I've turned to the Caro-Kann recently on the advice of Gotham Chess, and am loving it. What I find is that many opponents don't have a good line against it. They don't want to take me on in the Classical variation, fearing that I'll know more that they do, so almost everyone either plays the Advance or the Exchange, and they misplay both of them. In the Exchange, players who aren't booked up don't know the Panov lines with 4.c4, or the main alternative 4.Bd3, which prevents Black quickly finding a good place to develop the light-squared bishop - instead they play something like 4.Nf3, which gives instant equality. In the Advance, I play Levy Rozman's recommendation 3...c5 and everyone so far has met it with 3.c3 (dxc5 is probably better). In this line he says, "You WILL win White's centre pawns!", and that's what I'm finding.
Looking for go-to response to 1.e4 as black
Alekhine can transpose to a Caro-Kann Defence : Campomanes Attack
Only if black allows it. I usually play 2...d5 for the Scandinavian variation of the Alekhine.
Sicilian, of course.
play the pirc defense , i had the exact same problem with you after e4 as i dint like playing e5, i used to play the caro kann ,but i had to defend for most of the time in a game but after i tried the pirc defense i loved it, the positions that arise from it are very easy to play as black and if you study a bit the opening you might be able to have an advantage after the opening, also some positions from the pirc defense are very similar to the kings indian defense
(sorry for my bad english)
play 1.b6. At your level its super deadly and very theory light as almost no one knows how to play agaisnt it (and any prep you may face is at most 6-8 moves deep, you should be far more prepped than they are).
You get structures that resemble french (both classical and winawer, but with their own idiosyncrasies while bypassing the boring exchange variation) , hedgehog and sicilian alapins from the black side. It is a perfect defense to play for a win.
@ Gothamchess recommends The Caro ( Botvinnik Carls ) I am his sub... And I crush people with it with 8% win rate
gothamchess is making fantastic money selling overpriced opening courses to beginners who have no business learning opening theory😂
Alekhine can transpose to a Caro-Kann Defence : Campomanes Attack
Only if black allows it. I usually play 2...d5 for the Scandinavian variation of the Alekhine.
2...d5 leads to very boring positions after exd5, but then again 2.Nc3 is a very boring move so nobody can blame you.
I've played over 2,200 games with the alekhine's defense in all time controls (rapid, blitz, bullet, daily) and have a very reasonable score (close to 50, slightly better than some other black defenses).
It's more about the position than the theory - if you don't like the positions, then maybe it's not for you... or maybe you just don't understand it. I have a simple alekhine repertoire that I've used since I picked it up around 1300-1400 here, and i still use it and it serves me well.
Personally I feel like it is a more counterattacking opening than anything.
Alekhine can transpose to a Caro-Kann Defence : Campomanes Attack
Only if black allows it. I usually play 2...d5 for the Scandinavian variation of the Alekhine.
2...d5 leads to very boring positions after exd5, but then again 2.Nc3 is a very boring move so nobody can blame you.
I've played over 2,200 games with the alekhine's defense in all time controls (rapid, blitz, bullet, daily) and have a very reasonable score (close to 50, slightly better than some other black defenses).
It's more about the position than the theory - if you don't like the positions, then maybe it's not for you... or maybe you just don't understand it. I have a simple alekhine repertoire that I've used since I picked it up around 1300-1400 here, and i still use it and it serves me well.
Personally I feel like it is a more counterattacking opening than anything.
2.nc3 is only as boring as white allows it to be in the alekhine. For example ,1.e4 nf6 2.nc3 d5 3.e5
A) nd7 4.e6!?
B) d4 4.nce2 ng4 5.f4
C) ne4 4. nce2 (intending d3, if 4...d4 5.c3!)
Alekhine's defense can transpose to french or an improved scandinavian if white doesn't push e5
Don't transpose into the French! I like this line better!
If you find a human player that is willing to give up the center for nothing, you are the luckiest guy ever…
Alekhine's defense can transpose to french or an improved scandinavian if white doesn't push e5
Don't transpose into the French! I like this line better!
I play e5 against Nc3 so i dont get those. But you can still get a french.
@B1ZMARK - Tillis' Chessable course strongly advises against e5, saying that it leads to dull positions where black is fighting for equality. In just the Nc3 section, he covers something like 60 variations that are all engine-tested. In most black stands better and in none is black really worse. The lines are also typically 10-15 moves deep. Some of the lines look scary, but I like scary. I think in all it's like 500 variations and 130 Alekhine-related tactics drills. It might be worth a look.
@B1ZMARK - Tillis' Chessable course strongly advises against e5, saying that it leads to dull positions where black is fighting for equality. In just the Nc3 section, he covers something like 60 variations that are all engine-tested. In most black stands better and in none is black really worse. The lines are also typically 10-15 moves deep. Some of the lines look scary, but I like scary. I think in all it's like 500 variations and 130 Alekhine-related tactics drills. It might be worth a look.
1.e4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e5 is a Vienna, which has some sharp and complicated lines (as well as dull ones), and certainly isn't an opening I'd describe as "a dull position where black has to fight for equality."
@B1ZMARK - Tillis' Chessable course strongly advises against e5, saying that it leads to dull positions where black is fighting for equality. In just the Nc3 section, he covers something like 60 variations that are all engine-tested. In most black stands better and in none is black really worse. The lines are also typically 10-15 moves deep. Some of the lines look scary, but I like scary. I think in all it's like 500 variations and 130 Alekhine-related tactics drills. It might be worth a look.
vienna was de-toothed many decades ago, though. some lines are positional - I like it better closed anyways, and I'm always at home in a grind.
Tillis, so this guy? @shrilla
I'm not saying I'm better than him, but paying for opening advice from an NM... 
Alekhine's defense can transpose to french or an improved scandinavian if white doesn't push e5
Don't transpose into the French! I like this line better!
looks interesting will give it a try, just recently started messing around with alekhines...
thing is i like playing the french, I just don't like being a french player so I only do it via transpostiion
Unfair @llama47 - you know as well as I do that there are lots of opening theory specialists who spend hours at the machine checking lines who are terrible at tactics. He's mediocre at tactics, that's for sure.
Unfair @llama47 - you know as well as I do that there are lots of opening theory specialists who spend hours at the machine checking lines who are terrible at tactics. He's mediocre at tactics, that's for sure.
A (relatively) low rated player spending hours with an engine to check openings will result in bad suggestions... or at least... not the type of suggestions I'd pay money for.
Wow, does chess.com has a survey whether Caro-Kann or Sicilian is the most famous?