A defensive learning tool for club chess players — not a cheating engine.
The board starts as a normal chess game. Drag a piece (or tap, then tap the destination) to play out White's first moves alongside Black's responses. Up to 12 moves.
Recognition covers 3,600+ named openings from the Lichess database. We have defense guides for 6 of the most popular opening families so far.
White wants a quiet, technical game where their structure does the work. Your job is to make sure they don't get one. Four ways, ranked by style.
This guide works against any London System variation you'll see at club level. See variations at the bottom for notes on the Jobava London and other move orders.
Castle kingside, then explode in the center with ...e5 or ...c5. Accept a slightly cramped position in exchange for a violent middlegame.
Sharp and unbalanced. You're hunting White's king or breaking the center. The bishop on f4 becomes a target.
Don't let White get a quiet game. Time ...e5 right. If they take, you get a strong center. If they don't, push ...e4 and dominate.
Mirror White's setup. Develop pieces classically. Strike with ...c5 to challenge d4 and open lines.
Balanced and positional. You're slowly improving your pieces. Games often decide in the endgame.
Early ...c5 is critical. It prevents White from comfortably playing c3. If White ever plays dxc5, you have easy development.
Get your problem bishop out of the pawn chain immediately. Then develop everything else naturally.
Comfortable and natural. Both sides have similar structures. You won't get crushed in the opening.
The light-squared bishop is the hardest piece to develop in d5 structures. Play ...Bf5 first and you solve your biggest problem before it becomes one.
Hit the b2 pawn early. White's setup doesn't easily defend it. They're forced into awkward choices like Qb3 (which lets you trade queens favorably) or Qc1 (passive).
Slightly tactical with concrete questions in the opening. After the skirmish, you usually emerge with a good position.
Most London players have never thought about defending b2. They're on autopilot. You break the autopilot.
London players occasionally deviate from the main move order. Most don't change your plan. Two are worth a quick note.
What's different: White's knight goes to c3 instead of f3. This means White can play e4 faster, breaking open the center.
What to do: Slow your kingside development. Play ...e6 first to control e4. Otherwise treat it like a standard London — all four defenses still work, you just need to be alert for the e4 push.
What's different: White plays Bf4 before Nf3, skipping the symmetrical setup. The plans are nearly identical to standard London.
What to do: Treat it exactly like the standard London. You haven't committed to anything yet on move 1, so all four defenses are available. The most natural response is ...d5 followed by your usual setup.
Other rare variations (London with c4, Krause Variation, Steinitz Countergambit) almost never appear in club games. If you face one, your existing defense plan still works - the structure is what matters, not the exact move order.
White builds slowly, then unleashes a sudden kingside attack. The defense isn't to wait. It's to attack first, or attack the right squares.
This guide works against any KIA setup you'll see at club level. See variations at the bottom for notes on KIA via 1.e4 and English-style move orders.
Build a queenside pawn storm while White builds a kingside one. It's a race. Often the side who attacks first wins.
Sharp, opposite-side attacking. You're throwing pawns at White's queenside pieces. Calculation matters.
Don't sit and wait. The KIA gets dangerous when Black plays slow defensive moves. You need ...b5, ...b4, ...a5 rolling fast.
Solid development with the ...Bg4 pin annoying White. Not trying to win in the opening, just reach a comfortable middlegame where the KIA's attacking ideas don't work.
Quiet, positional, slightly drawish. Good if you outplay opponents in the endgame.
The ...Bg4 pin is the trick. It restrains White's e4 break - moving the f3 knight loses tempo, and h3 weakens the kingside where White wants to attack.
Play a King's Indian against the King's Indian Attack. Both of you have the same setup. Whoever understands the structure better wins.
Balanced and maneuvering. You're looking for the right moment to break with ...c6 and ...d5, or ...f5.
Symmetry favors whoever moves second. You get to react to White's plan. They have to commit first.
Unusual setup with the knight on e7 instead of f6, keeping the f-pawn ready to push to ...f5. Aims to take over the center with later ...d5 or ...f5.
Original and off-book. White's prep won't help them. Both players are thinking from move 5 onward.
Most KIA players have a script. This setup isn't in the script. You force them to play chess instead of moves.
The KIA is a setup, not a fixed move order. White can reach it through several different first moves. The plans are the same, just the move order changes.
What's different: White plays 1.e4 and only later commits to the KIA setup. Common against French-style 1...e6 - the move order tells you White wants to skip French theory.
What to do: Treat it like a normal KIA. The French-Style Counter-Attack (Defense A) is perfectly tuned for this exact move order - you're already in the right position.
What's different: White starts with the English Opening but heads for a KIA-like fianchetto setup. The c4 push prepares queenside expansion alongside the g3 fianchetto.
What to do: The Double Fianchetto (Defense C) handles this well. Play ...g6, ...Bg7, ...d6, develop normally. The English version isn't fundamentally different - just slightly more queenside-focused.
Rare KIA move orders (1.b3, 1.Nf3 followed by an early b3, etc.) are essentially the same setup with different first moves. Your defense plan from any of the four guides above still applies.
White points the bishop at f7 and waits for you to slip. Most club games start this way, so know your way through. Four defenses, ranked by style.
This guide works against any Italian setup you'll see at club level. See variations at the bottom for notes on the Italian Gambit (4.d4) and Bishop's Opening move orders.
Develop with tempo. Invite 4.Ng5 - the Fried Liver line - and meet it with the Polerio defense, giving up a pawn for active piece play and attacking chances.
Sharp when White plays Ng5. Slightly tense and tactical otherwise. You're usually the one creating threats.
Don't fear 4.Ng5. The lines have been calculated to death and Black is fine. The point is to deny White the slow Italian buildup.
Mirror White's development. Both sides castle, both develop quietly. Then maneuver. The ...h6 + ...Bg4 pin or ...Na5 hitting the c4 bishop are typical plans.
Slow and positional. Often called "the quietest chess." Wins come from outplaying opponents in maneuvering.
White wants the Italian to be a system. You can play it the same way. Don't get pushed into desperate plans.
Quiet, solid bishop development. Then ...Nf6, ...d6, ...O-O, ...c6, ...Nbd7. A Philidor-like structure with sound development.
Slightly cramped but solid. Hard to lose quickly. You'll need patience and endgame skill.
This sidesteps everything tactical in the Italian. No Fried Liver, no Evans Gambit, no Italian tactics. You just develop.
Most White players preparing the Evans Gambit have only studied 4...Bxb4 (accepting). After 4...Bb6, White's b4 pawn is a target and the c4 bishop has no good square.
Slightly unbalanced. White has more space on the queenside, you have a target (the b4 pawn) and easy development.
Most Evans players are tactical attackers. Declining the gambit drains all the fun out of their opening prep.
The Italian has a few popular alternate move orders. Most lead back into familiar positions. Two are worth knowing.
What's different: White pushes d4 immediately, trying to open the center for the Italian bishop. More aggressive than the typical slow Italian.
What to do: Take the pawn with 4...exd4 and meet 5.c3 with 5...Nf6 (don't take the c-pawn). After 6.cxd4 Bb4+, you reach a good Greco-style position. The Two Knights (Defense A) move order also handles this if you've played 3...Nf6 instead of 3...Bc5.
What's different: White develops the bishop before the knight, sometimes intending Qh5 tactics or a transposition to the Vienna or Italian.
What to do: Just play 2...Nf6 and treat it like an Italian. If White plays 3.Nf3 you're back in book. If they play 3.d3 (Lopez-style), the Giuoco Pianissimo (Defense B) plans work fine.
The Vienna Game (2.Nc3) and Center Game (2.d4) are technically different openings but the same defensive principles apply - develop with ...Nf6 and ...Nc6, contest the center, don't get attacked on f7.
The most popular d-pawn opening in chess. White offers a pawn to gain center control. Four ways to respond, ranked by style.
This guide works against any Queen's Gambit setup you'll see at club level. See variations at the bottom for notes on the Catalan and Exchange QGD.
Grab the pawn, give it back at the right moment, and aim for fast development with ...c5, ...Nf6, ...Nc6, ...a6 and ...b5 to support a queenside expansion.
Open, active, slightly tactical. You have the open d-file and active pieces. Your e-pawn structure can be slightly weak if you're not careful.
Don't try to hold the c4 pawn. Accept it, develop fast, give it back if needed. Your goal is active piece play, not material.
Support d5 with c6 instead of e6. This keeps your light-squared bishop free to develop to f5 or g4 outside the pawn chain - solving the classic Queen's Gambit problem before it appears.
Solid and slightly slower. Hard to lose quickly. Strong endgame potential if you can trade pieces.
The Slav's whole point is to develop the light-squared bishop. After 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 dxc4, you can play ...Bf5 with a great position.
The most classical response. Support d5 with e6 and develop pieces. After 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Be7, you're in a solid, well-known structure that's hard to break.
Slightly cramped but solid. You're aiming for a comfortable middlegame where you understand the plans better than your opponent.
The QGD is one of the most-studied openings in history. Almost any move you play has been tried at the top level. You won't get crushed.
Counter-attack the center immediately. After 3.dxe5 d4, you have an advanced d-pawn cramping White's pieces. With ...Nc6 and ...Bf5 or ...Nge7, you build pressure on the kingside.
Sharp, unbalanced, tactical. You're down a pawn but White's development is awkward.
Most Queen's Gambit players are positional. They want a slow technical game. The Albin says no - we fight from move 2 with sharp tactics.
The Queen's Gambit branches early. Two variations are worth knowing - both change the character of the game enough to need their own response.
What's different: White fianchettos the light-squared bishop instead of developing it normally. The bishop on g2 puts long-term pressure on Black's queenside.
What to do: The QGD (Defense C) still works, but if you accept with ...dxc4 you need to know what you're doing. Easier approach: play the Closed Catalan with ...Be7, ...O-O, ...c6, ...Nbd7 and aim for the typical solid setup. Don't try to hold the c4 pawn against the Catalan - it's much harder than in the regular QGA.
What's different: White exchanges on d5 early, locking the pawn structure. The minority attack (b2-b4-b5) becomes White's main plan. Very different feel from open Queen's Gambit positions.
What to do: Play with ...c6, ...Bd6, ...O-O. Watch for White's b4-b5 push - meet it with ...a6 or ...c5 to break White's plan. Slow, technical, often decided in the endgame.
Other variations (Marshall Defense, Symmetrical, Chigorin) almost never appear in club games. If you face one, just develop normally - the principles of d-pawn opening defense still apply.
White plays 1.c4 to stay flexible. Your job: pick a structure and stick to it. Four ways, ranked by style.
The English often transposes into other openings - Queen's Gambit, King's Indian, Sicilian-reversed. The four defenses below are designed not to transpose, so you can know exactly what you're playing.
Play like a White Sicilian a tempo behind. Develop pieces actively, target the kingside, push the f-pawn if needed. You're the one playing for the win.
Sharp and unbalanced. White's queenside expansion vs your kingside attack. Whoever's faster usually wins.
White invited a Sicilian by playing c4. You take the Sicilian's natural attacking ideas and use them yourself, with the extra tempo of being a move behind compensating for the colors-reversed asymmetry.
Copy White's setup move for move. Fianchetto the bishop, castle, develop pieces to their natural squares. Then play patiently and wait for White to overextend.
Quiet and positional. Mirror images often draw, but at club level White usually breaks symmetry first and you can punish small mistakes.
By mirroring, you deny White the structural advantage that c4-openings usually rely on. You're not trying to win the opening - you're trying to reach a balanced middlegame where chess skill decides the game.
Develop the kingside first, then play ...d5. If White transposes to a Queen's Gambit-like structure, you're already in your QGD prep. If they keep it English, you've still developed naturally.
Comfortable and familiar. Most positions look like Queen's Gambit Declined setups. If you've ever played the QGD, you already know what to do.
Maximum knowledge reuse. The English collapses into a regular d-pawn game once you play ...d5, and the positions look like the QGD you'd see after 1.d4. Use what you already know.
Build a low, defensive pawn structure on the 6th and 7th ranks: pawns on a6, b6, d6, e6. Pieces sit behind them. Let White overextend in the center, then strike with ...b5 or ...d5 to undermine.
Suffocating for White, comfortable for you. It looks like Black has done nothing, but the position is full of latent energy. When you finally strike, the attack often wins material.
Time the break. The Hedgehog is patience-rewarded chess. Wait for the right moment to play ...b5 or ...d5. If you strike too early, you waste the structure. Too late, White consolidates.
The English famously transposes to many other openings. Two common cases worth knowing.
What's different: White plays d4 on move 3. Now you're in a Queen's Gambit Declined.
What to do: If you have a QGD prepared (see our Queen's Gambit page), use it directly. The position is identical. Otherwise, the Anglo-Indian Setup (Defense C) handles this naturally.
What's different: White fianchettos and plays a King's Indian Attack-style setup. Slow buildup followed by kingside pressure.
What to do: If you're playing the Symmetrical (Defense B), keep mirroring - your own fianchetto stops the typical KIA attacking ideas. If you chose the Reversed Sicilian, develop with ...Bc5 or ...Bb4 to keep pieces active.
If White plays 1.c4 followed by quick e4 (Botvinnik System), treat the position like a Maroczy Bind and play patiently. The Symmetrical defense handles this best.