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Guide to Chess 960 - Part 2: Opening Principles in Action

Guide to Chess 960 - Part 2: Opening Principles in Action

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Michael-Holm
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In Part 1 I explained basic opening principles. Now I will show examples of these principles in action as well as some examples of what not to do in the opening. I usually like to start the game by putting a pawn in the center. So if I'm playing as White I will almost always start by playing c4, d4, e4 or f4. If I'm playing as Black I will usually start by playing c5, d5, e5 or f5 depending on what my opponent's last move was.

 

But how do I decide which pawn to move first? I will open with the pawn that does the most to help me activate my pieces. For example, if I can move a pawn that controls the center and at the same time opens a diagonal for a Bishop and/or Queen then that's almost always a good move. If the pawn is supported by a Rook or Queen then that's even better. Basically, you want your move to do 2 or more things whenever possible.

 

Here are some examples of what I would consider to be good opening moves:

 
 
 
 

 

Now here are some examples of what I would consider to be poor opening moves from White followed by good opening moves from Black:

 

 

 

 


I will close by showing a game that I played against a lower rated player. This game shows some typical mistakes and how I took advantage.

 
I didn't do anything special in the opening. I didn't rush. I simply followed basic opening principles and slowly built up advantages. Then when I saw my chance to end the game I took it.
 
I will sum up what my opponent did wrong.
 
  • They blocked a center pawn by playing Bf3 on move 2. Remember that center pawns are c, d, e and f-pawns. Notice how I never blocked any of my center pawns. I used my center pawns to take over the center.
  • They made some unnecessary/slow pawn moves (g3 and later h4). g3 also buried their Knight in the corner so they were effectively down a piece. 
  • They wasted time moving the same piece multiple times without a good reason (Bf3-g2 and Bd2-e3). d3 and later d4 was also not ideal. They should have tried to save time by playing d4 in one move instead of two. I played my pawn break of d5 in one move, saving time.
  • They waited too long to use a pawn break to open lines for their pieces. When they finally played d4 it was too late. They should have played d4 or f4 much earlier.

 

Let me know if you have any questions or suggestions and I will do my best to answer them.