Attacking repertoire - The Dutch and Scandinavian

As I'm a fairly aggresive player,  I always open with e4, as I find that the d4 openings are a bit too positional for me, specially openings like the QGD. Thus, I play the Scotch Gambit as white( 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.Bc4) and the Grand Prix attack whenever I have to face the Sicilian(1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 and 3.f4).

As Balck, I use the French, with which I've done reasonably well. However, against d4, I can't seem to find an opening that suits me. I tried the KID for some time, but I lost *all* my matches with it,  getting very muddled up with it's opening moves and principles. After abandoning, I tried the Gruenfield, with similiar results because of similiar reasons.

I've now taken up the Dutch, with which I've done okay, but not as well as I've done from my other openings, however, I don't know anything really about Dutch principles or theory.

The question I would like to ask here is, is there some other good attacking opening agsint d4? I wouldn't mind gambits, but positional openings like the Nimzo-Indian are not really for me. Or is the Dutch fine for me?

Also, is the Scandinavian a good choice as a second opening agsint e4 for me? My coach has recemended that I take up another one, since now I know a reasonable amount(according to me ;)) about the French

Thanks in advance :)

If you really want to be sure of attacking chances then I recommend you stay with the dutch defense. The only other opening I can think of that is aggressive and you haven't played yet is the benoni.
But in almost every opening you might try against d4 there are positional lines. I think the main principle of the dutch is to try to get a pawn center with pawns on e5 and f5 - if you can achieve that you will have a good game with attacking chances most of the time.

I wouldn't recomend the Scandinavian because I think it gives white a slight but safe edge most of the time. e6 is a good counterattacking opening but of course there is the sicilian which is even more aggressive but dangerous for both sides especially black. I prefer the KID to the dutch but there are some more positional lines that can come from the KID so the leningrad dutch seems like a good choice as well. That's about it.

There aren't many openings where black gets to attack from the start, chess doesn't work like that. Especially after 1.d4, which is more or less designed to restrict black's play.

Thanks everyone for your replies :)

Alphastar, I thought about using the Benoni, but after 'looking' at it's positions from the net, I thought the advanced pawn really cramp my position. But I'll try it out now.:)

Elubas,

I was thinking of playing the ICelandic gambit, which muddles up the play a bit for white.:)

Scarblac,

Yeah, d4 leads to pretty positional play, which is not an area of chess at which I excel.:(

Also, I was thinking of playing the Semi-slav. Any thoughts about it?

The Semi-Slav is a good choice, I have played it for twenty years. White didn't play the theory very often (opposition usually 1600-2000ish OTB).

One thing is that white can make it pretty quiet (e.g. systems with e3 and b3, 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 e6 5.e3 e6 6.b3) -- black won't do any attacking there for a while, while white can setup his pieces slowly. Nothing worrying, but not very sharp.

And when it gets sharp, it can get _very_ sharp. There isn't much in chess that is sharper than the Botvinnik System.

Unfortunately, players who don't know theory often don't go for the sharp stuff. Fortunately, those players often don't notice that black can grab their c pawn dxc4 and hang on to it, if white doesn't place his pieces correctly :-)

Thanks Scarblac, I'm going to try the Benoni and the Semi-slav for some change now.

The benoni is aggressive, but it is differently aggressive to, say, the grand prix. It is Queenside aggression, so if your favourite type of aggression is a sacrificial attack on the King the benoni is not so good.

 Well that isn't always the case. It is true that in the modern benoni ( I am assuming that is the one we are talking about) black usually seeks counterplay by the b7-b5 pawn break. But if white clamps down over there another source of play is in the f5 break, depending on the deployment of both sides peices of course. I have studied the modern benoni a fair bit, and one of the main ideas is that black gets active play on either side of the board, or sometimes both, in exchange for a weak structure (d6 pawn mainly). So try it out and remember to play as actively as possible in the benoni.

If you like the french just play 1...e6 after 1.d4, some people may just transpose into the french, with 2. e4. And if they don't, I would try the queens gambit declined, look for lines that lead to positions similar to the french or that involve the type of strategy. The french and the dutch are quite different. I wouldn't bother learning the Scandinavian it's an okay opening, but the french is better, if your looking for a change of pace try some different lines in the french.

attacking repertoire and no one has mentioned the benko?  If you are interested in the benoni the benko will go very nicely with it. 

Erik,

I assume you're refering to the Benko Gambit?

Pvmike,

That would be nice for me, but I think most games would just end of being the QGD, which I something I would like to pass up at this level.

If the Modern benoni sacrifices a cramping pawn for activity, I think that's pretty much what I'm looking for.

Yes the benko gambit(sometimes known as the volga)  If sacrificing a pawn for activity is your bag then bust out with the benko.  Your initiative even lasts into the endgame down a pawn. 

the problem with the icelandic gambit is that you can only get it if your opponent wants you to play it. instead he can just play Nf3

I actually think that gambit is sound but it's not correct for white to play c4 trying to hold the pawn in the first place.

semi slav mate - its so clear how to proceed. i got a good book on it

 The Scandinavian doesn't have a lot of dynamic potential for Black, as some already mentioned. Not that most people should be worrying about openings being drawish or anything, but it probably won't give you positions that you like if White plays reasonably.

You might like the Dutch better, but it does have a lot of theory, although maybe it just seems that way due to all of the anti-Dutch stuff out there. I guess it's not totally sound, but definitely playable if you want to learn more dynamic stuff.

There are ways of trying to get an immediately dynamic position out of the scandinavian, but if white knows what to do, black is just a bit worse. 

And I really can't recommend the Dutch to any beginner... it's an opening people play to get complicated positions, to outplay their opponent. It's not needed against players at the 1400 daily chess level. 

The Modern Benoni is a blast.

As you like open games I would try the Tarrasch, in particular the Henning Shara gambit. Over the board at club level it will rake in the points and looks more suited to your style.  Do not worry that it may not be 100% theoretically correct, that is unimportant.

For practiacal puposed it is very good, most club players that play d4 will only have a vague idea how to play against it as will hardly if ever have had it used against them before, they will be on their own in a sharp position

Video of gambit

Above video is very good as it shows weak moves that white might play and how to beat them, so is of big practical help