Chess Opening Theory/1. e4

King's Pawn Opening
	Position in Forsyth-Edwards Notation (FEN) rnbqkbnr/pppppppp/8/8/4P3/8/PPPP1PPP/RNBQKBNR b
	Moves: 1. e4
	ECO code: B00–B99, C00–99
	Parent: Starting position
	Responses: ; 1...c5 - Sicilian Defence; 1...e5 - Open Game; 1...e6 - French Defence; 1...c6 - Caro-Kann Defence; 1...d5 - Scandinavian Defence; 1...d6 - Pirc Defence; 1...g6 - Modern Defence; 1...a6 - St. George Defence; 1...Nf6 - Alekhine Defence; 1...Nc6 - Nimzowitsch Defence;

1. e4 · King's Pawn Opening

The move 1. e4, the King's Pawn Opening, is the most popular first move at all levels of the game and was the favorite opening move of world champion Bobby Fischer, who called it 'best by test.' White's assertive opening move opens lines for the queen and the king's bishop (a good thing to do).

1. e4 also fights for control of d5 and f5, which might or might not be relevant later, because Black if they wanted to could just take those squares away again by playing 1...e6. If White wants to develop some pieces, the most important square they control by playing 1. e4 is, in fact, the e4 square itself. As long as there's a white pawn on e4, there can't be a black pawn on e4, which means White's g1-knight can be developed to f3 without fear of getting kicked away by a pawn and losing a tempo.

Just as White indirectly claims the f3 square by playing e4, Black has to bear in mind that f6 will not be a safe square for Black's g8-knight if White can simply advance their e4-pawn to e5. The simplest way for Black to fix this problem would be to copy White and play 1...e5 in response. White may also be dreaming of playing d4 next move, creating a strong 'classical' center, and 1...e5 by Black interferes with that plan.

Openings with 1. e4 are traditionally considered more sharp and attacking than those with 1. d4, but this is an extreme generalization, and both players will have many more opportunities to influence the type of position that appears. 1. e4 positions are in general more forcing than 1. d4 positions, meaning that the number of good moves in any position is lower because your opponent is threatening to do something horrid to you, which can make them easier for beginners to understand.

Black's responses

Games in which Black responds with 1...e5 are called Open Games, whereas games with Black responding by any other move are known as Semi-Open Games (or Asymmetrical King's Pawn Games). It's useful to think of black's responses to 1. e4 as motivated by one of the following counterplans:

Establish a pawn on e5, securing a share of the centre for Black (1...e5).
Establish a pawn on d5, securing a share of the centre for Black (1...c6 or 1...e6).
Attack White's e-pawn immediately (1...d5 or 1...Nf6).
Leave White's e-pawn alone but prevent white from achieving the classical centre with e4 and d4 (1...e5 or 1...c5).
Ignore what White is doing, allow White to build the classical centre and deal with it later (1...d6, 1...g6, 1...Nc6, 1...b6, or 1...a6).

Plan 1

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

1...e5 (Open Game)

Plan 1 (pawn on e5, share centre) can be carried out very simply with 1...e5. Black sees what White has and wants the same thing. However, White's argument is that moving first in a symmetrical position is eventually going to favour the player moving first.

Plan 2

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

1...c6 (Caro-Kann Defence)

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

1...e6 (French Defence)

Plan 2 (pawn on d5, share centre) is the motivation behind 1...c6, the Caro-Kann Defence, and 1...e6, the French Defence. If Black tries to put a pawn on d5 immediately, White will capture it, so in order to maintain a pawn on d5 Black needs to be able to recapture with a pawn from either c6 or e6.

Plan 3

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

1...d5 (Scandinavian Defence)

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

1...Nf6 (Alekhine Defence)

Plan 3 (attack White's e-pawn) leads to 1...d5, the Scandinavian Defence, and 1...Nf6, the Alekhine Defence.

Plan 4

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

1...e5 (Open Game)

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

1...c5 (Sicilian Defence)

Plan 4 (prevent White's e4 & d4) is a pleasant side effect of 1...e5 (mentioned above for Plan 1).

But, with 1...c5, the Sicilian Defence, Black can prevent White's d4 advance and also create an asymmetrical position of attack and counter-attack. The Sicilian and 1...e5 are the most popular replies to 1. e4 among top players.

Plan 5

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

1...g6 (Modern Defence)

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

1...d6 (Pirc Defence)

There are multiple ways of carrying out Plan 5 (ignore White's centre, deal with it later).

1...g6, the Modern Defence, signals Black's intention to put a bishop on g7 controlling a swathe of the centre, before deciding on further action.
1...d6 is the Pirc Defence, a hypermodern response to White's 1. e4.

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. e5 dxe5 4. dxe5 Qxd1+ 5. Kxd1 Ng4! Knight forks f2 and e5.

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

The position after 3 moves of the Pirc Defence. White's d-pawn is next in line to be undermined.

In the Pirc Defence, the move 1...d6 prepares the move 2...Nf6. In Alekhine Defence (mentioned above for Plan 3), 1...Nf6 can be met by 2. e5 kicking the knight back. But, in the Pirc, after 1...d6 2. d4 Nf6, the move 3. e5 doesn't work because of 3...dxe5 4. dxe5 Qxd1+ 5. Kxd1 Ng4! forking the pawns on e5 and f2.

So instead, White's usual move to defend the e-pawn is 3. Nc3. Now, White's d-pawn is vulnerable to the advances 3...c5 or 3...e5 because neither White's e-pawn nor c-pawn can defend it.

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

1...Nc6 (Nimzowitsch Defence)

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

1...b6 (Owen Defence)

	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h
8									8
7									7
6									6
5									5
4									4
3									3
2									2
1									1
	a	b	c	d	e	f	g	h

1...a6 (St. George Defence)

Plan 5 also covers a number of fringe options.

1...Nc6, the Nimzowitsch Defence. Black is able to react to 2. d4 with a thrust of either the d-pawn or e-pawn.

1...b6 is a similar idea to 1...g6 but doesn't have the benefit of preparing kingside castling.

1...a6 is mostly famous for having been played by Tony Miles against then World Champion Anatoly Karpov, and having thus acquired the name St. George Defence. Often Black will follow up with 2...b5, expanding on the queenside.

Rare Responses

Other rare responses include:

1...f5?, the Fred Defence/Duras Gambit. This is not too good of an idea. Black gets a lead in development but little compensation for the sacrificed pawn after 2. exf5 Nf6. This can lead to another variation of the Fool's Mate after 2. exf5 g5?? 3. Qh5#
1...f6?, the Barnes Defence. A rare move that is not a good idea, as it removes the f6 square for the knight and weakens the kingside. Even so, Thomas Wilson Barnes (after whom it is named) beat Paul Morphy, one of the most influential grandmasters in the 19th century, with this opening. Its only benefit is that it gets out of theory.
1...g5?, the Borg Defence (opposite of Grob) is another option Black has, however it is a bad one because it does weaken the kingside severely. The g5-pawn can serve as a hook for White (h4) later on. This also can lead to a Fool's Mate for Black.
1...a5?!, the Ware Defence is equally weak as 1...h5. It just wastes a tempo.
1...h5?!, the Pickering Defence simply wastes a tempo and weakens Black's position.
1...h6?!, the Carr Defence, is another time-wasting move, but it usually transposes into the Borg Defence anyways after 2. d4 g5.
1...Na6?! develops the b8-knight to an inferior square.
1...Nh6?! develops the g8-knight to an inferior square.
1...b5? simply loses a pawn to 2. Bxb5.

Statistics

Approximate chances: White win 39%, Draw 29%, Black win 32%.

Estimated next move popularity: c5 39%, e5 26%, e6 12%, c6 8%, d5 4%, d6 4%, g6 3%, Nf6 2%, Nc6 1%, b6 1%, other moves less than 0.5%.

move	average	365Chess.com (big)	Chess Tempo (all)	chessgames.com	Lichess (masters)	Lichess (database)
1...c5	39.1%	41.4	43.0	41.2	46.3	23.4
1...e5	25.9	24.0	22.2	28.6	22.7	31.8
1...e6	12.4	13.1	12.9	12.0	12.1	11.8
1...c6	7.8	7.4	8.2	7.4	7.8	8.3
1...d5	4.1	3.5	3.2	2.0	2.0	9.9
1...d6	4.0	4.3	4.3	3.5	3.6	4.3
1...g6	3.1	3.0	3.0	2.7	2.9	3.9
1...Nf6	2.1	2.3	2.1	1.8	1.8	2.5
1...Nc6	0.8	0.7	0.7	0.5	0.5	1.4
1...b6	0.6	0.3	0.3	0.2	0.2	2.0
1...a6	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.0	0.3
1...f5	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.2
everything else	0.1	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.3

Theory table

1. e4

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Evaluation
Sicilian Defence	... c5	Nf3 d6	d4 cxd4	Nxd4 Nf6	Nc3 a6	Be3 e5	Nb3 Be6	f3 Be7	Qd2 O-O	+/=
Ruy Lopez	... e5	Nf3 Nc6	Bb5 a6	Ba4 Nf6	O-O Be7	Re1 b5	Bb3 d6	c3 Na5	Bc2 c5	+/-
French Defence	... e6	d4 d5	Nc3 Nf6	Bg5 Be7	e5 Nfd7	Bxe7 Qxe7	f4 O-O	Nf3 c5	Qd2 Nc6	+/=
Caro-Kann Defence	... c6	d4 d5	Nc3 dxe4	Nxe4 Bf5	Ng3 Bg6	h4 h6	Nf3 Nd7	h5 Bh7	Bd3 Bxd3	+/=
Scandinavian Defence	... d5	exd5 Qxd5	Nc3 Qa5	d4 Nf6	Nf3 c6	Bc4 Bf5	Bd2 e6	Nd5 Qd8	Nxf6 Qxf6	+/=
Pirc Defence	... d6	d4 Nf6	Nc3 g6	f4 Bg7	Nf3 O-O	Bd3 Na6	O-O c5	d5 Rb8	Qe2 Nc7	+/-
Modern Defence	... g6	d4 Bg7	Nc3 d6	f4 a6	Nf3 b5	Bd3 Bb7	Qe2 Nc6	e5 Nh6	d5 Nb4	+/-
Alekhine Defence	... Nf6	e5 Nd5	d4 d6	c4 Nb6	f4 dxe5	fxe5 c5	d5 e6	Nc3 exd5	cxd5 Qh4+	+-
Nimzowitsch Defence	... Nc6	d4 d5	e5 Bf5	Nf3 e6	Bb5 a6	Bxc6+ bxc6	O-O c5	c3 cxd4	cxd4 h6	+-
Owen Defence	... b6	d4 Bb7	Bd3 e6	Nf3 c5	c3 Nf6	Qe2 Be7	O-O Nc6	e5 Nd5	dxc5 bxc5	+/-
St. George Defence	... a6	d4 b5	Nf3 Bb7	Bd3 Nf6	Qe2 e6	O-O c5	c3 d5	e5 Nfd7	dxc5 Nxc5	+/-
Duras Gambit	... f5	exf5 Nf6	d4 d5	Bd3 c5	c3 c4	Bc2 e6	Qe2 Bd6	fxe6 Qe7	Nf3 Bxe6	+-
Barnes Defence	... f6	d4 e6	Bd3 Ne7	Nf3 c5	d5 d6	O-O Ng6	Nc3 e5	Re1 Be7	Ne2 O-O	+-
Borg Defence	... g5	d4 Bg7	Bxg5 c5	c3 Qb6	Nf3 cxd4	cxd4 Nc6	Nc3!? Nxd4	Nd5! Qxb2	Rc1 Nxf3+	+-
Ware Defence	... a5	d4 e6	Nc3 d5	Bd3 Nc6	Nf3 Nb4	Be2 dxe4	Nxe4 h6	O-O Nf6	Nxf6+ Qxf6	+-
Pickering Defence	... h5	d4 e6	Nf3 d5	exd5 exd5	Bd3 Bd6	O-O Kf8	Re1 Nc6	h3 Nb4	Bf1 Bf5	+-
Carr Defence	... h6	d4 e6	Bd3 d5	Nc3 c5	dxc5 Bxc5	exd5 exd5	Bb5+ Nd7	Qxd5 Qe7+	Qe4 a6	+/-
O'Neill Gambit	... b5	Bxb5 Bb7	Nc3 Nf6	Qe2 e6	Nf3 a6	Ba4 c5	O-O Nc6	Bxc6 Bxc6	Ne5 Bb7	+-

All possible Black's moves

Quick
Navigation

Na6
a6
a5

b6
b5

Nc6
c6
c5

d6
d5

e6
e5

Nf6
f6
f5

g6
g5

Nh6
h6
h5

References

Kasparov, Garry, & Keene, Raymond 1989 Batsford chess openings 2. ISBN 0-8050-3409-9.

Nunn's Chess Openings. 1999. John Nunn (Editor), Graham Burgess, John Emms, Joe Gallagher. ISBN 1-8574-4221-0.

Modern Chess Openings: MCO-14. 1999. Nick de Firmian, Walter Korn. ISBN 0-8129-3084-3.

External links

365Chess: 1. e4

For explanation of theory tables, see theory table and for notation, see algebraic notation.

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