continuing opening when opponent doesnt follow?

I have always wondered what is one to do if you try to open with a specific opening, and your opponent just opens with a random order of moves and doesnt follow any real theory or correct order of development. Do you just continue with your opening theory, or do you try and assimilate to your opponent's opening and follow basic rules of the opening?

If the guy plays the French, you're not going to continue playing Ruy Lopez with Nf3 and Bb5, are you?

That is why you should should learn the underlieing principles of the opening, rather than specific moves.

The great thing about the main lines in openings is that the moves are objectively the strongest regardless of the response of your opponent. For example, if you decide to play the Ruy Lopez exchange variation and your opponent does not know the opening, play might continue as follows:

why would someone play bd7?...

and i was asking what to do if say you open with the ruy lopez, but they open with something you have no experience with? doesnt chess rely alot on your opponent also knowing some opening principle so you guys can both get to a position where theory ends and attacks/defenses can be set up?

minor7b5 wrote:

The great thing about the main lines in openings is that the moves are objectively the strongest regardless of the response of your opponent. For example, if you decide to play the Ruy Lopez exchange variation and your opponent does not know the opening, play might continue as follows:

There are many many many playable moves in the opening that aren't part of some mainline of an opening so it really depends on the situation.

Sometimes, and I think least often, you can punish a non-book move immediately with tactics.  Usually this is in sharp openings like gambits.

More often a move ignored by opening books is sub par because it's not part of an efficient or useful development.  The move itself my look innocent enough, but the other pieces will have trouble getting into the game.  So to punish that kind of move just keep developing your pieces efficiently and to good squares and "magically" your middlegame position will be better for free.

Of course through the whole process you should keep your eye out for tactics (as always) but only play for tactics if you can actual calculate a tactic exists.  A common mistake by new players is trying to punish a non-book move by immediately attacking... but because they haven't finished development their "attack" has no danger to it and only misplaces their pieces.

In the opening, you have to fight for center control, develop your pieces, castle, and then connect your rooks by moving the queen.
This is your goal, your plan.
Different openings are just different ways how to achieve this goal.
So if your opponent doesn't follow the book moves, you simply have to continue your development and then attack. Nothing special.

If your opponent is not developing his or her forces correctly from the very start of the game not making good moves according to general principles logic and common sense squish them like a grape!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9cIr7P9gkg

Don't waste any time if your opponent is playing like the Black side!

Play a long game.And don't move fast in the opening just because it's the opening phase .You are not required to that.Use as much time as possible.Try to rationalize youre moves.Read a book to assimilate principles.Always analzye your games afterward to check for mistakes  and improvements.You will build your opening not just your book moves in a solid and effective way.

I don't think that it is wise to memorize all the complicated lines, but instead focus on what positional idea your particular opening follows. Therefore, you will recognize if your opponent makes an inaccurate move and with some positional understanding and calculation you can refute his move.

Your opponent is forcing you to play chess. Dang.

1...d5 is not a patzer move, it's the Scandinavian Defense. Sure it's not an opening that a ton of people play, but it's still perfectly sound and I lose to it on a regular basis. My favorite line is 1. e4 d5 2. Nc3!? dxe4 3. d3 exd3 cxd3 and white has an isolated queen's pawn and a massive lead in development.

By the way @minor7b5, it's a half-diminished chord. Get it right.

@Twinchicky: Have you ever heard of the word "irony"?

thx for all the help guys :)

i should possibly re word my question and ask: what do i do if i follow book theory and my opponent doesnt? but instead, plays the "wrong" defense against my opening?

You must punish him !

I know, I know... The funky IQP gambit is just an experiment of mine, having a little fun. It's probably not sound at all, but at my level of chess it makes games more interesting because neither me nor my opponent knows any of the "theory" of it. Again, at my level, unless someone does something extremely stupid (Like 1. e4 e5 2. Qh5??) in the opening, it's going to be the middlegame and endgame that determine a win, draw, or loss.

That is why you should learn how to play chess before memorizing a bunch of moves without understanding what's going on on the board.

When you study openings you'll wonder, what to do if they play the "wrong" move?

After you study midlegames sometimes you'll wonder, but how do you punish moves that are strategically incorrect?

When you study endgames, you'll realize how to win a superior position, and the middlegame makes more sense.

When the middlegame makes sense, the opening makes sense.

Wisdom for a long time has been to study the endgame first.  Recommended at least 100 years ago by Capablanca.

Your question was most concisely answered by DrSpudnik in post #11:

So what can you do?  You can learn how to play chess.

Many of the responses here are spot on.If a move is out-of-book the quality of the move will usually range anywhere from slightly inferior to wretched;occasionally,however,such out-of-book moves are quite good and become new theory.As a player,one needs to know enough about opening principles to respond accordingly.Slightly inferior moves can't really be refuted in the opening and to try do so usually fails,sometimes spectacularly so.Truely bad moves can be refuted immediately;however,the best course for the moves that are simply below-average is simply playing by principle and building your position.