Anti- Austrian

What do you guys think is the best way to handle the Austrian Attack?

Fair Enough lol

How about something like this?

That is not the same line i pointed out........

I play the 5...c5 lines. They're very theoretical, but they're also very fun and tactical to play. 1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 g6 4.f4 Bg7 5.Nf3 c5. The Pirc is my favorite defense and, although it does require some, but not a ton, like the Sicilian, of theory learning, I would recommend it to anyone because it can be either very tactical or very positional, depending on the variations played. You knowledge of and skill at chess increases greatly when you study the Pirc. The Pirc is chess and hypermodernism at its best. If you decide to study the Pirc further, then I recommend the great book Pirc Alert! by Lev Alburt and Alex Chernin. The Pirc is also not one of those openings that requires vast theoretical knowledge; learning its ideas and the ideas behind its moves and variations is the key to success with the Pirc, not rote memorization.

5. Be2 is better. I don't mind trading bishops. In exchange I get dominating center pawns.

The 5...c5 stuff drove me from it.

I used to play the Pirc-proper for a lot of years and to my suprise hardly anyone played the 4.f4 Austrian of which I was somewhat afraid.

Round about 1990 I stumbled on a (then) new way to prevent/prepare for the Austrian. This idea is now known as the Czech-defense and I started using that for some years.

The Czech starts like a normal Pirc but Black does not fianchetto his K-Bishop !

The Czech is : 1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 c6 after which White has two main continuations : A) 4.f4 and B) 4.Nf3.

After 4.f4 Qa5 White has to defend his e4 pawn which allows Black to follow up with 5. .. e5 starting active play from the start.

After 4.Nf3 Bg4 5.Be2 e6 Black has a favorable French/Caro-Kann like position with the Q-Bishop outside the chain.

So , in the Czech , Black refrains from the fianchetto. His K-Bishop will mostly be developed to e7 or d6.

If you really fear the Austrian in the Pirc-proper ( as you should) , then the Czech might be a dynamic alternative.

Czech it out!