Originally posted by exigentskyYes I did, sorry. Black has quite a few aggressive replies after 9. 0-0-0, mainly 9... d5 and 9... Nxd4 followed by Be6. Both give Black a lot of counter attacking chances, although I agree it is quite dangerous for Black.
Do you mean 9. 0-0-0? If so, I wouldn't play that. It is too dangerous for Black. The only Yugoslav I would dare to play is the safe one from the HAD.
Originally posted by exigentskyI will tell you what I tell all my friends: You are a wussbag! 🙂 Just kidding, but seriously, I love the Dragon. I played it when I was a lower rated player, gave it up because I was getting whomped on, and picked it back up months ago, and I am scoring better with it that any other opening I have played so far. I could play the Black side of any Yugoslav Attack forever. Some of the greatest lines ever exist in the Dragon. But that's just an opinion!
Do you mean 9. 0-0-0? If so, I wouldn't play that. It is too dangerous for Black. The only Yugoslav I would dare to play is the safe one from the HAD.
WTF is going on? The post was much longer than that. It ignores everything after us. Let me try again:
Of course, it may not be difficult for everyone below 2000, but it is difficult at a theoretical level and that's the reason I'm a wussbag 😉 Many openings appear sound at our level, but when I choose an opening, I want to make sure it is sound at any level so that I can have confidence in it and never need to worry about refutations and so on. Based on a LOT of research, I know that the HAD is perfectly fine objectively in every line.
Most of the time when White chooses the Yugoslav (the best response in the Nc3 line) it looks like this:
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 g6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 Bg7 6. Be3 Nf6 7. Bc4 O-O 8.Bb3 d6 9. f3 Na5 10. Qd2 Nxb3 (Nxd4 may also be a good option, I'm not sure which is better)
This is the WORST forum software I have ever used. It appears that anything after the less than sign got deleted. In addition, after a certain number of pages, you have to manually move pages since they cannot be seen. Finally, it only accepts 1 FEN for each post. This is just CRAP.
Anyway, compare the Yugoslav I face (scores ~50% W) to the one you could face (scores ~60% W):
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 6.Be3 Bg7
7.f3 Nc6 8.Qd2 O-O (maybe Bd7 is better here) 9.O-O-O d5 10.exd5 Nxd5
I think that the one you face is more difficult and threatening. However, both have exciting counterattacking play. This is why I choose the HAD. On the other hand, you do face the stale Maroczy bind about 5% of the time.
Yeah, I'm sure you're right. It would probably be about 50% if I start playing 2000 and up. However, playing 1800s online, I've faced the bind very very rarely. But I'm really not scared of the bind anymore, I have very good lines (even scores 47% at the GM level) and if Whtie wants a draw, he will get a draw.
In any case, if I wanted, I could always play bg7 instead of cxd4 and have a Benoni. But, I consider the bind better for Black than the Benoni. The bind is really nothing more than a safe game for White. If Black does not know how to play it, of course he will lose. It requires more accurate play from Black than from White. However, with accurate play from Black, there is nothing to fear. The best part is that it is also very thematic once you understand it. (Much more so than any other line of the Accelerated Dragon.)
I rejected the Accelerated Dragon simply because if White plays the Bind, it's very hard to win. If you need to play for a win as Black, lets say in the last round of a weekend swiss to tie for first, can you really rely on the HAD? Ask White to play for a draw in one of the more main line Sicilians. I find it somewhat odd that you seem really content to draw in the Bind as black. I get the shivers.
Well, scoring 47~ is not bad at all, draw or not. Sure, the Maroczy in virtually any line is going to be at least 50% draws, but that's the price of getting a safe opening with a clear plan. I'd rather get a draw than lose, like I think I would in some tough Yugoslav lines.
Now, of course, I'm not fully content with a draw. I like to know that I have decent winning chances in any line. However, the Maroczy is quite rare and I'm hoping White wouldn't be content to play for a draw in the last round either. 😉
Anyway, the problem with draws is the main reason I'm considering the Najdorf. I don't want to draw a player 400 points below me. 😉 (but he probabyl wouldn't know the bind) However, I no longer think that the Najdorf is objectively better than the HAD. It's simply easier to play for a win due to the absence of the bind. If there were no bind, I would not hesitate to say that the HAD is actually better than the Najdorf. Here is one big advantage the HAD has over the Najdorf: sense. In the HAD, sidelines are so EASY to deal with. The plan for Black is always crystal clear because it is always a queenside or center attack and it is completely obvious which plan should be chosen. 90% of the time, it is a Queen's side attack. Furthermore, the development makes complete sense and there are no tricks that Black has to deal with. (like not playing Be6 first in the Be2 Najdorf) Nc6, fianchetto, Nf6, d6/d5, Be6/Bf5, maybe distrupt the bishop with Ng4, etc. Almost regardless of what White plays to try to steer you into scary unknown territory, the best moves are the same. I don't think this is so in the Najdorf. It is a much more complex opening and it may involve a central fight, a kingside onlsaught or queenside play. Moreover, the best piece placement is not always crystal clear. This essentially means, that there is a greater chance to get an unfamiliar line or a position you are not fully comfortable with. Furthermore, the Najdorf is much more popular and thus, opponents are more likey to have a good pet line.
Originally posted by exigentskyYou have a point, the Najdorf (and Dragon for that matter) are substantially more complex than the HAD. But, the more complicated they are, the more likely your opponents are to play subpar lines that don't challenge the system. For instance, tonight I played a game against a substantially stronger opponent. His USCF rating is over 2100, and mine is about 1850, although I think I am probably rated slightly higher, around 1900-1950. Anyway, here is the line he played:
Well, scoring 47~ is not bad at all, draw or not. Sure, the Maroczy in virtually any line is going to be at least 50% draws, but that's the price of getting a safe opening with a clear plan. I'd rather get a draw than lose, like I think I would in some tough Yugoslav lines.
Now, of course, I'm not fully content with a draw. I like to know that I have dorf is much more popular and thus, opponents are more likey to have a good pet line.
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 g6 6. Be3 Bg7 7. f3 O-O 8. Qd2 Nc6 9. Bc4 Ne5 10. Bb3 Bd7 11. O-O-O Rc8 12. Bh6 Bxh6 13. Qxh6 Rxc3 14. bxc3 a5 15. a4 Qc7 16. Kb2 Rc8 17. Ne2 Nc4+ 18.Bxc4 Qxc4
12. Bh6 is greatly inferior to the much less obvious 12. Bg5. I was then able to bash out all the moves until move 25, when I had secured a much better position due to my knowledge of the theory and the ideas in the common Rxc3 positions that arise out of these and similar positions. I soon had a great endgame, with two pawns and a strong knight for an inactive rook. Unfortunately, I lost on time. 🙂 It's much easier to play a Bind and sit on black for a while than it is to try to mate him in a Yugoslav. I have had games on the White side of a Najdorf where it seems like I did nothing wrong yet Black was much better out of the opening. There is a reason that strong players play the Najdorf. It's an awesome opening for black. It's almost certainly stronger than the HAD for the simple reason that with good play from White, Black still has a good position AND can play for a win. I am not trying to get you to play something else, I am just playing devils advocate here. I can also relate since I used to play the hyper accelerated dragon. Not nearly as fun as the other sicilians, and not as good either.