I know you guys are really strong players and all, but can all really strong players just rattle off line after line of a million different openings? I don't think I could learn all that stuff in 10 more years of study, even if I specialized in openings or something.
Spoiler:
I think what Ganstaman said is correct. For example with hiphop did that I had to read it 3 times to follow the line. Put me in an opening I know and play quite often and I follow much easier.
The only time I ever play f3 is 4.f3 against the Nimzo to avoid the theory so could be interesting to learn something new here!
ooh, "my" variation coming up Rechecked it with Houdini, still looks very OK for Black. Maybe the critical line is 3.-e5 4.dxe5 Nxe4 5.Bb5+ (5.Ne2 Nc5 looks comfortable enough for Black and 5.fxe4 Qh4+ 6.Kd2 Qh6+ is a draw, tho B can bait White to play for more with 6.-Qf4+ which is messy after 7.Kc3) c6 6.fxe4 cxb5 7.exd5 Qh4+ 8.Kf1 Bc5, I went on for a few moves with Houdini and the eval was quite close to 0.00.
Against the BDG I have been using the recipe from this article http://www.jeremysilman.com/chess_bi..._dmr_gmbt.html and it has served me very well for a few years now
ok, now I get the computer's idea. 3...e5 4. de Nxe4 5. Bb5+!? c6 6. fe Qh4+ 7. Kf1 and I have to win the piece back on b5, which isn't as nice as putting more pieces or pawns in the centre. Still deserves to be tried imo, I will have the bishop pair and his displaced king in return for whatever goes wrong in the centre. Maybe even 6...Qh4+ isn't necessary and is going to lose more time than it gains. I kind of like the idea of 6...Qa5+ 7. Nc3 Bb4 8. Be2 d4 9. Qxd4 0-0 but it doesn't appear to work, he can play Bd2 and Qe3 and escape
it's also possible 7...Bc5 or something works (in the main line), but I don't see it after say 8. Qe2 Bg4 9. Nf3
OK, I must admit that in spite of having played this opening for years (yes, I'm one of the crazies who plays the BDG at pretty much any opportunity, in any form of the game - online, blitz, G/60, G/90+30' inc, FIDE rated comps, etc & I have about 10 or so books on the opening) I have yet to come across this in a tournament game!
The fact that he's played this move gives me a suspicion that he's looked at the thread on my Australian Open games & may have seen the suggestion in the thread that 3...e5 was a 'forced draw' in the position, with the line of 4.dxe5 Nxe4 5.fxe4 Qh4+ 6.Kd2 Qf4+ 7.Ke1 Qh4+ & draw by repetition. I put it through Fritz at the time & it liked 5.Bb5+ before playing fxe4, so that Qh4+ could be answered with Kf1 (therefore avoiding the perpetual). Guess I actually have to look at it in a bit of detail now ...
I suppose the first thing to do is have a look at candidate moves (sounds very Kotov-like I guess) ... and the ones that come to mind immediately are dxe5, Nc3, exd5 & Bg5 ... although moves like Ne2, Be3 & Bd3 are also in the back of my mind as outside possibilities.
My first thought is 4.dxe5 (ironic that I am the one taking material when I was the one who offered the gambit pawn with e4). This is also a fairly forcing line, as black has little alternative but to move the knight ... and apart from the Nxe4 line, only Nfd7 looks like a feasable alternative. Having said that, its not a line I'm too concerned about as I think simply Qxd5 afterwards is clearly winning for white. So its back to 4...Nxe4. The immediate recapture with 5.fxe4 scares me, as not only does black have the perpetual, but there might be something better & the thoguht of having my king blocking my other pieces in on d2, or going for a stroll around the board via c3, are fairly unappealing to me. The line with 5.Bb5+ c6 (presumably, otherwise I either swap pieces & recapture on e4 after N or Bd7 & have f1 available for my king, which looks like a clear piece up) 6.fxe4 Qh4+ 7.Kf1 looks like the critical line. It looks like black has nothing better than cxb5 here (no checks; Bg4 runs into Be2; Qxe4 has Bd3 Qxe5 Qe2 & a piece should be worth more than 2 pawns in that position) ... so how should the position be assessed, particularly with the obvious capture on d5 for white (queen or pawn,though queen is my initial thought). The only dilemma white has here is the lack of development & there doesn't seem to be any obvious way to exploit it, as the bishops have no obvious squares to threaten anything (Bb4, threatening Qe1 is easily stopped by c3) & 'simple development' with Nc6 or something like that can also be answered with 'simple development' Nf3 & white is fine.
All-in-all I think that makes dxe5 look fine for white & looks like a good first choice ... but I don't want to run into the 'blind spot' that Cadaz (I think) mentioned in the last Malkovich game of ignoring a better move.
4.Nc3 looks reasonable, obviously looking for dxe4 5.dxe5 Qxd1+ & the trap mentioned in my previous note ... however I suspect RT won't go down that path.
4...exd4 looks like the obvious response for black, when 5.Qxd4 Nc6 6.Bb5 looks promising, but I'm not sure that the position after 6...dxe4 7.Qxd8+ Kxd8 8.Bxc6 bxc6 9.Nxe4 Nxe4 10.fxe4 is actually good for me as my e-pawn is fairly easy to attack & difficult to defend, while the weak c-pawns for black take much longer to attack & can be defended much easier (the value of pawns not being too far advanced).
5.e5 here looks very much like a line of the Alekhine's Defense (normally 1.e4 Nf6 2.Nc3 d5 3.e5 (obviously 3.d4 would be much better!) d4 4.exf6 dxc3) which is fine for black. In this case, the difference is black has a pawn on d5 & white has a pawn on f3, which help black's cause much more than white's, so I think that line is out of the question.
Ultimately, I think that makes 4.Nc3 a less than ideal choice.
4.exd5 leaves black with plenty of options & with the centre open, it makes the pawn on f3 look a little silly. For example, 4...Qxd5 5.Nc3 Qxd4 6.Qxd4 exd4 7.Nb5 Na6 8.Nxd4 & I don't mind black's position as it is kind of awkward to develop my kingside & black has some obvious squares for his pieces, such as Nc5, Bd6, 0-0, Be6 or f5, etc. Obviously this is only one possibility, but I think in any case black is comfortable in the positions that arise as a result, so its another not-so-good option.
4.Bg5 looks like it has some potential, particularly in a line like 4...exd4 5.e5 h6 6.Bh4 g5 7.exf6 gxh4 8.Qxd4 (5...Qe7 6.Qxd4 looks good for white also), however black can also play 4...dxe4 & 5.dxe5 is no longer as effective after 5...Qxd1+ 6.Kxd1 Nfd7 & I like black's position. Of course with the knight being pinned, I can now play 5.fxe4, however after 5...Qxd4 I think black has a comfortable position, even with the 'dodgy pawns' after 6.Qxd4 exd5 7.Bxf6 gxf6 as my e-pawn is once again a potential liability & black has an extra pawn, with little, if anything for white to claim as compensation.
Again, another move to eliminate ... so 4.dxe5 it is!
Obviously for psychological reasons (and because I've analysed it to some extent here already) I plan to follow up 4...Nxe4 (the move I'm expecting) with 5.Bb5+ & a very short spoiler section, which will hopefully add to the 'OMG, he's seen it already ... I must be busted' thoughts I like to plant in my opponent's heads from time-to-time ... and because I have rambled so much here already ... :P
Obviously if RT plays something else, then expect another tl;dr spoiler section!
ooh, "my" variation coming up Rechecked it with Houdini, still looks very OK for Black. Maybe the critical line is 3.-e5 4.dxe5 Nxe4 5.Bb5+ (5.Ne2 Nc5 looks comfortable enough for Black and 5.fxe4 Qh4+ 6.Kd2 Qh6+ is a draw, tho B can bait White to play for more with 6.-Qf4+ which is messy after 7.Kc3) c6 6.fxe4 cxb5 7.exd5 Qh4+ 8.Kf1 Bc5, I went on for a few moves with Houdini and the eval was quite close to 0.00.
Against the BDG I have been using the recipe from this article http://www.jeremysilman.com/chess_bi..._dmr_gmbt.html and it has served me very well for a few years now
Spoiler:
smilingbill, can't believe you posted that article. I was just looking for it the other day and couldn't find it again. That line is exactly what I play against the BDG and that article is why. I'm a caro-kann player and the BDG has been played a few times against me (1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. f3) and already having played c6 makes playing white very difficult. Silman is right, that defense is really tough.
I always suck against the BDG because I never spent the time to learn anything decent and would always try to make up a line OTB. Especially bad in blitz. So thank you, bill! Easiest game ever.
I always suck against the BDG because I never spent the time to learn anything decent and would always try to make up a line OTB. Especially bad in blitz. So thank you, bill! Easiest game ever.
Best part about that line is it's extremely natural, not really any odd memorization required. Once you get in ...c6 and ...Bg6 the line pretty much plays itself.
Looks like things are all still going to plan.
Things to keep an eye out for are the obvious Qh4+, with a possible follow-up (after Kf1) of Bc5 (threatening mate on f2).
There's nothing obvious for the white squared bishop, apart from possibly g4, although Nf3 (as long as its possible) seems like a fine response, although Qe1is always there as a way to avoid trouble.
As far as most likely line, I'm expecting Qh4+ after my obvious fxe4. After Kf1 I'm temporarily a piece ahead, although my king is somewhat unsafe.
As far as where my pieces want to end up, my 'ideal' setup for my pieces is something like Nf3, Be3 (to try to nullify a possible Bc5 by black), Nd2, Qe2. I don't think there is any hurry to get the h-rook into the game, as the priorities in the position are to ensure my king remains safe and various threats are stopped.
The dilemma at the moment is whether I want to keep the queens on the board, or swap them off. There are problems with each, however I think the best of the options is to leave the queens on. If the queens stay on the board, there is always the risk of something going astray much quicker, however there are obvious places for my pieces to develop to, while the central pawns I have keep black somewhat restricted in terms of where black's pieces can develop to. The problem with getting the queens off is that the advanced pawns are difficult to defend, and black's bishop pair can quickly attack the pawns that are somewhat loose.
For example, after 6...Qh4+ 7.Kf1 Bc5 8.Qe1 Qxe1 9.Kxe1 cxb5 10.exd5 black has 10...Bf5 (attacking c2) & after 11.c3 there is Be4 (attacking g2 & d5), so its difficult to keep the extra pawn.
In the lines where I keep the queens on the board, I may not be able to win a pawn, however the position looks much easier to play & black always has things to worry about (queen getting trapped, loose pawns, etc).
In short, I'm going to play 6.fxe4, grabbing the knight. I'm expecting 6...Qh4+ in response, although black could try 6...Bc5 first, which I intend to follow-up with 7.Nf3, preventing the queen check & I can happily take on d5 after black recaptures the bishop.
The line I'm expecting is 6.fxe4 Qh4+ 7.Kf1 Bc5 8.Qe2 cxb5 & then I think 9.exd5 is the move to play (as opposed to Be3, Nf3 or Qxb5+). This clears the way for Nf3 (and Bg4 isn't such a problem as long as I keep an eye out for a possible Qc4+ at some stage). I should also be able to happily follow-up with Be3 & Nbd2.
OK, here I have 2 main choices, Qh4+ and cxb5. Qh4+ looks more natural, but partly because cxb is an ugly move. On the other hand, I probably have to win back the piece at some point. I'm discounting Qa5+, I don't see anything wrong with my previous analysis suggesting it just doesn't work.
A. 6...Qh4+ 7. Kf1 and now:
A1. 7...cxb5 8. exd5 (or 8. Qxd5 Nc6 9. Nf3 Qg4 and I probably won't lose a second pawn and he still has some problems, so I should be OK) 8...Bc5 9. Qe1 or Qe2 transposing to lines of A2 where I have committed to cxb
A2. 7...Bc5:
A21. 8. Qe2 Bg4 9. Nf3 Bx 10. Qxf3 dxe4 11. Qf5 and now even 11...g6! looks possible, 12. Qc8+ Ke7 13. Qxb7+ Nd7 and how does he escape my Q and B
A22. 8. Qe1 Qx 9. Kx cxb5 10. exd5 Bf5 and I am a pawn down in the ending but have development, bishop pair and chance to go after his pawns immediately. I expect I'm a little worse here but should have chances.
B. 6...cxb5 7. Nf3 (7. exd5 also possible with similar positions to A) 7...Bg4 (what else? 7...dxe, Q swap and Ng5 doesn't look fun) 8. exd5 and it looks like White has his centre all defended and is not really behind in development. Bc5 is possible then, it slows him down from castling but I don't see how I will get a real attack or pressure on the centre.
so Qh4+ it is, doesn't look as good as I had thought on move 3 but still looks decent for Black
Again as expected. 7.Kf1 looks like the obvious move.
Depending on what RT does, the plan is either to hang on to material and defend (if he plays a move like Qxe4, I'll play Bd3 & keep the extra piece), or return the material and look to get my pieces developed quickly.
I'm expecting 7...Bc5, which threatens mate on f2. 8.Qe2 seems like the logical response, and keeps an eye on both e4 & b5, which adds to the possible threats that I can generate further down the track (and it fits in with my 'development plan' from a few posts ago).
Again the plan is still to follow-up the likely 8...cxb5 with 9.exd5. The e-pawn is now well supported, with the Queen on e2 & the likely Nf3 adding to the support. This leaves d5 as a potential 'loose' point, particularly if black plays a move like Qd4. This would disrupt the plan to play Be3, however this may allow an alternative method of development, starting with Nc3. b4 is not an immediate threat, as Nb5 indirectly defends d5 (Qxd5 allows Nc7+) & attacks the queen, however this 'threat' is fairly easy to stop, with a6. This allows Nf3 & I can develop my pieces to squares I want to develop them to.
If black plays the immediate 7...cxb5, then 8.Qxd5 looks like the way to go, as there is no easy way to remove the queen from this position (Be6 allows Qxb7) & the queen on d5 defends the e-pawns as well as covering the c5 square. I can then continue with my plan to develop with Nf3, Be3, etc.
Two Plus Two
Rechecked it with Houdini, still looks very OK for Black. Maybe the critical line is 3.-e5 4.dxe5 Nxe4 5.Bb5+ (5.Ne2 Nc5 looks comfortable enough for Black and 5.fxe4 Qh4+ 6.Kd2 Qh6+ is a draw, tho B can bait White to play for more with 6.-Qf4+ which is messy after 7.Kc3) c6 6.fxe4 cxb5 7.exd5 Qh4+ 8.Kf1 Bc5, I went on for a few moves with Houdini and the eval was quite close to 0.00.
Linear Mode
