An Unusual Slav Gambit
Yes, thanks for your encouragement. I don't believe that anyone who questions the opening plays gambits anyway. I did think about QxP!? I witnessed the great Diemer play some crushing wins with that move in his BDG, but I didn't want to venture those lines. It wouldn't matter much anyway, I lost my QP after my move Qb3 in my correspondence game due to BxN RxN QxP, but the open lines definetely compensated for my pawn deficit. It is a fun opening and I definetely recommend it as an alternative opening against a Slav player.
Note that in the "regular" BDG black can always opt to play the French defence by (after 1.d4 d5 2.e4) playing 2...e6. Here I think you face the same "problem" only more so, because after 6.e4 (in the original post) black has 6...e6 with a position from the (Stinitz flavour) Classical French, with the difference that white will take two moves to play f2-f4 instead of one.
However, whether this proves a problem in practice remains to be seen :)
Regards,
Mark.
ChessMaterial, that is an interesting comment that you make - the possibility of transposing. I wonder - how many French players play the Slav rather than the QGD? So the possibility is definetely there. I would think after 6...e6, maybe Bg5, and the bishop can travel to f2 in this line, and maybe White would be fine in the center temporarily...I don't know. It looks like a totally playable idea with ...e6 to me.
If you're trying to keep families of opening in your repatoire you will find the Slav tends to pair with the Caro-Kann. The BDG also has a gambit response to the French.
1.d4 d5 2. e4 e6 3. Be3 (Alapin-Diemer) or c4 (Diemer-Duhm)
I actually tried the 3. Be3 once before, but didn't like it - it's not that it isn't good, but I get I didn't get the right flavor of Be3 in my mouth. I think I would probably play the 3. Nc3 variation of the French if I ever again go back to 1. e4. I think the chances are best for White with that one, but that is just me. I have read about the DDG, but never tried it yet.
It is a form of the Queen's Gambit at first, the Slav Defense accepted. The reason why I play that is to limit Black's approach to the opening. The pawn must be defended, and naturally every player responds to Nc3 with Nf6, and then f3 is played. I am not advocating it as the best move, it is simply implying that I am playing for space, or in this case, a gambit. The reason I do not take back on the last move (7. Bb5) is that the tempo is well spent in my mind gaining initiative against Black. Note, that with correct defense, Black will win - he is up in material. But White is willing to take that chance, believing in his ability to create threats that Black cannot handle. I created two isolated pawns early - a and c pawn - that could have been weaknesses.
If I had played fxe4, I would have given back the tempo and initiative way too quickly. Then f3 would have been a useless move. Bb5 is a binding move, pinning the knight to the king - and it also faciliates White's kingside castling.
Why don't you try taking the pawn (7. fxe4) and see what Black would do?
I know where you are coming from, and the comment I made, it is a comment to feed people's mind who think that gambits are unsound. I know about the ability to pressure your opponent into a terrible mistake. I did it recently with an exchange sacrifice in one of my correspondence games...I traded my rook on an open file for his bishop, which helped him to create threats against my king with his queen. Once the trade occured, his position was much more passive. I learned the idea from a game Kasparov played against Shirov, a Sveshnikov Sicilian, where his rook travelled from a1 to a4, to b4, and then capturing on b7. My game was a Bird's Opening that he opening with a c6-d6-Bg4 system, kind of obscure, like a hedgehog...I played an aggressive pawn system with f4-e4 Nf3 h3 Qxf3 g4 and d3, looking for kingside potential. And it is finally paying off.
When people make the comment about correct defense...I do believe that gambits are playable, totally. Otherwise Tal would have never been world champ...people have to get over their preconceptions and LOOK AT THE BOARD :-). Learn for themselves. My point was that my pressure was beginning to lessen in my game with this gambit, but I resacrificied to gain better piece placement, which enabled me to hang in, and finally catch him in a blunder. I do believe in gambits.
Okay, I finally got a chance to play against the "French" style position, and lost quickly! Not because of him, or me, but I made a boneheaded move. After playing the system and trying to commit to my pawn structure and develop with it as it is, I think it is okay to push the pawn to e5 and proceed with f4. Here is my reasoning. He makes two "small" pawn moves - ...a6 and ...e6, and those two tempoes give me time (after all, we are in a d4 system, not an e4 system, and being closed, I think White should be fine). Here is the first part of the game, and I will include my suggestion.
I have played it a few times, I haven't yet lost with it. I will take that as that it is worth playing, especially for a player who is booked in the Slav, something cool to try against them. I don't study the Slav. I don't hardly even study 1. d4. But when I faced the Slav one day, it just came to me, and I pieced it together - I began to look at f3, and then they played Bf5, so I played e3 and Bd3, and slowly built a center.
How about this in the Caro Kann (can't find it anywhere via Google searches):
1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. e4 dxe4 4. f3
Diemer-Duhm type idea in the Caro instead of the French.
Illustrative game: http://www.chess.com/blog/neilparker62/left-right-ko-combo
Hey guys, here is yet another Bird-Brain idea. I use it during speed chess occasionally for surprise...it is kind of like a Blackmar-Diemer Gambit...any ideas or experience with it?