A Startling Chess Opening Repertoire

A new and fully updated edition of a popular chess opening repertoire book. It is based on 1 e4 lines that are slightly off the beaten track, but full of practical sting and cunning traps for unwary opponents. All are based on rapid, healthy development, central control and play against the enemy king. The basic choice of main lines is unchanged from the first edition, but each move has been re-examined and new ideas from practice and analysis incorporated at every turn. The book breaks new ground by making use of the new generation of neural-network based engines inspired by AlphaZero, and is 'future-proofed' by featuring recommendations against rare and untried ideas for Black.

A new and fully updated edition of a popular chess opening repertoire book. It is based on 1 e4 lines that are slightly off the beaten track, but full of practical sting and cunning traps for unwary opponents. All are based on rapid, healthy development, central control and play against the enemy king. The basic choice of main lines is unchanged from the first edition, but each move has been re-examined and new ideas from practice and analysis incorporated at every turn. The book breaks new ground by making use of the new generation of neural-network based engines inspired by AlphaZero, and is 'future-proofed' by featuring recommendations against rare and untried ideas for Black.

This book equips the reader with everything he needs to know to play Black in a game of chess. Two experienced Finnish players have described an exciting repertoire based on the move 1...d6 in reply to whatever White's first move happens to be. Black's strategy is hypermodern and dynamic: White is encouraged to seize space, while Black develops his pieces rapidly and actively, waiting for the ideal moment to attack and destroy White's central bastion. The variations advocated have been proven in top-level play and have quick-strike potential if White is at all careless or imprecise. The repertoire is based around the Pirc Defence and the variations 1 d4 d6 2 c4 e5 and 1 d4 d6 2 Nf3 Bg4, which fit seamlessly together with 1...d6 systems against White's various flank openings.

"In this book, award-winning author Graham Burgess has come up with the ultimate simplified repertoire. But it is not based on boring or unambitious openings. The aim is to avoid symmetry and mass exchanges, and reach an unbalanced middlegame. You won't be dumped into do-or-die tactics where the penalty for forgetting a key move is an instant loss. There are plenty of sharp and aggressive ideas within these pages, but the openings chosen provide a firm and sound base for experimentation. If you forget the critical line and have to make something up at the board, then if you have understood the key strategic themes--which are explained with the use of mini-rules and reminders--then you should get a playable game"--

Bored with the same old openings? Worried about having to learn too much theory? Then this book will come as a godsend. Aaron Summerscale presents a set of exceptionally dangerous opening weapons for White. Each recommended line is based on a solid positional foundation, yet also promises long-term (and short-term!) attacking chances. The variations are not just easy to learn and play, but they also set Black complex problems. * A queen's pawn repertoire based on rapid piece development * Reveals many lethal attacking ideas and traps * Features the legendary '150' and Barry Attacks For this new edition, the publishers enlisted the help of hotshot opening writer Sverre Johnsen, who has updated the coverage where necessary, while retaining the spirit, charm and aims of Summerscale's original work. The killer repertoire remains easy to learn, and is now more dangerous than ever!

A highly adventurous repertoire designed to meet 1 e4 with 1...e5 and take the initiative! The main problem Black faces in answering 1 e4 with 1...e5 is the plethora of opening systems available to White: the Ruy Lopez, Giuoco Piano, Scotch, Ponziani, King’s Gambit, Vienna, Bishop’s Opening and so on. Each is likely to be White’s pet line, which usually means conducting the chess battle on the opponent’s turf. One solution is to study the main lines of all these openings and hope to remember what to do if they appear on the board. Another, more enterprising approach is to turn the tables and make White fight on your territory. Adopting the latter course, CC-SIM Jonathan Tait shares their investigations into a myriad of disregarded, “disreputable” responses, which can set White thinking as early as move three. These lines are greatly under-estimated by contemporary theory and include weird and wonderful variations such as the Calabrese Counter-Gambit (1 e4 e5 2 Bc4 f5), the Wagenbach Defence to the King’s Gambit (1 e4 e5 2 f4 exf4 3 Nf3 h5), the Romanishin Three Knights (1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Nc3 Bc5), the Two Knights Ulvestad Variation (1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bc4 Nf6 4 Ng5 d5 5 exd5 b5) and ultra-sharp lines of the Jaenisch Gambit (1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 f5). The theory of the variations in this book is generally poorly understood. This has made them successful at all forms of play, including against online computer-assisted assault.

White players will thoroughly dislike the Neo-Møller! The Ruy Lopez is one of the most important chess openings, hugely popular with amateurs and masters alike. Black players allowing the Ruy Lopez main lines are usually condemned to passivity, defending a slightly worse (though solid) position for as long as White chooses this situation to continue. World Champion Magnus Carlsen doesn’t like passivity. He likes unconventional and active systems that allow him to take command and put pressure on his opponent from early on. That’s why Magnus Carlsen revolutionized the old Møller Attack, one of the sharpest and most uncompromising variations against the Ruy Lopez. As yet largely disregarded and unexplored by the majority of players, Carlsen’s new approach allows Black to break free early and start giving White a hard time. FIDE Master Ioannis Simeonidis is the first to investigate this system, cover it in detail, and make it easy to grasp for club players. He has called it the Neo-Møller. Simeonidis has made lots of exciting discoveries, presents many new ideas and shows that it is a reliable and playable system. Since the Neo-Møller is a very early deviation from the main lines, it’s easy for Black to actually get it on the board and take opponents out of their comfort zone. Simeonidis has created a compact, accessible and inspirational book. One thing looks certain: White players of the Ruy Lopez are going to thoroughly dislike the Neo-Møller!