Goal: Learn to counter the Fried Liver Attack as Black
Source: TikTok – @chesspage2.0 Video

What I Learned
This week, I dove into one of the most aggressive and popular early-game tactics used by White: the Fried Liver Attack. It’s a weapon many players at my level pull out, especially because Black starts at a slight disadvantage and is usually on the defensive. I knew that I wanted a solid counter, but I wasn’t expecting to sacrifice my pieces.

From the TikTok video, I learned a very specific and clever trap to turn the tables on someone using the Fried Liver. The setup starts with both knights developed. Then, when White’s knight uses my knight as a shield from my queen and eyes the f7 pawn, I bring out my bishop. This is where the bait is laid—it invites the opponent to go for a fork, attacking both my queen and rook. This is where the trap is. I let the opponent fork my queen and rook and sacrifice the bishop with a check. I then follow with a knight check. After they move, I hang the rook deliberately while applying pressure with the queen. Then just perster their king with the queen and the knight until checkmate.

Everyone at my level seems to chase that f7 pawn like it’s gold. So, when someone sees the opportunity to fork and potentially win a rook or queen, they usually jump at it, just like I would have.

Did I Find Success?
Kind of. The trap is solid in theory and should work, especially against overconfident attackers. My opponent did fall for it, just like the video predicted. The position was practically identical. The problem? I forgot the steps halfway through.

This was totally user error. The TikTok gave no time to process the moves—it was so quick that I didn’t retain the order or nuances of the sequence. When the fork happened, I panicked a little and couldn’t remember what to do after my rook was taken.

Still, just setting it up and watching my opponent take the bait gave me confidence that this line is worth perfecting. I can tell it’ll be a valuable weapon once I’ve drilled the sequence enough to perform it from memory.

What it was Like Learning From the Source
TikTok as a learning source is definitely engaging. The energy was way up compared to chess.com content, thanks to several supporting audio clips. There was no dry explanation since the creator’s tone was classy at times, yet aggressive in others, making it sound like anyone who falls for the trap is an idiot. I’ll admit, I felt every insult thrown at “the opponent” since I would have fallen for this time and time again.

But there’s no denying it was engaging. It held my attention way better than a typical long-form video. The downside is that the pace was too fast. There was no time to absorb the details, and there was no pause for explanation. I had to save the video and rewatch it multiple times to catch the actual moves. And even then, I missed a few things.

Still, for a quick intro to a specific tactic, it worked. I now know the trap exists, I know the logic behind it, and I’ve seen it work in real time. But to truly master it, I’ll need to practice the sequence.

https://youtube.com/shorts/oLs5f2HFXUQ

Source:

https://www.tiktok.com/@chesspage2.0/video/7272782527612456235

Goal: Learn key chess openings and how to counter them
Source: Chess.com Lesson

What I Learned
This week, I focused on exploring several less common chess openings and their counters through Chess.com’s lessons. The lesson was centred around “Offbeat Openings,” which are unusual strategies that can throw off unprepared opponents. I learned how to play and defend against openings like the English, Bird’s, Larsen’s, Orangutan, and Grob’s.

One of the main highlights was the English Opening, which starts with White pushing the c-pawn (left pawn in front of the bishop) up two squares. The knight is then developed behind that pawn, followed by activating the bishop to control long diagonals. This strategy felt unpredictable, which could be an advantage against players used to traditional openings.

The counters for each of these openings as Black were specific and tactical. For example:

• Against the English, the response is a one-square push of the d-pawn and a two-square push of the e-pawn to control the center.
• Against the Bird’s Opening, pushing the e-pawn one square and developing the left-side bishop early was recommended.
• Against Larsen’s Opening, the idea was to establish central control with a quick d-pawn advance and develop the knight for support.
• Against the Orangutan, the recommendation was more aggressive, pushing the d-pawn two squares and using the bishop and knight to challenge White’s early queenside pawn move.
• Against Grob’s Opening, the suggested strategy was standard center control, pushing both central pawns up two squares to quickly develop and counterattack.

This lesson gave me a broad look at how to react to rare and unusual first moves, which is something I hadn’t thought much about before.

Did I Find Success?
Honestly, the results were mixed. While I appreciated learning about offbeat openings, I ran into a big realization: most players don’t actually use these in casual games. The “Key Openings” lesson felt more theoretical than practical. It’s good knowledge to have in case I run into someone trying to catch me off guard, but it didn’t help me much in most games.

That said, I did find the English Opening a bit useful. I tried it out in a few matches and had some success. However, I struggled to develop it properly after the opening moves. Compared to something like the Italian Game, which I’ve played with all of my life, the English just felt harder to understand.

Because of that, I’ve decided to stick with the Italian for now and treat these alternative openings more as backup tools than primary strategies. Overall, this lesson didn’t lead to much progression in my practical skills, but it did help me gain awareness of The English opening and how to counter it.

What it was Like Learning From the Source
Chess.com’s lessons are clearly structured and more interactive than YouTube videos, but the videos themselves were not always exciting. They were somewhat dry, especially when discussing rarely used openings. However, the hands-on challenges that followed each lesson made the experience more engaging. These challenges let me test what I learned by walking through scenarios and choosing the best moves.

What stood out most was how the system responded to mistakes. When I made a wrong move, it sometimes let me know I was attempting an alternate, or it would just outright tell me I was wrong and allow me to retry. That feedback helped solidify the correct choices without making me rethink alternate choices.

At the end of each lesson, I received a score out of 3 crowns, which made the learning feel like a game and inspired me to redo the lesson until I got 3 crowns.

https://youtube.com/shorts/vWuNw-QVCb8

In summary, the source was effective in structure but less so in teaching applicable material.

Goal: To learn openings in chess to avoid early game mistakes and gain an edge in matches
Source: Gotham Chess YouTube Video

What I Learned
Before this project, I knew some scattered things about chess, but I didn’t have a solid understanding of openings. Gotham Chess’s video broke down the essentials in a really digestible way, starting with the basics and building toward more theoretical ideas.

On the beginner level, the key takeaway was how to develop pieces properly. I learned that the central pawns should be moved early to control the board—something I had actually already been doing. However, I discovered that I was using my bishops before my knights, which is less effective. The advice to develop knights before bishops helped me rethink my move order, but ultimately, I don’t think the order between the two matters.

One concept that clicked for me was the importance of castling early to protect the king and then connecting the rooks. Before, I often castled without thinking much beyond defence, but now I understand how it helps position the rooks for stronger mid- and end-game control. The concept of activating every piece quickly became my guiding principle during games following this lesson.

At the intermediate level—which I’m just starting to explore—I was introduced to more specific openings, including the English Opening. I found it fascinating because, unlike many traditional openings, it doesn’t begin by moving a central pawn. This idea stood out since it flips the usual order of play and seems particularly effective when playing as white, where you can dictate the flow and force your opponent to respond.

The video left me with a useful question to explore later: Should I be preparing specific strategies against each possible opening? It opened the door for deeper study.

Did I Find Success?
Yes, I saw real improvement in my gameplay after applying what I learned. My games started to feel more structured from the beginning. One clear example of success came when I developed my knight early, and that led to a great tactical position. I was able to trap my opponent into a mistake and win a rook—something I doubt would’ve happened without proper piece development and positioning.

Also, castling early kept my king out of trouble in most games, and once I connected my rooks, I realized how powerful they can be when centralized. It gave me more control in the endgame and let me make more strategic trades and movements.

This felt like a huge step forward from how I used to play, where I often left one side of the board underdeveloped and paid the price later. Now I approach openings with a purpose.

What it was Like Learning From the Source
Gotham Chess is a solid source—Levy Rozman explains things clearly, and he’s engaging without being overwhelming. The beginner section of the video was really helpful because it offered timeless advice that applies no matter what variation or side you’re playing. It gave me a reliable structure for the first 10 moves of a game.

Once the lesson moved into intermediate content, it became more position-specific, which was a challenge. It gave me a glimpse into how deep chess can get, but also reminded me that I’m still learning the basics. Still, I appreciated that the video didn’t rush and gave space to understand why certain moves work.

Also, the comment section was unexpectedly useful. People were asking questions I had, and often someone had already answered them. It made the video feel more interactive.

https://youtube.com/shorts/lqOD_xM1XaE

Overall, this was a really productive learning experience, and I plan to continue studying more openings.

Source:

https://youtu.be/8IlJ3v8I4Z8?si=hg4gf2_izgl_CC-N

I didn’t have much trouble deciding what I wanted my learning project to focus on. I knew I wanted to improve something I had minimal knowledge of, so I ultimately decided on chess. As a child, my father taught me the basic movements of each piece with no real strategy or techniques. I stopped playing chess after being able to defeat him, since he was the best player I knew. I was inspired to get better after watching a show titled The Queen’s Gambit. I was especially intrigued by how the protagonist picked it up without researching and could play chess on the tiles of her ceiling. The show had also introduced me to chess ratings, which interested me the most. I downloaded the chess.com app because it gives you a rating, and I was curious how I would match up compared to the masters playing around 2300. Chess.com starts your rating at 800, so it was very humbling to lose a few games and get stuck at around 700. I battled to get it over 800, and I am currently sitting at 818. My goal for the end of this course is to reach 1100.
To reach my goal, my plan is to start by learning ideal openings to complement my style of play, although I am most comfortable with opening in the middle. I enjoy using knights and often will trade a bishop for a knight. I would like to learn the value of each piece because I have heard, although I am unsure, that the value will change depending on where your pieces lie on the chessboard. I would like to know when it is ideal to trade pieces so that I don’t lose any positioning. I would like to focus on my endgame the most because I believe that great players are not the ones who memorize their openings, but are the ones who can almost read and react. This belief is reinforced by my favourite chess player, Hikaru. His speed is what impresses me the most. He is able to see multiple moves in advance, which is highlighted by his premoves in unofficial matches. It is amazing to see him sit back and watch his premoves beat his opponents.
I plan to use sources from social media outposts such as YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram to learn tricks and advantageous openings. I will use the chess.com app to work on my middle/endgame since it offers chess puzzles that work on checkmating, as well as random players at my skill level for me to play against to practice my moves. I hope to play at least one game every day. I will also use the app as my assessment strategy since it keeps track of my chess rating, and I may review my matches to see where I went wrong and what the “best move” would be in that scenario. I also plan to use Chatgpt for any particular questions that may arise, although I have seen that AI will cheat and use illegal moves.