A chess opening or simply an opening is the initial stage of a chess game. It usually consists of established theory; the other phases are the middlegame and the endgame. Many opening sequences have standard names such as the "Sicilian Defense". The Oxford Companion to Chess lists 1,327 named openings and variants, and there are many others with varying degrees of common usage.
The Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings is a reference work describing the state of opening theory in chess, originally published in five volumes from 1974 to 1979 by the Serbian company Šahovski Informator. It is currently undergoing its fifth edition. ECO may also refer to the opening classification system used by the encyclopedia.
The Sicilian Defence is a chess opening that begins with the following moves:
The Pirc Defence is a chess opening characterised by the response of Black to 1.e4 with 1...d6 and 2...Nf6, followed by ...g6 and ...Bg7, while allowing White to establish a centre with pawns on d4 and e4. It is named after the Slovenian grandmaster Vasja Pirc.
The Modern Defense is a hypermodern chess opening in which Black allows White to occupy the center with pawns on d4 and e4, then proceeds to attack and undermine this "ideal" center without attempting to occupy it. The opening has been most notably used by British grandmasters Nigel Davies and Colin McNab.
The English Opening is a chess opening that begins with the move:
The Alekhine's Defence is a chess opening that begins with the moves:
The Caro–Kann Defence is a chess opening characterised by the moves:
The Saragossa Opening is a chess opening defined by the opening move:
The Dunst Opening is a chess opening in which White opens with the move:
Queen's Pawn Game broadly refers to any chess opening starting with the move 1.d4, which is the second most popular opening move after 1.e4.
The King's Pawn Game is any chess opening starting with the move:
The Danish Gambit, known as the Nordisches Gambit in German and the Noords Gambiet in Dutch, is a chess opening that begins with the moves:
In a game of chess, the pawn structure is the configuration of pawns on the chessboard. Because pawns are the least mobile of the chess pieces, the pawn structure is relatively static and thus plays a large role in determining the strategic character of the position.
In chess, the Maróczy Bind is a term alternately used to refer to an opening or its associated pawn structure, named for the Hungarian grandmaster Géza Maróczy. When the Bind is discussed as an opening, it is defined as 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 g6 5. c4. The Maróczy Bind opening is a continuation of the Sicilian Defence, Accelerated Dragon, where 5. c4 is the characteristic move.
The Austrian Attack variation of the Pirc Defence is a chess opening characterised by the following moves:
The Scandinavian Defense is a chess opening characterized by the moves:
