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Build a drillable repertoire. Learn the move, then repeat it until it is automatic.
Giuoco PianissimoPopular
A slow Italian that rewards patience.
Giuoco Pianissimo · as Black
Meet c3 and d3 with …d6 and …a5; don’t rush the break.
Two Knights Defense
Black invites the Fried Liver complications.
Two Knights Defense · as Black
Hit e4 at once and dare White to try Ng5.
Giuoco Piano
Quiet development, then a fight for d4.
Giuoco Piano · as Black
Develop the bishop, then stop White’s d4 center from rolling.
Evans Gambit
A pawn for tempo and a wide-open c-file.
Evans Gambit · as Black
Take the pawn, drop the bishop to a5, and weather the attack.
Hungarian Defense
Solid, a bit passive, and easy to drill.
Hungarian Defense · as Black
Skip the sharp Italian fights and keep a solid king.
Italian Four Knights
Both sides castle quickly and play for the center.
Italian Four Knights · as Black
Castle, hold e5, and meet the slow d3 setups with …d6.
Morphy DefensePopular
The main line, asking the bishop to declare.
Morphy Defense · as Black
Ask the bishop where it lives, then expand with …b5.
Berlin Defense
The Wall. Heavy pieces, thin endgames.
Berlin Defense · as Black
Head for the Wall ending and trust the extra pawn later.
Closed Spanish
Chigorin structures: a slow squeeze on the queenside.
Closed Spanish · as Black
Play the Chigorin squeeze: …a6, …Na5, and pressure on c4.
Marshall Attack
A pawn for a lasting kingside initiative.
Marshall Attack · as Black
Sack a pawn for a lasting kingside attack.
Arkhangelsk
Black develops with a bite.
Arkhangelsk · as Black
Develop with a bite on e4.
Exchange Variation
Doubled c-pawns vs the bishop pair.
Exchange Variation · as Black
Take the bishop pair and live with the doubled c-pawns.
Schliemann
Sharp, offbeat, and theoretically loaded.
Schliemann · as Black
Rip the Spanish open before White settles.
NajdorfPopular
Black’s sharpest reply to the Open Sicilian.
Najdorf · as Black
Keep the b5 square and choose …e5 or …e6 on your terms.
Sveshnikov
A hole on d5 for active pieces.
Sveshnikov · as Black
Accept the d5 hole and play with active pieces.
Kan / Paulsen
A hedgehog that waits to expand.
Kan / Paulsen · as Black
Sit in the hedgehog, then expand when White overreaches.
Taimanov
Classy, positional, still venomous.
Taimanov · as Black
Play a classy Sicilian without an early …d6.
Classical
Flexible, less theory-heavy than Najdorf.
Classical · as Black
Stay flexible without Najdorf-volume theory.
Dragon
Opposite-side castling fireworks.
Dragon · as Black
Fianchetto, castle short, and race White’s long-castle attack.
Accelerated Dragon
Maroczy binds and timely …d5 breaks.
Accelerated Dragon · as Black
Fianchetto early, then break the Maroczy bind with a timely …d5.
TarraschPopular
White avoids the pin and plays for e5.
Tarrasch · as Black
Against 3.Nd2, skip the Winawer pin and fight White’s e5 plan.
Winawer
Doubled c-pawns and a locked center.
Winawer · as Black
Pin the knight, accept doubled c-pawns, and lock the center.
The old main line, still a workout.
The old main line, still a workout from the Black side.
Advance
A space clamp. Black chips at the base with …c5.
Advance · as Black
Against 3.e5, chip at the pawn chain with …c5 and …f6.
Exchange
Symmetrical, but not automatically drawish.
Exchange · as Black
Develop and don’t drift into a draw.
Rubinstein
A simpler French with an open game.
Rubinstein · as Black
Simplify the French and play an open game.
AdvancePopular
A French structure without the bad bishop.
A French chain without the bad bishop.
The textbook Caro, solid and healthy.
The textbook Caro: free the bishop, then stay solid.
Panov-Botvinnik
IQP positions from a Caro move order.
Panov-Botvinnik · as Black
Against c4 and d4, play the IQP structures from a Caro move order.
Two Knights
Flexible, often transposing.
Two Knights · as Black
It often transposes.
A Carlsbad structure with a minority attack.
After exd5 cxd5, hold the Carlsbad and meet the minority attack.
Fantasy
A rare try that keeps the center extra tense.
Fantasy · as Black
Don’t panic, develop.
Semi-SlavPopular
Meran and Botvinnik, both a handful.
Semi-Slav · as Black
Pick Meran or Botvinnik; both are a handful to play.
Queen's Gambit Accepted
Take the pawn, then fight to keep the center.
Queen's Gambit Accepted · as Black
Take the pawn, then fight to keep the extra material honest.
Queen's Gambit Declined
The classical answer. Solid, deep, and drillable.
Queen's Gambit Declined · as Black
The classical QGD: solid, deep, and drillable from the Black side.
Slav Defense
A rock. Light-squared bishop stays free.
Slav Defense · as Black
A rock: keep the light-squared bishop free.
Tarrasch Defense
Black accepts an IQP for activity.
Tarrasch Defense · as Black
Accept an IQP for piece activity.
Chigorin
Knights before pawns, messy and fun.
Chigorin · as Black
Knights before pawns: messy, fun, and off the QGD rails.
ClassicalPopular
Black storms the kingside with …f5.
Against Be2 and O-O, storm the kingside with …f5.
Averbakh
Pin the knight, slow Black’s …e5 and …f5.
Averbakh · as Black
Against Bg5, break the pin so …e5 and …f5 still work.
Sämisch
White clamps g4 and plays for a queenside bind.
Sämisch · as Black
Break with …e5 or …c5 before the bind lands.
Fianchetto
A long diagonal vs Black’s kingside plan.
Fianchetto · as Black
Against g3 and Bg2, play around the long diagonal and still get …e5 in.
Makogonov
A modern, prophylactic King’s Indian.
Makogonov · as Black
Against h3 and Nf3, play a modern King’s Indian without rushing …f5.
Four Pawns Attack
Space everywhere, and a wide-open board.
Four Pawns Attack · as Black
Against the Four Pawns, chip the giant center before it rolls.
Main linePopular
The same setup against almost anything.
Main line · as Black
Against Bf4, e3, Nf3, meet the same London setup with a clear plan.
Jobava London
Faster, sharper, more attacking.
Jobava London · as Black
Don’t drift.
vs King's Indian
H3, Be2, and a queenside squeeze.
vs King's Indian · as Black
Fianchetto against the London, then don’t get squeezed on the queenside.
vs Nimzo setups
Keep the dark bishop useful.
vs Nimzo setups · as Black
Keep the dark bishop useful against the London.
Mikenas AttackPopular
A direct try against the English.
Mikenas Attack · as Black
Against Nc3 and e4, know the …d5-d4 hops and don’t get squeezed.
Neo-Catalan
Catalan ideas without an early d4.
Neo-Catalan · as Black
Against g3, hold d5 and don’t let the long diagonal eat the queenside.
Symmetrical
A Sicilian reversed, often quieter.
Symmetrical · as Black
Keep it symmetrical and break the copy on your terms.
Four Knights
A closed, maneuvering game.
Four Knights · as Black
With all four knights out, pin on c3 and look for …d5 later.
Reversed Sicilian
Open Sicilian colors, extra tempo for White.
Reversed Sicilian · as Black
Play Open Sicilian colors a tempo down, then …d5 when you’re ready.
Botvinnik System
A clamp on d5 and a long bishop.
Botvinnik System · as Black
Against the Botvinnik clamp, live with the d4 hole and break with …b5 or …f5.
ScotchPopular
Open the center and trade a pair of knights.
Scotch · as Black
After 3.d4, take on d4 and keep …d5 ready once the knights come off.
Scotch Four Knights
Same Scotch ideas, extra piece out.
Scotch Four Knights · as Black
Against 4.d4 from the Four Knights, take on d4 and play it like a Scotch.
Scotch Gambit
Skip the recapture and hunt f7.
Scotch Gambit · as Black
Against 4.Bc4, develop and meet e5 with …d5 instead of grabbing pawns.
ScandinavianPopular
The old main line, queen out early.
Scandinavian · as Black
Get the queen out, then drop it back when Nd5 comes.
Modern Scandinavian
Skip the early queen trip and fianchetto.
Modern Scandinavian · as Black
Recapture later and fianchetto instead of parking the queen on a5.
Austrian AttackPopular
Extra space and a kingside storm.
Austrian Attack · as Black
Against 4.f4, castle and chip the extra space before e5 lands.
Classical Pirc
A calm setup against the fianchetto.
Classical Pirc · as Black
Against Be2 and Nf3, castle and look for …Bg4 or …c6 without rushing.
150 Attack
Castle long and hunt the g7 bishop.
150 Attack · as Black
Against Be3 and Qd2, expand on the queenside before Bh6 lands.
AlekhinePopular
Provoke the pawns forward, then chip at them.
Alekhine · as Black
Lure the pawns forward, then chip the overextended center.
Four Pawns
The biggest center, the biggest target.
Four Pawns · as Black
Against c4 and f4, chip the huge center before it rolls over you.
RubinsteinPopular
Solid, then Bd3 and a fight for e4.
Against 4.e3, stay solid and fight White’s Bd3-and-e4 plan.
Recapture on c3 with the queen and keep the pawns neat.
Against 4.Qc2, pin on c3 knowing White recaptures neatly.
Kasparov
Skip Qc2 and play a Catalan-flavored Nimzo.
Kasparov · as Black
Against 4.Nf3, skip the Qc2 lines and play a Catalan-flavored Nimzo.
Take the bishop pair and live with doubled c-pawns.
Against 4.a3, give the bishop pair and play against the doubled c-pawns.
ExchangePopular
A big center vs the g7 bishop and ...c5.
After cxd5, chip the big center with …c5 and the g7 bishop.
A quieter Grünfeld, bishop vs bishop.
Bishop vs bishop.
Russian
Pressure d5 before Black is ready.
Russian · as Black
Against 5.Qb3, hold d5 until you’re ready to take on c4.
LeningradPopular
A King's Indian with …f5 already on.
Leningrad · as Black
Storm the kingside with the extra f-pawn already on.
Stonewall Dutch
The same wall as the midgame drill, from move one.
Stonewall Dutch · as Black
Lock the wall and play for a later kingside attack.
Classical Dutch
No wall, no fianchetto, just a kingside attack later.
Classical Dutch · as Black
Skip the wall and swing the queen to the kingside later.
Benko GambitPopular
A pawn for the a- and b-files.
Benko Gambit · as Black
Give a pawn for the open a- and b-files.
Modern Benoni
An extra queenside majority vs White’s center.
Modern Benoni · as Black
Take the extra queenside pawns and play for …b5.
Czech Benoni
Lock the center and play a slow squeeze.
Czech Benoni · as Black
Close the center and squeeze instead of opening it.
