Positional chess training: who stands better, and why
Positional chess is everything you decide when there's nothing to calculate: which pieces to trade, where your king is safe, which pawn to push, and above all who is better and why. It's the judgement behind most moves in a game, and it's hard to train with puzzles, because there's no single move to find. OptiChess trains it with questions that have checkable answers.
Who stands better?
You're shown a position and asked: White is better, about equal, or Black is better? The answer is the engine's evaluation, judged against a band that depends on your level: at 1400, "about equal" is within about a pawn; above 1800 the band is narrower.
What you'll meet:
- Around 800 to 1100: a piece or more up, then a clear material edge.
- Around 1400: a pawn or two, mostly material.
- Around 1700: level material, partly positional.
- Around 2000: a positional edge of one to two pawns: the better structure, the safer king, the better piece.
Judging the position before you calculate is what lets you choose a plan, and know when to simplify and when to keep pieces on.
Reading the structure
Most positional advantages come from the pawns: a weak pawn to attack, an outpost for a knight, weak squares around the king. OptiChess asks you to find them, and to pick the plan the structure calls for. See pawn structures.
Threats
Half of positional play is defence: seeing what your opponent wants before they get it. Threat questions ask "What does your opponent threaten?", from a pawn attacking a piece at 800 to deflections and discovered attacks above 1700.
One rating per skill
OptiChess keeps a separate rating for each skill, so you can see whether your judgement keeps up with your tactics, or lags behind them. Two players rated 1400 can be strong in completely different places. Train the weakest one, and mix it with tactics and endgames.
Try it. Real positions, set at your level, every answer checked against the board. No account needed to start.
Start training