Trying to Choose Opening for Black against 1. d4

Whether you think your 1500 uscf or not, anyone 1500 and below should play d5. Most nf6 lines like the gruenfeld, kid, and nimzo require lots of knowledge and probably aren't your best options. I would play queen's gambit declined, or the slav. However, out of the options you listed I would go with the gruenfeld. The dutch in general isn't very good for your style or rating, and the budapest isn't a very good response. Also, don't focus so much on your rating and act like your underrated, many will argue, so just say your actual rating but you know lots of theory.

also queen's gambit declined is an opening for BLACK, not white. I wish you best of luck for finding an opening against d4, however, you should not claim your 1500. Your rating will show it if you really are.

That's not even remotely what I said lol. You also didn't answer my question.

Anyway, I'm posting again because I forgot to point out another enormous flaw in your logic. The Budapest gambit is also dependent upon White playing 2.c4, and in an instance when it's less likely to happen. The Grunfeld isn't even in the same league... You need White to help you with with his 2nd and his 3rd move. You will rarely get to play that defence. Those are openings that you suggested we pick from for you! So to use an argument that makes FAR less sense for the QGA/D than on openings that you suggested...

I think I'm going to start posting on all of your threads... This is just too funny.

Pardon me if I was a bit rash to say what I did. I only meant to give the players an idea of what kind of information would be helpful. Yes, as you said, Queen's Gambit Declined is up to Black, since Black is the player who is declining the gambit, but it is impossible of course to reach that position unless White play's Queen's Gambit first.

Nf6... 75% of the time against d4 I play Nf6.  Absolutely Non-committal and flexible in my personal opinion.  It seems like most of the time somebody plays d4, they are playing the Queens' Gambit.  Queens' Gambit kicks ass straight up lol.  But after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4, I just respond d5.  Rejecting almost any attempt of white pushing e4 on the third move.

Try 1. d4  Nc6

So... you want an almighty system against d4?  You should start playing the french defence move order against d4 then, nobody can stop that, lol. If you want a universal system play the modern or something like that, it works for both e4 and d4, but take into account that it will in most cases transpose into other openings.

This is unrelated, but it isn't very good against 1. c4

Never mind the OP's playing strength. We'd all like to think we are stronger than out grade! If the OP likes the King's Gambit and Dragon then he should probably look for something equally combative and complex against 1. d4.  If 1. d4 d5 leads to a Queen's gambit then he could try for a Meran variation or the BOtvinnik variation of the semi-Slav.  Unfortunately White can avoid them quite easily. Or Black could choose 1.d4 Nf6 hoping for a King's Indian whihc is a rich and complex system.  You could do worse than copy the repertoire of British GM Joe Gallagher.

The suggestions of Nimzo-Indian and Grunfeld don't seem to fit so well with the OP's preferences as they tend to lead to a less brutal and uncompromising fight and I don't rate the Dutch as a way of getting useful chess experience in the early stages of improving.  The Budapest is full of traps so it is easy for Black to get some cheap points, but it is very shallow and easy to preapare for. It is a poor choice if the aim is to eventually become a formidable player.

As an e4 player it is more important to know how to play against the Sicilian than to be expert in the King' s Gambit becuase you'll face 1. e4 c5 much more often than 1. e4 e5.

I like the QGD setup because you can also use it against just about anything except 1.e4 which cuts out a lot of study time. You pretty much just play 1...d5 2...e6 3...Nf6 4...Be7 5...0-0 regardless of what white plays (within reason of course). The only time you really have to switch things around is if White starts with the English 1.c4, then you just swap your first two moves (1...e6 first, then 2...d5, and proceed as normal). You get a foothold in the center, you get your king tucked away, and you get your pieces out. It's simple, classical, no bs chess. It's an easy system to learn; plus it's good for improving players to start with classical openings anyway. Later on after you develop a solid positional understanding you can maybe add something a bit more abstract such as the Dutch Defense to your repertoire, but at least you will always have a good solid opening to fall back on if you need it. I actually play the QGD almost exclusively myself. I've dabbled in the Chigorin Defense a bit for fun, but I find that there is plenty of variety just within the QGD to make me happy. If I want to play a solid game I shoot for the Lasker Variation. If I want something a bit more combative then the Tartakower works out nicely. Anyway, whatever you pick I hope it works out. I would seriously consider sticking with the classical stuff for a while though.

The Lone Deranger has a good point.  As the OP already has two wild openings in his repertoire (King's Gambit and Dragon) then adopting something more solid against 1. d4 will give him a broader chess education.

When you seek a chess opening, you should be seeking what fits your playing style. For example, if you enjoy positions with Kingside Fianchetto, then play an opening variation that has g3/...g6.

That being said, I think the Dragon and Grunfeld make an excellent pair  for Black repertoire if you like ...g6. They are both rich in variations and can help you grow as a chess player. Both aim to create an open position with the aim of maximizing ...Bg7's scope.

I don't recommend hyper accelerated dragon or dragon, the dragon loses to Yugoslav and hyper accelerated does pretty poorly against 5. c4. But I'm just talking about how good these openings are, I'm sure there is plenty to be learned in them.

So you're recommending this?

You could nearly consider that a blunder on move 2. In the QG Black plays e6 to recapture with a pawn if White ever takes. This is just a terrible version of that where Black can't.

That's why fairly soon I'm considering switching to some other Sicilian variation (since the Dragon is so well-known). King's Gambit, although it appears to be wild, is in fact quite sound. Budapest Gambit, on the other hand, seems to have fewer returns compared to King's Gambit for the lost pawn. I think based on this Grunfeld would be best. I did consider KID/QID but decided against it since they are really slow openings. I know one club player in particular, who likes to play the English Opening and the Dutch Defense. Against 1. c4 I just play my Sicilian opening like nothing happened (although the resulting games are a bit different. I decided against Dutch Defense because the kingside is weakened for no clear reason (i.e. unlike in King's Gambit tempos are not gained). My main concern here is the fact that the Grunfeld Defense is theory heavy, but I think I'll be fine just looking at the main lines and working from there.

Beware of the 4. Bf4. 5. Rc1 variation.

You're reading into my post a little too much.  First, don't capture with the f6 knight.  I'm just offering a much simpler solution to find a flexible line of play.  The Grunfeld is not something you learn overnight, and that's one of a couple that gchess has seemed to lean toward this whole forum.  He does not have to work out anything that intense to try something new.  Just shooting the guy an idea, one that could lead to deeper theory but doesn't have to.

Theory is for wimps. Play d6 Nf6 e5, with Nbd7 inserted on move 3 if e5 push isn't possible.

I was surprised he mentioned the Dutch. I would agree. The grunfeld, queens gambit lines are good. I would forget the Budapest. For white whenever I see that opening its at least a draw even in a fast game. Forget the budapest. Benoni is fun and very tactical but most might not recommend. I'm not sure I would. Slavs and Semi slavs would be my recommendation.