TL;DR
Good repertoire for fighting chess for white. As black, you can play 1...c5
against 1.Nf3
, and against 1.d4
I would recommend looking at the following openings and picking your favorite:
- Grunfeld
- King's Indian Defense
- Slav
- Dutch
This is going to be a long answer, so bear with me...
Your white opening looks acceptable. I won't really get into the merits of any of your specific choices other than to say be careful with the Advance Caro and Advance French - those don't always let you play a tactical game against strong opposition. You could look into the French Tarrasch (surprising, I know, but even the closed main line gives white kingside attacking chances) and the Panov-Botvinnik Attack against the Caro.
Against 1.d4
, almost all players have difficulty right now. From the very best GM's down to the average club players, the last 5-10 years have shown that white has excellent chances for an advantage with queen pawn openings. There are two openings that are currently "in vogue" at the top level - the Grunfeld and the Slav. These two openings are by no means the only options, but current theory holds that black can maintain equality with best play, and additionally, black has chances to win with both openings. I'll also mention the Dutch, the King's Indian Defense, the Nimzo/QID, and the classical QGD in this answer.
Grunfeld
The Grunfeld is one of the best openings for black against 1.d4
right now. Black does not occupy the center, but instead attacks it from afar with moves like Bg7, c5, Nc6, and sometimes e5 and Rd8. White has not been able to find a clear advantage against black's best play, and most Grunfeld endgames favor black due to the queenside pawn structure. I would recommend the Grunfeld for players who are not afraid to study theory - sometimes a LOT of theory. Furthermore, Grunfeld players should be willing to take on certain disadvantages in exchange for counterplay. Black will frequently have a large space disadvantage early in the game and it takes experience to push back white to get to an advantageous endgame. That said, the Grunfeld offers EXCELLENT winning chances against lower rated players, especially in endgames that look equal at first.
Slav
The Slav is another very common opening right now. If you want a crash course on the Slav, you can look at Anand's games in the last few matches that he has played. The Slav is another opening that can require a lot of theory, especially when you get into the Botvinnik System and the Moscow/Anti-Moscow variations. The biggest drawback to the Slav is that white can force a symmetrical game by playing an early cxd5. The Exchange Slav is very boring, but if you are a higher rated player, it is still possible to grind your way to victory in the Exchange Slav.
Dutch
The Dutch is quite possibly the best opening for a tactical game, but black is really playing with fire. It is very easy to slip into a lost position if you are not playing every move accurately. Within the Dutch, there are a few systems that are all playable - the Stonewall, the Leningrad, and the Classical. The biggest advantage to playing the Dutch is that white players that have memorized 25 moves in the Catalan won't be able to play by memory and will have to figure out what to do at the board. Furthermore, black frequently will get a kingside attack going with the Leningrad Dutch.
King's Indian Defense
The KID is another opening where black can be positionally lost without many mistakes. For example, if you play the Queen's Gambit Declined as black, you can make 3 or 4 subpar moves without really getting a bad position. The Dutch and the KID are another story - one misstep and black might already be losing. If you are willing to take that chance, or you are confident in your ability to deal with tactics, then the KID is a good choice. It offers black a kingside attack (usually) and chances for the full point.
Other Openings
Just to touch on alternatives - the QGD is always a solid choice, but black can have a very hard time finishing development. The bishop on c8 sometimes cannot be developed until move 20 or even later. If you are not comfortable playing a cramped position, stay away from the QGD.
The Indian Systems (Nimzo and QID) are good choices, but per your question, I didn't mention them very much. At the GM level, these defenses are still played, but white has found ways to get a good game against both the Nimzo (look into 4.Qc2
) and the QID. Furthermore, since the Catalan is so popular, you will frequently not get the chance to play a true Indian Defense.
Final Thoughts
You might notice that I did not recommend any gambits like the Albin Countergambit or the Budapest. With good play, white gets a great position against both of those choices. With quiet play, white still gets an equal position and black's initiative dries up quite quickly (for example g3 against the Budapest). Additionally, the Benoni and the Benko Gambit are not mentioned because black has to solve quite a few problems according to modern theory.
Ultimately, you will have to try out all of these openings and decide which one you like the best. Personally, I play the KID, the Grunfeld, and the Dutch mostly. The main point is that if you want a super sharp game, don't allow symmetrical positions (for example, your choice to play the Sicilian as black against 1.e4
).
1...
possibility). That'd show what you like, and exemplify a typical repertoire, which would be great. I'd do it, but unfortunately there are many openings you name that I don't know about, and I can't guess what lines you exactly prefer in them.