The best opening I believe is the one you're most familar with. If you know Center game like the back of your hand, it's better than playing the Sicilian for the first time.
I personally like the Ruy Lopez for white, and and the Nimzo Indian against 1. d4 as black and against 1. e4 as black, I just make the best responses, as it can go many different ways
ok cool thank you
As white I play the move d4. If black plays d5, i respond with c4, proposing a queen gambit.
As black, If e4, I play c6. If d4, i play Nf6.
ok thank you
Lanceuppercut, That is purely a matter of opinion, so pelase don't go around thinking you can rate chess openings. The big two that annoy me on your list- The Pirc is played at Grandmaster level, so it isn't just merely "ok", and the Kings Indian attack, played at master level, is a good opening.
To answer the question, I love the Ruy Lopez, the Kings Indian attack, The French(as black) and the Grunfeld defense.
I play this one guy i work with and he usually startsout with the English Opening
1. e4 is terrible move. ;)
If you play 1. d4 2. Bg5 I will murder you.
Not in the game, I will find where you live and actually murder you.
NOTE: Not really. :P
Sweet good luck finding me lol
I'm probably gonna get crucified for saying this, but if you don't compete at the very highest level choice of opening is almost immaterial. If you become expert in something irregular, it might even benefit you if you are a mediocre player. Most of us make so many errors that the tiny advantages and subtleties GMs aim for are negated. Case in point, historically I have always done slightly better with Black, maybe 55 percent, and about 50 percent with white, all against opposition at my own level of mediocrity. Then for 1 year I started all my white games with b4, and my White score for that year was 16 and a half out of 18., improving my rating 200 points at age 50.
That is cool. I am stuck between 1350 and 1450, i need to get better at tatics.
So totally 1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 as white...
So totally Caro-Kann Tanfan line as black (1.e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 e5!?)
That last move ( and the Tanfan line itself) is my invention...that my coach FM_Eric_Schiller thinks is ok.
I do have problems with book moves. I only uses them in the openings. After that, I was always being tempted to use a different continuations 'cos I feels it's too boring. My bad habit...hard to change.
JUST STOP MAKING THIS THREAD AGAIN AND AGAIN. THERE IS NO BEST OPENING AND UNDERSTANDING IT MAKES YOU A REALLY BETTER CHESS PLAYER.
lanceuppercut_239 wrote:
There is no such thing as the best opening. There are a bunch that are equally good, a bunch that are ok in practice but not as good as the first group, and lots that are just plain bad. Examples (not a comprehensive list by any means):
Good:
Ruy Lopez, Giuocco Piano, French Defence, Sicillian Defence, Caro-Kann, Queen's Gambit, English Opening
Ok:
King's Gambit, Smith-Morra Gambit, Danish Gambit, Blackmar-Diemer Gambit, Pirc, Alekhine, King's Indian Attack, Reti, Scandinavian
Bad:
Grob, "Queen's Raid" (1.e4 e5 2.Qh5), most "unusual" openings (e.g., 1.f3, 1.a4, 1.h4, etc.)
I really agree with you on the fact that there is no best opening, but I have to disagree about some things on your list.
Firstly, I you can't sort the chess openings on 3 category's without sorting all of them.
Secondly, I really don't think that the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit is ok. It's worse even than moves like 1.a4 or h4 after one of them you are just playing as if you were black,but after the Blackmar-Diemer you're a pawn down without having enough compensation for it.
Thirdly, the reti opening is known as completely sound and so does the king's indian attack.
Fourthly, the alekhine and the Pirc are way better than the scandinavian.
You'd think the blackmar is bad but I use it frequently as a reply to the scandanavian and i never lose. (However I dont encounter scandanavian often) Also if you check the database it has a pretty good record...unless your playin Kasparov and then it reall doesn't matter what you play
Lanceuppercut, That is purely a matter of opinion, so pelase don't go around thinking you can rate chess openings.
That was basically the point I was trying to make in the first place. Reading it now, I guess I didn't really sound that way.
>> The Pirc is played at Grandmaster level, so it isn't just merely "ok", and the Kings Indian attack, played at master level, is a good opening.
The only somewhat "objective" way I can think of to rate chess openings is by how popular they are at the top levels. Maybe the Pirc and KIA are "played" at the GM level, but neither is the most popular at that level.
Kinda neat that this thread is still alive, though!
Player makes the opening, not the opening makes the player.
"Jack of all trade BUT master of none" is also as good as nothing.
Chess is not about opening. It is about discipline.The GM thinks like you and me. But when it comes to serious games, they think deeper and harder of which we are too lazy to do. They have a game plan and execute it all the way.
>> The Pirc is played at Grandmaster level, so it isn't just merely "ok", and the Kings Indian attack, played at master level, is a good opening.
Tell me, before Pirc opening won a GM level tournament, was there any opening called "Pirc" opening before that?
different openings work better for different playing styles
personally, I like the English because its hard to fall into any traps
There is no such thing as the best opening. There are a bunch that are equally good, a bunch that are ok in practice but not as good as the first group, and lots that are just plain bad. Examples (not a comprehensive list by any means):
Good:
Ruy Lopez, Giuocco Piano, French Defence, Sicillian Defence, Caro-Kann, Queen's Gambit, English Opening
Ok:
King's Gambit, Smith-Morra Gambit, Danish Gambit, Blackmar-Diemer Gambit, Pirc, Alekhine, King's Indian Attack, Reti, Scandinavian
Bad:
Grob, "Queen's Raid" (1.e4 e5 2.Qh5), most "unusual" openings (e.g., 1.f3, 1.a4, 1.h4, etc.)
The blackmar-Diemer gambit is not Ok.
e4 or d4