Good defense for an attacker?

Hello everyone. I am curious what good defenses are to play against both 1e4 and 1d4. I am more of an attacking player as opposed to a defensive type. I do not want to use the Sicilian. 

Thanks in advance!

Against 1. e4 you could try Alekhine's Defence and against 1. d4, the Modern Benoni might fit the bill.

I've considered the Modern Benoni. Thanks for the reminder on that. 

I'm not a fan of Alekhine's Defense for some reason. Any other suggestions? Thanks!

well i dont know the names of the difenses but i like defending agenst the d4 with e6 therfor not giving my oppenent the option to attak my loose pawn ( by playing d5 for examle) e6 releases the bishop you can take out the knights and easaly castle. only problam youo have to consider the oppenent will take over the midle wich usualy isnt problematik since his peases are siting in the midle but have no protection:) so its not a problom. 

agenst e4 if not c5 then e5. it actualy isnt a weeknes for black study the first few gm moves at this variation if whits knight eventualy takes pawn e5, if black playes corectly he will get back pawn e4 and a strong position.

hope i helpt :) 

Well, you do have to consider that your opponent may transpose into a French Defense after 1.d4 e6 2.e4...

 true that is the actual disadvantege of this opening for black. but its usualy beter then strugeling to protect your loose pawn. any way most players will not play 2.e4 they will play 2.c4 wich is usualy grate for black.

I find that a very fun and aggressive opening against e4 is the Sicilian Defense. I highly recommend it.

I might go with the King's Indian against d4, because you often have lots of chances for attack

Petroff defense is an aggressive defense

1. d4 e6 2. c4 ... is not great for black, it is simply standard.  The normal responses here, 2.... Bb5+, Nf6, d5, c5, f5, are all well known and standard.  1... e6 is good in that it gives you flexibility and surprise.  As you note, most d4 players will not play e4 since if they wanted to see French games they would start with e4.

What does it mean to be an attacking player?

As one can't always be on the attack, for myself I often try to get into openings positions that I know. Because this at least u can have influence on if cutting down the options one has.

As in order to attack it is easier to first let his steam run out counterattack as black.Which is easier to accomplish in positions u know better.

Most people hate the French as it might boring, but i don 't think u often don't have an opening with so many possibilities to a sharp or solid play and if forced into the exchange, who cares? doesn't happen all day.

And as there are transpositionals in benoni, french , dutch

Leningrad dutch might as well suite for attacking against d4.

In all , I think it usually only matters to reach something u are familiar with on our lvl.

By an attacker, I mean that I enjoy using my pieces to attempt checkmates on the enemy king. I would prefer (at this point) dynamic, sharp, tactically-rich, open positions. I'm looking at the Modern Benoni vs. 1d4 and the Latvian Gambit vs. 1e4.

Personally I enjoy a good shiraz with overtones of black pepper and fruit sensations, a little more nose however

Bold, yet unpretentious?

I understand the Latvian is not the most sound defense, but at my level (1300 or so), I'm not too worried about expert/master opening knowledge and analysis. I realize that if I ever improve a few hundred points, it will not carry me far. At this point, however, I think it's a fun, sharp defense that can catch many players of my level off-guard and/or catch them slipping up in the tactical minefield that can result from the Latvian.

Since you don't want to play Sicilian vs. 1.e4 I guess the other most aggressive yet soundest and popular reply is 1...e5 You can try the Petroff Defense like others have mentioned. But since you are an attacker why not learn the Sicilian Dragon though =O.

Against d4, an aggressive response is the Leningrad Dutch, Benko Gambit, Modern Benoni, and finally the KID. The Dutch will likely surprise a lot of people at your level.

You might like the Tchigorin (1. d4, d5; 2. c4, Nc6) and the Scandinavian (1. e4, d5) but nothing is going to always lead to an attacking position.

You don't like the Alekhine!?!

I am deeply saddened to hear this.

On another note, I feel that the "aggressive" replies to 1.d4 are a bit foolhardy, or better to say not for the feint of heart.

The Modern Benoni - well you have to have a healthy disrespect for material balance and not mind your forces being damn near split in two by White's pawns.  But...when you look at the games Tal was able to win with it, it is a bit difficult to resist the urge to try it.

I've never heard of the Benko as being an attacking defence, but your pieces are definitely freed up, problem is White can simply decline the gambit and once again you're cramped. 

The Dutch...I find it difficult to play, the structual weaknesses are just too much for me to bear, however if you've got the patience to learn it and deal with what are sure to be some early crushing defeats then it could prove to be just what you're looking for.  Or who knows maybe you take to it right away and just start whipping people with it.

try the KID against d4 and some sharp sicilians like the dragon or najdorf

I can think of a number of Australian shiraz that fit the bill quite nicely.

Why do people keep suggesting the sicilian when the OP already excluded the sicilian ?  ( which seems very odd for an "attacking" player ) Did they flunk reading comprehension 101 ?