hi guys, I (OTB rating ~1650) want a new 1.d4 repertoire, cause I am tired of 1.e4 positions, e.g. from the 3.Nc3 french,  the caro kann panov, three-pawns attack in the pirc/modern, open sicilian, 3.Nf3 scandinavian, alekhine exchange and scotch opening. (do i have missed anything?). Well, I like the scotch pretty much, but i'm not very keen in the many semi-open positions. So I join the club of 1.d4, and i thought of this openings:

-the tromp against 1...Nf6

-QGD exchange

-3.e4 QGA 

-3. Nc3 4.e3 semi slav, such as the (anti)meran system

-3.Nc3 4.e3 also agains the slav

-3.Nc3 against chigorin

-5.a3 albin counter gambit.

i thought also at the blackmar-dimier agains 1...d5, but is there any good book out?

as black i used to play the nimzo-indian/modern benoni and the sicilian taimanov, all this with almost no known theory. now i join the english defence, 1...b6 against everything.

could you share some instructive games / comments / reccomandations or so? would be great!

never give up the center in QGD

The Blackmar-Diemer is my main opening after 1.d4 d5 since i studied the BDG-book written by Christoph Scheerer.

But beware...you have lots of theory to learn, cause Black has many options and you will have to play lots of games till you know what to do, but when you have the right tactical skills, it will pay out on your level in the long run.

My OTB- and online-rating has really increased since ive played this gambit, so give it a try, when you arent scared of losing a pawn on the second move :D

Hi Corigo,

I've been playing the Queensgambit since 3 years (Fide Rating 2012) and there is no opening I am more successfull in. I have nearly the same repertoire except the Exchange Variation in the Qgd. I also play the Trompovsky regularly. I wouldnt recommend you the Exchange Variation because its very easy for black to play. He doesnt have any problems and can easily build up an attack on the kingsside. What plan Do you want to play in the Exchange varition? The f3, e4 plan or the minority attack on the queenside?

Its much easier to play the classical lines with Bg5 against the Qgd. There are several nice plans:

-Play with e4 and e5( often the bishop sacrifice on h7 is possible)

- place a knight on e5 and secure it with f4( later on you can play with g4-g5)

- retreat the bishop to b1 and play Qd3. This battery is in combination with the Bg5 often deadly

-pressure on the C-line. sometimes you can even play with b4-b5 on the queenside

All other lines you want to play I like very much. But please dont play the Blackmar Diemer Gambit. Maybe you can win some games with it but at a higher level you cant play it regularly.

Cheers, Till

Till_98 hat geschrieben:

Hi Corigo,

I've been playing the Queensgambit since 3 years (Fide Rating 2012) and there is no opening I am more successfull in. I have nearly the same repertoire except the Exchange Variation in the Qgd. I also play the Trompovsky regularly. I wouldnt recommend you the Exchange Variation because its very easy for black to play. He doesnt have any problems and can easily build up an attack on the kingsside. What plan Do you want to play in the Exchange varition? The f3, e4 plan or the minority attack on the queenside?

Its much easier to play the classical lines with Bg5 against the Qgd. There are several nice plans:

-Play with e4 and e5( often the bishop sacrifice on h7 is possible)

- place a knight on e5 and secure it with f4( later on you can play with g4-g5)

- retreat the bishop to b1 and play Qd3. This battery is in combination with the Bg5 often deadly

-pressure on the C-line. sometimes you can even play with b4-b5 on the queenside

All other lines you want to play I like very much. But please dont play the Blackmar Diemer Gambit. Maybe you can win some games with it but at a higher level you cant play it regularly.

Cheers, Till

I dont think that the OP will achieve the Geandmaster-Level, so why dont play the BDG.

Take a look at databases...when you find an opening for white with a higher winning ratio, please let me know.

Even on higher amateur level you will rarely find a well-prepared opponent, so its a deadly weapon especially in OTB-games.

So many players tried to find a refutation and they are still searching for...

Although the BDG could be real fun, I decided to go for a Queens Gambit. I thought very long about it, and I came to the conclusion, that I'm not a gambit player. I only really mentioned the BDG because a clubmate suggested it for me. In my early days (actually two years ago^^) I started out with the Evans Gambit and the Fried-Liver Attack. Really funny against weaker players, but in a tournament game far too risky. Anyway, mabye in blitz chess I give it a chance.

@ til_98

Wow, really? I picked the exchange variation, because most of the authors of QG-repertoire books say that the exchange is the most uncomfortable variation for black in the QGD. I don't know, simply because i am new in this opening, and the few games I played in this line were rather good for white I think.

In the exchange, could you really go for only one plan? I thought you have to look what your opponent does and then decide for minority attack, f3-e4 with a nice center (I also heard about a g4,0-0-0 plan. sounds interesting).

But I will test the Bg5 lines. 

Why give up on 1.e4 when it holds the potential for your favorite - Scotch? You could always find a different move #2 to bypass any non-1.e4 e5 line. I mean I play 1.e4 because I like to play the Evans Gambit but I won't sulk if black plays something else. A lot of the game is about adapting on the fly. Playing 1.d4 is an entirely different philosophy. Don't give up on e4 just because of then first few moves.

"Why give up on 1.e4 when it holds the potential for your favorite - Scotch?"

Because the Scotch appears too rarely. If someone plays 1...e5, it is most likely the petroff or philidor. But taht doesn't matter...everyone's playing the sicilian. I actually would like the sicilian, if there wasn't that much theory. And all the other defences, like french, CK, scandinavian,... these are getting on my nerves heavily! I found out that I'm a player who likes to get his positions, where I am more familiar with than my opponent. So I choose the Tromp and the english defence. But what against 1...d5? The Blackmar Dimier would give me my positions, but it doesn't suit my style so well. The QG does... so please no discussions like "stay with 1.e4" or "BDG is rubbish" please.

I suggest consistency, i.e. if your playing Queen's Gambit, it might be helpful for you to learn 1.d4 2.c4 against Indian Defenses. 

But if you want to play the tromp then 2.Bg5 might work well against 1.d4 d5 and 1.d4 f5. 

Against 1...e6 and 1...b6, hopefully your 1.e4 knowledge will help you there.

In response to the OP, a few suggestions (speaking as a long time d4 player myself)

Tromp - OK

QGD Exchange - OK

3.Nc3 against Slav/Semi-Slav - OK, but you are leaving two things out.  With 3.Nc3 instead of 3.Nf3, you also must account for the immediate 3...dxc4 (which is different than 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 dxc4) and the Winawer Counter-Gambit (3...e5)

3.Nc3 against Chigorin - OK

5.a3 against the Albin - I'd suggest a slight tweak.  I learned this line from a master and have never done anything but won against the Albin since.  1.d4 d5 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 d4 4.a3! (4.e3?? Bb4+ 5.Nd2 dxe3 is a well known trap) followed by 5.e3!.  Obviously you don't face this too terribly often.  The last time I did was January 2013.  I don't have that game on me, but playing this line, I won a second pawn by move 7 or 8, and then over the course of the next 20 moves, I sacrificed a pawn, then another pawn, then another pawn, then another pawn and had a forced mating sequence where Black had to resign on move 29.  Forget Fischer's "sac-sac-mate", that was "sac-sac-sac-sac-mate!", going from up 2 pawns to down 2 pawns!

Lastly, you have 3 others you need to account for:

1. Old Benoni (1...c5), I'd suggest 2.d5 and DO NOT play c4.  For example, 1.d4 c5 2.d5 Nf6 3.Nc3 e6 4.e4 etc.  The f3-Knight will swing via d2 to c4.  Black ever plays a6, you immediately play a4 to maintain control of c4.  Something you can't do with a White pawn there.  This is why MOST Benoni players now play 1...Nf6 and 2...c5, but you don't have to worry about these players as you just play the Tromp.

2. Modern Defense - 1...g6 - I play this myself as Black!

3. Dutch Defense - 1...f5.  I suggest picking up the book "Dismantling the Dutch with the Dangerfield Attack".  It's a little 160 page pamphlet on a very potent system that is highly underrated.  I myself only started playing it maybe a year ago, and the two dutches I faced, one classical and one leningrad, I won both.  Here's the one I played a couple of months ago against the Leningrad.  Watch how Black just thinks nothing is going to happen, tries to develop "normally", and get annihilated!

i challenge you for the BDG in an unrated match...i show you how stupid it is...

Well, when I decided to play 1.d4, I mainly wanted a Tropmpowski, so I naturally thought of the pseudo-Tromp. But I don't know...mabye in blitz. At first I study the Tromp with the book "Winning with the Trompowsky" from Peter Wells and the DVD "Tropowsky-Angriff: ein modernes Repertoire" (German) by Martin Breutigam. Then, when I study the QG, I will probably play the pseudo-Tromp until I know the QG and the Slav. 

@Thriller-Fan: interessting post! Against 3...dxc4 in the slav I am not very afraid of, isn't this a QGA with 3...c6? If so, it wouldn't be the most testing setup, to be honest. And the Winawer-Counter-Gambit...okay, this I must look up, but it shouldn't be so dangerous.

The Albins..yeah, 4.a3 is interessting, i think about it.

Against 1...c5, 2.e4, transposing to a Morra could be interesting. Unfortunately, I never played the Morra. Probably I will play 2.d5, but I am not 100% sure

Modern defence: As I dont want 1.d4 g6 2.c4 Nf6 I play 2.e4, I have a little knowledge from my 1.e4 time. Mabye the 3-pawns Attack (with Nc3, d4, e4, f4)

Against the dutch, wouldn't 2.Bg5 fit more with a Tromp-Repertoire. I think so, and I will play it for sure. But interesting line and nice game!

Corigo, the addition of 3.Nc3 c6 in the QGA favors Black compared to 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4.

Note that in most QGA lines, White doesn't play an early Nc3, similar to how lines of the Colle System with ...Nc6 by Black encourage ...dxc5.

In the QGA, white usually plays 3.Nf3, 3.e3, or 3.e4, not 3.Nc3.  The lines in the QGA like 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.e4 b5 are known to be bad, but with c6 already played, b5 is protected already, so you have time to play Bb7 then, avoiding the trick lines with axb5 cxb5 Qf3 where the White Queen traps the Rook!

So yes, 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6, Black should develop with Nf6 before taking on c4 against Nf3, but against Nc3, having committed the Knight to c3 so it can't attack c4, and blocking the c-file from a Qc2 move, taking on c4 is a strong option for Black.

Wow...you think, iam the leading protagonist of the BDG here? 

But many people get me wrong...i never said, that the BDG is the most powerful opening in the universe, but i want to have an objective discussion.

For some people its easy to say the BDG is crap, although they have never dealt with it....maybe thats the reason, why its so successful.

You have some choice as White if Black plays well. But if Black does not play well, you need to punish him the correct way or otherwise it might even pay off for him.

I have played the exchange/minority attack for quite some time, but stopped when I realized it just isn't very challenging. If Black knows what he is doing, he gets an equal position pretty soon, and one with imbalances I am uncomfortable with.

But hey, whatever fits you.

What Irontiger mentioned is the exact reason that most players at the higher levels don't do the Minority Attack any more, but instead play the central attack with f3 and e4, and the Knight developed to e2 instead of f3.

This line requires a wide array of pawn structure knowledge.  For example, once White gets in e4, you have to deal with the following possibilities:

1) Black captures on e4, and White recaptures with a piece - This leads to an Isolated Queen Pawn position for White

2) Black captures on e4, and White recaptures with the f-pawn - This leads to a "Hanging Pawns" scenario.  Hanging pawns is defined as two adjacent pawns (in this case d and e) with no other pawns to back these two up (i.e. White has no c or f pawns), and opposing side had no pawns that oppose these two hanging pawns, but will usually have pawns on the adjacent files (i.e. Black probably has c and f pawns, but specifically no d or e pawn).

3) Black leaves the Tension on the board, and White advances e5 - This leads to the Advanced Center, similar to what you would get in a French Defense

4) Black leaves the Tension on the board, and White captures on d5 - This leads once again to an IQP if Black recaptures with a piece, but more common is for Black to recapture with the c-pawn, in which case you have mutual and opposing IQPs with open c and e files.

As an added note, if you are going to play 1.d4, I would highly suggest reading the book "Winning Chess Middlegames" by Ivan Sokolov.  It covers Doubled Pawns, Isolated Queen Pawns, Hanging Pawns, etc.  All the stuff you would normally see with Queen Pawn Openings!

Thriller-Fan, what about this line? I play 3.e4 against QGA, so Qf3 and stuff don't work anyway. The engine gives it as +=, and I agree with it. The line is almost forced, and it looks like a QGA, but, as I said before, I'm a 1.d4 newcomer, so mabye what I'm saying is complete nonsense.

Anyway, I am testing the Bg5-lines in the QGD tomorrow, if someone plays it. And mabye I am posting some games. Let's see...

Do you need the theory? I have memorized most of the lines there so just ask me...

This is also a reason I wanted to play the exchange. I mean, I wanted the Nge2, f3+e4 positions. The high variety of pawn structures in this opening is really fascinating (I usually play(ed) the nimzo, where you also get the many different pawn-formations). But let's see, first I want to play some games with the different variations of the QGD, and then I decide which Variation I pick. (Now the exchange is leeding)

Mabye in the next few days :) but thank you for the offer