Hello guys! I just wanted to introduce myself as I haven't done it here, and only finding the time now. I'm Luka and I'm with the team at TopChess and I've reached 2100 (almost, 2096 actually) rapid rating on chesscom fairly quickly and without knowing a lot of theory or studying on anything. | Lichess over 2300 but lichess has inflated ratings So I'm in the same boat with everyone - I am yet to start studying theory more deeply and all aspects of the game as it became really hard to progress at this point! Here is my chesscom profile - https://www.chess.com/member/specijalac2211 With that being said, I'm happy to help you all and answer all of your questions! So let's use this thread to post questions and i'll try to answer them - Feel free to post any question you have about chess and I'll try helping you out. Now, since there is a lot of us here I might not be able to answer to every single thing (I will try), if you really want something or want to talk with me, make sure you upgrade to Top Chess Army because in there I'll be able to answer to all private messages (as that's the priority understandably) AND we have weekly calls where you can hop on a call with me and ask anything/play games together etc. So yea! Questions down below and happy grinding!

I say these most of the time in Skool comments. 1. Obey opening, middlegame and endgame principles. 2. Look for candidate moves, checks, captures, threats. 3. I encourage you to use openings where the c-pawn is advanced. Such as English and SIcilian. 4. Calculate as clearly as you can. 5. Find out what weaknesses and strengths the moves have. 6. If you're on chess.com, use Focus mode. Go to Settings -> Live Games -> Always use Focus mode -> Save 7. There are great tactics like removing the defender, overloading, etc. Look out for those. 8. Make sure every piece has a job. 9. Make sure most of your pieces are protected to prevent future blunders. 10. You are allowed to play a6/h6/a3/h3 once everything else is settled and active. 11. If you don't know what to play, make you least active piece more active. 12. Trade your bad pieces for good ones. 13. Always prepare well before a risky attack. 14. When something looks suspicious, calculate it and decide whether it's a trap or not. 15. You can have Sneak 100! Create a threat or attack a weakness while retreating at the same time. Your opponent might not realize it. 16. Make your opponent annoyed. Constantly create threats. 17. Don't get tunnel vision. While attacking the enemy, you also need to look after yourself. 18. ALWAYS analyze your games. Lost? Good! Learn from your mistakes. 19. Don't relax until game is over. 20. NEVER resign! What if your opponent disconnects? You never know. Part 2 coming soon...

Introduce yourself and level up; it's that simple! You'll most likely get at least 5 likes (oftentimes more!) which will move you to level 2 and on your way to level 3 (these levels give you access to exclusive content!). In your intro please share: - Where you're from - chess.com username - Current ELO rating - Anything else you wanna share Whether you've been playing chess for years, or just getting into it, have fun engaging with the group and making friends!