What about learning the Scotch opening?

Originally posted by grit
What is the KISS rule?

Grit

Keep It Simple, Stupid ... It's also a blackjack system. 🙂

I'll go through my experience of playing all the 1.e4 e5 openings with white (and black).

The Ruy Lopez is very complex. Theory is a mile long, and if you deviate early, you get no advantage with white. With white when you play into it, you will always play into black's prepared variation (Black chooses early deviations, the Open Ruy, Breyer,Zaitsev,Chigorin,Archangel, or whatever he wants.) Black specializes while white has to learn them all, just like in the Sicilian.

The Giouco Piano is a good way to go. White can choose tactical lines (Evans Gambit/Moeller) or positional lines (early d3 or d4 with Bd2). The pieces all go to active squares,and the play is straightforward. In all fairness, it doesn't guarantee white an advantage,but it does allow white to get a very playable game.
The one problem is The Two Knights Defense. 4.Ng5 is very tactical and dangerous to play if unprepared. The Max Lange attack is just a long drawish variation. The best bets for white are 4.d3 (very positional) and 4.d4 exd4 5.e5 (also very positional). I must say that I have had a lot of bad games as black playing against that last variation. It is Roman's recommendation. (He uses the Scotch move order and goes into both the Piano and 5.e5 Two Knights.)

The Scotch Game is very solid. I just have not been able to make the game complicated enough against 4. ... Bc5. 4. ... Nf6 is fun for both sides and lively in play, though.

The King's Gambit is very fun to play. I have had a lot of great games with white. 3.Nf3 is good if black isn't booked to the teeth. There are some very uncomfortable positions for white, if black knows his stuff. 3.Bc4 is the best way to go in the accepted. As black I play, 2. ... Bc5 which equalizes.

The Vienna Game is rock solid and also good. It really isn't aggressive enough for lower rated players. 1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Bc4 will almost always be met by the dull Nc6 instead of the fun Nxe4. 3.g3 is a nice solid positional variation that I have used quite a few times. It doesn't offer white a lot, but the games are always interesting.

The Center Game ... I have mixed feelings. I don't do well with it as white, but I suspect that it is very playable. I have defending a lot of nearly lost positions as black against it. If black isn't careful, an opposite side castling/attacking position comes about where white is winning the race. I've had so much trouble as black that I can almost recommend it for white.

The Four Knights is another solid variation. I have only dabbled with it and don't really recommend it (4. ... Nd4!) 4.d4 (instead of Bb5) is a good way to get into the Scotch too, but Bc5 is available there too (although not as good). The Belgrade Gambit is fun, but you spend all your time learning all the exciting gambit lines, when they bash out 5. ... Be7 (leading to a dull game).

There are obviously others, but this is just a basic overview with my experience.

Thank your so much Paul for your comments on white 's opening choices. It was very helpful

Grit

Originally posted by paulbuchmanfromfics
I'll go through my experience of playing all the 1.e4 e5 openings with white (and black).

The Ruy Lopez is very complex. Theory is a mile long, and if you deviate early, you get no advantage with white. With white when you play into it, you will always play into black's prepared variation (Black chooses early deviations, the Open Ruy, Brey ...[text shortened]...

There are obviously others, but this is just a basic overview with my experience.

If you want complicated after 4 ..... Bc5 play 5 Be3 Qf6 6 Nb5!? the Blumenfeld variation. Emms gives some analysis of it in his book on the Scotch concluding "it's worth a punt as White". I've tried it a few times here and in an OTB game and got good results; Black is generally unprepared for it and it gets quite tactical quickly, I do recommend looking over an annotated analysis of one of these games - Emms' book covers Kritz v. Hohler 2005 a quick, smashing White win.

Hi Grit.

You and Darax have given me more headaches than anyone.

Everytime I mention a book Grit appears to have it but has not read it.
And Darax is re-wrting the opening theory with every bad game.

It's like trying to keep tabs on Laurel & Hardy.

One of the reasons I pulled you into the motel because you were
posting every other day and get loads of conflicting advice.

Will you forget opening crap, that comes later, Look at the two games you
have in progress. Both of them left opening theory round about move 5.

If you boned up on 15 moves of Scotch theory who are you going to
play it against?

You are starting from scrath.

First you have to have faith in the opening principles giving you a good
position without knowing anything about any opening.
Sometimes a little opening knowledge can drop you in a right mess.

The middle game is where you will reap the benefit of a sound opening.
It's here where chess players play.
Soon you will pick up that certain pieces on certain squares give you
middle game ideas. The opening plays itself after a few moves.
You know where all your pieces are going and you know what you are
going to do with them after you have developed.

I cannot and do not comment about games in progress, ex members will
confirm I never do.

General advice I give to eveyone.

Take your time.

If you think you see a shot, a tactic then work it out away from the game.

If you are happy with it - play it.

If it's unsound I won't go potty.
If you make a bad move that has some thought behind it, good.
It is how we learn.

If you drop a piece with a nothing move because you missed a simple threat. BAD.

I have to leave you alone now and let you now play those two games
and see what happens.

The Scotch is OK