Halloween gambit

This is a rare gambit that will most likely never be played against you. This is why you should learn to play it. This opening is a variation of the four knights game and it requires the user to be white. It is not played very much because of the fact that it requires a knight sacrifice but it lets you control the middle of the board. Enjoy!

If the player on the black side takes then moves anywhere other than the move depicted it will still allow for complete control of the middle board. If there are any questions or suggestions please post them below.

Another gambit I favor is the Reti Opening: Tennason Gambit it is a rare gambit to see but black should learn a defense to it as it can be deadly. The Tennason requires two minor piece sacrifices making it very risky to play. Here it is!

Gtyme08   The main line of the Halloween is not 5.f4?  but  5.d4!

Doesn’t change anything as white almost always plays f4 afterwards.

The fishing pole trap

(I played it once and won)

king5minblitz119147 The whole point of the tennison is just to force a queen take getting rid of arguably the opponent's best piece. I am also not the best person to talk to about all of this as I am rated 800.

king5minblitz119147 also the Halloween's compensation is the fact that now you are in control of the board. I'm pretty sure the win percentage of this gambit for white is 65% or more.

Hmm.  It's time to have a better look at the strategic ideas of the Halloween Gambit before writing such a nonsense.

Strategic ideas? The only strategic idea is “play d4 e5 f4 and hopefully play f5 f6 and deliver mate! There is no strategy. 

most repertoire books based on 1 e4 e5 for black recommend just giving the piece back and giving black a better game and killing white's chances for anything really. the oldest i can remember is kaufman's repertoire back in 2012.

I’m not sure I would use a source that quotes a Dr in a telegraph news outlet in 1883, but ok. 

I already showed in another dread on this forum  that the "refutation" of Kaufman's and Pinsky is not true :

Polish IM Jan Pinski claimed that the Halloween Gambit is refuted by 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nxe5 Nxe5 5.d4 Nc6 6.d5 Bb4 . He analyzed 7.dxc6 Nxe4 8.Qd4 Qe7 9.Qxg7 Nxc3 10.Be3 Nd5+ 11.c3 Rf8 12.cxb4 Nxe3 13.fxe3 Qxb4+, concluding “Black is very close to winning”.

But with 9.Be3 White has a stronger move than 9.Qxg7 !

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nxe5 Nxe5 5.d4 Nc6 6.d5 Bb4 7.dxc6 Nxe4 8.Qd4 Qe7 9.Be3! O-O 10.Bd3 Nxc3 11.bxc3 (with a superior pawn structure for Black, but it is only temporary ) Ba5 12.O-O Bb6 13.Qb4 Qxb4

(13...Re8 also possible, but this does not stop the exchange of Queens 14.Rae1 Qxb4 15.cxb4 Bxe3 16.Rxe3 Rxe3 17.cxb7 Bxb7 18.fxe3 )

14.cxb7 Bxb7 15.cxb4 ( the situation is equal )

Black can also play 9. .. f5 but this also leads to equality :

9...f5 10.Bd3 Bxc3+

(or 10...dxc6 11.Bxe4 fxe4 12.a3 Bd6 13.Qxe4 Be6 14.O-O-O O-O 15.Rhe1)

11.bxc3 dxc6 12.O-O Be6 13.Rfe1 O-O 14.Bf4 Rfe8 15.Bxe4 fxe4 16.Rxe4

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nxe5 Nxe5 5.d4 Nc6 6.d5 Bb4 7.dxc6 Nxe4 8.Qd4 Qe7 9.Be3! O-O 10.Bd3 Nxc3 11.bxc3 (with a superior pawn structure for Black, but it is only temporary ) Ba5

11..bd6, and black maybe only a sliver better, but more importantly white has nothing for counterplay.

is this really your dream scenario for giving up a piece? grovelling for a draw?

Yes, because in practical play Black is under constant pressure and can easily go wrong. If he always find the best move over the board White has to fight for a draw, but before that the game is won in many cases.

You can delude yourself all you want, but when you try to delude others, then you become a nuisance.

i don't know any theory about the Halloween gambit but i know it is a terrible opening... those 2 center pawns are not enough compensation at all. the alekhine is an example where you have alot of center pawns and are not down material, but it still sucks!

Sucks... for black or white?

for the player missing their horsie :/