A route, not a pile.

Learn how the pieces work, finish your first checkmates, and build a short daily habit.

1. 1 Learn the rules and notation Five short lessons below, from setup to time trouble.
2. 2 Solve your first puzzles Start at your rating and focus on accuracy, not speed.
3. 3 Meet the mating patterns Back-rank, smothered and queen escort mates.
4. 4 Set a 15-minute routine A different plan for every day of the week.
5. 5 Clear your misses Retry any puzzle whose last attempt failed.

Turn pattern recognition into reliable calculation and stop repeating the same mistakes.

1. 1 Sharpen the tactical motifs Forks, pins, skewers and discovered attacks.
2. 2 Convert your endgames Drill the material types that decide longer games.
3. 3 Recall opening moves Play the next book move from memory.
4. 4 Review your puzzle history Look for themes you consistently miss.
5. 5 Work the review queue A second attempt is where the lesson sticks.

Longer calculations, precise endgame technique and a serious review habit.

1. 1 Study endgame technique Nine positions worth knowing cold.
2. 2 Build an opening map Understand structures, not twenty moves of theory.
3. 3 Calculate under the clock Pressure exposes holes in your pattern bank.
4. 4 Analyse your own games Find the first real mistake, not every inaccuracy.
5. 5 Audit your endgame progress Check solved counts and accuracy per ending.

Pick a small set of lines, learn the ideas behind them, and test your recall.

1. 1 Explore named lines 300 openings, one representative line each.
2. 2 Train move recall Play the next move, then reveal the answer.
3. 3 Learn the common traps Know what to avoid before your opponent knows it.
4. 4 Understand the structures Plans come from pawn structure, not move order.
5. 5 Quiz yourself Ten lines, four names, no clock.

A focused block on conversion, defence and the positions that decide close games.

1. 1 Check your drill progress See attempts, solves and accuracy per ending.
2. 2 Train one material type Pawn, rook, bishop, knight or queen endings.
3. 3 Read the technique cards Lucena, Philidor and the square rule.
4. 4 Retry failed endings The same position rarely beats you twice.
5. 5 Play the position out Use the analysis board to test your conversion.

A short, sharp block built around motif recognition and speed with accuracy.

1. 1 Review the motif library Name the pattern before you calculate.
2. 2 Train one theme at a time Start with forks, then pins and discovered attacks.
3. 3 Add mating patterns Recognition at the end of the calculation.
4. 4 Test yourself in Puzzle Rush Speed is useful only when the move is right.
5. 5 Retry every miss Turn each wrong answer into a known pattern.