All chess openings

Chess openings that keep the king safe

Openings where getting the king out of the centre is the first priority and the pawn cover in front of it stays intact. The reward for spending those tempi is that tactics against your own king simply do not exist, and you can take risks elsewhere on the board.

13 openings

• Sicilian Defence — Najdorf (B90) — Sharp and asymmetric — Black fights for the full point
• Sicilian Defence — Dragon (B70) — Opposite-side castling, all-out attacks on both wings
• Scotch Game — Mieses Variation (C45) — Aggressive queen sortie, pressure on f7 from the outset
• King's Gambit Declined (C30) — Refuse the pawn, aim the bishop at f2, and let White's own gambit backfire
• Dutch Defence — Leningrad (A87) — Fianchetto the bishop, build a powerful kingside presence
• King's Indian Attack (A07) — Reverse King's Indian — kingside attack with reversed colours
• Légal Trap (C41) — Hang the queen on purpose and mate with three minor pieces
• Fried Liver Attack (C57) — Sacrifice a knight on f7 and march the black king up the board
• Blackburne Shilling Gambit (C50) — Offer a free pawn and mate on move seven when White takes it
• Fishing Pole Trap (C65) — Dangle a knight on g4 and open the h-file when White bites
• Siberian Trap (B21) — Accept the Smith-Morra, ignore the attacked knight, and mate on h2
• Magnus Smith Trap (B57) — The Dragon fianchetto is one move too early and the queen falls
• Scholar's Mate (C20) — The four-move mate — worth knowing so it never happens to you