what type of sicilian do you use? you might be able to get accelerated dragon against 1.d4 after 1.d4 g6 2. c4 Bg7 3. Nf3(or Nc3) c5..
now not moveing the d dawn will transpose to accelerated dragon, english or Maroczy (which should all be part of your opening if you use accelerated dragon..) after cxd4. white can play 4.d5 and you can learn a benoni, if white plays 4.dxc5 the don't get any advantage (qa5+ then qxd5 or even na6 then nxc5 if white had played Nc3 eariler).
oh also after 4.d5 in the message above you might like to try the benko, instead of benoni.
Absolutely. The reason why b5 is rejected even though it controls the c4 square is precisely because white can fill the center with his pawns (with e4) as well as simultaneously attack the weak b5 pawn! However, there are some variations where black plays d5 and then later b5 if white does not hasten to play c4, and that can be justified by some space gained on the queenside without incurring the loss of the center. (the b5 pawn can be either protected with a6 (with could sometimes be vulnerable to a4 attempting to break the pawn chain) or it can be pushed further into enemy territory by b4 in a bid for space)
Anyway, to answer Etienne,
My suggestion against 1. e4 if you wish to play a sharp game would be the Sicilian defence, which you have already tried. Firstly, which variation are you currently playing? The Kan, Najdorf, Dragon, Sveshnikov? Of course, all have advantages and disadvantages but if you like a kingside pawn storm attack the Sveshnikov would suit you. The Dragon would suit those who like the fianchetto and are willing to go on crazy races to see who will mate their opponent first. Dragon players must also be ready to sac exchanges to further their attack. As for the Kan and Najdorf, which are quite similar in nature, you would like a break in the center and active counterplay on the queenside while your opponent does something on the Kingside. So I guess you would have to decide what kind of game you're willing to play first!
I myself have experimented with all these sicilians (although i cannot claim to be an expert at any of them at all) and my preference is still the Najdorf and Sveshnikov, which can be said to be very solid, and are currently being practised by the top grandmasters! Of course, you must be prepared to go through all the huge amounts of theory involved..
As for d4, perhaps the King Indian Defence or the Modern Benoni would suit you if you like sharp, counterplay bountiful positions!
I'm starting to get better using the sicilian (it's harder to master than most other openings I think) and I'm looking for sharp alternatives for black, both for e4 and something to answer d4 besides the king's indian defense or the nimzo one. Perhaps some variations of these openings could be nice, but I'm looking for something sharp, and perhaps a bit unusual to destabilise the opponent... if you have any suggestion.
Against e4 I do like to play a weird variation of the Ruy Lopez.
This variation was developed and used (even against masters) by the dutch player Leo Kerkhof.
It goes like this...
1.e4 e5 2.Kf3 Kc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.La4 d6 (Philidor variation) 5.0-0 Lg4 6.h3 h5!! White loose any time they accept the offer.
I'm starting to get better using the sicilian (it's harder to master than most other openings I think) and I'm looking for sharp alternatives for black, both for e4 and something to answer d4 besides the king's indian defense or the nimzo one. Perhaps some variations of these openings could be nice, but I'm looking for something sharp, and perhaps a bit unusual to destabilise the opponent... if you have any suggestion.
Against e4 I do like to play a weird variation of the Ruy Lopez.
This variation was developed and used (even against masters) by the dutch player Leo Kerkhof.
It goes like this...
1.e4 e5 2.Kf3 Kc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.La4 d6 (Philidor variation) 5.0-0 Lg4 6.h3 h5!! White loose any time they accept the offer.
K is king, for the knight use N, as for the bishop, you used B the first time, which is correct, but after you used L (?), B is the right annotation. It looks like an interesting variation, however it could be nice if you could post some games or variations using this opening, as even if the h file becomes a real spine in white's heel, I'm not sure the advantage is decisive enough for the sac knight.
I've had good luck recently against d4 with the Soller Gambit - 1. d4 e5 2. dxe5 f6. Sometimes black plays 2. ... Nc6 3. Nf3 before 3. ... f6, but it tends to transpose into the same thing.
This might not be good enough against masters, but I'm only around 1400 USCF. Against players at my level, it's a good way to force an open, tactical game in lines that they generally aren't used to.
--Fromper
I'm starting to get better using the sicilian (it's harder to master than most other openings I think) and I'm looking for sharp alternatives for black, both for e4 and something to answer d4 besides the king's indian defense or the nimzo one. Perhaps some variations of these openings could be nice, but I'm looking for something sharp, and perhaps a bit unusual to destabilise the opponent... if you have any suggestion.
Etienne closed their own account on Jan 27, 2017
the Pirc defence and Nimzo Indian
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I'm starting to get better using the sicilian (it's harder to master than most other openings I think) and I'm looking for sharp alternatives for black, both for e4 and something to answer d4 besides the king's indian defense or the nimzo one. Perhaps some variations of these openings could be nice, but I'm looking for something sharp, and perhaps a bit unusual to destabilise the opponent... if you have any suggestion.