All chess openings

Chess openings for active pieces

Openings whose whole point is getting the pieces to good squares fast — an outpost for a knight, a long diagonal for a bishop, a rook on the only open file. These positions are judged on where the pieces stand, not on the pawn count.

20 openings

• Sicilian Defence — Accelerated Dragon (B35) — The Dragon without …d6 — saving a tempo to hit d4 with …d5 in one go
• Sicilian Defence — Sveshnikov (B33) — A permanent hole on d5 traded for two bishops and raw activity
• Ruy López — Berlin (C67) — Solid and endgame-focused — the drawing weapon of champions
• Ruy López — Closed (C84) — Slow manoeuvring, long-term pressure on Black's position
• Ruy López — Open Variation (C80) — Grab the e4-pawn and take the Spanish somewhere White can't grind you
• Italian Game (C50) — Classical development, long-term piece pressure
• Two Knights Defence (C56) — Black ignores the threat to f7 and invites the sharpest game on the board
• Scotch Game — Classical (C45) — Open play and piece activity from move three
• Scotch Game — Schmid Variation (C45) — Flexible development, avoid early theory with Bc4
• King's Gambit Declined (C30) — Refuse the pawn, aim the bishop at f2, and let White's own gambit backfire
• Danish Gambit (C21) — Two pawns for two monster bishops raking the whole board
• French Defence — Tarrasch (C09) — Develop the knight to d2 and the Winawer simply never happens
• Caro-Kann — Advance (B12) — The French Advance, except Black's bishop got out first
• Caro-Kann — Panov Attack (B13) — Turn the solid Caro-Kann into a raging isolated-pawn attack
• Queen's Gambit Accepted (D20) — Accept the pawn and fight for equality with active play
• Slav Defence (D19) — Defend d5 with the c-pawn and the problem bishop walks free
• Nimzo-Indian Defence (E20) — Bishop pair pressure and flexible pawn structures
• Grünfeld Defence (D85) — Invite White to build a huge centre — then spend the game demolishing it
• Budapest Gambit (A52) — Throw a pawn at move two and get every piece out with tempo
• Dutch Defence — Classical (A92) — Control e4, build on f5 — flexible and rich in ideas