General Coverage
Note: Links to game collections are under Archives.
Adam
Bozon's Chess Openings - Some home-brewed amateur analysis, mostly
of unusual openings. Also includes some interesting statistics on how
different openings score at the GM level.
Bucknell
Openings Library - A quick introduction to the most popular openings.
Charting
Chess Openings - Shows you what opening you are playing by following
the moves through a flowchart-like diagram. Useful for beginners.
Chess City - Cardoza's
site has lots of opening analysis, mostly from Eric Schiller (much of
which is linked directly below).
Chess Informant Home
Page - The publisher of Chess Informant also offers the exhaustive
5 volume set The Encyclopedia of Chess Openings and a series of monographs
on individual openings.
Chess
is Fun: Openings - U.S. Correspondence Champion Jon Edwards' take
on the opening. Currently only the king's pawn openings are discussed,
along with general strategy.
Chess
Kamikaze Gambit Pages - Here you will find an introduction to several
gambits, along with some analysis.
ChessOps
- 350 or so (!) pages of interactive HTML navigating you through dozens
of openings with explanations of each move!
ChessPublishing
- Project from the London Chess Centre offering major opening analysis
with monthly updates.
ECO
Codes (short) - ECO codes index.
ECO
Codes (long) - ECO codes, expanded listing (including moves).
ECO
Codes (HTML) - Browse through the openings with a graphical display.
Exeter
Chess Club Coaching Pages: Opening - These materials on the opening
from this comprehensive site are just part of a complete guide to improving
your chess from a "D" player to an "A" player.
GambitChess
- Focused on gambits. Newsletter, organized thematics, game collections.
GM Laboratory
- Opening theory and annotated games from the Russian Chess site.
Hard
Chess - Mark Morss' (former) column has some things to say on the
opening.
How
To Improve Your Chess: Openings - Ignacio Marin offers advice on
the opening for beginners and some in-depth analysis for masters.
How
To Master An Opening - NM Randy Bauer's advice.
Interesting
Byways in the Classic Open Games - Tim Harding looks into the current
state of 1. e4 e5.
Keith's Krap
- Whole bunch of splendid analysis from FM Keith Hayward on several
openings. Among others are the Balogh Counter Gambit, Bird's Opening,
and the Dutch.
Leonid's Megapage
- New ideas in opening theory, along with news of current events.
Network
of Chess Openings - Tour through the openings with your browser.
Opening
Lanes - Gary Lane's monthly column
at the ChessCafe site explores the opening. This links to the latest
column, so also check the archives
or just download this zip
file with all columns.
Opening
Systems - An evolving opening repertoire from the Barnet Chess Club.
Good!
A
Pot-Pourri of d4 Openings - MCO letting you down if you play 1.d4?
Power Play in the Correspondence Chess Opening
Article 1 -
Tim Harding discusses how to play the opening in a correspondence game.
Article 2 -
A revisiting of the Power Play, thanks in part (apparently) to Chessopolis.
Roman's
Opening Theory - Home-brewed theory on some interesting openings,
including the Traxler Variation of the Two Knights, the Scandinavian,
the Latvian, and the Pirc.
Unorthodox
Openings - A book's worth of material (literally) from Eric Schiller
on tons of lesser-used openings.
Theory of
Individual Openings
Alekhine
Defense - Theory and "game of the week".
(1e4. Nf6)
Bishop's
Opening - Treatsie on this very old but now rare opening by Tim
Harding at the Chess Cafe. (also see Urusov Gambit links below under
"U".)
(1.e4 e5 2.Bc4)
Blackmar-Diemer
Gambit Pages - Everything you ever wanted to know about this gambit,
and more. Home of BDG World, a [now defunct] magazine on the subject.
Excellent!
(1.d4 d5 2.e4 dxe4 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.f3)
Diemer
Memorial Club (Blackmar-Diemer Gambit) - Thematic tournaments, BDG
games, and theory.
(1.d4 d5 2.e4 dxe4 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.f3)
Budapest
Defense, Faj Variation - Tim Harding's take on the state of the
Fajarowicz Variation of the Budapest Defense.
(1.d4 Nf6 2. c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ne4)
Clarendon
Court (a.k.a. Benograd Defense) - Defense to 1.d4 is named after
the block of flats where GM Jon Levitt lives.
(1.d4 c5 2.d5 f5)
Diemer-Duhm
Gambit - Exhaustive analysis of this gambit, with a section on each
variation and a collection of games.
(1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. c4)
Dunst
- Kibitzer article from Tim Harding on this flexible opening.
(1.Nc3)
Elephant
Gambit - Another exploration of this shocker; this one from Tim
Harding at Chess Cafe.
(1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d5)
Franco-Benoni
- More from Tim Harding.
(1.e4 e6 2.d4 c5)
Goring
Gambit - Gary Good looks at this Romantic gambit.
(1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.c3)
The
Grob - Is the Grob really any good?.
(1.g4)
Halasz
Gambit - Chess Cafe's Glenn Budzinski has created what is apparently
the world's first systematic treatment of this wacky gambit.
(1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.f4)
Halasz
Gambit - Tim Harding chimes in on this gambit also, suggesting a
new name among other things.
(1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.f4)
Halloween
Attack - a.k.a. the Müller-Schulze Gambit. Stun your opponents
with this aggressive opening.
(1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nxe5)
Hennig-Schara Gambit
Article 1
Article 2 -
Tim Harding on this Queen's Gambit counter-gambit.
(1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c5 4.cxd5 cxd4)
King's
Gambit - Good page from Thomas Johansson, who has analyzed the King's
Gambit so much he wrote a book on it.
(1.e4 e5 2.f4)
Nimzowitsch
Defence - Introduction to this seldom-used defense to 1.e4.
(1.e4 Nc6)
Orangutan
(a.k.a. Sokolsky or Polish) - Marek Trokenheim's site dedicated to 1.b4,
with theory, games, and thematic tournaments.
(1.b4)
Petrov Defense,
Cochrane Gambit - 35-page monograph in PostScript format.
(1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nxf7)
Petrov
Defense, Cochrane Gambit - Online book exploring this gambit.
(1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nxf7)
The Classical Defense to the Spanish (Ruy Lopez)
Part
One
Part
Two - A complete monograph of this defense by USCF Senior Master
Mark Morss (part of his Hard Chess column).
(1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.O-O Bc5)
Murder on the Long Diagonal (Ruy
Lopez) - GM Ron Henley discusses an agressive variation of the Ruy
Lopez.
(1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5)
Marshall
Attack Busted? (Ruy Lopez) - Has the Marshall been refuted by an
amateur posting his analysis on the Internet?
(Too long)
The
Queen's Gambit Point Machine - What's so great about the Queen's
Gambit? Mark Morss explains.
(1.d4 d5 2.c4)
Queen's
Gambit: Noteboom Variation - Teun van der Vorm updates some of the
analysis from his book "Play the Noteboom". Hasn't been updated
in years.
(1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c6 4.Nf3 dxc4)
St. George
(a.k.a. Baker's) Defense - Treatise on this unusual all-purpose
defense for black.
(1. e4 a6)
Scandinavian
Defense (Center Counter) - A bit of theory and some sample games.
(1.e4 d5)
Scandinavian
Defense (Center Counter), Tennison Gambit - Shaky but surprising
gambit for White. In PDF format.
(1.Nf3 d5 2.e4) or (1.e4 d5 2.Nf3)
Sicilian,
Smith-Morra Gambit - Turn the tables on the Sicilian.
(1. e4 c5 2.d4 cxd4 3. c3)
Two
Knights Defense, the Amazing Counter-Attack - Win with 4...Nxe4!
(1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 Nxe4)
Two Knights Defense, Max Lange Attack
Article
1
Article
2
Mark Morss hacks through some of the complications of the wild and woolly
Max Lange in two of his "Hard Chess" columns.
(1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.d4 exd4 5.O-O Bc5)
Urusov Gambit
Article 1
Article 2 -
Two of Tim Harding's Kibitzer columns.
(1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.d4 exd4 4.Nf3)
Urusov
Gambit - A bunch of analysis to munch on for you gambiteers.
(1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.d4 exd4 4.Nf3)
Vienna Game (Frankenstein-Dracula Variation)
Article 1
Article 2
Article 3 -
Tim Harding explains the variation he named in three articles.
(1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3. Bc4)
