if u like equal endgames, then go 1. d3 d5 2. e4 dxe4 3. dxe4 Qxd1 4. Kxd1(=)
Endgame repertoire
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Jun 27, 2022
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#23
As black you can play 1...d6 and 2...e5 against everything. The weaker your opponents are, the more likely you will enter a queenless middlegame immediately.
For example: 1.d4 d6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 dxe5 4.Qxd8+ Kxd8 is already well known to be very pleasant for black
1.e4 d6 2.d4 e5 3.dxe5 dxe5 4.Qxd8+ Kxd8 is a healthy advantage to white, but the better endgame player should win this position most of the time
Of course, 3.Nf3 is the best answer in both cases, in which case you will need to learn some sort of Philidor or Old Indian, there really is no way to force an endgame so early against someone who wants to avoid it
Ruy Lopez exchange
1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 a6 4 Bxc6 dxc6 5 d4 exd4 6 Qxd4 Qxd4 7 Nxd4
Berlin
1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 Nf6 4 O-O Nxe4 5 d4 Nd6 6 Bxc6 dxc6 7 dxe5 Nf5 8 Qxd8+ Kxd8
Petrov
1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nf6 3 Nxe5 d6 4 Nf3 Nxe4 5 d3 Nf6 6 Qe2+ Qe7 7 Bg5
Sicilian
1 e4 c5 2 f4 d5 3 d3 dxe4 4 dxe4 Qxd1+ 5 Kxd1
French
1 e4 e6 2 d4 d5 3 exd5 exd5 4 Nf3 Nf6 5 Qe2+ Qe7 6 Bg5
"... we can see from the above that players who are happy as White to play for a small edge in a queenless middlegame have a number of lines where they can achieve the sort of position they want. Even in other variations, the willingness to settle for a near-equal endgame, rather than trying to obtain an objective opening advantage, makes one's whole job of opening repertoire management very much easier. ... With his superb intuition and depth of positional understanding, [Petrosian] was accustomed to treating the opening relatively flippantly, and did not normally strive very hard to gain a theoretical advantage. ... it seems to me that for many players below master level, having a repertoire where there is minimal need to prepare could in fact be quite attractive. It must be remembered that, despite its shortcomings, Petrosian's approach proved good enough to wrest the world title out of the hands of Botvinnik, one of the best-prepared players ever. ..." - FM Steve Giddins (2003)