- 53 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Howdy! It’s the Chess Friends!
Recently, we came across an online arena where top chess engines clash against each other, 24/7, nonstop! That prompted our favorite question: WHY? In this blog post, we unravel the mysteries of computer chess and share how we use engines in our own chess studies.
3… 2… 1… GO!
Check this out, friends: the top two chess engines in the world are Stockfish and Leela Chess Zero (Lc0), both over 3800 ELO (Fun fact: “ELO” is another way of saying “rating”, after chess rating inventor Professor Arpad Elo!) For comparison, the highest human ELO is around 2900. That means engines can calculate deeper than any human, by far.
These engines work using neural networks, which are modeled like our brains, using machine learning AI (artificial intelligence) and layered “neurons” that get inputs, apply some operation to those inputs, then generate outputs. Besides daily arena, there is a Top Chess Engine Championship (TCEC) among the best of the best engines! In the Season 27 Superfinal, Stockfish beat Leela 58-42.
Stockfish uses a “brute-force” approach. It can evaluate millions of positions per second, with its efficiently updatable neural network (NNUE). It even works on your phone or laptop, which may not have that much space or speed. Stockfish is considered a bit stronger and is definitely the most widely used engine, but Leela has beaten it, particularly using supercomputers, which have much more computational power. Leela’s neural network is based on self-play, and it has played over 2.5 billion games! For comparison, GM Hikaru Nakamura has played over 65,000 chess games online, while The Man Benji has played over 2,000, The Myth Sarang 5,000, and The Legend Vivi 500.
Leela learns and improves every game utilizing Monte Carlo Tree Search (MCTS) and probability to evaluate and analyze positions. Curiously, the way Stockfish and Leela evaluate chess positions are not the same. Stockfish tends to play moves that appear very strange to the human eye, due to how deep and how quickly it calculates. Leela’s evaluations tend to be closer to equality, and plays more human-like moves, so many feel Leela is better in advancing both the science and art of chess learning.
And here is what our “why” comes down to, friends: Chess is a science and an art. Watching engines play one another inspires new creative ideas and plans that we, humans, have never tried before! Advances in science inspire creativity in art and creativity in art motivates advances in science. It’s a beautiful cycle of learning.
How do we, The Chess Friends, use chess engines to grow in chess?
The Man Benji
Here are a few ways I use chess engines:
1) I review my games with an engine to look for ideas that I missed. I also hunt for brilliancies! A brilliant move is usually sacrificing material for a big attack or a super clever tactic! Very few moves earn this prestigious mark (!!), and it’s always fun to see your moves being awarded such distinction. Only an engine and your best chess friends can tell you how many brilliant moves you had! As I mentioned in the “Would you rather” blog (read it here), it’s more fun winning using brilliancy than higher accuracy!
2) Before a tournament, I sometimes use an engine to quickly review opening lines. It’s better to be safe than sorry!
3) I use an engine for endgame training. What I do is I simply challenge the engine, Stockfish on the highest setting on Lichess.org, to play a pre-set winning (or drawing) position against me, so I can gain confidence in converting wins (or holding draws) against someone who never gives up!
4) When I am tired and want to play chess without any pressure, I turn to a chess bot to wind down with an easy game. You know those games, like promoting to six knights against Martin on Chess.com or listening to Oscar yapping on Duolingo. Don’t judge me, they are funny!
The Myth Sarang
I think it's good to analyze popular positions with engines to come up with interesting, unconventional plans. Engines are a good way to learn common lines in openings and various deviations and how to play them. That said, it's very important to play lots of games without using engines to practice these plans and make sure you really understand how to apply them. There's a big difference between theoretical knowledge and practical knowledge. I also like looking at positions and trying to figure out whether it is winning, drawn, or lost. Engines can be helpful to check thinking in these situations and tablebases can verify your thinking in endgames with fewer pieces.
The Legend Vivi
I honestly don't use engines much. I think a lot of people use them too much and because of the evaluations that are not human, they think a move is "terrible" or that a line "can't be played" because of some weird combo of moves that no human could find. I like to play with humans, learn from my coaches, and be creative in my chess. Sometimes I come up with interesting plans and put them in an engine to see what defenses it comes up, and it can help me be even more creative in those scenarios. I honestly much prefer working with my coaches, great humans, rather than engines.
There you have it: three chess friends, three unique opinions. Do what works for you!
Before we sign off, here are a few knee-slappers for the road:
What does a baby chess engine call its computer father?
Da-ta!
***
What does the baby chess engine have for breakfast?
Goo-goo-bytes!
***
What is a baby chess engine’s favorite opening?
Bongcloud!
***
What does the baby chess engine say when it’s sleepy?
It’s time for an App!
Three Cheers, Fellow Future Master Chess Friends!
The Man Benji, The Myth Sarang, The Legend Vivi
- Aug 21
- 3 min read
Updated: 6 days ago
Howdy! It’s the Chess Friends!
The Man Benji always keeps his word. He didn’t forget about his promise to read every middle grade novel with chess he could find! After the smashing success of the blog Chess Middle Grade Novels, Part I (read it here), and covering chess writing in Australia (read about it here), he is back with a bang!
Before we get to that, our Chess Friends hoodies are here, courtesy of our dear friend and local entrepreneur FM/WIM Megan Lee. Check out her Cloth Tattoo and Snippet Studios businesses! If you want a Chess Friends hoodie for yourself, email Megan at info@clothtattoo.com.
Now, let's get back to Benji's book reviews!
This time, he invites you to travel back in time to review two historical fiction middle grade novels centered around chess. One book is set in Philadelphia in the 1800s and another is set in Russia in the late 1700s, but they have one common character. This character is not a human… It’s a machine! The Mechanical Turk, or a variation of it. Remember, we introduced this invention when we talked about the Geronimo Stilton graphic novel here?
To keep everyone on the same page: Mechanical Turk, a robot who played chess, was invented in 1769. Only back in the days, there were no robots, and the trick was that the machine had a secret compartment from where a human, a very good chess player, controlled it! But it was still a very clever invention that to this day stirs imaginations, because… let’s be honest… What kid doesn’t like a good robot?
Curiosity by Gary Blackwood (2014)
This story is about a boy from the early 1800s, named Rufus. He lives with his father, who teaches him chess. Soon, they run out of money, and his dad is sent to debtor’s prison, so Rufus is left alone. At the young age of twelve in this harsh world, chess is his only escape. Things get better, though, as a man notices his talent and offers him a job: to run the one and only, Mechanical Turk! How could he possibly refuse this offer! Not only does he earn money, but he also gets to do it by playing his favorite game—chess! Things are not so smooth though: it’s the 1800s after all. Rufus misses his father, and his boss sets many grave punishments when Rufus disobeys his orders. Yes, Rufus does like operating the Turk, but his boss sometimes makes the poor kid want to quit! Will Rufus get a break? I found this book a little on the dark side, so I would recommend it to those who are a little bit older. But the story is thrilling, and, just like the title promised, I was curious to flip the page!
The Clockwork Queen by Peter Bunzl, illustrated by Lia Visirin (2022)
This book was published by the British publisher Barrington Stoke that focuses specifically on dyslexia-friendly middle grade novels! I didn’t want to wait for a book shipment from the UK, so I read a Kindle version. The illustrations are super nice and elevate the story! So, the story is about a girl, whose name is… wait for it… Sophie Peshka!
Sophie and her family live in Moscow, and her papa is the best chess player in the country. One day, Empress Catherine the Great summons papa to Saint Petersburg to teach her son Prince Paul chess. Sophie doesn’t want papa to leave, but you must obey a queen’s orders. Now, the only connection Sophie has to her papa is his chess book Masters of Chess and the chessboard. She plays chess in the park and notates her games to show him later. But her father doesn’t come back! The Empress imprisoned him in the dungeon of Winter Palace for failing to interest her son in chess! With her mom gone, Sophie is left all alone in this big world. She gets by playing chess with hustlers in the park, until old friends, Olga Kon and her father, Mr. Kon, find her (by the way, “kon” means “knight” in Russian). They promise to help Sophie to get to her papa, only if she could beat the chess machine that they invented: The Clockwork Queen! Will Sophie defeat the Queen and save her papa? The story is a pleasant short read for anyone who loves chess and a good historical fiction. The moral of the story? Be brave and stay true to your chess, no matter who you play, and good things will happen!
That’s all for today, Friends! We hope you enjoy these novels. As Mr. Peshka, Sophie's father, said in the book, “Practice and learn from the masters!”
Three Cheers, Fellow Future Master Chess Friends!
The Man Benji, The Myth Sarang, The Legend Vivi
- Aug 14
- 4 min read
Howdy! It’s the Chess Friends!
After more than 15 blog posts (and counting!), you already know that just like the neighbor kids, we like a good joke. We live by a good joke. If we see a good knee-slapper, we pick it up and use it right away. Or, according to our parents, overuse it. But today, we don’t want to share moments that made us want to joke (read about them here). Today we want to share our downfalls, our darkest chess hours, our struggles, and how we are dealing with them.
Sarang:
Before the pandemic, I got to around 1400 in my northwest chess rating. I was a very good trickster, with good tactics, and some calculated hope chess, meaning I would make so-so moves that often led to opponent blunders. Around that time, I began my battle with acute asthma, which makes it hard for me to breathe.
Over the next couple years, my rating dropped to around 1200. I was playing better players who wouldn’t fall for my tricks, and I had to reinvent how I played as a chess player. It didn’t help that I was in and out of the hospital with asthma attacks and my chess practice wasn’t as consistent. I also began my struggle with anxiety. Though things were looking rough, I loved chess and, like with my asthma, I had to keep fighting.
It was then that I discovered yoga. Yoga is now part of my daily life. It helps me focus, stay calm, and regulate my breathing. With all that under control, I have reinvented myself as a more patient, positional player, and I am well over 1500 in rating. Whatever struggles you may face in life, if you truly love something, as I love chess, you will always be able to overcome the struggles.
Vivaan:
I started my chess journey when I was two and began playing tournaments when I was three. I am seven now but reading and writing have always been tough for me. Handwriting has always been super hard, and I sometimes confuse and switch letters and numbers, or write them reversed. For years, notating my chess games was super stressful and would slow me down a lot, and I couldn’t focus on the chess games because I was so worried about the writing.
In some K-1 events, they had a neat notation sheet where you just highlight the letter, number, and piece, and those were ok. Writing between the lines in normal notation sheets, especially small ones, is very hard for me. Most of my notations are hard to follow so postgame analysis is hard, unless we do it right after the game, when I remember all the moves.
Now I use an approved device called a Chess NoteR (ChessNoteR | The future of chess notation). I still practice handwriting and reading and both are improving slowly. With the Noter, I can focus on my chess and analyze and learn better after. The way the Noter works is there is a picture of a chessboard on it and you touch the piece you want to move and then the square you move it to. Afterwards you can send all the moves with time stamps and everything as a document. I often share with my opponents who struggle with notation too!
Benji:
I remember going to the National Elementary Championship in 2024. I was in 6th grade, so it was my last opportunity to participate at the Elementary School National level. Leading to that, I was training hard, but still couldn’t get past the 1300s USCF rating. I had been stuck in the 1300s for a long time! This is it, I thought. This National would be my moment to shine.
Oh was I wrong. I was not playing good chess. I blundered. I missed tactics. I placed my pieces on the wrong squares. I let my opponents take control. I lost where I could have drawn. I drew where I could have won, including opponents rated lower than me.
After the last round, which was another disappointing draw, I sat down in the hotel hallway. Without the chess crowd, the place felt too quiet, like no chess battles, nothing happened earlier. The only reminder of the tournament was the mess the chess kids left on the floor: lost notation sheets, snack wrappers, empty food containers… Sitting there, with my participation medal, I felt like an empty container. I think I even cried that time. What is wrong with my game? I thought. The bad blunders were swirling in my head. I had three choices. One: To quit; only I couldn’t quit. Two: To shrug it off and forget about it. It’s just a game. But I couldn’t forget. My third choice was to take this feeling of frustration and turn it into motivation, use it to push myself forward.
I promised myself that I would train even harder and come back stronger the next tournament. I studied what went wrong, and realized that I was never really attacking in my games. My mindset was on “how should I survive,” and I needed to change it to “how should I attack.” I decided I would try to get sharper and more tactical positions.
Then, one month later, I had my greatest tournament! I didn’t lose a single game, and the 1300s USCF became a distant memory in my rear-view mirror. Did I have bad tournaments since then? Yes, I did. But I kept going. The chess journey continues.
When will I stop for lunch? When I see a fork on the board!
Ha! You didn’t think we would leave without a single knee-slapper, did you? Here are more chess jokes, to lighten up the mood!
Knock, knock!
Who’s there?
Alaska!
Alaska who?
Alaska TD!
***
Knock, knock!
Who’s there?
Orange!
Orange who?
Orange you going to make a move?!
***
Knock, knock!
Who’s there?
Pudding!
Pudding who?
Pudding your King in Check!
***
Knock, knock!
Who’s there?
Boo!
Boo who!
Are you sad you lost your game?
***
Why can a Knight see in the dark?
It has Knight vision!
That’s all for today, Friends! Share some dark and light moments of your chess journeys in the comments!
Three Cheers, Fellow Future Master Chess Friends! Stay positive and play chess!
The Man Benji, The Myth Sarang, The Legend Vivi