Most players see traps as gimmicky lines that only work when your opponents make the wrong moves.
Admittedly, that makes it seem like I'm suggesting you play "hope" chess which is certainly not a viable long term strategy for growth.
So why should you study traps?
The three reasons you should take some time to play with traps are:
1) So you can understand what makes them work.
2) In order to learn how to counter them when your opponents use them against you.
3) Because they can be really fun to play around with and if you lose, it wasn't necessarily the book opening anyway so you have an excuse!
I don't want to go into too much detail here, but most traps often rely on material sacrifice that is converted into a positional and/or tempo advantage, winning material, or winning the game outright!
Openings of this nature are generally referred to as gambits. However traps tend to be a bit more dubious and aggressive simultaneously.
Each trap requires a coordinated attack between pieces and usually once it has been sprung, there's no going back.
If you play with these for long enough, you'll see how a game you're playing could transpose into a position similar to these traps even through solid fundamental play.
Keep an eye out, make mistakes, and enjoy the ultimate thrill of using your new skills to shock and awe your opponents!
Without any further ado, our first trap:
1) The Blackburne Schilling Gambit
2) Legal's Mate
The Fishing Pole Trap
Trap for White Against The Scandinavian Defense
Sometimes you'll make a mistake you'll see a variation where you could have made a better move.
That's chess!
The good news is you can take what you've learned with you to the next game and try something different.
Get creative and take time to see where you could have made better choices by analysing your games.
If you keep an eye out, you may see some of your opponents try to use these themes or you can beat them to the punch by using them in a different, but similar setup.
Don't feel like you have to memorize and use all of these at once. If you usually use the Berlin Defense against the Ruy Lopez or Fried Liver Attack, try the Fishing Pole Trap or the Blackburne Schilling Gambit.
If you want to try something new against the Queen's Gambit, you now have the Lasker Gambit as a tool in your box.
There are many other more advanced traps out there but I just wanted to share a few basic generally effective ones for anybody who is just starting to look into traps or wanted one or two more to add to their arsenal.
If you have a favorite or famous trap you'd love to share, please do. We'd love to see it.
. 
