How can I improve my chess opening?

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RobinBatman

How can I improve my chess opening. I usually play d4 and then Kc3, but I want to learn more aggresive or defensive chess openings. Pleasae give me some examples too. Also, if you could, please tell me some chess opening books that will improve my game.

Thank you,

-Robinbatman

Sqod

If you're playing 1. d4 and 2. Nc3 then you're already getting a weaker position than necessary (i.e., the Chigorin Variation) because you're blocking your c-pawn with your knight. d4 openings usually aren't a mirror image of e4 openings. Personally I would go for either the Queen's Gambit (2. c4) or Colle System if I played d4 openings, which I don't.

kindaspongey

1 d4 d5 2 Nc3 is discussed in The Veresov: Move by Move by Jimmy Liew. Also, A Ferocious Opening Repertoire by Cyrus Lakdawala. For someone seeking help with openings, I usually bring up Openings for Amateurs by Pete Tamburro (2014).

http://kenilworthian.blogspot.com/2014/05/review-of-pete-tamburros-openings-for.html

Floyd-Pinkerton

you could try the london system, which i sometimes play.

GM_NitishDas

To improve your chess opening , just follow the opening principles .... Until or unless you are a class A player , dont worry much about the opening .... focus on your middlegame and endgame skills :)

kindaspongey

"... a good opening book can open up new vistas that you would probably not discover for yourself. ..." - GM John Nunn (2006)

The primary purpose of the 2006 book, Discovering Chess Openings, was to discuss basic opening principles, but, along the way, author, GM John Emms, did give some information about various specific openings. At one point, he wrote, "If you find an opening here that appeals to you and you wish to find out more about it, the next step would be to obtain an introductory text devoted entirely to that subject."

https://web.archive.org/web/20140627114655/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/hansen91.pdf

"Throughout the book Emms uses excellently chosen examples to expand the readers understanding of both openings and chess in general. Thus equipped the student can carry this knowledge forward to study individual openings and build an opening repertoire. ... For beginning players, this book will offer an opportunity to start out on the right foot and really get a feel for what is happening on the board." - FM Carsten Hansen

ThaGoodBoy

is not about being aggressive or defensive is about to control the centre of the board.

When you play with white you can choose many options, but when you do with black you have to find the best response to not let your opponent take advantage, for example if he play the famous e4 you must answer with e5 even if you was planing to play d5 before starting the game.

SaintMark

 If you like playing d4 and then Nc3, you could try Mark's Opening (there's an article on it in Chessopedia on this web-site).

 Following opening principles is more important than learning specific openings though.

 

 For anyone curious about Mark's Opening that can't be bothered to look it up on Chessopedia, it's



Die_Schanze

What's your aim in chess?

For best improvement i would suggest playing mainlines. When starting with 1. d4 you should continue with 2. c4 in most cases. 

There are very instructive openings like

  • 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 Queen's gambit declined exchange variation, look at the minority attack
  • 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc6 Nf6 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 bxc3 (Queen's gambit declined semi Tarrasch) or 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e5 Nxc3 6. bxc3 (Grünfeld exchange variation) - plaing with a big centre
  • 1. d4 d5 2. c4 Nf6 ?! 3. cxd5 Nxd5 (3... Qxd5 4. Nc3) 4. Nf3 Bf5 5. Ncd2! Queen's gambit Marshall Defence - On lower levels often played. Compare this ppor line with the Grünfeld! 
  • 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 0-0 6. Be2 e5 7. 0-0 Nc6 8. d5 Ne7 9. Ne1 Kings indian Mar del Plata  mainline, attacks on opposite wings
  • 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 the benko gambit - black sacrifices a pawn for positional compensation

Yes, much stuff to learn. But it doesn't become easier to switch form colle, veresov and so on to the mainlines when you are much higher rated then now.


One of my own biggest misstakes was to change from 1. d4 / 2. c4 to some crap, because i felt the mainlines were to much theory. Now i switched back. All the time spent learing something new with not that much theory would have done a great effect if i had spent it on fixing some holes in understanding the mainline openings.

kindaspongey
GM_NitishDas wrote:

To improve your chess opening , just follow the opening principles .... Until or unless you are a class A player , dont worry much about the opening ...

 

ddmeltzer8 wrote:

The most important thing about the opening is to get an ok position.And the easyest way to do that(in my opinion)is by playing the kings indian attack! ...

Check it out and use the common opening-prinsiples. ...

 

Die_Schanze wrote:

... For best improvement i would suggest playing mainlines. When starting with 1. d4 you should continue with 2. c4 in most cases.

...

Yes, much stuff to learn. But it doesn't become easier to switch form colle, veresov and so on to the mainlines when you are much higher rated then now. ...

A variety of attitudes.

Chicken_Monster
ylblai2 wrote:

1 d4 d5 2 Nc3 is discussed in The Veresov: Move by Move by Jimmy Liew. Also, A Ferocious Opening Repertoire by Cyrus Lakdawala. For someone seeking help with openings, I usually bring up Openings for Amateurs by Pete Tamburro (2014).

http://kenilworthian.blogspot.com/2014/05/review-of-pete-tamburros-openings-for.html

Does Tamburrow do a good job of explaining the reasoning behind the moves?

Candieli
Hello
kindaspongey

Probably, a lot depends on who is reading. Some might be better off with Discovering Chess Openings by GM John Emms.

https://web.archive.org/web/20140627114655/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/hansen91.pdf

Others might be better off with something like Starting Out: Open Games by GM Glenn Flear.

https://web.archive.org/web/20140626232452/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/hansen134.pdf

One person wrote of being much happier with IM John Watson's 4 volume, Mastering the Chess Openings, series. My guess is that, for many, Tamburro would be a good place to start. Maybe you could get a local library to obtain a copy for you to sample.

"... this is a great book ..." - Michael Goeller in the review

He did also write, "I think the biggest value in the book is the particular lines it recommends, which seem very well chosen for amateur players. In general, the games just introduce the lines, they do not offer definitve analysis or extended commentary, just a model illustration."

The Lakdawala Veresov book is reviewed at:

https://web.archive.org/web/20140627131000/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/hansen143.pdf

ipcress12

Wiki has decent summaries for most chess openings. You can read up on the Veresov at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richter-Veresov_Attack.

You can also look Queen Pawn Openings and Queen's Gambit:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen's_Pawn_Game
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen's_Gambit

You could get the lay of the land for 1.d4 d5 openings in an hour.

No analysis, just the basic moves, the major variations and a rough understanding of what White and Black are trying to accomplish.

In another hour you could do the same for 1.e4 e5 openings.

kindaspongey
Chicken_Monster wrote:

Does Tamburrow do a good job of explaining the reasoning behind the moves?

After thinking about your question a little bit more, it occurred to me that I should explain that the main strength of the book (in my opinion) is the pretty-close-to-unique discussion of the complicated issues related to choosing openings. If someone seems to be looking for suggestions for openings, I almost always think it is a good idea to mention Tamburro's book. I should add that "main strength" does not mean "only strength". The book does do what looks to me (~1500 rating) to be a good job of explaining some opening principles, suggesting a variety of specific possible opening choices, and teaching something about those possible choices. Still, I have to admit that, for any one of these OTHER strengths, it is possible that a reader might be happier with some other book. The Emms book, for example, might be better for someone who wants more about opening principles. For any one specific opening, one could find more in a book completely devoted to that specific opening. To get some idea of what the Tamburro book is like, I believe that it is possible to view a substantial part of the beginning at the Mongoose Press site.

Chicken_Monster

@ylblai2

It sounds worth a look. Thanks.

spurtus

Some gambits not only sacrifice material for development but can aggressively channel the game towards your opening - thus leaves you with less theory to learn.

Playing such gambits you will often find will have the developed bits you need to play a playable game and a slight opening prep advantage against the opponent.

You only really need to the very basic idea of these openings to get going with these too.

You should spend time learning the best responses to declined gambits.

* Budapest Gambit

* Icelandic Gambit

* Blackmar Diemer Gambit

PawnSupremacy

Hey there, I was trying to create a topic but it won't let me? How do I go about doing it?

kindaspongey

“I’ve seen more promising players lured into incompetence by this opening than I care to remember. The basic pattern is this - player learns [the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit], tries to get it in every game, thus limiting his chess experience (and, since the opening isn’t good, he loses too many games, meaning that his rating stays low and he can’t get games against better players). Nobody who plays good chess plays this line, and nobody who plays good chess ever will.” - IM Sam Collins (2005)

https://web.archive.org/web/20140627031504/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/hansen76.pdf

spurtus

Thanks I try my best to take all criticism onboard, I guess I should read the book, since discovered...

Understanding the Chess Openings by Sam Collins

It could be time to move on, but players can still enjoy this opening that develops their attacking senses, true of most gambits.

Nevertheless, long live the BDG; http://www.chess.com/livechess/game?id=1337072838