The following advice is for players who wish to play slower games on Chess.com like 45 45 (if you have the time), or at least long time control games with increments like 30 15. You can also use a similar method on other servers like LiChess, etc.
The best way to find long time control games with an increment is to use the Chess.com club, friend, and message systems to make a lot of friends in your rating category and schedule games with them where you can set the time limit to anything you agree.
Make daily generic posts for obtaining friends to play slow games at clubs that feature slow play such as
A post can read something like:
"Hi! I am looking for members who would like to play long time control games with me. I am looking for players in the rating range XXXX-YYYY. If you are interested, please message me and I will get back to you as soon as possible. Thanks!"
Change or modify this message to meet your needs. For example, if you live in Europe, you might want to say so if that affects what time zones allow you to play at a reasonable hour.
Post often enough that many can see your posts (don't just post once and give up if no one sends you a message). Check your messages on Chess.com frequently so that you can respond in a timely manner. Once you have enough friends to play games any time you wish, you can stop posting. Also, check others' posts to see if they are looking for slow games and respond with a Chess.com message - they may have even gotten that idea here!
When you do find players who will play you slowly, ask them "Do you have a list of friends around our rating who also might play me some slow games?" If so, add that list to your friends' list and it will grow quickly! 😊
When you and your friend meet, you can go to Chess.com "Live" chess (https://www.chess.com/live) and challenge your friend. Chess.com allows you to set any time control you wish ("Custom") for the live game (so you are not limited to the times on their automated buttons).
For a video perspective, check out my Youtube video on finding slow chess online.
I have given this advice to hundreds of players who think hitting the “30 0” button is the only way to find slow games on Chess.com. You only need to find each other! 😊
*NEW* New events at the Dan Heisman Learning Center (DHLC) "Club" https://www.chess.com/club/dan-heisman-learning-center : check out the DHLC on Chess.com; we are now sponsoring several daily 30/30 tournaments. Two events are scheduled for today (July 19, 2021) and three for tomorrow. Pass the word for those looking for slow online events.
Bonus: Players who are willing to play slow games on Chess.com and can be friended & messaged directly (please let me know if you want to be removed from this list): - jasoncuk (~rating 1250); TheInimitableKan (1750); firebison (1600); thisnameistaken12 (1130); alltkm (1450); vinyl_blues (1086); usmint99 (~1000); seangould (~800); ibiwisi (1385); deandawgcvm (620); padre (1222); numenorian (850); gpetris (1342); DRK123India (~1500); sholom90 (~1100); ratthing (1300); thanushChess (700); Killingfloor (1100); is Jamesy2525 (1500); ceej (1624); Tedgecco (1190); Marziotta (1050); Hharpyja (1290); chavezo (959); Killingfloor (1150); tiller2 (1454); abhinav92chess (1167); Taggert (1080); rabbit_girl561 (300); cwmate (950); Mikepaints (575); GHiT_Chess (669)
If you want to be added to this list - or deleted - email Dan with your Chess.com name & approximate rating.
Reasons why hitting the 30 0 button on "Live Chess" is not the best for learning and playing:
The best way to find long time control games with an increment is to use the Chess.com club, friend, and message systems to make a lot of friends in your rating category and schedule games with them where you can set the time limit to anything you agree.
Make daily generic posts for obtaining friends to play slow games at clubs that feature slow play such as
- Fhunfi's 90+30 Swiss Open events
- https://www.chess.com/club/dan-heisman-learning-center,
- https://www.chess.com/club/slow-chess-league (not sure how active they currently are...)
- https://www.chess.com/club/nm-coach-bills-free-video-lessons
- LiChess4545. https://lichess4545.com/team4545/
- Also on LiChess: Hemmingford Chess Club
- Someone told me: "@chess_dojo on Discord is fast and organized for players looking for slow play and postmortems."
- Chaos on Board Chess Club on Discord (2024). 5 round Swiss with 2 weeks to play each classical game with a minimum time control of 30+20 (opponents can agree to longer time controls). They can email [email protected] if they are interested in playing. This is for chess improvement with a supportive environment via casual lichess games. The games are posted to the Discord for members to watch live.
A post can read something like:
"Hi! I am looking for members who would like to play long time control games with me. I am looking for players in the rating range XXXX-YYYY. If you are interested, please message me and I will get back to you as soon as possible. Thanks!"
Change or modify this message to meet your needs. For example, if you live in Europe, you might want to say so if that affects what time zones allow you to play at a reasonable hour.
Post often enough that many can see your posts (don't just post once and give up if no one sends you a message). Check your messages on Chess.com frequently so that you can respond in a timely manner. Once you have enough friends to play games any time you wish, you can stop posting. Also, check others' posts to see if they are looking for slow games and respond with a Chess.com message - they may have even gotten that idea here!
When you do find players who will play you slowly, ask them "Do you have a list of friends around our rating who also might play me some slow games?" If so, add that list to your friends' list and it will grow quickly! 😊
When you and your friend meet, you can go to Chess.com "Live" chess (https://www.chess.com/live) and challenge your friend. Chess.com allows you to set any time control you wish ("Custom") for the live game (so you are not limited to the times on their automated buttons).
For a video perspective, check out my Youtube video on finding slow chess online.
I have given this advice to hundreds of players who think hitting the “30 0” button is the only way to find slow games on Chess.com. You only need to find each other! 😊
*NEW* New events at the Dan Heisman Learning Center (DHLC) "Club" https://www.chess.com/club/dan-heisman-learning-center : check out the DHLC on Chess.com; we are now sponsoring several daily 30/30 tournaments. Two events are scheduled for today (July 19, 2021) and three for tomorrow. Pass the word for those looking for slow online events.
Bonus: Players who are willing to play slow games on Chess.com and can be friended & messaged directly (please let me know if you want to be removed from this list): - jasoncuk (~rating 1250); TheInimitableKan (1750); firebison (1600); thisnameistaken12 (1130); alltkm (1450); vinyl_blues (1086); usmint99 (~1000); seangould (~800); ibiwisi (1385); deandawgcvm (620); padre (1222); numenorian (850); gpetris (1342); DRK123India (~1500); sholom90 (~1100); ratthing (1300); thanushChess (700); Killingfloor (1100); is Jamesy2525 (1500); ceej (1624); Tedgecco (1190); Marziotta (1050); Hharpyja (1290); chavezo (959); Killingfloor (1150); tiller2 (1454); abhinav92chess (1167); Taggert (1080); rabbit_girl561 (300); cwmate (950); Mikepaints (575); GHiT_Chess (669)
If you want to be added to this list - or deleted - email Dan with your Chess.com name & approximate rating.
Reasons why hitting the 30 0 button on "Live Chess" is not the best for learning and playing:
- 30 0 is rather fast and players trying to learn how to think cannot spend much time on each move (it's 45 seconds per move in a 40 move game). I feel like faster time controls (between 10 and 30 min) can hinder improvement for lower rated players.
- The site can pair you with almost anyone also hitting the button, so the matchup may not be good with regards to rating, friendliness of the opponent, etc
- There is no guarantee you will get a game in a reasonable amount of time
- Zero increment time controls are not used for serious games. All serious events have increments and time delays. In a zero increment game, it is entirely possible that if both sides play slowly, you could end up in a "race condition" where neither side could checkmate before one side's clock falls, making the game a race where the quality of moves no longer matter.