+1, Paul Morphy might have been the most fascinating and influencing chess player of all time. When he was still actively playing, he seemed almost unbeatable,

+1, Paul Morphy might have been the most fascinating and influencing chess player of all time. When he was still actively playing, he seemed almost unbeatable, and nobody understood why. Somehow Morphy intuitively knew when to start an attack and when he did, it magically always worked out, while other top players at that time often saw their attacks turn into nothing and would soon lose afterwards. It took a decade until an a dedicated studier of his game, Wilhelm Steinitz, figured out the logic behind it. His theory of positional play changed the way people looked at chess and meant the start of the modern chess era. Morphy himself didn't live to see this, after quitting chess he became increasingly schizophrenic and eventually died penniless and alone.