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Mar-13-04 |
| Bears092: i used to play Nc3 all the time.
Then I realized that I always end up playing Nf3 and that Nc3 gets in the way sometimes, so I played the king's knight first. |
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May-03-04 |
| Dudley: I used to play the Slav because I also played the Caro against 1.e4 but eventually switched to the Nimzo-Bogo. The Slav really doesn't play like the Caro, particularly in the lines where black has to try to hold onto the gambit pawn after dxc4. Black has to absorb a lot of pressure in the center and the K side in hopes of eventually queening a pawn on the Q side. It just isn't my style and I find the lines are to theoretical and weird for my taste. The Nimzo is more playable on the basis of understanding. |
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Jul-15-04 |
| rochade18: <Dudley> I also play the Caro and there's indeed nothing in common with the Slav. White has other possibilities with his centered pawns in the Caro-Kann. In my opinion black is never forced to defend the gambit pawn in the Slav, he even needn't capture the c-pawn, like in the 4..a6-line. I will check that out. |
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Aug-21-04 |
| Dudley: Well, in the line 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nf3 dxc4 5.e4 b5 - the Geller Gambit, Black must try to hold the pawn or he has no counterplay. The 4...a6 line is relatively new and I wasn't considering it in my comment, but it should have similar themes. |
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Jul-21-05 |
| chess man: I'm going to make the Slav one of my most common defences to 1.d4 mainly because I am comfortable with the positions that frequently arise. I consider it one of black's best defences to d4. So my advice is if your looking for something other than an Indian defence that can have chances for both sides try playing the Slav. |
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Aug-01-05 |
| CaroKannPirate: Honestly, I've been trying to understand the Slav for the longest time now. Can anyone help me to grasp the ideas behind the opening? |
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Aug-01-05
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| Sneaky: Hi CaroKannPirate, I can try to help. Where to start? In typical 1.d4 d5 openings, Black's position is very solid, and he develops safely and soundly, however there is ONE tiny wrinkle in Black's development plan... that awkward queen's bishop. Efforts to develop this bishop prematurely often get slapped down, e.g. 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nc3 Bf5? 4.Qb3! and now Black is practically down a pawn. And that's not the only line where Qb3 hurts Black for just trying to get his bishop into the game. That move, Qb3, is often the move which punishes Black for developing his bishop early. So, with that in mind, Black decides that he will "surrender the center" and capture on c4. So now we have 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nf3 dxc4! The idea of this pawn grab is twofold--first, it takes away that otherwise killer move Qb3 from White, just long enough to actually get the queen's bishop into the game. Second, unlike most lines in the Queen's Gambit, Black is actually threatening here to win that gambit pawn for good with ...b5. Because of the threat to keep the pawn, many players opt to play a4, but this move too has its drawbacks, as this makes b4 available for Black's purposes. One of the greatest compliments about the Slav defense was by Hans Kmoch, in "Pawn Power in Chess", when he wrote, <In the Slav Defense, White has no good pawn breaks, and Black doesn't need any.> Once ...dxc4 is played, White's positional goal is to work on playing e4 to establish the famous e4/d4 pawn due, but Black doesn't take this lying down, because with a bishop on b4 (attacking the c4 knight) and a knight on f6, Black is effectively attacking e4 three times. Throw in a bishop on the b1-g6 diagonal and Black has e4 pretty well sewn up. |
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Aug-01-05 |
| azaris: <Sneaky> I don't think 4...dxc4 is worth an exclam since it's the move that gives White the most iniative out of the opening. You can usually let the pawn go and still get a good game going. Certainly I'd like to face this rather than a Semi-Slav or something. Recent GM practice seems to favor not even trying to hold the pawn, and most people seem to have switched to the bizarre 4...a6 (I still haven't found a source that explains the reasoning behind this variation). |
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Aug-01-05
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| Sneaky: First of all let me correct a typo--when I said <with a bishop on b4 (attacking the c4 knight)> of course I meant the c3 knight. Now azaris, <I don't think that 4...dxc4 is worth an exclam since it's the move that gives White the most iniative out of the opening> Well I'm not going to argue exclams, but my thinking is that it's a move that looks bad, but in fact entails a very well thought-out opening plan. I play ...e6 in that position these days, another move that "looks bad" but lays the path for a very solid plan of development. I don't think one move is better than the other, but the Semi-Slav I think gives both players more ways to win, so it makes for exciting chess. <You can usually let the pawn go and still get a good game going. Certainly I'd like to face this rather than a Semi-Slav or something.> Not me, at least not in a tournament. Semi-Slav games are very double edged, and somebody is bound to win, but the Slav is one tough nut to crack when a good player handles the Black pieces. White's advantage is so tiny that it's not easy to get anything working. Of course no plan is foolproof--see Kasparov vs Timman, 1988 for a neat example of how Garry manages gets a nagging advantage out of the opening and converts it into a point. <Recent GM practice seems to favor not even trying to hold the pawn> Old GM practice favors that as well. Pawn grabbing in the opening is rarely recommended and not for the feint of heart; but unless something is going on that I'm not aware of, White still plays a4 against the Slav, no? That's Black's cue to abandon any idea of clinging to the gambit pawn, but like I said above, Black can then enjoy the hole created on b4. <and most people seem to have switched to the bizarre 4...a6> Bizarre is a good word for it. I haven't found a very good description of the idea behind that move, but I've seen the games, and the weird way that Black puts a rook on a7 only to free it up with b5. |
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Aug-08-05 |
| Knight Pawn: Does anyone know of any good repertoire books for white in the slav? All the books I find are either too basic and idea oriented lacking precise variations, or focus only as a repertoire for black. |
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Aug-08-05 |
| CaroKannPirate: Thanks alot, Sneaky. |
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Sep-09-05 |
| chess man: Here's an enjoyable game. W Hahn vs Tarrasch, 1890 |
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Oct-04-05 |
| Averageguy: What does "Slav" mean? Was it a player, or is it named after some country? |
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Oct-04-05 |
| aw1988: Slav is country |
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Oct-05-05 |
| Averageguy: <aw1988>What country? |
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Oct-05-05
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| MUG: Not a country but a ethnic and linguistic body of peoples. They are defined by speaking Slavic languages and reside chiefly in Eastern Europe, I think! Probably the early pioneers of this opening where Slavs?? |
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Nov-26-05 |
| joeyam30: 1.d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 dc4 5.a4 Bf5
i think that this is white's precise variation to play agaist the slav, if black plays 4...e6 (semi-slav) , white can transpose it to the exhange variation by 5.cd5 ed5 6.Bg5i play the slav and semi-slav(meran syst) as 1 0f my best defences against 1d4 |
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Apr-23-06 |
| Nikita Smirnov: I really don't like the Slav nor the Semi-Slav because you are locking your Knight stopping him from comming to c6.In the Semi-Slav I don't like it because the bishop is locked on c8 very hard getting a good Bishop.Mostly I preffer Nimzo-Indian Defence as my teacher Master Jan Ullen. |
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May-20-06 |
| Nikita Smirnov: I may tell the story about what Slav means.It was the old peoples in Russia and many other countrys like Slovakia,Slovenia,Ukraine,Russia and many other countrys. |
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May-20-06 |
| vizir: Hello
The key idea of playing a6 is to free the Bc8 without allowing pressure on b7 & d5 by Qb3. This is also the reason why we play dxc4 before playing Bf5 (c4 controls b3) in the main line of the slav. Here black's gonna push b5 to question the c pawn. then white has 3 choices :
1. d4 d5 3. c4 c6 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6.e3 b5
- 7. c5 Bg4 & black is preparing e5
- 7. b3 keeping the tension B moves
- 7. cxd5 (or cxb5 transposes) cxd5 and black should equalize I'm not an expert but I hope this could help you :-) |
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Jul-01-06 |
| Nikita Smirnov: Well i think that Semi Slav is better.I have drew against Shredder Classic 1.3 with Semi Slav |
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Oct-13-06
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| micartouse: Congratulations to the Slav Defense for a truly exciting performance in the World Chess Championship. Alekhine and Euwe would be proud. |
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Aug-01-07
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| realbrob: Sometimes I play with a friend of mine who plays (with White): 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 (I choose the Slav) 3.c5 I didn't find 3.c5 in the opening explorer, so I assume it's a bad move, can someone explain me why? |
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Aug-01-07 |
| xKinGKooLx: I like the Slav Defence, since it frees the c8 bishop to come out to f5 or g4, depending on the circumstances, then you can play e6 later on to solidify your centre somewhat and bring out your other bishop. The QGD (2. ...e6) sort of "locks" that bishop into the defensive (unless White plays cxd4 of course, either immediately or later on.) However, I do play the QGD sometimes, for a change. Both openings have their advantages. |
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Jul-25-08
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| Cactus: In responce to the questions about a6, according to my book on the Slav (called, strangely enough, The Slav) explains: <4...a6 allows the bishop to develop outside the pawn chain to g4 or f5, since after ...Bf5, Qb3 attacking b7 can be met by ...b5, advancing the b7-pawn to a safe square, or ...Ra7! an ugly looking but brilliant thought of Julian Hodgson's.> Also, Black threatens to play ...dxc4 and keep the pawn after ...b5, and after Qb3 ...Ra7, the rook may be 'offsides', but actually, the queen is just as much; it's needed elsewhere.
By the way, in responce to the whole Nf3-Nc3 debate, Nc3 is inaccurate because black can simply play
1.d4 d5
2.c4 c6
3.Nc3?! dxc4!
4.e3(or e4) b5
5.a4 b4, and the b4 pawn attacks the Knight on c3, whereas normally (with a knight on f3) it wouldn't. |
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