Chess Opening Courses

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Community Courses

Ruy Lopez

A practical, aggressive repertoire built around an early d4 break: the lines transpose into each other, so it's easy to learn but hard to prepare against.

GM Andrey Esipenko

124 lines total

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London System

One of the easiest openings to learn, with a solid structure and real attacking potential.

GM Mitrabha Guha

64 lines total

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Fried Liver Attack

Sac the knight, grab the king. 12345 boom.

GM Fidel Corrales

46 lines total

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Vienna Gambit

Win a tempo, sac a pawn to open lines, and go straight after the king. GM-approved.

GM Nikita Meshkovs

52 lines total

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Sicilian Kan

A dangerous weapon against 1.e4 that surprises opponents and consistently creates unbalanced, winnable positions.

GM Luka Budisavljevic

52 lines total

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Queen's Gambit Accepted

One of the simplest, most reliable ways to meet 1.d4: equalize fast with clear ideas instead of a mountain of theory.

FM Aleksa Alimpic

51 lines total

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The Caro-Kann

Simple, rock-solid, and feels like a brick wall for your opponents, while you still keep chances to win.

IM Alex Astaneh

30 lines total

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Caro-Kann Defense

Simple to learn, clear plans, solid center: and yes, real attacking chances too.

FM Milan Popovic

40 lines total

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King's Indian Defense

More than an opening: a complete system against 1.d4 for players brave enough to head into the complications.

IM Marko Nenezic

75 lines total

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1.e4 e5

A modern, flexible ...e5 repertoire built to meet White's most popular systems with confidence and active play.

IM Arthur de Winter

48 lines total

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Scandinavian: Mieses-Kotroc

Won't win you the game in 8 moves, but you'll get the queen out early and know exactly what to do with it.

GM Ibro Saric

30 lines total

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Réti

A solid kingside fianchetto that pressures Black's center while we stay in control and play for the edge.

GM Łukasz Jarmuła

26 lines total

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Catalan

Positional soundness with a fianchetto bishop doing superhero work. Opponents rarely see it coming.

IM Mieszko Miś

39 lines total

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French Defense

A solid, fun French built to punish everyone who auto-plays 3.e5 without knowing why.

NM Dan Heisman

64 lines total

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Alapin Sicilian

Grab the center, point your pieces at the king, and give Sicilian players a kingside attack to actually worry about.

by Chessreps

57 lines total

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Sicilian Four Knights

Pile pressure on White's center with pieces and pawn breaks. Prepare for combat.

FM Dalton Perrine

46 lines total

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Spanish Four Knights: Essentials and Tricks

A solid repertoire with real sting. Expect to be a pawn up often within the first few moves.

IM Gert Schnider

28 lines total

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Spanish Four Knights: Mastery

Polish your repertoire and cover the other lines Black will actually throw at you.

IM Gert Schnider

61 lines total

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Four Knights: 4.a3

Surprise opponents with 4.a3 and have them regretting it by move ten.

FM Armin Musovic

33 lines total

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Scandinavian

Scandinavian for Black, with practical ideas from IM Maksim Shchekachikhin.

IM Maksim Shchekachikhin

84 lines total

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Traxler Counterattack

Most players can't resist grabbing 5.Nxf7. If they do, you're ready with the theory that punishes it.

NM Dan Heisman

116 lines total

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Trompowsky Attack

A full 1.d4 repertoire against 1...Nf6 built around 2.Bg5: fresh positions, lots of poison.

GM Sasa Martinovic

32 lines total

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Center Game

Sharp, surprising Central Gambit lines that put pressure on Black from move one.

GM Jacek Stopa

32 lines total

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Alekhine Defense

Let White build the big center: then spend the game tearing into it.

IM Soham Kamotra

53 lines total

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Jobava London

A reliable weapon that either traps your opponent outright or hands you a great attacking position.

FM Vladyslav Fishchuk

23 lines total

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Evans Gambit

Underrated, tricky, and built for players who like sacrifices.

FM Nikolai Maevskii

33 lines total

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Scotch Gambit

Develop fast, gambit a pawn, and rip the center open before Black's pieces wake up.

NM Laura Smith

24 lines total

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Göring Gambit

Like the Smith-Morra, this uses the gambit as a tactics trainer: calculation and attacking instincts that carry way beyond the opening.

CM Azel Chua

42 lines total

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1.d4

A surprisingly aggressive 1.d4 repertoire, trimmed down so you're not stuck memorizing endless lines.

NM Theo Slade

38 lines total

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Tarrasch Defense

Counter the Queen's Gambit with a poisonous, perfectly sound gambit.

FM Vladyslav Fishchuk

21 lines total

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French Defense

A dependable French for players who want playable middlegames, not a second job memorizing theory.

CM Azel Chua

31 lines total

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Smith-Morra Gambit

More than a gambit: organized by tactical themes to build pattern recognition that carries into every other opening.

CM Azel Chua

43 lines total

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Smith-Morra Gambit Declined

Want to play the aggressive Smith-Morra Gambit, but Black declines it? This course covers Black's main ways to avoid the gambit and shows you how to punish them.

by Chessreps

30 lines total

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English Botvinnik

Master the setup: c4, Nc3, g3, Bg2, d3, e4. Flexible, long-term, and annoyingly effective against almost anything.

IM Valeri Lilov

33 lines total

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Nimzo-Larsen Attack

Tired of long lines? Play 1.b3 and bamboozle people from move one.

IM Soham Kamotra

33 lines total

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Zukertort

Bishop on b2, knight on e5, bishop on d3: a clean base for kingside piece play.

FM Nikolai Maevskii

40 lines total

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1.c4 e5 2.g3

Engines love this English for good reason: grab the central light squares and make your opponent start thinking on move one.

NM Dan Heisman

50 lines total

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Counter the London

Dismantle the London in just 30 lines with 2...c5 and 3...Qb6: White's fighting for survival by move three.

FM Vuk Zegarac

30 lines total

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Counter the Caro-Kann

The Advance Variation: grab space early and make Caro-Kann players work for everything.

CM Azel Chua

30 lines total

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Counter the Scandinavian: Main Lines

Crush the Scandinavian after ...Qxd5, ...Qa5, or ...Qd8.

IM Gert Schnider

42 lines total

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Counter the Scandinavian: Sidelines

Play energetically and grab the edge against every Scandinavian sideline.

IM Gert Schnider

38 lines total

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Counter the Scandinavian

A complete, practical answer that leaves Scandinavian players in unfamiliar territory and hands you the initiative.

FM Amro El Jawich

42 lines total

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Counter the French

An ambitious anti-French repertoire that puts Black on the defensive right from the opening.

FM Vuk Zegarac

30 lines total

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Counter the Vienna

Don't let White get comfortable: meet 2.Nc3 with ...Nf6 and take the game into your own hands.

FM Vuk Zegarac

30 lines total

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Benoni

One of the most dynamic answers to 1.d4: sharp, unbalanced, and built for immediate counterplay.

FM Richard Turcan

26 lines total

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The Notorious Benoni

For players who refuse quiet equality: dynamic pawn structures and relentless counterplay from the first moves.

FM Vuk Zegarac

40 lines total

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Trompowsky Attack

Quick to learn, genuinely dangerous: 2.Bg5 against both ...d5 and ...Nf6.

IM Vojislav Milanović

31 lines total

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Trompowsky Attack

Poison Black's pawn structure from move two and make them live with it all game.

FM Vuk Zegarac

40 lines total

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Counter 1.e4 with 1...e5

1.e4 is White's most dangerous try. Meet it with the best response and build something rock solid.

NM Theo Slade

32 lines total

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