Recently I've been playing the queen's gambit a lot and there's an unconventional move I've been trying quite a lot while playing black. It's so unconventional that there's not a single game in the database that plays it, although I haven't been pwned enough with it to realize it's nota a good idea. Can anyone enlighten me?

 

I play 1. d4 d5 2. c4 Bf5 as black.  I also sometimes play h6 if they have not yet developed their light squared bishop to e3, for the same reason you stated.

Whenever you play Bf5, white will play Qb3 I think. I think that's why black's white bishop is usually locked in through an early e6.

edit: I think 4. c x d5 c x d5 5. Nc3 Nf6 6 Bf4 is very good for white.

it doesn't look too bad. I played 1.d4 d5 2.c4 Bg4 a few times it's meant to go something like this.

Well, what this means, positionally, is as follows...

...white will now likely play in "slow Slav" style, where he voluntarily blocks in his dark squared bishop by playing e3 first.  He does this without reservation, since the bishop's natural square on g5 is denied him now.

...in accepting this, he more or less acknowledges he will be undertaking operations on the queenside, unless something drastic changes the structure.

...with this being the case, h6 is now essentially a wasted move, and a lost tempo.  it won't be denying the bishop that square, and it won't be denying the knight that square, since neither will care much about penetrating over there till late in the game...maybe.

...Qb3 will be coming in short order, once you essay Bf5/g4.  Maybe you see a better play for black in such a scenario than Qb6, but I don't.  While that usually puts a choice of how to proceed on white, here c5 jumps out as both obvious AND useful, since you've pretty much forced his hand in that direction.  Your best will probably be to trade into a dismal endgame where white is at the very least WAY ahead in space, and has his plans well under way.

...at that point, I GUESS you could argue that h6 prepared g5 and kingside countermeasures, but I fear you'll be looking at a plan that develops way too slowly if you essay that.

I guess in short, I see a lot of plusses for white here, but nothing for black to hang his hat on.

And in a database of any size, this line does have a number of results.  Quite a few more still, if you assume white's next move is the logical Nc3.  Even my rather modest Chessbase has a few hundred games following from here, with white scoring over 80%.

3. Qb3 Nc6 4. Qxb7 Nb4

i like h6 because it prevents the bishop from going to g5

Thanks for the insights, guys! I understand now why this move is an inaccuracy.

It's generally better to develop toward the center than to play a rather unconstructive move in paranoia to an only modestly harmful move (it's not like any huge threats come from Bg5). The cure in this case is more harmful than the disease. Your idea of keeping the f5 bishop safe is again, too slow; it's most essential to have development at all; if you focus just on the f5 bishop, sure, your f5 bishop will be good and safe, but now you have to do that for 8 more pieces. Hate to burst your bubble, but no good player will let that happen.

That said, it only makes white's control of the center a bit more dramatic -- no mate in 6 in sight still; if you face this there is still a game to be played, of course.

If your opponent wasn't going to play Bg5 anyhow, the move is a true wasted tempo.

It seems inflexible. It might have some potentially positive aspects to it, but us it really what the position is asking for?

3 ... h6 violates basic principles.  It does not develop a piece, promote a piece's development, or contribute to Black's central position.

In the opening, both sides race to develop their pieces and control the center of the board.  Black starts off a step behind because White moves first, so he can little afford wasted pawn moves. Worse yet, Black weakens his Kingside position for no good reason - the g6 square is deprived of one of its natural defenses, and h6 presents a target for White to open the Kingside either by opening a file with g2-g4-g5 or a sacrifice on h6.

Fezzik's example of pausing in a footrace to clean your nose is right on point - possibly because he lifts it directly from Nimzowitsch.  You don't need to analyze to know it is a weak move, Black has no time for such friviolities.

 gmitchel850 wrote:

There are no IM/GM games in the CB Opening Base for d4 d5 c4 Bg4. Hmmm???    I wonder why. ;)

So do I, because I just found 10 in CB 9 and White won every game. The highest rated Black player was 1788, and 3 were unrated. So this may account for the lack of entries in an opening base.

Getting back to the bogus 3...h6 I believe Estragon said everything that needs to be said here.

You'd be better off learning how to deal with the pin rather than weakening your position to avoid it.

3....Nf6 4.Bg5 Ne5 can't be great for White anyway.