Playing for a win vs 3.Nc3 in French

Suppose you're facing some lower-rated opponents in a couple days, and you plan to try 1.e4 e6 to play for a win. You're well prepared for all variations but the mainline 3.Nc3. Unfortunately, at least one opponent is likely to play 3.Nc3.

Would you prepare ...Nf6 or ...Bb4 (I like sharp, but I don't want to gambit)?

Also: Against 3...Nf6, do most amateurs reply 4.e5 or 4.Bg5 or other?

Also: Against 3...Bb4 4.e5, do most amateurs follow-up 5.Be2, 5.a3, or 5.Qg4 or other?

I would appreciate any help to cut down on my study time. :)

against a lower rated, the Winawer brings the necessary complications

I've seen 5.Be2 rarely. The other two are common

Classical Variation can also be dynamic as well.  It is very similar to the Nf6 Tarrasch, while the Winawer is a bird of it's own.

KillaBeez - Classical Variation can also be dynamic as well.

How do you play for a win against the MacCutcheon variation?

My opponents will be happy to draw me and the games I perused in this line didn't seem to give Black many winning chances when White only wants a draw.

The Winawer, like Ziryab said, can lead to complications, and should even lead to complications for white, because black has a structural advantage. If white is playing for a draw and does not start a kingside attack, you can easily win due to the better queenside pawn structure and white's weak c-pawns. Simply try playing Qa5-a4 and Bc8-d7-e8-g6 (after playing f7-f6).

Really, the only cases white can and should get a draw (or win) are if he does NOT "play for a draw" but plays actively enough to earn a draw.

Thanks, Ziryab and Phobetor. The Winawer it is... even better if White is forced to play actively in order to try for a win or a draw. I left the mainline for last because I expect the exchange and advance more than anything else.

I've played a lot of the classical myself as black with pretty good results mostly because white either dissipated the pawn tension in the center too early or developed his/her pieces to poor sqaures behind the pawn center, which led to nice combinations after the tension dissipated.  Out of the 15 or so times I played it, white played e5 everytime and only Bg5 once.  I think Bg5 gives white a more flexible, and better game, though it doesn't seem to pressure black as much.

I played the winaver against Nc3 until I learned about the lines based on 5.Bd2 (instead of 5.a3). GMI Pereylshteyn gives these lines in his book "chess for white explained" and shows them on ICC's  "chess FM".
I play  this variation  as white since then.   I won all my games against players rated 1500-2000 ! I don't play the winaver as black anymore!!

Here is my first try with it : I proposed draw in a totally winning position because my opponent was a member of my clan....

[Event "Challenge"]
[Site "http://www.playtheimmortalgame.com"]
[Date "2007.02.01"]
[EndDate "2007.02.11"]
[Round "?"]
[White "pruliere"]
[Black "zebano"]
[WhiteRating "1618"]
[BlackRating "1734"]
[WhiteELO "1618"]
[BlackELO "1734"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[GameId "3108705"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "rnbqkbnr/ppp2ppp/4p3/3p4/3PP3/2N5/PPP2PPP/R1BQKBNR b KQkq - 0 1"]

1. Bf8b4 e5 2. c5 Bc1d2 3. Ng8e7 Nc3b5 4. Bb4xd2 Qd1xd2 5. O-O f4
6. a6 Nb5d6 7. cxd4 Ng1f3 8. f6 Bf1d3 9. fxe5 fxe5 10. Nb8c6 O-O 11. Nc6xe5 Nf3xe5
12. Rf8xf1 Ra1xf1 13. Qd8xd6 Ne5f7 14. Qd6c7 Qd2e2 1/2-1/2

try Nf6-Bg5 Be7-e5 Nfd7-h4 MacCutcheon attack, try c5... it's very sharp, for both sides, but only for a second, if you play calmly you might get a very good endgame against an amature, and a very interesting game against a better player.

pruliere, thanks for the pointer to the chessFM video. I just watched it and am now better prepared for any opponent who attempts it. :)

Play the Winawer if you want a win then.  I like it as well.

KillaBeez> Play the Winawer if you want a win then.  I like it as well.

It's going to be interesting, playing an e4-defense I've studied for one week instead of the e4-defense I've been playing for two years. I hope I'm not going to lose hundreds of over-the-board rating points with this experiment.

I play the classical personally, but if you want tons of complications the winawer is probably more your taste. The classical is more straightforward than the winawer, and easier to learn...especially if you don't play the MacCutcheon.

ericmittens> I play the classical personally, but if you want tons of complications the winawer is probably more your taste.

The defense (or lack thereof) of the g-pawn seems like the strangest part of the Winawer. But now it's making some sense... I hope I can try it at the tourney.

Yea, against the Qg4 mainline you can either castle...or play Qc7, gambit a couple of pawns and get wicked pressure on the kingside.

Ah, yes. The Frence Defence Lovers at RHP. Great Clan!

I should say that I prefer the Classical, but have played a lot of variations. Against weaker players, I want the tactical complexity of the Winawer. But, as with some lines of the MacCutcheon, it often feels that everything is loose. The Classical is solid, and offers plenty of dynamism for counterattacking when the time is right.

My wife and I both play the french , she plays nothing else against 1 e4 while I play the sicilian most with french as my second string choice. Its funny that she prefers the classical though while I prefer the winawer . Grounds for divorce ?  :-)

A wife that plays chess!!

I'm tres jealous, I tried to teach my girlfriend chess but it didnt go so well...

What is she rated? If you dont mind my asking...

One of my most interesting forays with the Winawer:

I play only the French against 1. e4.  I am presently learning more about the Winawer variation myself.  It's complex and there are many lines to understand.  Something else you may want to look at is the Rubinstein.  I've used it against Nc3 when I wanted to avoid lots of theory.  It's solid, simple to learn, and pretty straightforward.  Best wishes in your French studies.