(May 18, 2021 at 8:22 pm)vulcanlogician Wrote: National Master means this kid could beat me in every circumstance. But (just so folks know) there are titles that exceed NM. A higher title is "international master (IM)" and finally "grandmaster (GM)." Grandmaster means that even if the person who holds the title is heavily drunk, he will beat any of us at chess. That might not be the official definition of GM, but it gets the point across.
Like Happy Skeptic, I also suck at chess. I'm too impatient, and too frustrated when I get into difficult positions. Like Skeptic says, it takes memorization and calculation... but patience is one of those virtues too.
That's why chess is such a deep and awesome game. It teaches you patience... kinda like jazz "teaches you to listen." Chess teaches you to be patient and plan.
I love chess.
I watched Magnus Carlsen (the current world champion) play some online blitz tournaments under the name "Dr Drunkenstein". I'm not sure how many drinks he had, but he usually won.
I play 10 minutes/side games online, and a single drink is enough to reduce my performance, even though I don't feel any different. I also suck before having a morning coffee.
Sometimes I lose because I'm too impatient. Other times, I take too much time and get flagged. Other times, my concentration wanes, and I forget to do the checks for defense when I'm engaged in an attack, or don't bother to calculate that an opponents sacrifice is an actual danger to me. Sometimes I play too passively. It is just as bad to jump forward with an attack on a wing and prayer (though not as bad in short time controls, where aggressiveness usually pays)
It is addicting, and frustrating.
