Final standings
Minic, Booot, Halogen and ClassicAra advance to league 2. Minic and Booot led the league from the start, Minic was better in the second RR and it won by a small margin. Halogen had a poor first RR, it joined the leaders in the second RR with a +3 score. Many engines were in reach of the last qualification spot, in the end it was down to ClassicAra and Wasp. Wasp lost to Booot in the round before last and ClassicAra qualified in the end.
Marvin, Pirarucu, Topple and Weiss are relegated to league 4. Pirarucu, Topple and Weiss lost many games with almost no wins, they were at the bottom of the table from the start and headed for relegation. Interestingly, Weiss beat Combusken twice, causing Combusken to be involved in the race against relegation when it could have been closer to the top otherwise. Marvin was a part of the middle group of engines, it dropped to 9th place after a loss to Wasp in round 20 and couldn't escape relegation.
The draw rate was high in league 2, around 70%. As a result it took time for the score distribution width to increase. The engines in the middle of the table were close to one another, only 2 points separate 3rd and 9th place in the final standings. Luck/chance was an important factor considering that only one DRR was played.
Booot and ClassicAra continue their journey to the higher leagues, both started in qualification. Halogen started in league 4 and this is its second qualification in season 21. On the other hand, Koivisto's journey has ended in league 3 after starting in qualification.
The 4 qualifiers will play in league 2 together with :
Relegated from season 20 league 1: Nemorino, Defenchess
Played in season 20 league 2: Vajolet, Pedone, Winter, Fritz, Arasan, Seer
game 16, Weiss - Halogen: Weiss blundered in a drawn B vs N ending, after the game was close to being adjudicated by the draw rule. Halogen used a zugzwang to force a pawn move, then went two pawns up and won.
game 21, Halogen - Topple: The game started with a King's gambit opening, the queens were off early and Topple captured a rook for a knight and pawn. Halogen played better and it seemed to be winning with a passer advancing on the king side. The passer reached the 7th rank but Halogen didn't find the right moves and evals came down. Topple managed to clear the queen side pawns and the game ended in a drawn RBN vs RRB position.
game 24, Wasp - Tucano: Tucano blundered in the opening, Wasp gave a bishop and attacked the uncastled black king. The game reached a QRR vs QRR position with white two pawns up. Wasp continued to attack the vulnerable black king, it gained more material and won.
game 27, Weiss - Minic: Weiss sacrificed a knight for pawns and then avoided a repetition draw. Minic exchanged pieces, blocked the white passers and reduced to a winning R vs RB position.
game 30, Marvin - Booot: Marvin gave two knights for a rook and two pawns. Booot managed to trap a rook and capture it for a bishop, with only RB vs RBN left. In a slow endgame Booot captured all the white pawns to win.
game 36, Tucano - Combusken: Tucano had a promising eval advantage, but it chose to reduce to a Q vs RN ending and evals slowly came down. The game continued for 30 more moves and ended in a tablebase draw.
game 37, Combusken - ClassicAra: Combusken played a RBN vs RR ending better, it managed to block and capture all the black pawns while pushing a passer to the 7th rank. ClassicAra crashed a few moves before losing.
game 43, ClassicAra - Halogen: The game reached a B vs N ending. The white pieces were better placed, ClassicAra captured a pawn and created a passer. Then ClassicAra captured another pawn and secured the win.
game 48, Combusken - Weiss: After a long shuffle Weiss shifted its pieces to the king side and (negative) evals started to increase. Combusken gave a rook for a knight while Weiss created a passer on the king side, the game reached a QRN vs QRR position. The black pieces were strong in the open files, Weiss exchanged queens and then started to capture pawns. Combusken gave its rook for the passer, game over.
game 66, Koivisto - Minic: There was only one minor piece exchange in the first 30 moves. Minic had a bishop on d2 and Koivisto could not get rid of it. Minic opened a file in the center and Koivisto's defense collapsed. Minic captured a bishop, then attacked the white king and mate followed.
Standings after 11 rounds: Booot +4, Minic +3, ClassicAra Wasp +2, Koivisto Combusken +1, Marvin Halogen 0, Tucano -1, Weiss -3, Pirarucu -4, Topple -5. The draw rate is high and the engines are still close together, especially in the middle of the table. The top two and bottom three engines are likely to stay where they are, but a lot can still change in RR2.
game 75, Weiss - Booot: Weiss was a pawn up in a QRB vs QRN position, with conneted passers on the queen side. Then it allowed Booot to sacrifice a rook and force a perpetual check draw.
game 78, Wasp - Minic: Minic opened the a file and started attacking the white back ranks, with (negative) evals increasing. Minic played patiently, it captured a pawn on move 64, then reduced to a same color bishops ending on move 81. Minic captured a second pawn and pushed its passers to win.
game 82, Halogen - Weiss: Evals increased from the start, Halogen went a pawn up and then reduced to a RB vs RN position. It took another 40 moves to mate but there was never any doubt about the outcome.
game 92, Wasp - Combusken: Combusken was better in a RN vs RR position, but it grabbed a pawn and let Wasp push a passer forward. This created a threat on the black king, Combusken was forced to reduce to a drawn rook ending.
Standings with 6 rounds to go: Minic +6, Booot +5, Halogen ClassicAra +2, Wasp Koivisto Combusken +1, Marvin 0, Tucano -2, Weiss Pirarucu -5, Topple -6. Minic and Booot extend their lead and are likely to advance. At least 5 engines are in the race for the remaining 2 qualification spots, Halogen improved its chances with two wins. The bottom of the table is clearer, only one relegation spot is still in question.
game 99, Pirarucu - Koivisto: The engines shuffled for a long while, then reduced to a BB vs BN position. Pirarucu used its bishop pair to trap the black king in the corner, the white king was active in the center and Pirarucu went a pawn up. Koivisto then lost a second pawn and the game was over.
game 103, ClassicAra - Combusken: ClassicAra had the advantage in a RB vs RN position, a pawn up and with a passer on the 7th rank. However it let the advantage slip and Combusken captured the passer. Eventually both engines queened a pawn and the game ended in a tablebase draw.
game 109, Halogen - ClassicAra: ClassicAra gave a knight for a pawn early, it tried to attack the white king but Halogen was able to defend. ClassicAra gave more material in desperation, when it couldn't give checks anymore Halogen mated.
game 114, Weiss - Combusken: The game reached a QR vs QR position, Combusken was a pawn up with a doubled passer on the king side but its king was more vulnerable. Combusken played inaccurately, Weiss captured a pawn and created a passer, then eliminated the black king side pawns for a decisive advantage. The game ended in a tablebase win.
Standings with 3 rounds to go: Minic +7, Booot +5, Halogen +3, ClassicAra Wasp +1, Combusken Koivisto Marvin Tucano 0, Pirarucu Weiss -5, Topple -7. Halogen has a 1 point margin in 3rd position, with a good chance of qualifying after its win against ClassicAra. Tucano improves its survival chances with two wins. There is a tight group of 6 engines in the middle of the table, of which one will qualify and one will be relegated.
game 117, Tucano - Pirarucu: Tucano was winning in a QB vs QR position with a passer on the 6th rank. Pirarucu traded B for R and Tucano took with a pawn instead of its queen, giving Pirarucu a passer. This was a strong enough counter to force a draw in a queen ending.
game 118, Wasp - Marvin: Evals increased gradually with almost no exchanges, Marvin had little room to move. On move 43 Wasp went a pawn up and created a passer on the queen side, with evals over 3. It managed to push the passer to the 7th rank. Marvin was busy defending, Wasp captured another pawn and created a second passer on the king side. Eventually Wasp promoted a pawn to a queen and mated.
In round 20 ClassicAra and Wasp won, most likely one of them will qualify. Marvin lost and is now in sole 9th place. Tucano missed a win against Pirarucu. Standings with 2 rounds to go: ClassicAra Wasp +2, Combusken Koivisto Tucano 0, Marvin -1.
game 123, Booot - Wasp: The game reached a BN vs R ending, Booot moved its king forward and Wasp was outnumbered. Booot went a pawn up and slowly pushed a passer until it promoted to a queen.
In round 21 Wasp lost and is now in 5th place, 0.5 points behind ClassicAra. No change at the bottom of the table, Marvin is still in 9th place. Standings before the last round: ClassicAra +2, Wasp +1, Combusken Koivisto Tucano 0, Marvin -1.
All 6 games were drawn in the last round, ClassicAra qualifies and Marvin is relegated.
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