Every chord, broken down to 3 notes on 3 adjacent strings. Learn the 3 inversions on one string set, then see the same triad appear everywhere else on the neck — that's how the whole fretboard connects.
The method: a triad has 3 tones (root, 3rd, 5th). Playing it on any 3 adjacent strings gives you 3 inversions — Root Position, 1st Inversion, 2nd Inversion — depending on which tone sits in the bass. There are 4 string sets to play them on. 4 sets × 3 inversions = 12 shapes, and it's the same triad every time.
Root Note
Triad Quality
String Set
Root
3rd (or 2nd/4th for sus)
5th
The Triad Ladder — Strings 1–2–3
Full Neck Map
Every place this triad lives on the fretboard — click a string set below to isolate it.