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Welcome to Obsidian Chess Studio!

This guide will walk you through your first session: importing a game, analyzing it with a chess engine, and viewing the evaluation. In just 5 minutes, you’ll be ready to analyze all your games.
Prerequisites: Make sure you’ve installed Obsidian Chess Studio and completed the first-launch setup.

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Your First Analysis Session

1

Import a game

Let’s start by loading a game to analyze. You have three options:

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Option 1: Import from Lichess

  1. Go to lichess.org and play a game (or find an existing one)
  2. Copy the game URL (e.g., https://lichess.org/AbCdEfGh)
  3. In OCS, click File → Import Game → From Lichess
  4. Paste the URL or enter the game ID
  5. Click Import
The game loads instantly with all moves, time controls, and player information.
You can also sync all games automatically. Go to Profiles → Add Account → Lichess and sign in with OAuth.

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Option 2: Import from Chess.com

  1. Go to chess.com and find a game
  2. Copy the game URL (e.g., https://www.chess.com/game/live/123456789)
  3. In OCS, click File → Import Game → From Chess.com
  4. Paste the URL
  5. Click Import
The game is fetched and converted to PGN format automatically.
Link your Chess.com account in Profiles to auto-sync all your games.

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Option 3: Import PGN file

If you have games in PGN format:
  1. Click File → Import PGN (or press the keyboard shortcut)
  2. Select your PGN file
  3. Choose which games to import (if file contains multiple games)
  4. Click Import
[Event "Rated Blitz game"]
[Site "https://lichess.org/abc123"]
[White "PlayerOne"]
[Black "PlayerTwo"]
[Result "1-0"]
[UTCDate "2024.03.10"]
[UTCTime "12:00:00"]
[WhiteElo "1800"]
[BlackElo "1790"]
[TimeControl "300+3"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 
6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7
11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 g6 1-0
You can paste PGN text directly! Go to Info panel → PGN tab → paste → Update.
Once imported, you’ll see:
  • The game board with the starting position
  • Move list on the right
  • Game information (players, ratings, time control)
2

Navigate through the game

Before analyzing, familiarize yourself with the board controls:Keyboard shortcuts:
  • Arrow Right or Space: Next move
  • Arrow Left: Previous move
  • Arrow Up: Go to start
  • Arrow Down: Go to end
Mouse controls:
  • Click moves in the notation panel to jump to that position
  • Use the navigation buttons below the board
  • Scroll the move list
Right-click on the board to draw arrows and highlight squares. This is great for adding visual annotations!
Try navigating through your imported game now. Get comfortable moving back and forth through the moves.
3

Enable engine analysis

Now let’s see what the engine thinks about each position:
  1. Open the Analysis panel (usually on the right side, or click View → Analysis)
  2. Toggle the engine on by clicking the engine button or pressing the hotkey
  3. You should immediately see:
    • Evaluation bar showing position assessment
    • Best move suggestions with piece arrows on the board
    • Principal variation (sequence of best moves)
    • Depth and nodes per second (engine performance metrics)
Stockfish 18 [Depth 28]

+1.2  →  1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2
+0.8  →  1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Nf3
+0.7  →  1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4
Understanding the evaluation:
  • Positive numbers (e.g., +1.2): White is better
  • Negative numbers (e.g., -0.8): Black is better
  • 0.0: Position is equal
  • M5: Checkmate in 5 moves
Each “pawn” of advantage (1.0) is significant. A 2.0 advantage is usually winning at high levels.
4

Analyze the position deeply

Let’s explore the analysis features:

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View multiple engine lines

  1. Go to Analysis panel → Settings
  2. Increase Multi-PV (principal variations) to 3-5
  3. Now you’ll see the engine’s top 3-5 move suggestions simultaneously
This is excellent for comparing candidate moves!

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Adjust engine depth

For critical positions, you can force deeper analysis:
  1. In Analysis settings, set Analysis mode to Infinite
  2. Or set a specific Depth limit (e.g., 30)
  3. The engine will analyze deeper until stopped
Deep analysis uses significant CPU. Your computer may slow down. Reduce threads or hash memory if needed.

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Check tablebase positions

In endgames with ≤7 pieces, OCS can query online tablebases:
  1. Navigate to an endgame position
  2. The Tablebase section shows if the position is winning/drawing/losing
  3. You’ll see “DTZ” (distance to zeroing move) and “DTM” (distance to mate)
Tablebases provide perfect play for endgames. If it says “Win in 12”, there’s a forced win in 12 moves!
5

Review your mistakes

Let’s generate a full game analysis report:
  1. Click Analysis → Generate Report
  2. Configure report settings:
    • Analysis depth (higher = more accurate but slower)
    • Time per position
    • Mistake thresholds (what counts as inaccuracy/mistake/blunder)
  3. Click Analyze Game
  4. Wait for analysis to complete (depends on game length and settings)
Once done, you’ll see:Visual Evaluation Chart:
  • Graph showing position evaluation throughout the game
  • Steep drops = mistakes/blunders
  • Hover for specific move and evaluation change
Mistake Classification:
  • Inaccuracies (!?): Evaluation loss of 0.3-1.0 pawns
  • Mistakes (?): Evaluation loss of 1.0-2.0 pawns
  • Blunders (??): Evaluation loss of 2.0+ pawns
Performance Metrics:
  • Accuracy percentage for White and Black
  • Average centipawn loss (ACPL)
  • Estimated Elo based on play quality
Game Analysis: PlayerOne vs PlayerTwo

White (PlayerOne):
- Accuracy: 87.3%
- ACPL: 23
- Estimated Elo: 1850
- Inaccuracies: 3
- Mistakes: 1
- Blunders: 0

Black (PlayerTwo):
- Accuracy: 72.1%
- ACPL: 45
- Estimated Elo: 1600
- Inaccuracies: 5
- Mistakes: 2
- Blunders: 1

Critical moments:
Move 14: ...Nxe4? (Blunder, -1.2 → -3.5)
Move 22: Rxe7? (Mistake, +2.8 → +1.3)
Click on any mistake in the report to jump to that position and see what you should have played.
6

Save and organize your analysis

Don’t lose your work! Save the analyzed game:
  1. Click File → Save Game
  2. The game is saved to your profile’s database
  3. Add the game to Favorites for easy access later
Adding notes and annotations:
  • Right-click any move → Add comment
  • Type your thoughts about the position
  • Use annotation symbols: !, !!, !?, ?!, ?, ??
  • Add variations: Make moves in analysis mode to create variation branches
Exporting:
  • Export to PGN with all annotations: File → Export PGN
  • Share on Lichess: File → Share → Lichess
  • Export position as FEN: Edit → Copy FEN

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What’s Next?

Congratulations! You’ve completed your first analysis session. Here are some next steps:

Sync Your Accounts

Link Lichess and Chess.com accounts to auto-import all your games

Build Opening Repertoire

Create and train your opening lines with spaced repetition

Solve Puzzles

Improve tactics with adaptive puzzle training

Manage Databases

Download large game databases and search for positions

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Tips for Better Analysis

Get the most out of Stockfish:Threads: Set to your CPU core count - 1 (leave one core for the system)
  • Settings → Engines → Stockfish 18 → Threads
  • Example: 8-core CPU → set to 7 threads
Hash Memory: Allocate more RAM for faster analysis
  • Minimum: 128 MB
  • Recommended: 2048 MB (2 GB)
  • Maximum: 4096+ MB for deep analysis
Multi-PV: Balance between detail and speed
  • 1 line: Fastest, shows only best move
  • 3 lines: Good balance for most analysis
  • 5+ lines: Detailed but slower
Don’t analyze every move equally:When to analyze deeply:
  • Positions where you were unsure
  • Turning points (evaluation swings)
  • Complex tactical positions
  • Endgames with multiple candidate moves
When to skip:
  • Obvious forced sequences
  • Simple opening theory
  • Clearly winning/losing positions
  • Time scrambles (focus on time management instead)
Compare opinions from different engines:
  1. Go to Settings → Engines → Add Engine
  2. Install additional engines (Leela, Komodo, etc.)
  3. Enable multiple engines in the Analysis panel
  4. Compare evaluations - sometimes engines disagree!
Stockfish is best for tactical positions, while neural network engines (Leela) excel at positional understanding.
Don’t blindly follow the engine:Ask yourself:
  • Why is this move best?
  • What is the engine’s plan?
  • Is this practical in a real game?
  • Does it fit my playing style?
Engine limitations:
  • May prefer technically best moves that are hard to play
  • Doesn’t account for opponent’s tendencies
  • Can’t explain why a move is good
Your job is to understand the position, not memorize engine moves!

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Common Tasks

To analyze a position without a full game:
  1. Go to Analysis board
  2. Set up the position:
    • Edit → Setup Position
    • Drag pieces to squares
    • Set side to move, castling rights, en passant
  3. Or paste FEN: Edit → Paste FEN
  4. Enable engine analysis
rnbqkbnr/pppppppp/8/8/4P3/8/PPPP1PPP/RNBQKBNR b KQkq e3 0 1
After making a move:
  1. Note the evaluation before your move
  2. Make your move
  3. Check the new evaluation
  4. If it dropped significantly, click the engine’s suggested move
  5. See the continuation to understand why it’s better
This is the core of learning from analysis!
Found an interesting position? Search your database:
  1. Navigate to the position
  2. Click Database panel → Search Position
  3. Choose search type:
    • Exact position: FEN must match exactly
    • Position with colors: Same pieces, any location
    • Material pattern: Just piece count and types
  4. See all games with this position
  5. Study how masters played from here

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Keyboard Shortcuts

Speed up your workflow with these essential shortcuts:
ActionShortcut
Next move→ or Space
Previous move←
Go to start↑ or Home
Go to end↓ or End
Toggle engineE
Flip boardF
Copy FENCtrl/Cmd + Shift + C
Import PGNCtrl/Cmd + I
New gameCtrl/Cmd + N
Customize all shortcuts in Settings → Keybindings. Create your own perfect workflow!

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Getting Help

Stuck or have questions?

User Guide

Comprehensive documentation for all features

FAQ

Answers to frequently asked questions

GitHub Discussions

Ask the community for help

Report Issues

Found a bug? Let us know!

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Join the Community

Obsidian Chess Studio is open source and community-driven:
  • ⭐ Star the project on GitHub
  • 💬 Join discussions and share ideas
  • 🌍 Help translate to your language
  • 🐛 Report bugs and suggest features
  • 💻 Contribute code if you’re a developer
OCS is free and will always remain free. Built by chess players, for chess players.

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