ChessWorld - Time Limits FAQ's

The clock on ChessWorld acts in exactly the same way as in OTB chess. Your clock starts as soon as your opponent makes his/her move and stops when you make your own move.

Players may choose from a range of limits between 1 and 15 days per move. For each move in the game the limit chosen will be the maximum time per move. Players may choose to make their moves at any time within the limits for the particular game.

Although it is possible to make every move at the last moment before the time limit expires, it is an accepted convention on ChessWorld that this practice is avoided as far as possible. There are, of course, good reasons why a move cannot be made before the time is nearly up. For example, pressures of work or other interests, or simply the difficulty in making the best move in the particular position. However, it is considered unlikely that each and every move throughout the game will need to be at the maximum time. It is a courtesy to your opponent to make your moves as soon as you feel confident with your decision.

As soon as you exceed the time limit your opponent is entitled to claim the game by default. Of course, in many cases your opponent is likely to be quite reasonable and may be prepared to delay claiming the win for a short period of time. In Tournament games there is a limit of (2 x the time limit of the tournament) + 1 day before the game is automatically** ended by default with no player being able to claim a win. Such a game is marked T-T, (implying no result, or game abandoned), and will not appear on your records.

In the case of Knock Out Tournaments this latter rule is applied differently in all rounds up to, but not including, the final round, so as to protect the integrity of the Tournament for other players. When the checking process is invoked any games that have exceeded the T-T limits, as described above, are awarded to White or Black, as deemed appropriate, so that the next round can be paired. This special procedure may be delayed up to 35 days beyond the normal T-T limits.

A player is defined as being 'out of time' at the end of the last full day of the relevant Time Limit. For the purposes of the Time Limit, the first day starts when the board first becomes available, normally, for example, when a Tournament starts. Each successive day is measured as elapsed periods of 24 hours. After the initial move, by White, time is measured from the moment when the last move was played. For example, in a 5-day Time Limit, the time expires at the end of day 5, so that the

Variable time limits have the advantage that players can choose how they allocate their time within the game.

When you play a game with the ChessWorld Variable Time Limit you are expected to make at least 10 moves within 50 days. In addition, you may take no longer than 10 days (the secondary limit) for any single move.

This means that you can take as much (up to the secondary limit), or as little, time as you wish for each of those 10 moves provided that they are completed within 50 days. For example, for 10 moves you could take 5 days for each move, which is exactly what you would be allowed in a normal 5-day game. However, the advantage with a Variable Time Limit is that you can vary the time to suit your circumstances or the relative state of the game. You may need to be away from the computer for several days: with Fixed Limits you may be forced into time problems whereas in the variable system you can catch up with your moves later, always bearing in mind the need to complete at least 10 moves in 50 days. In the early stages of a game you may be able to make several moves very quickly and by so doing give yourself more time to consider your moves later in the game.

Bear in mind that if you take 10 days for each of five consecutive moves you will have reached the time limit of 50 days. You will not have exceeded the time limit for each individual move but you will have exceeded the allowance of 50 days for 10 moves. In such a case your opponent would be able to claim the game from you!

The limit works on a rolling basis so that moves 1–10 must be completed within 50 days, moves 2–11 in 50 days and so on.

The

The clock never stops, even when you are on holiday. To prevent an opponent from claiming a win against you during the time you are on holiday, the

The

All ChessWorld time calculations are based upon Server Time. As ChessWorld is a UK-based site, Server Time is set at GMT, or, during the Summer months, at BST (British Summer Time, which is equal to GMT + 1 hour). GMT is sometimes referred to as UTC, but the times are identical.

Time calculations, such as time since last move, or time overdue on the time limit for a game are calculated as absolute values. This ensures that Members in all Time Zones are treated equally.

Holiday bookings are linked to Server Time. Please refer to the Holidays section of the General FAQ for a detailed explanation.

This information is provided to allow you to check your own, and if you wish, your Opponent's activity on ChessWorld. It is not intended to encourage faster moving within any of the Time Limits illustrated. When a player chooses to play a game within a specific Time Limit they are quite entitled to move as quickly, or as slowly, as they wish within that time limit for any or all of their moves.

    These indicators are also provided as a useful guide when choosing Opponents via the
    Join Games ... Suggest Opponent and Join Games ... Suggest Variety pages.

If you wish to check if your Opponent generally moves more, or less, quickly, within a given Time Limit you may find the indicators quite helpful. You should be aware that the Average Time Per Move is based upon the most recent moves* made by the player in all of their current games at that Time Limit. For example, a player who tends to play faster in 1-day games may prefer to play at a more relaxed rate in a 10-day Tournament.

Equally, although some players may tend to take a longer time to respond, their average rate is likely to be inside the maximum setting. If, however, a player is consistently showing their Average Time Per Move at the top, red, end of the scale, and if they are playing a number of concurrent games, it is possible that they are generally delaying all of their moves until the last few hours of the Time Limit. Although such consistent delayed responses may be irritating to some players, it is, of course, within the rules of the site.

As with all such graphical indicators you should interpret the results with some caution. The speed indicated can be affected by a number of factors such as gameload or the relative state of current games. For example, in the early opening stages it is possible that a player moves quite quickly whereas in the more complex middle game they would (rightly) need more time to consider their best move.

* To ensure that the indicators provide a realistic representation of average performance, the information is based upon a preset number of moves for each Time Limit, and as that limit is reached, the earliest move information is removed and replaced by the latest information. In this way we are able to assure Members that the information is representative of current, as opposed to historical, performance. We do not publish any of the sophisticated criteria that we use to provide the Average Time Per Move graphics.