The power of the modern defence

A recent game of mine where the attacking possibilities, and potential headaches of the modern, all rolled in to one game. Always manages to cause problems with players more used to the more regular responses by black. 

DafyddTheIgnorant, are you afraid to begin a game of chess because every opening is bad?  Is this a sickness?

This is only a modern till move 4, then it transposes to a classical KID.

As some have stated this goes from a Modern to a King's Indian Defence the difference is the pawn on c4 where as in a modern normally the knight is already on c3 before the c pawn ever gets pushed

Cheers for the comments. What did DafyddTheIgnorant say out of interest? I see that post has gone.

I'm not too hot on names of openings (only know the names of 3!), i just assumed g6 and bg7 made it the modern (or Robatsch) regardless of what happens next.

Cheers for the link, gmitchel, looks interesting. The first point it lists as an advantage 'It is unusual and White may not have a clue how to behave' is the only reason I play it, any other move I make at my level my opponents always seem to know what I'm going to play before I do (I'm deffo not an 1800 player by skill hehe)

Thank you for that write up! So is the diff between the pirc and the modern is that the knight is moved before the bishop? Often in my games I end up with the knight on f6 and bishop on g7 in first 4 moves, so will have a read in to this (and the KID), never looked in to these defences ever. Never heard of the barry attack either, looks like I'll have to have a look in to that too.

If any players here are fans of any of the systems mentioned here please say, I'd quite like a look over some of your past games (and if you play the english opening too, even better  )

Would you like an (unrated) cor. game, gmitchel? I'd like to see how it fares against someone more used to playing against the modern/pirc etc

Check out games by Duncan Suttles, a Canadian master from back in the late 60s.  Soltis also wrote a book called "Play 2...g6 to win" .  The main point in that little book is NOT to play Nf6 unless absolutely necessary.  Sometimes called The Rat.  I used it for several years with success BUT I found that it it depends on white making a mistake.  If white plays correctly, then black gets cramped & suffers a slow death trying to defend.  

Suttles found out the hard way as did I.  I only play it now against lower rated opponents especially if they open with d4.  Against higher rated players; you don't have a chance.

Well its my birthday coming up, and these suggestions are all on the list!

I think this is completely off the mark.  If a fairly strong GM like Suttles could play this opening as some of the best GMS why not us.  I find that even masters (2200 and FMs 2300) don't have the skills to just "make us not have a chance.)  Only with that kind of thinking do you let them have that power.

Exactly. Suprising that not everybody knows such an obvious thing. This is certainly not the Modern defence.

Exactly the same way as this is not Reti (but QGD): 1.Nf3 e6 2. c4 d5 3.d4 Nf6

Correct naming can be useful when searching for references and books. Usually, lines where black delays the development of his king's knight or develops it to e7 or sometimes h6 are classified as Modern rather than Pirc or KID.