In days past, some would relegate "the Scandi" to C or even D tier, but it has gained respectability in past decades. Not kidding about White pushing all the pawns. It had its day when GM Bobby Fischer won a world championship game with it, but there's a reason that's still the only world championship game anyone has ever won with it. In the Alekhine, Black basically begs White to push all the pawns. There's a pretty clear line to this tier as well, where the moves are no longer "weird" and can now be considered "normal." With all due respect, what the hell were you thinking?" Photo: Wikimedia, public domain. "Hi Aron, big fan of that queen's pawn idea. Nc6 (Nimzowitsch)Īron Nimzowitsch is also the namesake of the Nimzo-Indian Defense, which in movie award analogies would win an Oscar, while Nc6 would earn him a Razzie. It's better to self-Owen (b6) than to self-own (b5). Yes, if you want to develop your bishop this way, please only move the b-pawn one square. In 1980, GM Anthony Miles slew the dragon that was world champion GM Anatoly Karpov with this move, but it was more of a don't-try-this-at-home play. You can now start playing these moves without inducing total anarchy in the kibitzing section. Pretty clear demarcation we have between C and D tiers. (Actually, this move gets its name from being Grob, the name for 1.g4 by White, spelled backward.) Come On (You Can Do Better!) If all your friends were playing Na6, you wouldn't play Na6 too, would you? 12. Photo: Muhammad Mahdi Karim/Wikimedia, CC. Even this actual hippo is judging you for playing Nh6. "Is a hippopotamus a hippopotamus or a really cool opotamus?" - Mitch HedbergĮither way, it's not a very cool chess move. I'd rather play the Carr Defense than get hit by a car. These moves aren't good, mind you, just slightly less bad than those earlier ones. And while it's not named after composer Jerry Goldsmith, here is some nice background music for the rest of this article anyway. Not enough to save it from the F-tier, though. Named for Preston Ware, not short for "Beware this move."Īt least maybe your opponent won't play d4 before you play Rh6. a5 (Ware)Ī disaster in slow motion for anyone planning to play Ra6 next, when White's bishop on f1 already attacks this square. The Barnes belongs in a barn, with certain other farm animal byproducts. It's like a worse version of the Latvian Gambit. f5 (Duras)Īlso hangs a pawn, also for no reason. Maybe we can start calling it the "Hang A Pawn For No Reason Opening." Wait, where did the pawn go? "Oh, whoops!" "Whoopsie!" 19. These moves either displace a pawn that was just fine where it was or, even worse, gives it away for free.Ī move so bad it doesn't even have a unique name. (*Names for B and A tier technically borrowed from a WKUK comedy sketch.) F is for Free Pawn! (And Other Bad Moves).(In parentheses is the name of each move.)Ĭheck out FM James Canty's awesome video: As I discussed in my previous article about White's 20 options, you have 20 options with the black pieces, but some are better than others. With that quick sulk out of the way, it's now time to choose how to meet the most popular opening move, 1.e4. As they reach for the e-pawn, in your mind you roll your eyes and mutter, "Here we go again." You sit down at the board or your computer and wait to see how your opponent will start the game.
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