Knight Graph

See, don't calculate.

Train tactics in cycles — each pass quicker than the last — until you spot the pattern before you can calculate it. Start with the built-in catalog or bring your own puzzle PGN.

Download on the App Store How it works

Free forever · No account · No ads

Actually free

No catch. Just training.

No tricks, no asterisks. Open the app and train. Your data stays on your iPhone — there are no servers to send it to.

  • No accounts or profiles
  • No credit card
  • No subscriptions
  • No in-app purchases
  • No ads
  • No hearts, no penalty for missing
  • No limit on PGNs
  • No limit on positions

100% free · Local-first · Always

What you train with

Start with the catalog. Or bring your own.

A puzzle is a position plus its solution. Train the ones in the catalog, or import your own puzzle PGN — with no limit on files or positions.

  • Built-in catalog

    Themed mates and tactics from the early World Champions. Ready to train, nothing to set up.

  • Your puzzle PGN

    Each entry holds the position (FEN) and the solving move. Import a file, drag it in, or paste.

  • No limits

    As many puzzles and positions as you like. Never behind a paywall.

The method

Repeat until it's automatic

Tactics aren't about calculating more — they're about recognizing patterns. You solve your whole set, then run it again, faster each time. Positions stop being problems to work out and become shapes you know on sight.

1

Cycle 1

Solve every puzzle carefully.

2

Cycle 2

Same set, half the time.

3

Cycle 3

Keep cutting the clock.

4

Cycle 4

Recognition speeds up.

5

Cycle 5

The pattern comes to you.

6

Cycle 6

Almost instant.

7

Cycle 7

Second nature.

Inspired by Michael de la Maza's Seven Circles (Rapid Chess Improvement, 2002) and refined by Axel Smith and Hans Tikkanen (2018).

Made for iPhone

Built for iPhone, down to the last detail.

Chess players on Apple platforms deserve first-class software. Design, type, and motion the way iOS intends — so it feels like part of the system, not a visitor.

VoiceOver support

With VoiceOver on, the board reads the position and last move aloud; you type your move to play it.

Over-the-board mode

Set the position up on a real board — the timer waits until you tap Start.

Light and dark

Follows your system appearance, with color-blind-friendly accents.

Boards and pieces

cburnett pieces rendered natively, with a handful of board styles.

Free to download. Free to keep.

No account, no card, no strings attached. Load your first puzzles and start training.

Download on the App Store

100% free · Local-first · Always