
7 RKNNR 672
8 RKNRN 768
9 RKRNN 864
Answer: 8x96 = 768


Step 3: Find the position of the queen in the table:
0 Qxxxxx 00
1 xQxxxx 16
2 xxQxxx 32
3 xxxQxx 48
4 xxxxQx 64
5 xxxxxQ 80
Answer: 5x16 = 80


Step 4: Find the position of the bishops in the table:
00 BBxxxxxx
01 BxxBxxxx
02 BxxxxBxx
03 BxxxxxxB
04 xBBxxxxx
05 xxBBxxxx
06 xxBxxBxx
07 xxBxxxxB
08 xBxxBxxx
09 xxxBBxxx
10 xxxxBBxx
11 xxxxBxxB
12 xBxxxxBx
13 xxxBxxBx
14 xxxxxBBx
15 xxxxxxBB
Answer: 12x1 = 12


Step 5: Add the answers
Answer: SP = 768 + 80 + 12 = 860!


Cinch. Anyway, what a great way to find the SP by general principals c'mon admit it. Note that the tables can be derived logically and thus done in your head while you are at the cafe! Probably best to calculate it after the game or you will probably loose by confusion.

Chess960: SP779

Just a quick response to Mark's blog over at:
http://chess960frc.blogspot.com/2011/04/parallel-games.html
SP779 is interesting because a bishop lines up against a queen. The games given are high quality and do not contain any tactical blunders, which makes their study so much more beneficial.

SP779: Game 1

SP779: Game 2

Mark asks the good question whether there is something in the way that the players played the opening of SP779 that caused black to loose both games. I think black resigns in game one because of a midgame strategic error, and black gives up in game two because of a structural weakness on the g-side that forms quite early. What will be interesting is to see how black can better develop, than was shown in these two games.

The suggestion is that black should avoid exchanging off the dark bishop if the intention is to castle c-side. If it is exchanged off against white's dark bishop, then black should keep control of the dark squares on the g-side with his queen, or exchange off the queens with the g-side pawns intact. If you think about it, it makes sense. The white queen is on a dark square and thus without a dark bishop competitor to her, she can threaten to roam freely on the g-side harassing the pawns there.

You'll notice that in both games the central theme is the control of the dark diagonals. In game one, black at least retains control of the dark diagonals with his queen until the mid-game blunder, but in game two all control of he dark diagonals is neglected. Black realises that the queens must be exchanged off, but by then his g-side is already damaged and attackable by other pieces.

The penultimate moment for black in game-1:

Game 1 - SP779: 13....Qc5?

The red lines show where black's queen ends up in the game. The red squares show where black's weakness is. Black should have stayed on the dark squares anywhere along the green line at h6 or d4. By doing that he keeps his queen active and defending his weaker g-side pawns. He could have also simply exchanged off the queens but that is not as good because it gives white two developing moves, centralizing the king and connecting the rooks on the back rank. In the actual game black's queen ends up being deflected to a7 and is completely out of play. Without an active queen, it is hopeless for black.

Game 2 was more interesting to trace back where black goes wrong. I believe the error can be traced back to the early phases of the game.The diagram below is the penultimate moment where the wheels fall off for black.

Game 2 - SP779: 19....Qxc4

Black has an isolated pawn and should have tried to avoid a queen exchange simplification before arriving at this tactical situation. White's rook cannot be captured because by doing so black put's all the responsibility of protecting the queen onto the c6 knight, but white plays Ne7+ which requires a forced response and demonstrates how overloaded (overworked) the c6 knight becomes.

19.       ... exf4??

20. Ne7+  ... Kb8 (NxN??)

21. Nxc6+ and black's queen is dead

or)

20. Ne7+  ... Kd7?? mate in two

You would think that black could still draw even with the isolated pawn issue. I guess that matters continue to deteriorate for black when white sacrifices the a-pawn to deflect black's knight to the edge of the board for more initiative on the g-side. White also has the freedom to move his rook laterally along the 4th rank to attack the weak g-side. I think that the main issue is regarding the formation of black's isolated h-pawn. How did that happen?......

Game 2 - SP779: 8....Nh6?!

The problem here for black is that deploying a knight to h6 is totally rendered dead in the water by the simple move h3. Yes h3 is on a light square and can be attacked by black's bishop but that is easily defended. With black's knight sidelined on h6, black now doesn't have the time to develop his queen before white biffs his other knight via f5. That knight on e6 doesn't have anywhere effective that it can move to if it is biffed, and so black decides to exchange off the f5 biff with ...gxf5 which then causes black's h-pawn to become isolated. Interestingly, black had a chance to isolate white's h2 pawn earlier on, which he didn't take.

In conclusion, the interesting features of these two games for me, were the contest between the f-pawn and the e-pawn (a feature of both games) and the relative weakness of the g-side pawns. It appears on first glance, that both games show a tendancy for black to be on the defensive because of the g-side pawns needing so much support by the major pieces leaving black no resource to go onto the attack (unless for a blunder). I would suggest that we need to study how black can develop without weakening the g-side pawns. It seems that black should avoid exchanging off the g-side bishop seems to be a good start, otherwise white's queen get's complete diagonal control of the dark squares on the g-side.