I second this. This is the mainline:
The queen on c7 pressures the file but also x-rays the e5 square, so it has offensive and defensive ideas. In some cases, she can advance to c5.
The knight on d7 is often a piece with a lot of potential as it can advance to c5 to pressure e4, or sometimes Nb6-Nc4 is useful.
That too
dodged a nuclear bomb of theory 😎
I think the a3 anti Poisoned Pawn is probably better if you want to avoid it. It keeps the knight in the centre.
but i so rarely ever get open sicilians these days that ive been starting to forget how to play them
interestingly, before the chess boom i got more open sicilians
Chess Boom —> GothamChess (3 million subscribers???) —> Theoryphobia —> Scared of Open Sicilian —> Sicilian sidelines —> No more Open Sicilian 😢
I think particularly at the 1000 - 1600 level, players are trying to find sneaky alternatives to the open sicilian.
but i so rarely ever get open sicilians these days that ive been starting to forget how to play them
interestingly, before the chess boom i got more open sicilians
Because they worship the great cringelord gatekeeper doctrine "Don't learn anything about the Open Sicilian! Why? Because you won't know what to do because you haven't learned anything! Why? Because you were told not to learn anything by the great cringelord Gothamchess."
what do you guys think about the delayed alapin with d6
how does black get play here?
full gatekeeper opening repertoire
white
the Ruy Lopez is too compwicated for youw tiny wittle brains so the Vienna Gambit is the only best response to e5 because it catches opponents off-guard and that’s all that matters in the game of chess
The Open Sicilian is refuted and black will destroy you by move 4 because they know theory, the worst possible outcome in the game of chess, so you have to play the Closed Sicilian because people don’t know how pawns work and Spassky played it so it’s better than the Open Sicilian
d4
haha pawn pyramid anyway this is the most crucial opening in chess, you understand? It has absolutely no theory (our worst enemy) and it’s a setup, meaning only 1 brain cell is required to memorize it which is the measure of all of your brains as proven by my subscriber ELO average (it’s below 1700) also you’re gonna get it so often that you might as well premove it it’s not like your opponent’s gonna notice 🤣
for black
if you check our opening tier list ranking with top grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura this was the only response to e4 which was legendary, mind you this is a top grandmaster that totally did NOT want to put the Najdorf (our worst enemy) in legendary and REALLY wanted to put the Caro-Kann (our best friend) in legendary NOT BECAUSE OF OUR PRESENCE
i also played this when I was 15 so you have to play it too because I won 3 games with it against my mom and it was cool 👍
forget the queen’s gambit declined or the Nimzo-Indian or whatever you play because this is the only opening that exists in the game of chess (aside from the London System and the Caro-Kann Defense of course) it may look like you weaken your king on move one but you’re actually wrong because that’s actually the queen and you don’t even know your chess pieces to prove the amount of brain cells in your hollow skull
thank you for watching ladies and gentlemen, please like and subscribe and click my course in the description below (I need money), see you in our next video, my game against a 1200 using the Caro-Kann defense to prove that it’s the best response to 1. e4
what do you guys think about the delayed alapin with d6
how does black get play here?
If black plays d6 against the regular Alapin, white immediately plays d4.
In the delayed, white can't so easily play d4 because it hangs e4. By the time they do, black will have fianchettoed and castled and will have strong pressure against white's centre.
Looking at the position, it reminds me a bit of a Modern Exchange Grünfeld.
what do you guys think about the delayed alapin with d6
how does black get play here?
If black plays d6 against the regular Alapin, white immediately plays d4.
In the delayed, white can't so easily play d4 because it hangs e4. By the time they do, black will have fianchettoed and castled and will have strong pressure against white's centre.
Looking at the position, it reminds me a bit of a Modern Exchange Grünfeld.
can you give an example line?
can you give an example line?
ive realized how sad it is that people are starting to forget how to play what was once the most common, best openings
and heres whats been spiking
Anything you want because at that level no one understands openings.
ive realized how sad it is that people are starting to forget how to play what was once the most common, best openings
and heres whats been spiking
sadly, yes. GothamChess rules the game at this point
As white I think The Vienna is a good choice... (just a recommendation)
I just dont think it makes sense for a low-rated player to get into complex positions willingly. It makes more sense to learn how to place pieces in good squares and maneuver pieces properly in an easier setting, before trying to get yourself into a very complex position and "winging it".
The Sicilian is actually an amazing opening for understanding piece placement, especially the Najdorf.
There are common themes throughout the variations where you can understand clear reasons for why a piece is better here or there. You can even go for different piece layouts with different ideas behind them, depending on preference.
I second this. This is the mainline:
The queen on c7 utilizes a half-open file to control vital queenside squares- where the enemy king stands.
The knight on d7 supports the knight on f6 and develops the knight to a square where the important c-file remains accessible to the queen and rooks.
The bishop on e7 allows kingside castling and protects the knight from being attacked by an enemy pawn- losing the piece because the knight would be pinned to the king.
The pawn on b5 gains queenside space, prepares a queenside pawn storm/attack to expose the enemy king, and allows the light-squared bishop to go to b7.
the pawn on a6 supports the pawn on b5. Simple as that.
The piece placement is easy to understand- which is better than memorization. The Najdorf, although it has mountains of theory, is one of the easiest openings to understand because its piece placement is extremely natural if you understand why.
Yes, and it’s the same for e5 if e5 is not easier.
but the Najdorf isn’t one of the easiest openings to understand, just because you have that piece placement down, doesn’t mean it’s one of the easiest openings to understand.
ive realized how sad it is that people are starting to forget how to play what was once the most common, best openings
and heres whats been spiking
Woah woah woah there.. The Ruy Lopez is slightly going out of fashion below master level and we are seeing more Italians but it’s still played plenty!
And I fell when I play Sicilian, I usually get open Sicilians! Sometimes there is an anti Sicilian, but open Sicilian is still usually played against me. It’s still the most played thing ( maybe it’s just me tho ) and it hasn’t disappeared at all!
I don’t play the French also but I don’t think Nc3 French would disappear below 2000. Maybe a French player can correct me tho because my knowledge of the French is very limited.
I don’t think QG has declined in popularity, most of the time when I see d4 it’s usually a QG and rarely a london. And I don’t think c4 in the queens pawn has disappeared at all!
the thing that pisses me off is that when I play the Sicilian I never get an open. Everyone either goes with the bowdler (as everyone here also mentioned), the wing gambit (just annoying) or the closed (which I try to transpose into a sheshnikov)
Lol, same reason I mostly gave up on trying. Even if I studied the Open by the time I will get one I will already forget what the plans were.
I would rather get demolished in Najdorf than play that goddamn Bowdler. People that try to play Italian against everything annoys me so much.
I love when people play the bowlder against me. I get good central control and my pieces come out naturally.
I second this. This is the mainline:
The queen on c7 pressures the file but also x-rays the e5 square, so it has offensive and defensive ideas. In some cases, she can advance to c5.
The knight on d7 is often a piece with a lot of potential as it can advance to c5 to pressure e4, or sometimes Nb6-Nc4 is useful.