Questions tagged [opening]
Questions relating to the initial moves of the game and their aims
1,217
questions
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1answer
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Bird's Defense Deferred
In the Bird's Defense Deferred in the Ruy Lopez(1.e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nd4), why can't White take the e5-pawn?
1
vote
0answers
51 views
Looking for resources on a sideline of the Caro Kann, 1. e4 c6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Qe2
[fen ""]
1. e4 c6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Qe2 d4 4. Nd1
I find this variation very interesting and would like to know whether it has a name, is in some books, or maybe just annotated games. It is ...
7
votes
9answers
1k views
Why develop knights before bishops?
So, I've found the general advice that you should develop your knights before your bishops.
Reasons I think are:
1) The knights almost always go to the main squares (c3,c6,f3,f6) (or sometimes to d7 ...
10
votes
2answers
445 views
Did it make sense for Lasker to play the Exchange variation of the Ruy Lopez in 1914?
In 1914, world champion Emanuel Lasker was trailing future world champion J.R. Capablanca in a tournament, meaning that he needed to win, not just draw, against Capablanca.
He played the exchange ...
1
vote
2answers
110 views
How to play the French as White
Club opponents frequently play the French Defence again me, and I have trouble countering it with the Advance variation, since Black gets active pieces. Is there another good variation that avoids ...
8
votes
5answers
2k views
What's the best strategy against the Hippo?
What's the best strategy against the so-called Hippopotamus opening or defense, in which White or Black pushes almost all of her pawns on the 3rd or 6th rank, except perhaps the a and h pawns, and ...
1
vote
1answer
50 views
King's gambit line refutation
In the King's gambit, a strong opponent has played against me(as black):
1.e4 e5 2.f4 exf4 3.Bc4 h6(trying to hold onto the f-pawn).
I have found a variation where White probably has a strong ...
6
votes
2answers
171 views
Why isn't 5. f4 considered strong in the French Advance, main line?
Why isn't 5. f4 considered a strong move in the main line French Advance, after
[fen ""]
1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 c5 4. c3 Nc6
Everyone plays 5. Nf3 here, but isn't it logical to support e5 with ...
2
votes
1answer
105 views
How should one play as Black vs. the Ruy Lopez Exchange Variation?
As the title above states, how should one play as Black vs. the Ruy Lopez Exchange Variation? In other words, after `
[FEN ""]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Bxc6 dxc6
(The Exchange ...
1
vote
0answers
95 views
Benoni Theory Help
I've got an important tournament game coming up, and I will be playing Black. I will play the Scandinavian if White plays 1.e4, but I won't be able to unbalance the game properly after 1.d4, except if ...
1
vote
4answers
111 views
Latvian Gambit recommendations
The Latvian gambit:
e4 e5 2. Nf3 f5!?
leads to a sort of King's gambit reversed. I've had a large winning percentage for this opening as Black in club games. Would this opening be good for a 1500-...
3
votes
2answers
875 views
Any reference material on the Franco-Benoni defense?
The Franco-Benoni defense is characterized by the black moves:
[fen "rnbqkbnr/pp1p1ppp/4p3/2p5/3PP3/8/PPP2PPP/RNBQKBNR w KQkq - 0 1"]
1. e4 e6 2. d4 c5
The books I've read on the French defense ...
5
votes
3answers
381 views
Why not 4.e3 Bxc3+ in the Nimzo-Indian?
Why is 4.e3 Bxc3+ almost never played in the Nimzo-Indian, with idea of 5.bxc3 c5, considering that this is a relatively feared move after 4.e3 c5 5.Nf3 Bxc3, et cetera (Huebner Variation), so that a ...
2
votes
3answers
638 views
The Borg against d4?
Until recently, I played the London System, which served be well and was very solid, but every game I played was very similar and dull.
However, I have now started playing "Grob's Attack" as white, ...
5
votes
3answers
3k views
What to play vs. 1. d4 when Sicilian is my favorite defense?
I've been playing chess since my childhood however just recently got into chess very seriously and my online balance was approx. 90-60 out of 150 games and then I lost 25 games due to a broken phone. ...
15
votes
3answers
3k views
King's Gambit, Fischer's Defence 6. Ng1. Wait, what?
I'd like to play the king's gambit without getting into piece sacrifices, but Fischer's Defence is unsettling me. This appears to be described as the "main line".
[FEN ""]
1.e4 e5 2.f4 exf4 3.Nf3 d6 ...
2
votes
2answers
51 views
Bird's opening versus the Dutch Defence [duplicate]
I have played Bird's opening for around a year now, but I don't understand why Bird's opening isn't played as much as the Dutch, even though it is a tempo up. Why is this?
19
votes
6answers
9k views
How to deal with your opponent's queen if your opponent rejects any trades?
If my opponent brings out his/her queen early in the game, I usually attack it with my own queen. The opponent can either accept the trade or reject it. If he/she accepts, I have no questions at all. ...
7
votes
6answers
2k views
The strength of Smith-Morra gambit
I am a beginning player in chess.(~1300 on chess.com/blitz: 5 and 10 minutes) And I mostly like to attack and favor fully open positions to closed and defensive. In response to e4, when the opponent ...
7
votes
2answers
730 views
Isn't the Bogo-Indian just busted with this line?
I know openings often tend not to be busted, and I'm obviously not really suggesting that the Bogo is busted. But I recently played a Bogo-Indian where I just couldn't find any follow up quite early ...
5
votes
1answer
109 views
What is the name or origin of this opening for Black?
I was playing online, and I noticed some players go for this opening and I don't know its name or if it's a move order to another opening for Black.
[fen ""]
1. d4 g6 2. c4 Bg7 3. Nc3 c6 4. ...
10
votes
11answers
8k views
Moving the queen early in the game - beginner
Ok, I know this will be a vague question... I recently played against a friend three games, and lost all of them, and the problem was that he played his queen very early in the game (second move). I ...
21
votes
10answers
4k views
Is there value to learning openings as a new player?
Am a new player (had played before hadn't picked up a board for 3 years having never taken the game that seriously) and am going to try and commit to at least 1 rapid (10+5) game per day.
Have made it ...
2
votes
3answers
528 views
A little chess joke
I've been studying the Bird's opening, and I wonder if I could launch a surprise with this line
f4 d5 2. Kf2?!
I can artificially castle, and I can develop naturally. Is this move playable, or just ...
4
votes
3answers
2k views
Countering the Horowitz Defense
Since my last post I've successfully learned how to counter the wayward queen attack, and now I've run into an interesting opening that I don't immediately lose to, but I feel I can play against ...
5
votes
4answers
6k views
What is the best defense against the King's Indian Attack?
How can I break the King's Indian Attack? I think my h7 square is vulnerable to attack; what is the best way to break this strategy?
15
votes
2answers
32k views
What is the Bongcloud opening?
I have heard the Bongcloud opening mentioned on chess.com, but I have never heard of that. Is this a real opening, and if so, what is it?
5
votes
2answers
838 views
Best way to play against Glek system?
I just wanted to ask which is the best way to play against the Glek system. It's quite a rare opening.
So there are two lines. One line is with Bc5 and the other is with d5. Which line according to ...
5
votes
1answer
332 views
What is the name of this Sicilian Variation?
What is the name of this variation:
[FEN ""]
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Bg5 Nbd7
6
votes
3answers
721 views
French defense plans
I'm working with my 1300 USCF kid on his opening repertoire. In the French defense, I have a few questions/problems I'm trying to resolve:
1) In many of the closed lines (after e5) we go after ...
11
votes
6answers
7k views
Countering The Wayward Queen Attack
I'm a new player =I just started playing again after an over 10 year hiatus. I'm (sadly) in the 600s.
I've been studying openings and I seem to do better in games where I can use the Italian game or ...
35
votes
11answers
8k views
Are there any gambits involving sacrificing a piece?
My impression of the word "gambit" is the sacrifice of a pawn or several pawns at the opening stage of a chess game. However, based on the definition on Wikipedia, a gambit (from ancient ...
4
votes
4answers
1k views
Plans in the Scandinavian Defence
I'm playing the Scandinavian Defence with 3...Qd8 a lot and I really like that opening. But I can't seem to find the right plan. I just develop my pieces towards the center (I don't fianchetto my ...
6
votes
3answers
1k views
The Urusov Gambit
The curious Urusov Gambit seems something of a gimmick. A great article on it appears here
[Event "Urusov Gambit"]
[Site "Tehran IRI"]
[Date "2016.10.28"]
[Round "4.20"]
[White "Mashmooli, Kian"]
[...
11
votes
3answers
8k views
How should I play against the Philidor defense?
As white, I often encounter the Philidor Defense by black:
[FEN ""]
1. e4 e5
2. Nf3 d6
I usually play Nc3 or d4 on the next move, but is this the best move? What are some lines (advantages or ...
8
votes
3answers
974 views
Openings in King of the hill
As you probably know, "King of the hill" (KOTH) is a variant of chess where one can win either like in classical chess or by putting the king in the central squares, namely d4, e4, d5 and e5, by a ...
17
votes
4answers
920 views
Position from the Dutch Defence / Blackmar-Diemer gambit
In the Dutch Defence, the following gambit isn't very popular anymore.
[FEN ""]
1. d4 f5 2. Nc3 d5 3. e4 dxe4 (3... fxe4 4. Qh5+)
The same position can arise from the Blackmar-Diemer gambit if black ...
22
votes
6answers
2k views
What proofs for refuted gambits are there?
I've stumbled upon this article a while ago, and I've also seen refutations for the Muzio Gambit (Joseph Kling & Bernard Horwitz - Chess Studies on Endings of Games). I'm wondering what other ...
3
votes
5answers
245 views
How to master 1.e4 repertoire from scratch
I was a hardcore 1.c4 player. But, for quite some time, the popularity of Nakhmanson Gambit, Jerome Gambit etc. has encouraged me to experiment with 1.e4.
I have read 1.e4 with backup plan before. Now ...
0
votes
2answers
108 views
A Black setup against White's Hippo Attack
If I'm playing as White against the Hippo Defense, I usually go with this setup.
[FEN ""]
1. d4 b6 2. c4 Bb7 3. Nc3 g6 4. e4 Bg7 5. Nf3 e6 6. Be2 d6 7. O-O Ne7 8. Be3 Nd7 9. Qc2 O-O 10. ...
4
votes
3answers
139 views
How to prepare for a handicap game (queen odds) / strategy?
I made a bet with a non-neglegible stake that I will win a game against a friend without queen. My Elo rating is about 2000-2100, my friend's should be around 1400. Today I played with the black ...
6
votes
2answers
628 views
How to play king's indian attack aggressively?
The King's Indian attack is my choice of opening. I choose this because more often I would prefer games where the actual clash between the sides is delayed (rather than outright in the opening). My ...
10
votes
4answers
1k views
Why isn't Bird's Opening at least as popular as the Dutch Defence?
The Dutch Defence is a fairly popular response to 1. d4. So shouldn't 1. f4 (Bird's opening), viewed as a Dutch plus a tempo, be at least as popular?
6
votes
3answers
3k views
Why is White's accuracy 99.7% instead of 100.0%?
Here is a short game played online at chess.com.
[FEN ""]
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. c3 d6 5. d4 Bb6 6. dxe5
Black resigned for some unknown reason; maybe a mouse slip or he/she ...
4
votes
3answers
1k views
Does the Caro-Kann or the Tartakower System of the Queen's Gambit Declined help with positional skills?
In the following Wikipedia biography on Gary Kasparov, I read the following:
From age 7, Kasparov attended the Young Pioneer Palace in Baku and, at 10 began training at Mikhail Botvinnik's chess ...
9
votes
2answers
393 views
How to handle Black's Bc5 in Bird's Leningrad?
I want to learn and play the Bird's Opening, Reverse Leningrad Variation, as White. I'm having a hard time with some aspects of this opening which keep coming up. I want to avoid a Stonewall-like ...
4
votes
7answers
1k views
Please help me understand the f6 break in the French defense
I'm really struggling to understand this move to be honest. Even after carefully reading a similar question posted here, I still just don't get it and, more importantly, when it's good to play the f6 ...
3
votes
3answers
1k views
How should I play against the Grunfeld defense as white?
What is the best defense as white against the Grunfeld Defense?
I have been playing the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit over and over again, I suspect some opponents notice this, and open up with 1... Nf6, so ...
3
votes
3answers
329 views
King's Indian move order
Isn't 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 d6 (Old Indian Defense) a more flexible move-order than 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 (King's Indian Defense)?
I don't see why any Black player who wants to play the King's Indian would ...
5
votes
4answers
1k views
What is the Pirc Defense (1… d6 or 1… g6)?
On this website: http://www.dwheeler.com/chess-openings/, it says that the Pirc Defense is 1. e4 d6 or 1. e4 g6. Which one of them is the true Pirc Defense?
