Scandinavian Defense: The Dynamic 3…Qd6
Finally, the wait is over. I bought the “Scandinavian Defense: the Dynamic 3…Qd6″ by Michael Melts about a month ago, and yesterday it showed up in my mailbox. Of course, it was the Dutch GM Tiviakov who made this line truly fashionable, playing it at the highest level of chess with astonishingly good results- HOWEVER- I think it must be said that this has as much to do with Tiviakov’s incredible talent than any intrinsic playability of this line of the scando. As one of the finest fighting chess player’s on earth, Tiviakov likely could have played 1…Nh6 with similar results. In any case, I had to try this line out for myself and what better way than to start with an in depth manual written by a correspondence master with a wealth of material on the subject.
The format of the book is essentially a game collection, with an extraordinary amount of detailed parenthetical analysis. Simply playing through the games quickly, however, gives a good enough cursory understanding of the opening to employ it immediately, especially if you are familiar with the pawn structure and the basic piece placement schemes. The pawn structure is similar to that of the Caro-Kann, or French defense in some lines, with pawns on c6 and e6 pinching the central square d5. Perhaps one of the most interesting parts of the book, is how Michael Melts continuously compares the positions arising out of this line of the Scandinavian to other more mainstream defenses, in order to clearly demonstrate how playable 3…Qd6 is since it leads to similar positions as other reputable defenses, such as the Caro-Kann and the French. For example, on page 87, Melts expounds upon the following position, taken from a Scandinavian 3…Qd6 game in which Kasparov played:
Here, Melts asks us to “compare this position with that of the French Defense, Rubinstein Variation, after 1. e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Bd7. Since 1990 the line 4…Bd7 began to be played by many well-known masters. Black’s plan is to exchange off the light-squared bishop via c6, and then the pawn advance c7-c6 will give black a Caro-Kann setup without the bad-bishop. This line is very solid (it was nicknamed the Fort Knox variation), but it is passive. 5Nf3 Bc6 6. Bd3 Nbd7 7.Qe2 Ngf6 8. 0-0 Nxe4 9. Bxe4 Bxe4 10. Qxe4 c6″ which gives us the following diagram:
It is obvious that the two diagrams are nearly identical, however in the first one the queen is more active and it is Black’s turn to move. Melts concludes this aside with “I think if Black can play this position (referring to the second one- the french-) with White to move, he should certainly be able to play the previous position with probably greater success! For example, after 11…Qd5 Black can begin active play for the central squares.”
He then follows this analysis up with six brief, unannotated GM games in this variation, all but one of which ending in a draw.
Overall, what I like about the Scandinavian with 3…Qd6 is that it is so stupendously simple to play. When I first began playing competitively a year ago, I actually played the exact variation of the French to which Michael Melts compares this line in the scando, the so called Fort Knox French Rubinstein. I played that variation because it was so simple that the ideas played themselves, and my long term positional maneuvering plans ensured that deep into the middle game I had ideas for how to keep my camp secure while remaining vigilant for opportunities (in fact, my first ever tournament win was in a Fort Knox French, and it was a miniature.) Ultimately, I dropped the fort knox for the exact reason Melts points out- it is terribly passive, and a strong player often left me groveling for a draw until I cracked under the pressure and created a weakness for him to bite on. The Scandinavian 3…Qd6 (which FICS categorizes as the “schiller” but which I think history will call the “Tiviakov”) allows for fast and simple piece placement, in addition the rock solid Caro-Kann pawn structure.
One quick idea in this variation is to play Nf6, then a6, b5, Bb7 and then build presure in the center after gaining time on the queen side. That plan is most often employed when white has developed his bishop to c4, so that the b5 pawn thrust will gain a tempo. The plan which i prefer though, is with Nf6, c6, Bf5, Nbd7, Be7, and then castling on the same side that white does. This is generally a good idea in the Scandinavian so that white cannot castle on opposite sides and immediately unleash a pawn storm on your king. It is also crucial to avoid tactics involving Bf4 and Nb5, as well as preventing white from creating a strong pawn break with d5.
And the following two games are games that I played this afternoon on FICS as black, one in the French Fort Knox (for old times sake) and one in the Scandinavian 3…Qd6.
Winning with the London: a systematic chess opening for white
After getting beat up badly by the london a few years ago, I got a copy of “Winning with the London” and started using it occasionally myself in blitz games. I have found that there are a few thematic ideas, but that the london is much more of an “ideas” opening than anything else, and ultimately is a great “patzer basher” because it allows for white to just quickly develop and go for an immediate kingside attack without taking much risk. The following game is a nice example of the theme of a quick kingside attack. Naturally, black had several moves which could have defended valiantly, but luckily these were not found in the five minute game.
One theme that comes up often in the london is that Black will develop his dark square bishop to d6, seeking to exchange off white’s annoyingly placed dark squared bishop on f4. I like to deny black this exchange by throwing my knight into the e5 pocket. This is a nice provocative move, and many times I have won easily after black played Nbd7, and then c6 (leaving the bishop loose) as in the following diagram.
Here, the simple Nxf7! is available, since Black has left his bishop loose after playing both c6 and Nbd7 cutting off communication with the queen. This is perhaps one of the simplest visuals that clearly demonstrates the value of prophylaxis and making sure that all of your pieces are protected, as the good Dr. Nunn tells us, Loose Pieces Drop Off. This simple tactic has won me countless blitz games, and is worth noting for anyone who is going to take up this opening with white.
Another, bolder idea behind having the knight on e5, is that from that perch it holds the g4 square, so for the truly psycho attacker, the pawn push g4,g5 is now playable. I have also used this in blitz games, though I usually only play it if i can quickly bring my queen to the kingside of the board to either support the pawns or threaten a dozen nasty tactics. This theme is also common in the “stonewall attack,” which is a cousin of the london system, along with the colle and the Torre attack
Another idea which is often useful in the London, is simply putting the rook on e1, and then powering the e pawn forward. This crude approach can sometimes be devastating though against a weaker player who does not realize that the pawn must be captured, as after it reaches e5, kicking the knight, the classic Bxh7 greek gift theme is imminent.
The following game demonstrates nicely some simple london themes, and ideas for quickly bringing the queen to the kingside of the board just to see what happens…I like this in blitz, as it is simple, straightforward, and often tactics just pleasantly become available.