Favorite defense?

[Bigfoot]

One of my favorites is the Budapest defense:
1) d4 Nf6
2) c4 e5

It's true that White can get a good game in this line, but Black can spring some nasty tactical surprises if White is unprepared. I find that this line is not as well-known at the club level. I avoid playing the Sicilian against 1) e4 ..., but that's because I have not really studied the line and there are just too many variations. Against 1) e4 ... I like Petroff's defense.

@Chieftess - Your psychological tactics remind me of something a friend of mine used to do. He was a smoker, and before a tournament he would prepare one cigarette with a wire inserted down its length (this was before all smokers in the US were considered just one notch better than criminals, and could still smoke indoors). He would light up and then let the ash get longer, and longer and longer... all the while just gazing at the game position. Before long his opponent would become so distracted by the amazing length of that cigerette ash that he lost focus on the game and would make a mistake .

 

[Mongols_rule]

Sicilian for me, is easy because as White, I don't allow Black to get strong pawn positions in the center.

1. E4 - C5 (Sicilian Defense)

2. D4 (pretty unorthodox, I guess)

Now, here Black has to take that pawn or else he'll have a weak pawn on C5.

so...

2. Black X D4

3. Nf3

 

[punkbass2000]

Sicilian for me, is easy because as White, I don't allow Black to get strong pawn positions in the center.

1. E4 - C5 (Sicilian Defense)

2. D4 (pretty unorthodox, I guess)

Now, here Black has to take that pawn or else he'll have a weak pawn on C5.

so...

2. Black X D4

3. Nf3

..wouldn't that be a typical Open Sicilian, just slightly transposed?

 

[Richard Cribb]

In most cases yes, but black can play3...e5!?, which is rather risky though. The point is that 4.Nxe5?? is refuted by 4...Qa5!+ and wins. However white has good compenstion after 4.Bc4 (Perhaps also 4.c3!?) ;development advantage, initiative.
I have an amusing example from my own practice with this line, from a tournament in Eforie Nord(Romania). I very much needed a point, and after 1.d4 c5 I transposed into this line: 2.e4 cxd4 3.Nf3 e5 4.Bc4. After 4...Be7? 5.c3 I had a clear advantage and duly won. The point is a 5.dxc3 is refuted by 6.Qd5.
By the way, Morphy usually played 2.d4, but as far as I know, nobody played 3...e5 against him.
Interesting is also 3...a6!?, which seems rather useless. However if then 4.Nxd4 it follows 4...Nf6 5.Nc3 e5 and we have the O'Kelly-varition which is rather tricky to handle. Likewise black can also try 3..h6!?, meeting 4.Nxd4 with 4...Nf6 5.Nc3 e5. I don't know the name of this line, but I think Stefan Bücker played it.
However in both the last-mentioned lines white can try the rather promising gambit 4.c3!?

soviet - I agree, the Four Knights is a bit different.However, there are sharp lines also here, like 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Ndb5 Bb4 7.Bf4!? Or 6...Bc5 - i think this line is nick-named the cobra.

Red_Threat - Those ...Nc6-lines are my favourite's too. This summer I visited my parents-in-law in Poland, and was so lucky to find Eduard Gufeld's book. Those games he played essaying Nc6 against the Sämisch...if only I could play like that!

 

[Mongols_rule]

By the way, Morphy usually played 2.d4, but as far as I know, nobody played 3...e5 against him.

Yeah... Morphy kicked some serious ass

 

[Soviet]

yep luce, I hate the Bf4 line haha, luckily nobody in my club has played it yet against me

the budapest- aaargh hate that as white LOL especially in fast games

 

[Richard Cribb]

yep luce, I hate the Bf4 line haha, luckily nobody in my club has played it yet against me

the budapest- aaargh hate that as white LOL especially in fast games

Exactly why I could afford to play the Najdorf or Dragon in my club too, people didn't know the most critical lines...
About this Bf4 line, I think that black has quite good practical chances, a particulary drastic example being:1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.Nf3 e6 4.d4 cxd4 5.Nxd4 Nf6 6.Ndb5 Bb4 7.Bf4 Nxe4 8.Nc7+ Kf8 9.Nxa8 Qf6 10.Qf3 Nxc3 11.Bd2 Nd4 12.Qd3 Qe5+ 13.Be3 Na4 14.c3 Nxb2 15.Qb1 Bxc3 mate 0-1 Reggio-Tarrasch, Monte Carlo 1902

And as for the Budapest, yes it is quite an interesting option for Black, on the few occations I meet it (I usually play the "vegetative" 1.c4, 1. Nf3 or 1.g3) I will adopt Rubinstein's 4.Bf4
(after 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ng4) and settle for a little but clear advantage...

 

[Bigfoot]

Re: the Budapest, in my experience the most common line has been:
1) d4 Nf6
2) c4 e5
3) de Ng4 (Ne4 is also possible... the 'Fighting Faj' is even less well-known... )
4) Bf4 Nc6
5) Nf3 Bb4+

Here I prefer 6) Nbd2 for White, but many players opt to keep the extra pawn with Nc3 and Qd5. In those cases I will make it a true gambit with ...Qe7, ...Bxc3+ and ...f6. White is up a pawn, but the 'c' pawns are doubled and isolated, and Black has counter-play along the 'f' file (after castling). BTW, I have yet to see a player not accept the gambit in a tournament game (even against expert and master opponents).

 

[Richard Cribb]

Bigfoot - I basically agree with you that black has good counter-chances in the main line 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ng4 4.Bf4 Nc6 5.Nf3 Bb4+ 6.Nc3 Bxc3+ 7.bxc3 Qe7 8.Qd5 f6! (For a drastic refutation of 8...Qa3?, see Gligoric - Westerinen, Venice 1971). But to me, it seems that white is on top in this line anyway, so if I really needed a win I would prefer it to Nbd2. This is, however a matter of taste.
And white usually accept those gambits, simply because one can not let black get away with such things for free.

 

[Longasc]

I would say French. Sicilian is not a Defense in the sense of the word for me. Quite the opposite of French, much more dynamic while French is more static.

But honestly, I played neither in my chess days. (almost 10 years over <g>)

 

[Mongols_rule]

I used to play French but thought it was way too slow in developing pieces. i switched to the scandinavian!

 

[Mongols_rule]

Whoa, hold on, I just came back after a month after studying quite a bit of chess. My views have really changed and stuff. now, I love Orthodox Defense as white and Two Knights as black.

 

[FinnMcCool]

I've played Alekhines for years now, there were some great players in the British championships who tested it out. I absolutely love the positions this opening can develop. All the time, positional play leads to material gain. Personally, I don't favor the g7 fianchetto; it weakens the already weak Kingside. Vulnerable to a pawnstorm. Usually, as black I try to use the q-side knights to pick off pawns. Several times, I've gotten to an endgame with 4 or 5 pawns for a knight. Against really serious players, it's hard for white not to lose at least one center pawn. Alekhine is called "the first hypermodern" and I am inclined to agree. The "four-pawns attack" isn't an attack at all. It's White sticking himself way out in the wind, letting black pick off the pawns at will. The bishops posted at ...Bg4 and ...Bb4 pin the knights. Called the "two-pronged counterattack" I believe...

 

[col]

Pirc/Modern/Robatsch/Kings Indian

I play similiar systems against any white opening - and oftern play them reversed as white.

I used to play the Sicilian Dragon but that got just too well analysed.

 

[Chieftess]

I haven't played chess for a long while, but these terms are unfamilar... Anyway, back in highschool, my favorite defense (or offense) was pyschological. I'd patiently wear my opponent down until they made a mistake. Whether it was an infinite loop of moving pieces in and out, or just taking a minute to make a move. It did work.

 

[col]

I used to play a lot a long time ago - reached 200+ (BCF) which is 2200 Elo I think and played board one for my university and my city. Gave it up to play tournament bridge - and Civ.

 

[josephstalin]

Caro-Kann is ussually my favorite, but nice to know how many love Sicilian...

 

[Narz]

My favorite (against d4) is the Budapest too!

Against e4 I play Sicilian about 80% of the time and the rest of the time I play e5.

I like e5 becuase you really have to stay on your toes against a good player!

With Sicilian I ususually try to bring my bishop to g7 and eventually advance pawn to d5 breaking open the center.

Or I play the Loewenthal (1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e5)

 

[Tomoyo]

Against 1. e4, I play Sicilian (If white plays open, I usually do Schvenig-something -- can't spell it for my life -- used to play the dragon but white's eventual bishop on h6 was very annoying) half the time and Caro-Kann the other half.

Against 1. d4, I play QGD, Tartakover (sp?) if it comes to that point. Against 1. c4, I play 1. ...e6 and it usually transposes to QGD.

The one time I played against 1. Nf3 seriously, which became a Benoni reversed, I took the c pawn and fell victim to some tactical quirk.

I love playing against the 2. ...d6 Sicilians for some reason. I play the Keres attack (1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 e6 6. g4) and and usually manage to break down Black's kingside (or open some lines), and after Queenside castling, attack on the kingside.