play exd5, exd5, dxc5. Black is stuck with an isolated d pawn and if he messes up and plays Bxc5, then you can take on d5.
3.Nc3 c5? in the French
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I believe the official bookline is 3...c5 4. exd5 exd5 5. dxc5 d4 6. Bb5+ Nc6 7. Qe2+ Be6 8. Ne4 Nf6 9. Bg5 Qa5+ 10. Bd2 Qd8 11. Ng5 Qd5 12. Nxe6 fxe6 13. Nf3 Bxc5 14. O-O with a large advantage to White Rausis-Tarira, Lisbon 1999. But the line is way too rare to have a mainline.
Thanks for the ideas, jphillips and agressive. I'll try at least 4. exd5 exd5 5. dxc5.
Feb 27, 2014
0
#6
I had I think three games this year during our high school meets where my opponent didn't know what he was doing and played c5 on the third move after Nc3. I won every time. I had to make sure that everyone on my team knew not to do that because they had been doing it too. I think it's only ok on the third move in the Advance and the Tarrasch.
Frank Marshall played a couple of good games with this variation - and they are in his games collection.
Would be frowned upon by those seeking to emulate the latest super GM theory, but for lesser mortals well worth trying. I keep meaning to play this as a surprise weapon over the board.
Including the Marshall "Gold Coin" Immortal:
http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1094915
(http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chesscollection?cid=1008563)
Ludek Pachman recomends
If you are interested in 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 c5 and/or 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 d5 (curiosity, chess history, surprise your opponent) there is always the ancient Marshall Gambit in the French and Sicilian Defenses (Caissa Editions, 1988) by Rick Kennedy and Riley Sheffield. (Your library might have a copy, or be able to obtain one.)
I was wondering why 3...c5? isn't a possibility after 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3:
I'm not saying it looks like a good move, but it has been played by my opponents a few times and I'm not good enough to get an advantage in a blitz game. I know Black can play 3. ... c5 in the Tarrasch and in the Advance Variation, and c5 is generally a useful move in the French to attack White's center.
When I run it through my engine, it gives the position a score of about +0.9 after a couple of minutes, like White might be able to win a pawn, but when I follow through some of its lines, it either doesn't win a pawn at all or takes a long time to do it, and it seems confusing.
Are there some immediate concrete reasons that I might be able to understand for not playing 3. Nc3 c5? My first thought is that the pawn on d5 may be subject to attack after White's d-pawn is exchanged.
Any help is appreciated.