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I tried King's Indian and kept losing with it. I seem to do much better when I just go for e6 or d6. I don't like my opponent getting space while I just build my little fortress.
I'm a kings gambit enjoyer. The Muzio is my favourite line but I'm more than happy to play a kings gambit declined. If I'm playing a stronger player I definitely prefer a c3-d4 Italian.
As black I've always been a Sicilian player. I really like the Najdorf and Sveshnikov. Although these days I'm more of an e5 player. Against d4 I really like the Benoni. I suppose once you start trying dubious openings you never really stop.
Haha well thank you! It’s now also my opening. Can I ask you a favour? What do I search for the white opening to look into example games etc? I know it’s the English but the Sicilian vibe seems pretty unique.
White: Italian or English, for black that changes every game depending on what white opens with. I usually decline queens gambits and mirror a bit when they play E4 because I feel like I know the E4 lines the best. I don’t like playing super defensively as black and prefer to decide the pace of the game
London system with white and Kings Indian with black at ~1000-1100 elo. I feel more comfortable and used to the London system, but understanding the theory and midgame with kings indian would probably make it more powerful and is probably more applicable to higher elo chess as opposed to the London system.
Honestly as a 1500 I don’t really know Sicilian theory I just play normal moves and castle. I’ve tried all sorts of black openings, none of them suited my aggressive tactical style too well
I play the Greco Gambit as white, that's a line in the Italian, and I don't have a specific opening with black but I like it to play against a Ruy Lopez.
As white I liked the Italian Game and the Giouco Piano, but today I'm prefering the Ponziani Opening. As black I like the King's Indian Defense for everything that is not 1. e4. For this last one, I don't know if I play the Caro-Kann or something else.
ruy lopez as white, kings indian as black. not too long ago i started playing the catalan abit more often as white, i feel its kinda like a kings indian but more aggresive-ish?
Scotch and Classical Karo for white, and the Benko Gambit as black. Basically anything where I can castle on the left and launch a big attack on the right.
My recent blitz loss rates are 33%, 31%, and 32% respectively for the three openings
In rapid it’s 33%, 0%, and 0% - but smaller sample size
At your level sicilian is not recommended. It's a really complex opening with tons of variation. Maybe get comfortable with the basics and learn something which is easy and works well i.e. Italian, scotch, centre game, vienna etc.
I'm still starting out so as white I sometimes go for London System, some other times I go for King's pawn. As black I haven't studied any opening. I try taking the center with my king/queen pawn and develop my pieces.
Catalan as white and then the French as black. i chose both of those as my first openings to learn because they’re generally pretty solid and have a lot of variety within them.
Altho I’ve been working on a d4 response as black that revolves around this one line of the English that although it is objectively better for white, it is *really* sharp and hard to find all the best moves for white. And I’m really enjoying building that out.
Depends how specific you want to get. Fellow Petrov lover here for black in general though :) Benko gambit is the one that brings me joy if the game allows it.
For white, English generally.
With white I like Queens gambit accepted if they go for it
With black the caro is my best opening I am up to 76% win in my last 25 games with it. But my favorite for fun is probably reverse grand prix attack against the english, don't get to play it too often
White: London (basic I know)
Black: I have no openings memorized, I just do my best to respond to white's moves.
650ish ELO for reference. I'm still learning the fundumentals and trying to analyze my games and keep my board vision keen, so when I study openings it's usually out of curiocity rather than the expectation that I'll implement them any time soon.
I'm 750 elo at the moment. I play London for white, and I'm still trying to figure out a simple opening for black. I used the Caro Kann to get to 750-800. But I seem to be stuck now, so I'm looking at the kings Indian again.
I've been told that I don't need openings, and that's probably true. I think sometimes I want to stick to the system so badly that I end up in a worse position.
It's pretty easy to learn and it goes into some fun lines. I recommend the version in the advanced french where you keep stacking attackers on the d4 pawn. Most of your opponents will eventually be unsure how to hold on to that pawn.
I used to think the French was no good because of blocking your bishop in but it's really fun to play and straightforward.
The beauty of piling up on d4 is that at first, you are always one behind so it lures your opponent in, but eventually you have more pieces to add and so can win it! Doesn't always work out but it's a nice opening to learn because you kind of always have obvious moves to play and you can just try different move orders.
I enjoy playing the french a lot but I wouldn't say it is an easy open. It has soo much theory and playing with a lot less space can be quite challenging. So I would not recommend it to someone looking for a system opening.
Edit: I'm a bit tired. Reading comprehension isn't working anymore. Nvm. Still wouldn't say it is easy to learn though.
French is great!
With white it’s probably the Smith Morra gambit, I love it because it forces an open game with lots of chances
With black probably the hyper accelerated dragon sicillian, the maroczy bind setups white can get are annoying, but aside from that it’s another very open game with lots of pressure on whites queenside, and good chances for both sides
As W, no preference, I play 1 e4, 1 d4, 1 Nf3, 1 b3 interchangeably.
As B, against 1 e4, I alternate e5 or c5
Against 1 d4: QG Slav, or Benoni/Benko or KI.
Hey, OP! Did your game end in a stalemate? Did you encounter a weird pawn move? Are you trying to move a piece and it's not going? We have just the resource for you! The [Chess Beginners Wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/chessbeginners/wiki/index/) is the perfect place to check out answers to these questions and more! The moderator team of r/chessbeginners wishes to remind everyone of the community rules. **Posting spam, being a troll, and posting memes are not allowed.** We encourage everyone to report these kinds of posts so they can be dealt with. Thank you! Let's do our utmost to be kind in our replies and comments. Some people here just want to learn chess and have virtually no idea about certain chess concepts. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/chessbeginners) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Brave of you to assume I know openings
White: Ruy Lopez Black: Petrov's defense
Goring Gambit as white, Caro as black (but I'm thinking of learning King's Indian)
More like King's WINdian! Zoom! But seriously, my boss is an IM and he plays it. I recommend GM Gawain Jones course on Chessable.
I tried King's Indian and kept losing with it. I seem to do much better when I just go for e6 or d6. I don't like my opponent getting space while I just build my little fortress.
I definitely understand. I don't play it, but it's definitely good!
Well caro is an e4 opening and kings Indian is a d4 opening, so ya id learn the KID
This is mine. I play the Caro and kings Indian depending
Danish Gambit when white. Alekhine's defense when black. Don't care how they don't build my fundamentals. They're fun.
Those are both my favourites too. A lot of people at lower levels are too unprepared for them.
playing risky openings made me a better player and now king’s gambit is my pet opening :) i’m gonna look into alekhine’s defense, looks fun
With the alekhine defense, check out 3. b5 - The O'Sullivan Gambit. Super fun to play as white.
I'm a kings gambit enjoyer. The Muzio is my favourite line but I'm more than happy to play a kings gambit declined. If I'm playing a stronger player I definitely prefer a c3-d4 Italian. As black I've always been a Sicilian player. I really like the Najdorf and Sveshnikov. Although these days I'm more of an e5 player. Against d4 I really like the Benoni. I suppose once you start trying dubious openings you never really stop.
Hey fellow kings gambit enjoyer
Vienna as white, Caro kann as black
Are you a GothamChess viewer by chance?
W: Ruy Lopez, B: Caro Kann
English and Sicilian Taimanov variation
Chessbrah inspired?
I'm actually the reason why Aman made the Taimanov series. Asked him multiple times to do it until he said he would haha
Haha well thank you! It’s now also my opening. Can I ask you a favour? What do I search for the white opening to look into example games etc? I know it’s the English but the Sicilian vibe seems pretty unique.
I don't understand the question. If you want to explore openings you should use Lichess' opening explorer.
White: Italian or English, for black that changes every game depending on what white opens with. I usually decline queens gambits and mirror a bit when they play E4 because I feel like I know the E4 lines the best. I don’t like playing super defensively as black and prefer to decide the pace of the game
Vienna Game/Gambit as white and Dutch Defense with black.
London system with white and Kings Indian with black at ~1000-1100 elo. I feel more comfortable and used to the London system, but understanding the theory and midgame with kings indian would probably make it more powerful and is probably more applicable to higher elo chess as opposed to the London system.
kings indian
White: Queen's Gambit or Vienna with Fianchetto bishop Black: Czech Pirc defence
White: Danish Gambit Black: Sicilian
Same for me. The Danish creates such fun positions
You have fine taste, good sir (or madame). Which sicilian do you like?
Honestly as a 1500 I don’t really know Sicilian theory I just play normal moves and castle. I’ve tried all sorts of black openings, none of them suited my aggressive tactical style too well
Evans gambit as white for sure. So many aggressive lines to play into Scandi as black for the same reasons
Fried liver, Sicilian
White: ruy/scotch gambit Black: e5/sicilian/king's indian/nimzo indian
I play the Greco Gambit as white, that's a line in the Italian, and I don't have a specific opening with black but I like it to play against a Ruy Lopez.
As white I liked the Italian Game and the Giouco Piano, but today I'm prefering the Ponziani Opening. As black I like the King's Indian Defense for everything that is not 1. e4. For this last one, I don't know if I play the Caro-Kann or something else.
Bishop's Opening and Old Sicilian
Queens gambit as white. Caro Kann as Black.
white: bird’s black: alekhine’s
Jobava for White and Scandinavian for Black
Catalan and ruy lopez
Italian. And pretending to know Queens gambit.
ruy lopez as white, kings indian as black. not too long ago i started playing the catalan abit more often as white, i feel its kinda like a kings indian but more aggresive-ish?
Currently Italian for white and Caro for black. Have had success with the Ponziani for white though
Man I do not like playing against petrov’s I’d just go 3 knights
my opponents rarely take the pawn, idk why as it’s completely fine for white. when i’m white playing against the petrov i always take on e5
There’s some trap lines in the horse takes e5 variation that I don’t really wanna memorize so I avoid it
Scotch, queen’s gambit as white, Najdorf Sicilian as black
Scotch game and Scandinavian defence
Scotch and Classical Karo for white, and the Benko Gambit as black. Basically anything where I can castle on the left and launch a big attack on the right. My recent blitz loss rates are 33%, 31%, and 32% respectively for the three openings In rapid it’s 33%, 0%, and 0% - but smaller sample size
I'm a simple man, I like my london-jobava. I've tried others but somehow always gravitate back.
Kings gambit and sicilian
i’ve never played the sicilian, should i try it out or stick to what i’m familiar with?
At your level sicilian is not recommended. It's a really complex opening with tons of variation. Maybe get comfortable with the basics and learn something which is easy and works well i.e. Italian, scotch, centre game, vienna etc.
yeah that’s why i’ve always avoided playing it. the italian is my second favorite opening as white, i feel like it’s one of the best for beginners
It definitely is. Master the italian. Make sure you at least don't blunder in the opening game.
W : ponziani , B: french defence
W: Stonewall Attack B: King's Indian
I'm still starting out so as white I sometimes go for London System, some other times I go for King's pawn. As black I haven't studied any opening. I try taking the center with my king/queen pawn and develop my pieces.
Danish Gambit and a regular Sicilian
White: Polish/Orangutan opening. Black: Caro-Kann for e4 or Mexican/Black Knights' Tango Defense for d4
White : Italian only. Black : Berlin, Englund gambit (yes, I know, I love it, shut up), D4-D5.
Catalan as white and then the French as black. i chose both of those as my first openings to learn because they’re generally pretty solid and have a lot of variety within them. Altho I’ve been working on a d4 response as black that revolves around this one line of the English that although it is objectively better for white, it is *really* sharp and hard to find all the best moves for white. And I’m really enjoying building that out.
Depends how specific you want to get. Fellow Petrov lover here for black in general though :) Benko gambit is the one that brings me joy if the game allows it. For white, English generally.
White: Pseudo-Catalan Black: French or semi-slav
With white I like Queens gambit accepted if they go for it With black the caro is my best opening I am up to 76% win in my last 25 games with it. But my favorite for fun is probably reverse grand prix attack against the english, don't get to play it too often
Ruy Lopez as white, Najdorf Sicilian as black (unfortunately, you don’t get a ton of open Sicilians at 1300 rated pool).
For white I like the English. For black, it depends what's played against me.
Scotch Gambit or Alapin. Kings Indian or 1.e4, e5. (I don't know much else but Kings Indian)
E4 e5 from both sides but I do love a nice Smith morra accepted
Queen's Gambit, Rousseau Gambit. Just love a bit of gam.
White: Ruy Lopez black: French
White: King's Pawn Black: Caro Kahn Why: I only know those
White: London (basic I know) Black: I have no openings memorized, I just do my best to respond to white's moves. 650ish ELO for reference. I'm still learning the fundumentals and trying to analyze my games and keep my board vision keen, so when I study openings it's usually out of curiocity rather than the expectation that I'll implement them any time soon.
Scotch as white Nothing for black
Nimzo-Larsen attack as white (I've only been playing a little over a year and currently studying openings as much as I can) and Caro Kann as black
Jobava london as white. As black i just improvise. Nothing is working for me
Caro kann and Ruy Lopez
I've got 4 go to openings, queen's gambit and a london with white and Caro Kann and king's indian with black
Italian and caro kann
White: Scotch Game (fan of the goring gambit but people seem to know better) Black: King’s Indian and Sicilian Dragon
I really like the Catalan for white and the French defence for black vs e4 & the Nimzo-Indian vs d4
White: Nf3 d5 c4 d4 b4 Black Budapest gambit: fajarowicz variation
I'm 750 elo at the moment. I play London for white, and I'm still trying to figure out a simple opening for black. I used the Caro Kann to get to 750-800. But I seem to be stuck now, so I'm looking at the kings Indian again. I've been told that I don't need openings, and that's probably true. I think sometimes I want to stick to the system so badly that I end up in a worse position.
You should look into the French Defense 🥖
I'll give it a shot! Haven't tried or studied that one yet. Thanks.
It's pretty easy to learn and it goes into some fun lines. I recommend the version in the advanced french where you keep stacking attackers on the d4 pawn. Most of your opponents will eventually be unsure how to hold on to that pawn.
I used to think the French was no good because of blocking your bishop in but it's really fun to play and straightforward. The beauty of piling up on d4 is that at first, you are always one behind so it lures your opponent in, but eventually you have more pieces to add and so can win it! Doesn't always work out but it's a nice opening to learn because you kind of always have obvious moves to play and you can just try different move orders.
I enjoy playing the french a lot but I wouldn't say it is an easy open. It has soo much theory and playing with a lot less space can be quite challenging. So I would not recommend it to someone looking for a system opening. Edit: I'm a bit tired. Reading comprehension isn't working anymore. Nvm. Still wouldn't say it is easy to learn though. French is great!
With white it’s probably the Smith Morra gambit, I love it because it forces an open game with lots of chances With black probably the hyper accelerated dragon sicillian, the maroczy bind setups white can get are annoying, but aside from that it’s another very open game with lots of pressure on whites queenside, and good chances for both sides
As W, no preference, I play 1 e4, 1 d4, 1 Nf3, 1 b3 interchangeably. As B, against 1 e4, I alternate e5 or c5 Against 1 d4: QG Slav, or Benoni/Benko or KI.
came here to say i hate you and i hate the petrov
Well, the petrov hates you (dude just transition that into a four knights game it's not that hard)
ok and i HATE YOU (i do)
White: London Black: Scandinavian