I've always seen the Fantasy variation as fairly dubious. I explored a lot of lines vs the CK and the Fantasy was my first port of call. However, it seems Black with correct play can claim at least equality, and it seemed too easy for White to slip into a bad position.
Estragon: how do you think White should play against 5...g6 in the PB?
I liked Yusupov's conclusion against the Fantasy (we are talking about 3.f3 here, right?).
He said that as long as black doesn't try to refute it immediately with dxe4 fxe4 e5 then it doesn't pose a problem.
It is possible that I have more experience than any poster in here with the Caro-Kann from the black side, and here is my opinion on the most critical lines.
I just posted what I remembered as the comment from Speelman. I don't know if his book even has any games with that line. But perhaps the best part of the book is the intro to each chapter, because it is a GM talking as a GM should.
You should know that 5.g4 is the main line. 5.g4 Bg6 6.Nge2 I'm guessing is what you play? There's a ton of theory in this line from the 80s, which is when it became popular.
That's one of the mainlines, though it isn't as popular anymore as it used to be. (Several variations have been analysed to a draw)
6. ..c5 is the most principled continuation, directly attacking white's pawn center, but you will need very deep preparation as the complications are often impossible to work out OTB.
6. ..Ne7, reinforcing the Bg6 first so 7. h4?! can be answered by ..h5!, is also a respectable move but again you will need to know your theory. This line seems to have been abandoned since a continuation to a forced draw by perpetual was found (you can find it in the comments to this Topalov - Anand game: http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1010744 ).
6. ..f6 is also a good move and probably the least theory-intensive. It is distinct from the other variations in that black usually will castle long and wait with the ..c5 pawn break. You roughly have the following variations:
A) 7. Nf4 can safely be answered with fxe5;
A1) 8. dxe5 Bf7 would leave e5 rather weak and you can follow up with Nd7, Qc7/b6, castling long etc.
A2) 8. Nxg6 hxg6 9. dxe5 looks horrible for black but it is actually very difficult for white to take advantage of the weak g6-pawn. Here it is probably best to play 9. ..Bb4 so you can play Ne7 next without blocking the bishop in on f8.
A3) 8. Nxe6 also looks dangerous, but black is fine after Qe7 9. Nxf8 exd4+! 10 Be2 (10. Ne2 Be4! is an important zwischenzug) dxc3 11. Nxg6 hxg6. The important thing here is that black can bring his knights to nice central squares like e5 and e4. You could even castle short and develop strong pressure on the e- and f-files.
B) 7. h4 fxe5 8. h5! (8. dxe5? Nd7 9. h5 Nxe5! is an important trap to remember) Bf7 9. dxe5 Nd7 10. f4 Qb6.
This is probably the most testing line of the whole 6. ..f6 variation. White definitely has more space, but the question is whether those far-advanced pawns on the kingside are a weakness or a strength. White also has some problems finding a safe place for his king since it is impossible to castle long on the short term. Usually it has to stay in the center for very long, in some variations white even moves up to g3.
http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1143019 might be a good game to study in this variation.
This is my favourite caveman variation
So what happens after 8...Qxa1?
So what happens after 8...Qxa1?
http://blog.chess.com/contrapunctus/the-dislocating-pawn-sacrifice2
Great, the NMs are ganging up on me... lol
Ozzie, could you show me some high level play with f3? I seem to be ok with black after the line you posted as bad!
The line giving me the most trouble currently is
1.e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 Bf5 4. Nc6 e6 .5g4
the delayed g4 is causing me a lot of trouble :( I tried to avoid e6 but I cant find a good waiting move! Any suggestions?
If you don't know what to do here I have no idea why you're playing the Caro. This is one of the MLs.
I liked Yusupov's conclusion against the Fantasy (we are talking about 3.f3 here, right?).
He said that as long as black doesn't try to refute it immediately with dxe4 fxe4 e5 then it doesn't pose a problem.
It is possible that I have more experience than any poster in here with the Caro-Kann from the black side, and here is my opinion on the most critical lines.
Panov-Botvinnik (this is what I played as white in the Caro-Kann tournament I entered) Advance (I play Nd7 line not Bf5) Main line
ozzie - do you have any recommendations about how to combat the ...g6 lines of the Panov?
i need friends so just ask me 
Scoffing at the panov which scores 56% for white ?
Laughing derisively at the fantasy and its 60% ?!
You show more respect for the advance which is the lowest scoring of the 3 variants at 54% ?
I suspect you havent faced many strong players on the white side of these variations that you dismiss.
Your statistics do not match my experience. If the Fantasy wins 60%, a higher White result than all of the main lines, why don't the top GMs play it? Why don't you?
I don't know what you consider a "strong player," but the Experts and Masters I've faced tend to play the main lines (including the Advance these days), so my opponents who played the Botvinnik-Panov averaged lower strength, and therefore I am willing to concede your point on that narrow ground. Yet, still I scoff at B-P adherents and make rude remarks about their housepets.
Why? Because people who play 1 e4 are getting out of their comfort zone with the B-P, which resembles a QP game in many respects. They could play the main lines with chances at real e4-type play, yet they choose the hybrid variation against the inocuous Caro-Kann. No one is fooled - they do it out of fear. The fear drips from their furrowed brows from the moment they see 1 ...c6, and they run to the B-P in hope of succor, some sweet relief from a defense they are uncomfortable facing (for whatever reason; I do not propose to psychoanalyze the childhoods of all B-P players - at least, not here and without a generous grant). They reek of the fetid stench of fear, so foul and odious an odor as to repel flies and dung-beetles, the fragrance of decay and degradation wafts from them like some ceremonial incense of the unclean.
If the B-P is so great, why are all the 2500+ ELO players playing something else? I find only a couple in over a thousand TWIC games in the B-P over the last three years. Not many more 2400+, either . . . can the best players not figure out how to generate statistics from their databases? Or do they merely understand that statistics are a measure of the past and not necessarily a predictor of the future?
Crazy ~ I already gave out one free tip on the C-K here, but I'll give you some hints. If you think your opponent is ill-prepared (or is less than Class A/1st Category OTB strength), the 5 ...g6 lines can work exceptionally well. Just forget about recapturing the Pd5 until you've developed the Qside pieces. ...Nb8-d7-b6 is a common maneuver. If the opponent might be well prepped, stick with the 5...e6 lines, don't create weaknesses, and wait for White to overreach - they usually do.
Vow vow. I play the Panov Bottvinik because it is fairly simple and yet gives me an active game. I find it too tedious to study the Caro Kann main line. A 1. e4 player has enough work preparing against the more dangerous defences such as the Sicilian.
No mention has been made on the two-knights variation. :)
Note that Fischer played this with success against experienced GMs (Larsen, Benko, etc).
1.e4 c6 2.Nc3 d5 3.Nf3...
This variation can often lead to positions quite unlike those of other caro- lines, so white may have a psychological advantage over Caro players wishing to play familiar positions.
No mention has been made on the two-knights variation. :)
Note that Fischer played this with success against experienced GMs (Larsen, Benko, etc).
1.e4 c6 2.Nc3 d5 3.Nf3...
This variation can often lead to positions quite unlike those of other caro- lines, so white may have a psychological advantage over Caro players wishing to play familiar positions.
Fischer played this variation in his youth but wasn't very successful with it. Well probably he won a game with it here and there but it was known that Caro Kann wasn't his strong point. I believe that later he switched to the main line.
It is a reasonable variation to try though.
You are correct. However, the two-knights variation featured favourably in My 60 Memorable Games.
Further, here is the link for a game between J.Polgar and Bareev in 2007. (White wins nicely with the two knights):
http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1462262
@marvellosity Take a look at this game.
http://www.chess.com/echess/game.html?id=10239089
Also, if you look in a database, try to find games with Judit Polgar as white, she did very well from the white side of this. I still remember what Yusupov said about this ...g6 line in his book. In some sense, this should be the best line, if black's position is really all that good, because with an extra tempo (colors reversed) the g3 line for white is the strongest continuation. But because of that tempo, the verdict of the position changes. He seemed to conclude that white kept the advantage (citing Polgar's successes). Of course if white doesn't know what they are doing then it may be the best way to unbalance the position from the black side. Not the way I play though.
oh right so because I dont know one line and I havent time to spend learning every single line I should just quit playing altogeher :S
It's not that, it's that what you call the "waiting move" 4.Nc3 is actually the main line. Playing 4.g4 right away is probably too aggressive for white, though you can read what Dana MacKenzie writes about it on his online blog.
My OTB record against it is 2 games played, 2 games won. (Both vs. the same opponent too)
Ozzie, do you have any games where you were black and played against the 4.Nc3 line?
I usually play this line.
4.Nc3 e6 5.g4 Bg6 6.Nge2 Be7
It stops the h2-h4 idea, and has the rather paradoxical idea of playing ...Bg5. I read in depth about it in E. Varnusz's book "Play the Caro-Kann".
ozzie - that's pretty much how I normally play it too.
Trouble is, I don't really see any advantage for White. As far as I can tell, White gets a slight initiative that Black can neutralise, and I prefer the Bg7 to the Be3.
Black often retains good control of d5 in these lines too.
How isn't it just level? (genuine question!)
After checking both chess assistant and the master games data base here the fantasy seems to be the least drawish of the CK lines , about 25% draws, where main lines and the advance and the panov all have higher draw percentages