MagneticStonesExampleGame1

Once you start down the road there is no going back.  

With the feeling that aims at an inside approach against , I play .

With , is the first magnetic stones idea. The play , in my mind, aims at reducing the left side, possibly with a move at c8. And one cannot deny the impressive framework I have already started to build.

White 10 is the first panic move. Now that White is panicking, I feel that I am doing well.

Black 3 and White 8 at marked white stone.  

might strike you as odd. It is an attack on the right side group (look at the field surrounding the group), aiming around a or b, or something. I feel that a simple descent is not strong enough. With this, I weaken the right side group considerably. From to my thickness is completed. Why the ko-shape with -? Because I want to keep sente. White connects which is ideal for my purposes, and I play honte at .

was an odd move which I find only helped me attack his group. Can you guess the next move by Black after the obvious c?

19x19 diagram  

is the second magnetic stones move. I have a wall. With , White's two stones' magnetic force has been weakened enough that cuts them. was made after about two seconds of deliberation because of the magnetic stones theory. Who would think to move at ? But it's possible, I think. By , has been placed under my control, or so it seems. is the correct block in this situation, in my opinion, due to K4-K9-R7-Q10 magnetic field (moyo).

19x19 diagram  

White chooses to play hane in the lower left, another desperate move to shake things up. But the magnetic field is now too strong for these games, and with Black could not have hoped for a better line of play (in my opinion, of course).

Tian Xue (Death Touch)  

Knowing the power of K9 to reduce the left, and the magnetic force of the black wall against the top, Black chooses a 3-3 invasion. Whichever way White blocks will be bad for White, and the invasion is definitely sente, in my opinion. In a nutshell, Black makes a lot of territory here, while White builds a nice wall. However White's potential to make territory here is severely limited because Black is already touching White's magnetic field.

VARIATION:

White makes this play in sente?  

If White makes this play, instead of the one he actually made (at ), I could respond this way:

White makes this play in sente?  

( takes ko)

A ko fight! Well, there was a ko for the life of the center group which Black lost. But, in this case, my center group might live, and I got a lot of points out of that other ko fight in my opinion. But, who knows what would have happened like this.

Or this way?  

is OK because if White a, Black descends and then at c captures some stones. (while a is under attack now). This line of play is what I would have come up with in a 20 byoyomi game.

Anyways, as predicted, White would move near D10 soon. What is Black's next move? Think magnetically.

19x19 diagram (Black 53 to White 62)  

At is a possible move anyway, but due to K9, I ignore and perform another corner invasion. may seem strange to you but I feel the heat of now, actually, and consider that is possible and perhaps desirable. White somehow doesen't take advantage of my slackness and plays . (I didn't think too long for , sorry.) Actually, was what I wanted anyway.

New comment: If you look at what happened up to , Black lost a few points. Well, he -solidified- about 10 in this sequence while White -solidified- about 18. So did Black lose? First, maybe not- White had two stones on that corner. If White attached to f3 first, White would have gained much more. Secondly, the loss of above is OK because being inside White's territory allows me to move closer into White's moyo. Now, a move which would normally be considered too deep a reduction is OK because it can escape by magnetically threatening to connect to . So now, again, think magnetically. What is Black's next move here? (think 3k* magnetically, that is.. :))

19x19 diagram  

What's up with ? In this sequence, White has demonstrated that there is indeed a perceived weakening of a sort of field between Black 1 and , and she has moved to protect that weakening.

But by , it is evident that I have canceled out most of her magnetic field in the center. She has to work very hard to capture the reducing group now. I'd call 1 to 7 a success. After , Black a, White b. The power of the magnetic forces has been made evident and all bets are off in this game now.

19x19 diagram  

I feel is not so good because of the loss of . At is much better so I play to protect the bottom. doesn't seem so good after and . actually might not be so good. More slackness? Well, I *am* only 3k*. After , the center and bottom right are sealed off (a to e).

19x19 diagram  

wants to close off the right center. It's a nasty looking ko fight but here is the board when White finally wins the ko fight:

19x19 diagram  

Black, in sente, now starts taking yose moves. The score?

Black: 123.0 White: 111.5 Black wins by 11.5 points (komi 0.5).

So, is there something to this theory? Who knows. If I can get another good example game, I will post it here, if desired.

kungfu IGS 3k*.