What is live chess?

Live chess is a game where both players are online at the same time and actively playing a game with a time control. Once a game starts, if a player disconnects or abandons the game, that player loses by default.

How do the time controls work in Live Chess?

Live chess game are always timed, and there is a variety of time controls. Each player has a timer that counts down during their turn and pauses during their opponent’s turn. If either player’s timer reaches zero, that player loses the game. Here are the default options on the site:

If only one time is listed, such as 5 min, this is simply how much time you have to make all of your moves.

If the time control has two numbers, such as 5 | 5, there is a base amount of time for each player plus an increment. The increment is a bonus amount of time added to your timer after each move. The first number is how many minutes you have to make all of your moves, and the second is how many bonus seconds you get for every move you make. For example, a time of 5 | 5 means five minutes for the game + 5 seconds of time added to your clock after each move you make.

What happens if you run out of time, but your opponent has an unwinnable position?

A player earns a draw, not a win, if they have insufficient material to mate and their opponent runs out of time. For example, a player with a king and queen is playing against a player with a king and knight. If the player with king and knight runs out of time, the player with king and queen wins, but if the player with king and queen runs out of time, it is a draw because a king and knight insufficient to deliver checkmate.

Why are there different ratings in live chess?

Because of the largely different skills involved in playing shorter or longer games, live chess has three different ratings based on different time controls:

Bullet rating - For games under 3 minutes.
Blitz rating- For games 3 minutes and longer, but less than 10 minutes.
Rapid rating- For games 10 minutes and longer.

The system takes increments into account and assumes an average game-length of 40 moves to estimate the total length of time available to each player; the result is what determines which rating is affected by a given time control. For example a time control of 2 | 12 would be 2 minutes + (12 seconds x 40 moves = 480 seconds) = 10 minutes. Here are some examples:

Time Control	Estimated Length	Game/rating type
5 \| 0	5 minutes	Blitz
10 \| 0	10 minutes	Rapid
2 \| 12	10 minutes	Rapid
3 \| 0	3 minutes	Blitz
4 \| 4	6.5 minutes	Blitz
15 \| 10	22 minutes	Rapid
1 \| 5	4.5 minutes	Blitz
1 \| 0	1 minute	Bullet

Is outside assistance allowed during live chess games?

Absolutely not. For live chess games, you shouldn’t be looking at anything other than the game in front of you. Focus on your game and play with your own mind and strength. The following are specifically prohibited:

Engines (any type of chess engine or program, never allowed for live or daily chess)
Tablebases (databases that contain every possible move for endgames, considered the same as using an engine, never allowed for live or daily chess)
Help from others (never allowed for live or daily chess)
Books or opening databases (allowed for daily chess, but never for live chess)
Fixing game results (losing intentionally to manipulate your rating is not allowed)

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