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Castle position question

Castle position question

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Please forgive me if this has been discussed, but I've not found it so it remains Fresh 'n New to me.

There's a king's-side castle position in which bishop moves to g2, pawn to g3, then the king & rook castle. What remains is a bulwark made even more challanging to attack because the g3 pawn is buttressd by the f and h pawns and bishop prevents anyone from sneaking in on the sides.

Is there a name for this structure (other than "king-side castle with bishop at g2&quot😉, and is it at all special for the reasons I stated or is my walnut-sized, neophyte brain just easily impressed?

Tell.

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well.... for one thing, you forgot to mention about moving the knight out of the way, first move, pawn to g3, knight to f3, bishop to g2, 0-0... that's called Secilian, it's a strong defensive position, but some people crack it open, at that point, the game's over.

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It's also called a fianchetto, or castled fianchetto, I believe.

http://www.eudesign.com/chessops/basics/cpr-fian.htm
http://chess.about.com/cs/reference/g/bldeffia.htm

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Originally posted by MeegMaster
well.... for one thing, you forgot to mention about moving the knight out of the way, first move, pawn to g3, knight to f3, bishop to g2, 0-0... that's called Secilian, it's a strong defensive position, but some people crack it open, at that point, the game's over.
this is totally wrong; it's not called sicilian at all. The sicilian is characterized by 1. e4 c5. Some variations of the sicilian do employ a fianchetto though.

A castled position with a fianchetto is NOT, in general, stronger than a typical one.

It's basic weakness is weak squares if the fianchettoed bishop is captured. (if the bishop is gone there are a couple of square right near the king that an enemy piece can sit on without much trouble)

Also, it is more susceptible to pawn attacks (e.g. advancing the h pawn toward the castled position as then the h file can be opened for attack or perhaps, in defense, of the castled position, a concession like pushing a pawn is forced.

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Hypermo's right. One more thing I think worth mentioning is that the classic way to attack the fianchettoed king is to bring your own bishop in with the queen behind in support so you can eliminate the fianchettoed bishop and then start your attack.

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Originally posted by RaulGroom
Hypermo's right. One more thing I think worth mentioning is that the classic way to attack the fianchettoed king is to bring your own bishop in with the queen behind in support so you can eliminate the fianchettoed bishop and then start your attack.
The king side fianchetto is played as part of the Sicilian Dragon and King's Indian Defense as black and as part of the Catalan as white. I've had success with all three of these openings.
Against the setup you should attempt to trade off the fianchettoed bishop or break it open with pawns (especially if you castled queenside).
With the setup use the bishop to exert pressure on the centre from afar but avoid trading it of. Doing so gives you a colour weakness and a vunerable king position.

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Originally posted by RaulGroom
Hypermo's right. One more thing I think worth mentioning is that the classic way to attack the fianchettoed king is to bring your own bishop in with the queen behind in support so you can eliminate the fianchettoed bishop and then start your attack.
Anybody have any links on defending/attacking the fianchettoed King?

Cheers,

D

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Originally posted by RaulGroom
Hypermo's right. One more thing I think worth mentioning is that the classic way to attack the fianchettoed king is to bring your own bishop in with the queen behind in support so you can eliminate the fianchettoed bishop and then start your attack.
I've never been impressed by this strategy. Eliminating the fianchetto'd Bishop is generally only useful if you keep your Bishop of the color. If you trade your Bishop for the fianchetto'd one, then the "weakness" of that color square is pretty much nullified.

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Cough......ahem....Knight on f3, Bishop on g2, castle kingside.....it's called the King's Indian, same if black sets it up. Queens Indian if you do it on the other side with a long castle.

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Originally posted by Dodger11
Cough......ahem....Knight on f3, Bishop on g2, castle kingside.....it's called the King's Indian, same if black sets it up. Queens Indian if you do it on the other side with a long castle.
Cough......ahem....The Kings/Queens Indian includes the Fianchettoed pieces AND a pawn move.

D

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Originally posted by Ragnorak
Cough......ahem....The Kings/Queens Indian includes the Fianchettoed pieces AND a pawn move.

D
No kiddin'? Gee, I kind of assumed that was a given.

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Originally posted by Ragnorak
Anybody have any links on defending/attacking the fianchettoed King?

Cheers,

D
I can only recommend The Art of Attack by Vukovic. Fantastic treatment of the topic you're after (as well as all other attacking topics)

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Originally posted by hypermo2001
I can only recommend The Art of Attack by Vukovic. Fantastic treatment of the topic you're after (as well as all other attacking topics)
OK, you're the 3rd person to recommend that book to me. Its just been ordered.

My first chess book. I can't wait.

D

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OK, let me weigh in on this setup. The setup itself is called the fiachettoed castle position. You can't try to name it as an opening, as it arises in many openings from both white and blacks perspective. True, the idea is seen most rapidly in King's Indian Attack and K.I. Defense, but it shows up in a number of other openings as well. It is just a structure, not an opening unto itself. When I play against it, I try to trade off a knight for the bishop, which retains my bishop of the same color squares to work with my Queen in hitting the weaknesses. I rarely use pawn breaks, as I am often castled on the same side of the board. Vukovic's Art of Attack is a great book, but was well above me. A simpler book, Murray Chandler's How To Beat Your Dad at Chess has a number of attacking themes aimed at the kingside fianchetto...if you see this book at a bookstore have a look at it, don't let the cover fool you.

Brian

p.s. Vukovic's book may be perfect for you Ragnorak, as you are well above most of us in strength, and your tactics are surely much better developed.