What is a Repertoire?
A chess repertoire is your collection of prepared opening lines:- White repertoire: Your responses as White to Black’s defenses
- Black repertoire: Your responses to White’s openings
- Structured learning: Instead of random practice, focus on specific variations
- Long-term retention: Spaced repetition ensures you remember lines weeks and months later
Setting Up a Repertoire
Creating a New Repertoire File
Set Orientation
- Press
Fto flip the board if needed - Choose White’s perspective for White repertoire
- Choose Black’s perspective for Black repertoire
Configure Starting Position
For Black repertoires, you may want to set a starting position after White’s first move:
- Make White’s opening move (e.g., 1.e4)
- This becomes your repertoire’s starting position
The “orientation” setting determines which side you’re practicing. En Croissant will only quiz you on your moves, not your opponent’s responses.
Adding Lines and Variations
Adding Main Lines
Add Multiple Responses
When opponents have multiple reasonable moves, add variations for each:
- Navigate to the position
- Click an alternative move to create a new branch
Importing from Games
Copy Relevant Moves
- Navigate through the opening phase
- The moves are automatically saved when you save the file
Using Engine Recommendations
Organizing Complex Repertoires
Use comments to mark sections:- “Main Line”
- “Sideline - rarely played”
- “Critical test of the system”
- “Transposition to [opening name]”
!for your repertoire moves (recommended)?!for opponent’s tricky tries!?for interesting alternatives to consider
Training with Spaced Repetition
Understanding the System
En Croissant uses the FSRS algorithm (Free Spaced Repetition Scheduler):- New positions: Appear frequently until learned
- Learned positions: Appear at increasing intervals
- Difficult positions: Appear more often until mastered
- Easy positions: Appear rarely to maintain retention
Starting a Practice Session
Review Statistics
See your practice progress:
- Practiced: Positions you’ve reviewed
- Due: Positions scheduled for review today
- Unseen: New positions never practiced
During Practice
Making Your Move
Making Your Move
- Position appears: The board shows a position from your repertoire
- Pieces are hidden: Your pieces are blurred (toggle with
Ctrl+Bif needed) - Make the move: Click to make what you think is the correct repertoire move
- Feedback:
- ✓ Correct: You made the right move
- ✗ Incorrect: Shows which move you should have played
Rating Your Recall
After each correct answer, rate how difficult it was:| Rating | Key | Meaning | Next Review |
|---|---|---|---|
| Again | 1 | Completely forgot | Minutes |
| Hard | 2 | Struggled to remember | Days |
| Good | 3 | Remembered with effort | Weeks |
| Easy | 4 | Instant recall | Months |
Be honest with your ratings! Rating “Easy” when you struggled will hurt your long-term retention.
Session Statistics
Track your performance:- Correct moves: Total positions answered correctly
- Incorrect moves: Positions you got wrong
- Accuracy: Percentage of correct responses
- Current streak: Consecutive correct answers
- Best streak: Your record streak this session
Tracking Weak Spots
Identifying Problem Areas
Review Status
Each position shows:
- Unseen: Gray badge - never practiced
- Due: Yellow badge - scheduled for today
- Practiced: Blue badge - not due yet
Fixing Weak Lines
Study the Position
- Turn off blur (
Ctrl+B) to see the pieces - Review your comments and annotations
- Check engine analysis for the key ideas
Switch to Build Mode
Press
P and select “Build” tab to add more context:- Add comments explaining the key ideas
- Mark critical moves with annotations
- Add alternative lines if needed
Repertoire Maintenance
Syncing with Tree Changes
When you modify your repertoire:- Added positions: Automatically added to practice deck
- Removed lines: Removed from practice deck
- Sync notification: Shows how many positions were added/removed
Your practice history is preserved even when you modify the repertoire. Only genuinely new/removed positions affect your deck.
Regular Maintenance Tasks
Weekly Review
Weekly Review
- Complete all “Due” positions
- Review positions with many “Again” ratings
- Add new lines based on recent games
- Remove abandoned variations
Monthly Audit
Monthly Audit
- Check for outdated theory (compare with recent master games)
- Consolidate similar variations
- Add engine-checked improvements
- Ensure all critical positions have comments
Quarterly Refresh
Quarterly Refresh
- Review entire repertoire for gaps
- Test against latest opening trends
- Add responses to new opponent surprises
- Consider repertoire changes based on your playing style evolution
Resetting Progress
If you want to start over:Best Practices
Practice Daily
Even 10-15 minutes daily is better than long sessions once a week. Consistency is key for memory retention.
Start Small
Build your repertoire gradually. Master core lines before adding exotic sidelines.
Add Context
Comment on key ideas, plans, and tactics. Understanding helps memorization.
Test in Games
Play your repertoire in real games. Update based on what works and what doesn’t.
Be Honest with Ratings
Accurate difficulty ratings optimize your review schedule. Don’t mark “Easy” when you struggled.
Cover Opponent Options
Include all reasonable opponent responses, not just the main line.
Advanced Tips
Optimizing Your Schedule
- Morning reviews: Practice before games for best recall
- Batch similar lines: Practice related variations together
- Skip ahead: Use “Show All” to practice specific lines out of schedule
Using Build Mode Effectively
Keyboard Shortcuts for Practice
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Rate “Again” | 1 |
| Rate “Hard” | 2 |
| Rate “Good” | 3 |
| Rate “Easy” | 4 |
| Skip position (after wrong answer) | Space |
| Toggle piece visibility | Ctrl+B |