After playing several Horde Chess games, most of the players tend to repeat the same first moves every game. Moreover, a few popular openings are played by most of the players most of the time. Becoming familiar with that moves can get you an advantage in playing Horde Chess. In this post, we will go through some of the most common openings for Horde Chess. For each opening, I added a link to an illustration game to help you grasp it better.
The Queenside Mainline
The Queenside mainline starts with the moves 1. d5 e6 2.d4 d6
This is arguably the most played opening. Both players fight over the center squares first, leaving the wings to further moves. Now there are 3 main variants for white.
The 3.c6 variant
With 3.c6, white avoids pawn exchange and claims additional space. Also, he is making a threat to capture twice on e6, taking advantage of the fact the black bishop is pinned to the defense of b7. Black should respond with one of the ways:
- 3… e:f5 4.e:f5 (or 3.g:f4, which is similar) 4… Ne7, aiming to take the c6 pawn out of the board by capturing it with b7, then with one of the knights. Another plan for black is playing 4… a5 before this move. A common continuation is 5.c:b7 B:b7 6.e4, which leaves the options open for both players. Example game: Nonpareil – opperwezen.
- 3… b:c6 4.b:c6 Ne7 Threaten the c6 pawns as before, but now white can play 5.b5, retaining the pawn in the strategic position. Black will usually try to attack the kingside. Example game: svenos-Mars3000.
The 3. a5 variant
3. a5 aims to capture space on the queenside. Black can respond with:
- The natural 3… h5, attacking the opposite side immediately. After 4. a4 Ne7 (4… c6?! is also interesting in that position) 5. c:d6 c:d6 6. d:e6 f:e6 7.f:e6 B:e6 8.f5 Bc8, the position is even, with black plan includes 9…g6 with assault on the f5 pawn. Example game: Vasilisa_Primudra – RayHolt.
- 3… Be7 Also attacks the kingside pawns. On that move, white may try 4.f:e6 f:e6 5.c6!?, now that Ne7 is impossible for black. The more conventional continuation is 4.a4 h6 5.c6, with black exchanging a couple of pawns, and usually trade his e7 bishop for a couple of pawns. Example game: SharpshooterScorepeon – Verilator.
The Triple Exchange Variant
In many games, white simplified the mess in the center with 3. c:d6 c:d6 (3… B:d6 is less favorable since the bishop is exposed to later threats) 4.f:e6 f:e6 5. d:e6 B:e6, then used the e6 bishop’s position to advance with 6. f5 Bc8 (6… Bf7 is also an option). After that, white has a little time to prepare for the black’s attack with 7. f4, 7.e5 or 7.a5. Example game: Stubenfisch – PRoMetheUS01.
Queenside less common lines
After 1. d5, both sides have an opportunity to diverge from the mainline.
Early black exchange
On the position after 1. d5 e6 2. d4, black can try the early exchange variation, 2… e:d5, which is pretty popular and performed well for the black player. The idea is to relieve the pressure of advanced white pawns and use the time it takes to restore the advancement to start a counter-attack. After 3. e:d5 a5 4. e4 d6 5. e5 Nd7, black has a good queenside initiative in exchange for the white positioning in the center. White can play now the common 6.e6 or the more brave 6.b6?! c:b6 7. c:d6. Example game: Stubenfisch – MotherTheresa.
Early black a5
The common move a5 for black can be player early in the game. After 1. d5 e6 2. d4 a5!? black captures the attacking position for the queenside. But in the process, he loses grip on the center, which white can take with 3. e5 d6 4. e4 black can fight for the center, with an exchange of some of the pawns. For example 4… e:d5 5. e:d5 Nd7 which leads to the same position as the “Early black exchange” variation. Alternatively, he can keep playing on the side, with 4… h5?!, which leads to a complex position. White had a high winning rate with 5. g6, but many other options exist. Example game: Nonpareil – KasparovFan123.
Early white e5
With 1. d5 e6 2.e5, white try to gain much of the space right on the first moves. However, after 2… d6, he must make some exchanges to save his pawns. The most popular choice is 3. c:d6 c:d6 4.e4, then black can choose between the classic 4… a5, the simplifying 4… e:d5, and the rare 4… Qc7?!. Example game: Malesuurmeister – Turkishdraughts.
The Kingside Mainline
The Kingside mainline starts with the moves 1. e5 d6 2.e4 e6
It is almost symmetrical to the queenside mainline. Since 3. f6 is not as strong as the 3. c6 we had in the queenside mainline, the main variants are fundamentally different.
The main exchange variant
After 3. c:d6 c:d6 4.c5, white forces black to give up on his stronghold on d6. Black can surprise with 4… d5!? 5. f:e6 f:e6 6. f5 with heavy pressure on the black center, but open lines and some space. The less adventurous continuation for black is 4… d:c5 5. d:c5 b6 6. d4 b:c5 7.b:c5 with a nice play on the queenside. Black will pass a6 sooner or later. 7… Qa5!?, 7… a6 and 7…e:f5 are all good options. Example game: PhillippeSaner – Seitan.
The e6 exchange variant
The less common exchange 3. f:e6 d:e6 4. f5 yields a more relaxed position for black. Now 4… h6 or 5… a6 is common. Example game: hutgovy – Turkishdraughts.
Other openings
Several Horde Chess openings are less played, but present a great interest.
Black Stalling
Black may try to do nothing and just wait for white to risk its pawns. A common way of doing so is the moves 1. d5 a5 2. e5 h5 3. d4 Ra7 4. e4 Ra8. White can move all of the backward pawns before deciding how to proceed, but after 5. d3 Ra7 6. e3 Ra8 7. d2 Ra7 8. e2 Ra8 he must make an advancement, The most reasonable one being 9.g6. This position may not be the most beneficial for black, but it does require effort from white to play it well. Example game: Stubenfisch – Turkishdraughts.
Black Early Bishop Development
The black bishop usually remains in the initial position for a couple of moves. However, black can try to develop it sooner, with 1. d5 b6 2. d4 Bb7. White should take the center control with 3. e5, then black needs to choose between many options, including 3… e6, 3…c6, and 3… b:c5 with 4… e6. Example game: ProMeTHeu500 – hbdehkordi.
White’s 2.f6
Some games start with an early exchange of a black knight. This happens after 1.e5 e6 2. f6 gxf6 3. gxf6 Nxf6 4. exf6 Qxf6, white lost some of his advanced pawns but captured a knight. The black queen typically retreats later to g7, e7, or d8. Example game: Nonpareil – Verilator.
Your turn
This is it, for now, and I hope you enjoyed this (pretty long) post. Now let’s talk about you. What is your favorite opening? The one you do over and over, yet never get tired with? Tell me in the comments or any other channel and I will prioritize it on the upcoming Opening Overview posts. Waiting for your feedback, and thanks for reading.
