100 puzzles · 5 cycles
Forks
Train double attacks until the geometry is immediate.
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The Woodpecker Method
The Woodpecker Method is chess tactics training by repetition: solve a fixed set of puzzles, then solve the same set again in less time, cycle after cycle. Here is what the book prescribes, how to size your set, and how to do it online for free.
In this guide
What is the Woodpecker Method?
The Woodpecker Method is a way of training chess tactics by solving the same set of puzzles repeatedly, faster each time, until the patterns become automatic. It comes from The Woodpecker Method by grandmasters Axel Smith and Hans Tikkanen, published by Quality Chess in 2018. The name is a pun: tikka is Finnish for woodpecker.
The book tells how Tikkanen, then an International Master, drilled a fixed collection of tactics in 2010 and then scored three grandmaster norms within seven weeks. Smith counts it among the tools that took him from about 2100 FIDE to grandmaster. The book turns their routine into a program with 1,128 exercises in three levels: 222 easy, 762 intermediate and 144 advanced.
The central idea: solving the same positions again and again moves tactical patterns from slow calculation into fast recognition.
A sequel, The Woodpecker Method 2: Positional Play by Axel Smith, applies the same repetition to 1,000 positional exercises: pawn structures, piece placement and rules of thumb. Most players start with the tactics book, because tactical patterns are the easiest to recognise at a glance.
The book and the app
Peck is an independent app that applies the repetition method to Lichess puzzles. It does not reproduce the book’s exercises. Read the Woodpecker Method book vs Peck comparison to choose a format.
The book’s cycle schedule
The program is built around cycles. A cycle means solving every puzzle in your set once. The schedule is what makes the method demanding:
- Cycle 1: about four weeks. Solve as many exercises as you can, calculating each one fully and writing down your answer. These are the puzzles you will repeat.
- Every later cycle: half the time. Solve the same exercises again in roughly half the time you spent on the previous cycle.
- Stop after seven cycles, or earlier once you can solve the whole set in a single day.
Halving from a four-week first cycle looks like this:
| Cycle | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time available | 4 weeks | 2 weeks | 1 week | ~4 days | ~2 days | 1 day |
The same number of puzzles in less and less time is the point. It is only possible when you recognise the solutions rather than work them out from scratch. That is the skill you want at the board.
How many puzzles, and at what level?
Size the set by time, not by the book’s total. The benchmark is a first cycle that takes about four weeks at your usual training volume. Few players can solve all 1,128 exercises in that time, so most work with a subset. At 15–30 minutes a day, that usually means 50–300 puzzles.
Pick puzzles you can calculate, not guess. If most positions need a hint, later cycles turn into memorising first moves. Aim for a level where you solve most of the set on the first pass with careful calculation. Puzzle ratings are not playing ratings. Our guide to choosing a puzzle rating shows how to adjust after the first pass.
Mixed or themed? A mixed set trains you to spot which motif is present. A themed set, such as forks or back-rank mates, drills one weakness you keep missing in games. Both work. Many players alternate.
What the puzzles look like
Three positions from a starter set at roughly 1000–1100 puzzle rating, taken from the Lichess database. In a cycle you would solve each one, move on, and meet it again in the next cycle.
Black to move. White’s rook just hit f7. Which check wins material? Show solution
32...Ng3+ 33.Kg2 Nxf1
The knight checks the king and attacks the rook on f1 at once: a fork. After the king steps away, the rook falls.
Puzzle KEPe0 on LichessBlack to move. The white queen and king share a diagonal. Show solution
44...Bd6 45.Qxd6 Qxd6+
Bd6 pins the queen to the king on the d6–h2 diagonal. White can only take the bishop, and Black recaptures the queen with check.
Puzzle OCrHV on LichessBlack to move. White’s king is still behind its own pawns. Show solution
26...Rc1+ 27.Rd1 Rxd1#
A back-rank mate: Rc1+ forces the rook to block on d1, and Rxd1 is mate because the pawns on f2, g2 and h2 take every flight square.
Puzzle V7duF on Lichess
How it works
How to do the Woodpecker Method online for free.
With the book you track cycles in a notebook. Online, the app does it: Peck builds a fixed set from the free Lichess puzzle database and times every cycle.
Step 1
Set your preferencesCreate your puzzle set
Choose a manageable set filtered by theme and puzzle rating. Peck supports 20–500 Lichess puzzles per set; its automatic starter uses 100 puzzles. Puzzle ratings are separate from your playing rating.
Step 2
Your own paceCycle 1: Solve carefully
Solve all puzzles in your set, taking time to calculate fully. Don't rush this first cycle. Understanding each pattern deeply is crucial for later speed.
Step 3
Compare with Cycle 1Cycle 2: Build speed
Solve the same positions again and compare your time and accuracy with Cycle 1. Calculate the full line even if the first move looks familiar. There is no required time reduction.
Step 4
Several sessions if neededContinue your planned cycles
Repeat the set through your planned cycles. Peck’s automatic starter uses five. Review wrong and skipped puzzles between sessions, and prioritise accurate calculation over a faster timer.
Step 5
OngoingTrack and analyze
Monitor cycle times, accuracy, and problem puzzles. Before choosing a harder set, try unfamiliar positions and review your own games to see whether you recognise the ideas in new contexts.
Prefer to stay on Lichess itself? You can save puzzles to a study, solve them in order and log your times in a spreadsheet. It works, but you track cycles, times and misses by hand. Lichess’s own puzzle trainer serves new puzzles, not a fixed set.
A five-cycle training plan
The book’s seven halving cycles suit a large collection. For a set of 50–150 puzzles, five cycles with a clear job each is a practical start. This is a suggested plan, not the book’s schedule:
| Cycle | Main task | Check before repeating |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Calculate the full line without racing the clock. | Which ideas did you overlook or guess? |
| 2 | Repeat the positions and review misses. | Does accuracy hold when you go faster? |
| 3 | Explain why each solution works. | Can you name the defender, forcing move or mating pattern? |
| 4 | Check the opponent’s replies in familiar positions. | Are you recalling a move without checking it? |
| 5 | Compare the set’s time and accuracy history. | Which motifs still need work, and what should the next set target? |
A cycle can span several sessions. Start with a 15-minute session and stop when your concentration drops. See how many puzzles to solve a day and a weekly training routine for how cycles fit around games and other study.
When you miss a position, ask three questions. What changed? Look for a loose piece, an exposed king or a newly opened line. What was forcing? Check checks, captures and threats first. Why did my move fail? Find the strongest reply rather than memorising the answer. The missed-puzzle review checklist goes further.
Common Woodpecker Method mistakes
- Puzzles that are too hard. If you cannot calculate most of the set, you end up memorising first moves. Choose a lower rating band next time.
- A set you cannot return to. A huge set that you abandon halfway teaches less than a small one you finish five times. Start with 50–100 puzzles and grow only if the first cycle is comfortable.
- Remembering the move without the idea. Familiarity is the goal, but name the motif and check the opponent’s best reply every time.
- Chasing the timer or a streak. A faster cycle with more mistakes is not progress. Pause when your attention drops.
- Leaving misses unresolved. A position you keep missing points to a blind spot. Review it before the next cycle.
| What you notice | An adjustment to try |
|---|---|
| Most puzzles need guessing | Lower the difficulty of the next set |
| You rarely finish a cycle | Use a smaller set or shorter sessions |
| Time falls but accuracy falls too | Slow down and calculate full lines |
| The same motif keeps causing errors | Review it and try a themed set |
| You know every first move | Check continuations and try new positions |
What results to expect
Compare each cycle with your own first pass. Among the 795 Peck sets that completed cycle 5, median time per puzzle was 40% of each set’s own first-cycle time, and the median accuracy change was +12 percentage points. These results describe sets that reached cycle 5; individual results vary. The full numbers are in what happens across five Woodpecker cycles.
In your games, expect to spot familiar patterns sooner, especially the motifs you drilled. How much that moves your rating depends on how much tactics are costing you now and on everything else you study. No honest trainer can promise a number. Test the transfer with fresh puzzles and your own games, not just the repeated set.
When a set feels automatic, stop repeating it. Start a new one around another motif or a slightly harder rating band.
Starter sets
Build the right first set, not a random one.
Pick the tactical theme or puzzle band you want to drill, and Peck will turn it into a ready-to-repeat starter set.
By theme
- 100 puzzles · 5 cycles
Pins
Spot restriction tactics and pinned defenders faster.
Start this set - 100 puzzles · 5 cycles
Mates
Internalize the mating patterns that decide real games.
Start this set - 100 puzzles · 5 cycles
Sacrifices
Drill forcing ideas where material gives way to initiative.
Start this set - 100 puzzles · 5 cycles
Skewers
Practice long-line tactics that win material cleanly.
Start this set - 100 puzzles · 5 cycles
Back Rank Mate
Punish unsafe back ranks before the chance disappears.
Start this set
FAQ
Woodpecker Method questions
Is there a free Woodpecker Method PDF?
Quality Chess offers a free, authorized PDF excerpt, but it is only a sample of the book. The complete book is sold in print and as official digital editions (for example on Forward Chess, and as a Chessable course). Unlicensed copies of the complete book are pirated. To train for free, build a set from the open Lichess puzzle database, which is what Peck does, and repeat it in cycles.
How many cycles should I do?
The book prescribes up to seven cycles, halving the time each round, and stopping early if you can solve the whole set in a day. For a smaller set in Peck, five cycles is a sensible default: enough repetitions to see ideas become familiar without memorising move orders.
How many puzzles should be in a set?
Enough that the first cycle takes you about four weeks at your normal training volume, which is the book’s benchmark. For most club players that is 50–300 puzzles, not the book’s full 1,128. Peck supports 20–500 per set.
Should I use Lichess, Chessable, or the book?
The book and its Chessable course give you the authors’ hand-picked exercises and explanations, for a price. Lichess puzzles are free and filterable by theme and rating, but Lichess has no way to repeat a fixed set in timed cycles. Peck builds fixed sets from Lichess puzzles and tracks the cycles for you, free.
Does the Woodpecker Method work for beginners?
Yes, if the puzzles are easy enough to calculate rather than guess. Choose a low puzzle rating band and a small set; the method is about recognising patterns you already understand, not learning them for the first time from the answer key.
Ready when you are
Start your first cycle
Build a set from Lichess puzzles and let Peck time every cycle. Free, no ads, no credit card.
- 20–500 puzzles
- Choose your cycles
- Theme and rating filters
- Always free
