Beginner repertoire

Some coaches will tell players - don't try to win in the opening.
That's not going to happen unless your opponent plays really badly.

Learn ALL the variations of the Scholar's mate. They are plenty, and they will save you embarassment in the future. Both the Bishop-one and the Queen-one.

Queen mates in the opening - are a result of properties of the initial setup of the 32 pieces.
Which is called the Grand position.
At start of game - queens sit on their own color squares - while Kings sit on the 'wrong' color squares - namely the color square of their opponent's Queen !
This means each of the two Queens has the potential to diagonally check their opponent's King from either side of the board !!
Its a kind of 'double-diamond' arrangement.
And there are many plays where the Queen-check is not a mate but wins anyway. On both sides of the board. For either Queen.
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The fact that the two Kings each start on the wrong-colored square and also short-castle into the same wrong color of square and long-castle that way too ... creates many implications and material-winning traps and combinations and opening and middlegame issues.
Including the perhaps most common sacrifice in all of chess - the 'Greek Gift'.
It seems to happen more often than any other sac. Although there are so many ways and opportunities to sac a piece - 'with interest'.
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Queen checking (and the fact that the f-bishops might also check their opponent's King sitting on the wrong color square) often causes the target King to invest another move after short-castling to 'hide' on the corner square!

I have also been looking at the leningrad Dutch, it looks like the kings Indian but easier to play

I looked at the Caro-Kann game you lost. The whole purpose of that opening is to keep things closed. You opened up the Kingside like an easy bargirl lifts up her skirt. No wonder the opponent sneaked into that open space and mated you.

Do first things first. First you walk, then you run.

The Caro is a light square opening for black.
Black knows that white wants to attack on the light squares - the color squares of the white Queen and the white f-bishop. And the color square of Black's King.
So black puts some pawns on light squares with the idea of neutralizing that attack.
But white often attacks on those light squares anyway !
Black is supposed to make the cost of that too heavy - deterring or punishing such attacks.

Its relatively 'closed' if white plays the advance variation with 3) e5.
If white instead plays the Caro main line which is 3) Nd2 - then black takes at e4 with de and then white's knight and black's bishop play cat and mouse for a couple of moves - but that's much more 'open' than the advance.
Anyway - are there 'general principles' of openings?
The principles that are constantly pushed - are usually broken including by the best players.
Whether its knights before bishops - don't move your Queen early - don't make a lot of pawn moves - don't move something twice or more and so on.
All of that stuff gets 'violated'.
Lol!
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Better: what actually happens in good play.
But even there - players trying to learn the game are beginning to lose the thread if they're premising and prioritizing on sequences of moves of opening variations.
Instead of 'move order' ... try - 'what happens the most?'
1) You'll find that in most games - both sides short-castle.
2) You'll find that in most games - each player has played his/her g-knight out to its third rank square in front of its f-pawn - within the first five moves for the two players. The first ten half-moves in other words. The first ten 'plies'.
Nf3 and Nf6.
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Reaction: 'So what?? Yes those are Obvious!! What do we do with that??'
So much of opening theory and also 'what happens' is built around the implications of those two facts. And the reasons those happen.
Start thinking. Understand - don't memorize.
Its ironic that players who concentrate on understanding - actually end up remembering more !!
Because then - the mind is using the information instead of just trying to store it and carry it around.
It works the same with learning foreign languages - if you're using it you'll remember more.
Use it - or lose it.

I knew that I should take part in these discussions. Learning from chess-professors is just great.

Some here in my honest opinion give some bad advice.

As a beginner ... You really shouldn't be delving into Opening theory. Openings are a lot like kata/forms in martial arts. They are a guide, a strategy, pointing to, but not specific to certain tactics and often lead to certain endgames.

As a beginner... you need to hit the gym and get some hard core bag work in. That's Tactics... Tactics ... and more tactics.

As a beginner you will need to know a few simple grappling application, (i.e. endgame techniques, beginner ones like King and pawn for starters) just in case you don't knock out your opponent out in the middle game (with blunders, positional mistakes etc)

Some of you are recommending professional openings... that are extremely complicated.... and give way too many options to the opponent. And let's be honest... given some of your ratings... You yourself don't understand it. Talk about standing in front of the opponent and flailing... That is what most of us do below 2100elo

Simple clear cut openings that limit the opponent's reply's that have easy to understand endgame goals.

'As a beginner ... You really shouldn't be delving into Opening theory.'
Opening theory can mean different things.
Regarding 'endgame goals' - opponents are known to prevent an endgame.
And openings can be talked about without 'delving' into reams of variations.
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And - beginners so often want info about openings.
Info:
The most popular moves for white on move 1 - in good play -
are: in order:
1) e4
1) d4
1) Nf3 (underestimated)
1) c4
1) g3 (way back like it should be - ignores the center too much)
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But why is e4 Number One?
What's the idea?
When this question is put - people will give different responses - including strong players.
You'll hear: 'mobilizes white's f-bishop' among other things.
But I don't think that's the Big Reason.
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Yes I'm going to state my opinion.
I think its more like this: (among other things)
1) e4 immediately confronts black concerning his most important move option.
Namely - Nf6.
Black wants his knight there - but if he plays it there then white will bump that knight with e5. Then its Alekhine's defense.
Which isn't popular among strong players with black.
With good reason.
So instead - black responds to 1) e4 with either c5 or e5 or e6 or c6.
And others. 1) - Nf6 is far down the list there.
You see? If white had opened with d4 or Nf3 or c4 black can respond with 1) - Nf6 as a main option and a very popular one at that. Rightly so.
In my humble opinion - that's the Biggy.
But with facts. Its not about me.

To back up what I'm saying ... 
its easy ...
click here: https://www.365chess.com/opening.phpYou'll see e4 is top ranked.
But you can click on each of the four top ranked moves.
I wasn't surprised to see it confirms as to Nf6 being the most played reply to three of those four most popular moves.
Nor suprised to see 1) g3 is far far back behind the first four in number of games played (although at number 5)
But most key:
after 1) e4 the reply Nf6 is eighth ranked.
Again - played far far less often than those first four replies.
Does it take a lot of reasoning to figure out why?
It takes some.

Word on the chess street is players are playing the Alien Gambit right now which became popular due to last month Solar Eclipse!

Their is a Big Surge of Alien Gambit Opening Users!

Maybe, you shouldn’t play Caro-Kan due to this new activity.

Maybe, you should lay low and play different line till these Aliens fly away.

After 1) Nf3 d5 ... if I had had to play c4 there - I would have stopped playing Nf3 on move 1 - in the first place. Pun intended.
Long time ago.
I absolutely did not want a Reti.
It would be like playing a Benoni with black - which I also did not want.
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But back then I figured like this:
And just now I put it up on the analysis board ... they didn't exist back then.
Nf3 d5 e3! c5 b3 Nc6 Bb2 ....
Does black think he'll be able to establish a pawn in white's territory?
Say he tries it.
d4. The push. So exd4 Nxd4 NxN cxN ...
can black hold his pawn?
Qf3 - with Bb5ch looming. Want a6 ...? Qfe4 or Qf4 from there.
Black's going to lose that d-pawn. Is the suggestion.
He could not afford the push d4.
Edit: I put b6 just now - I meant b3. Fixed it.

This is relevant to a nice opening for black called the Queen's Indian Defence.
I liked it but it had a big big bug.
White doesn't play to allow that opening.
d4 Nf6 c4 e6 and now - instead of playing Nf3 - white plays Nc3.
No Queen's Indian is feasible now.
White is threatening e4 and black is obliged to play something other than b6.
If white 'cooperates' with Nf3 on this third move - b6 is fine.
But white plays Nc3 instead ... then black can play Bb4 and pin that knight - but that's the Nimzo-Indian defense and I absolutely did not want that opening!
Solution: switched to the Slav defense for black.
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Point: In the line in post #34 - black is trying to say to white ...
'No no no! No 'Queen's Indian reversed'. I'm playing Nc6. Not Nf6.
Going to mess you up.'
White is replying 'Yes yes yes! Got an extra move. Makes a difference.
You want to lose a pawn? Try pushing d4.
And - you Ain't pushin' e5 either !!'

This thread should be divided in two parts

1) Real beginners - that just learned how to move the pieces!

2) Wannabe beginners - That dream of winning huge victories against unsuspecting noobs!

It's a dirty world out there, folks. Honesty wins in the long run, when the moment of truth will face the imposters.

For us REAL beginners the advice is classical: Play the Scholar's Opening as white!