On Sunday, April 3, 2022 at 8:08:24 AM UTC-4, Eli Kesef wrote:
> Bs"d
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> Those stories about "Don't waste any time, develop at all cost as fast as possible!" hold water. Sometimes.
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> Especially in open games. But, in closed openings, say 1. d5, or the Sicilian, which is considered half open, those rules are not so important.
This is true. But you are not playing many closed games.
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> And about me playing the pawns on the side, often and early, I took notice since you said that, and it is also mentioned in the golden opening rules of the first good chess book I bought that you should not play up the pawns on the side, and I saw a lot of titled players playing up their pawns on the side. I even saw Alpha-Zero doing that against Stockfish. And winning with it.
> In the Sicilian there is at least on line where black prophylactic plays a6, without attacking anything with it.
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> So yes, in general those rules are important, it is just that there are MANY exceptions to the rules.
When you are a weak player, stick to the rules when in doubt. As you get stronger the exceptions will become more obvious. Moving the same piece twice to make a threat that can be profitably met is not an exception.
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> Here are the golden opening rules from my second, first good, chess book:
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> 1. If the oppenent allows it, then we occupy the centre with two centre pawns.
I seldom do this as black. I prefer to undermine the centre. Just another exception.
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> 2. In general we develop the horses before the bishops.
Probably one of the weakest rules. Generally you know where your knights should go but are uncertain about your bishops, so it's best to postpone those. Not if you want to play a Ruy Lopez, though. Or various fianchetto openings.
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> 3. In the opening we try to do as fast as possible the short castling.
Not a good rule in my view. By all means get your king out of the centre in an open game, but this can be unwise in closed or semi-open games. In the Sicilian black is often right to postpone castling until he has enough queen side play to keep white busy. And sometimes queenside castling is mandatory.
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> 4. In the opening don’t play twice with the same piece.
Good rule with some obvious exceptions.
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> 5. Play the pieces to squares where they have maximum effect. Therefore, moves like Nh3, Na3, Na5, Nh6, are done only in exceptional cases.
Yes, centralize your forces.
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> 6. The heavy pieces, castles and queen, are not taken out until the light pieces are developed and the castling has been done.
Usually.
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> 7. Don’t play a3, h3, a6 and h6. Don’t play more than two pawn moves in the opening.
I usually play three. That advice was given when almost every opening was e4 or d4, and fianchettos were considered suspect. In the days when Tarrasch declared the Sicilian to be unsound.
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> So I was already familiar with the concept, it is just that experience tells me that I fare better when I do play up my side pawns.
When I was in a town with weaker players I found that I won faster by playing bad moves. But when I came back home those bad habits were hard to break, and I was a much weaker player than I had been.
William Hyde