World Chess Live

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World Chess Live (WCL) is an Internet chess server devoted to the play and discussion of chess that launched on 1 June 2007. It is owned by Internet Chess Club and was formed from the merger of Chess Live and World Chess Network after the Internet Chess Club bought those two sites.[1] Members of the merged sites carried their user names and rankings through to WCL.

Contents

[edit] Playing

Playing on WCL is fun and easy. There are several ways of getting a game. 1. You can seek a game, and post it on the seek ads, where someone can click it. 2. You can directly match a player. 3. Or you can enter the Pool. Pools are marked for 1 0, 5 0, and 15 0. In a pool you can play anyone. Hence, you could play someone who is on your no-play list. Joining a pool is the quickest way of getting a game.

[edit] Tournaments

Beside the three options above, there is always the option of joining a tournament. You can request a tournament in the various channels: WildBot (for Wild Variant Chess) Slomato (for 15 0 +) Cooly (for 5 0 to 14 0) Flash (for quick chess)

Post your request in the right channel, and you may get a tournament going. Join in and once the right amount of players are in, the tournament will start.

Play all the rounds, and try your best for the top three spots! Tournaments are a fun way of getting a few games in.

You can also view your Tournament Profile. Simply type in (the Console): tell tournamentbot fi You will get:
TournamentBot(TD)>
>TournamentBot finger info on (your name):
> Registered since: --First Tournament played here--
> Last played  : --Last tournament played on this date--
> Tourneys Played : --Total amount of tournaments played--
> #[ 1st PLACE ] = --Total first place
> #[ 2nd PLACE ] = --Total second place
> #[ 3rd PLACE ] = --Total third place
> bannings = --How many times you have been banned from tournament play
> dr-pts = --Disruptive Points --if you have been disruptive
> no-tourney =
> forfeit/leave = --Number of tournaments you have been forfeited from

Dr-pts are given to you if you have been disruptive
These are added on in situations where you have: played casual games, will not start your game, idling and not coming back.
Some tournaments offer prizes. To learn about these, and other Scheduled Tournaments, read below.

[edit] Events

Scheduled Tournaments
WCL offers a wide range of Chess Tournaments. Many of these are scheduled events. Below is a list of these events.
Note: All times are EST (New York)

Event Runs At Time Rounds Variant
30 Minute Bliss Mon-Sun - 3:00 am 30 0 3
*Random Draw Sat-Thurs - 8:00 am and 8:00 pm 15 0 4
Mouse Race Mon-Sun - 11:00 am 0 1 15
Clear the Board Mon-Thurs - 3:00 pm 3 0 6 Losers Chess
Monday Madness Monday - 8:15 pm 1 0 15
Craziest of Them All Tuesday - 8:15 pm 5 0 5 Crazyhouse
Fast and the Fearless Friday - 4:00 pm 3 0 8
*Friday Night Blitz Friday - 9:00 pm 5 0 7
Genesis Sunday - 1:00 pm 25 0 4
*Chessaholic's Trophy Sunday - 3:00 pm 2 0 10

Those marked with an * are Prize Tournaments. Prizes are Membership extensions.

USCF Quick Rated Tournaments
Beginning on Sunday, February 3rd, WCL will be offering the USCF Quick Rated Tournaments.
Previously held on merged site, Chess Live, this tournament will alter your USCF Quick Rated Points. This tournament is exclusive, only available to members who have a valid USCF ID number. Those who do not are encouraged to sign up. In the future there may be a small fee incoporated with the tournament. These are to be taken as seriously as an Over The Board (OTB) Tournament. All USCF and WCL rules apply.
Aftermath: To view the final results of the tournament you played in simple go to the USCF website (uschess.org) and on the Sidebar click: Clubs and Tourneys. Click 'Past Event Crosstables' and then under the Affiliated Box type in World Chess Live And under their name you can find the past tournaments played, the results, and how your rating has changed (remember, only your Quick Rating will have changed).

A player playing PAM

Predict-A-Move

Besides Prize Tournaments, another common event is Predict-A-Move, or PAM. To play, look for the announcements in the channels and Main Console. The rules of PAM are simple. You have to think of what the next move will be.
Steps to playing PAM
1. Click 'join' on one of the announcements
2. Get ready for the game to begin.
3. When the game begins move the pieces where you think the opponents will place them. For example, if you think white's first move will be 'e4', simply move the pawn to e4. Your answer will be locked in.



Master Challenge Another event is the Master Challenge, which is a chess simul with a ranked player. Players of any rating can participate in this event which pits the "regular Joe" player against a FIDE ranked [W]IM, [W]FM, [W]GM, [W]-Woman
These are held almost daily, or whenever a titled player is available.

Live Coverage Another great part of WCL is the Live Coverage of events. Events played worldwide (such as the World Championships, Corus, Man vs. Machine) are displayed by the Relay Team on WCL. Whenever there is a tournament going on, you can watch the Titled Players battle it out in the convenience of your home (or office) computer.
When a live tournament is happening, watch for announcements. Click 'observe' for the game you want to watch. The games are accuratly displayed for your viewing pleasure.
Cheer for your favorite player, or analyze moves with a friend.

[edit] Groups

Currently There are 154 groups. Many of them are states or countries. To view the entire list use the command 'g-list'; a full list of Group Commands can be found below with explanations.

Many groups need permission to be allowed to join. One particular group which requires authorization of membership is the PrivateTourney group. This group is for the members who can participate in the USCF QRs. (see above)

Group Commands
*(name) means the name of the group you are interested in.
To view the list of groups: g-list-If you see a particular group that you may be interested in, you can see what it offers by: g-describe (name)
--To see the members of the group: g-list-members (name)
---To see the top rated member: g-best (name)


To see current members on: who &(name)


To join a group simply type in: g-join (name).

Group Moderators

To invite people:
g-invite (player) (name) To kick people out:
g-kick (player) (name) To see people who have registered and need your A-OK:
g-list-joining To send a Group "newsletter" (or message of sorts):
g-message (name) Add text here
To see what groups you are currently in simply type in 'fi' and at the bottom of your profile it will list it.

[edit] References

  1. ^ "World Chess Network and Chess Live Merge into New ICC Service", Internet Chess Club, May 14, 2007

[edit] External links