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Stalling before Playing the First Move

Sometimes my opponents only play when they're about to lose on time.
They even disconnect and only reconnect at the last millisecond. Maybe there's an extension that allows this, or maybe it's just a connection problem on my end.
In any case, I think it's just to make us think our opponent isn't going to play, and I don't think that's fair play.

Sometimes my opponents only play when they're about to lose on time. They even disconnect and only reconnect at the last millisecond. Maybe there's an extension that allows this, or maybe it's just a connection problem on my end. In any case, I think it's just to make us think our opponent isn't going to play, and I don't think that's fair play.

@KyoKushkin said in #10:

@ILikeBlitz

You use the time to screen out potential cheaters?

Also, but not only. Also to find out whether the opponent is faster than me or slower, which is very relevant in 3+0 blitz.
At my rating level "smart cheaters" are more of a problem than at other rating levels. (On the contrary, there're almost no sandbaggers at 2800 blitz, and not many obvious cheaters, who mostly get banned before reaching 2800.)
If I don't count my opponents in some very casual friendly arenas and look at the games older than a few days, 10 per cent or more of my blitz opponents are no longer here, more often banned than closing the accounts themselves for legitimate reasons. And in rapid it's probably even worse. I don't want to discuss this topic in detail here, just want to limit myself to claiming that it shows two things:
i) cheating is a problem at high rating levels (especially for new untitled anon accounts)
ii) Lichess is taking measures against it

@KyoKushkin said in #10: > @ILikeBlitz > > You use the time to screen out potential cheaters? Also, but not only. Also to find out whether the opponent is faster than me or slower, which is very relevant in 3+0 blitz. At my rating level "smart cheaters" are more of a problem than at other rating levels. (On the contrary, there're almost no sandbaggers at 2800 blitz, and not many obvious cheaters, who mostly get banned before reaching 2800.) If I don't count my opponents in some very casual friendly arenas and look at the games older than a few days, 10 per cent or more of my blitz opponents are no longer here, more often banned than closing the accounts themselves for legitimate reasons. And in rapid it's probably even worse. I don't want to discuss this topic in detail here, just want to limit myself to claiming that it shows two things: i) cheating is a problem at high rating levels (especially for new untitled anon accounts) ii) Lichess is taking measures against it

The start of a chess game is like jumping into a deep lake; you don't dive in headfirst without air. Many might be using the 4-7-8 breathing technique to flood their brain with oxygen and find their focal point. This isn't stalling, it’s a Mental Kata. Just as a Kyokushin karateka begins a match with Mokusō (silent meditation) to clear their mind, you too can take those 10+ seconds to transition into a state of total focus. This is also your "starting blocks" moment: you are positioning your chair, your mouse, and your pad to ensure a stable, fluid reach for the game ahead. If an opponent waits, mirror their patience, but if they play fast, don’t let them rush you. You logged-in because you had the time to play, so use it to ensure the game happens according to the TOS.

Some players might be trying to gain an advantage by using browser extensions, like the Opponent Form or Opponent Insights. Instead of guessing how you play, they can see your recent results and more. Think of it like checking a map before a hike so you know exactly where the path leads. Whether you are looking at their tendencies or simply refusing to let their "berserk" energy throw you off, those seconds of patience is the discipline every player needs to master. Get to know your opponent. By the time you finally move, you aren’t just pushing a piece; you are playing the person behind the screen with the confidence and respect of a artist.

https://koolauloachc.org/news-source/tag/4-7-8+Breathing

The start of a chess game is like jumping into a deep lake; you don't dive in headfirst without air. Many might be using the 4-7-8 breathing technique to flood their brain with oxygen and find their focal point. This isn't stalling, it’s a Mental Kata. Just as a Kyokushin karateka begins a match with Mokusō (silent meditation) to clear their mind, you too can take those 10+ seconds to transition into a state of total focus. This is also your "starting blocks" moment: you are positioning your chair, your mouse, and your pad to ensure a stable, fluid reach for the game ahead. If an opponent waits, mirror their patience, but if they play fast, don’t let them rush you. You logged-in because you had the time to play, so use it to ensure the game happens according to the TOS. Some players might be trying to gain an advantage by using browser extensions, like the Opponent Form or Opponent Insights. Instead of guessing how you play, they can see your recent results and more. Think of it like checking a map before a hike so you know exactly where the path leads. Whether you are looking at their tendencies or simply refusing to let their "berserk" energy throw you off, those seconds of patience is the discipline every player needs to master. Get to know your opponent. By the time you finally move, you aren’t just pushing a piece; you are playing the person behind the screen with the confidence and respect of a artist. https://koolauloachc.org/news-source/tag/4-7-8+Breathing

I would suggest to you , stalling before playing a move , is to make you paranoid. It's well known that stalling before first move is loading cheating, and while they are not actually cheating they are creating doubt in your mind , it's an old psychological trick , I have had a couple of high rated players over the past resign against me because I stalled , I was literally sending messages good luck , have fun , ( but kept misclicking the touch screen buttons)it's part of the game. The psychological game , don't worry about it , it's an old trick xxx just play xxx

I would suggest to you , stalling before playing a move , is to make you paranoid. It's well known that stalling before first move is loading cheating, and while they are not actually cheating they are creating doubt in your mind , it's an old psychological trick , I have had a couple of high rated players over the past resign against me because I stalled , I was literally sending messages good luck , have fun , ( but kept misclicking the touch screen buttons)it's part of the game. The psychological game , don't worry about it , it's an old trick xxx just play xxx

@KyoKushkin said in #1:

I notice that in nearly all of my games my opponents stall before playing their first move, whether as black or white, whether the game is casual or rated. Sometimes it is relatively quick, but most times they wait up to 10 seconds or longer. This is especially true in blitz and bullet.

Yeah, "nearly all", sure. Facepalms yet again ...
A first-move staller is only someone who
A) teases you by letting the countdown go really close to zero, or
B) intentionally runs down the full countdown when they don't wanna play you (the worse variant of aborting)

You have these people on occasion, but surely enough, it's an exception, not the norm.

@KyoKushkin said in #1: > I notice that in nearly all of my games my opponents stall before playing their first move, whether as black or white, whether the game is casual or rated. Sometimes it is relatively quick, but most times they wait up to 10 seconds or longer. This is especially true in blitz and bullet. Yeah, "nearly all", sure. Facepalms yet again ... A first-move staller is only someone who A) teases you by letting the countdown go really close to zero, or B) intentionally runs down the full countdown when they don't wanna play you (the worse variant of aborting) You have these people on occasion, but surely enough, it's an exception, not the norm.

@Cedur216 said in #15:

intentionally runs down the full countdown when they don't wanna play you (the worse variant of aborting)

Note that hitting the first move timeout does not necessarily mean it was intentional. It happened to me twice that I opened a bullet game by accident (due to some browser/UI bug, the button was clicked rather than the menu item on top of it) and the timeout was so short that it expired before I realized what happened and how to abort the game.

BtW, I'm mostly playing classical games (where the first move timeout is 30 seconds) using an e-board so that when I don't know my colour in advance, I have to turn the board around first. To do it an get ready easily takes a big part of that 30s limit.

@Cedur216 said in #15: > intentionally runs down the full countdown when they don't wanna play you (the worse variant of aborting) Note that hitting the first move timeout does not necessarily mean it was intentional. It happened to me twice that I opened a bullet game by accident (due to some browser/UI bug, the button was clicked rather than the menu item on top of it) and the timeout was so short that it expired before I realized what happened and how to abort the game. BtW, I'm mostly playing classical games (where the first move timeout is 30 seconds) using an e-board so that when I don't know my colour in advance, I have to turn the board around first. To do it an get ready easily takes a big part of that 30s limit.

I've come to the conclusion that those lengthy stalls before a game, is because some players are
(a) trying to telnet onto my system
(b) pinging my ip address with packets, trying to lag me
or
(c) starting their cheat programs

I've come to the conclusion that those lengthy stalls before a game, is because some players are (a) trying to telnet onto my system (b) pinging my ip address with packets, trying to lag me or (c) starting their cheat programs

It seems holding back at the start in Chess960 is more justified, so if I'm not off base, they've recently given us a bit more leeway before we have to make our first move. Regarding conventional start position, stalling on first move is not proper étique if repeated.

It seems holding back at the start in Chess960 is more justified, so if I'm not off base, they've recently given us a bit more leeway before we have to make our first move. Regarding conventional start position, stalling on first move is not proper étique if repeated.

@KyoKushkin said in #7:

Taking 10 seconds is "stalling"? Seriously?

How is it not stalling? It is literally stalling, by definition.

How? Which dictionary do you use?

@KyoKushkin said in #7: > > Taking 10 seconds is "stalling"? Seriously? > > How is it *not* stalling? It is literally stalling, by definition. How? Which dictionary do you use?

@mkubecek I wouldn't call such people stallers in the first place.

If I need to change the board size in bullet or faster, that also takes a fair amount of seconds.

@mkubecek I wouldn't call such people stallers in the first place. If I need to change the board size in bullet or faster, that also takes a fair amount of seconds.