8…d6 9.f4 Nbd7 10.g4 b4? 11.axb4 Bxb4 12.Na4! Be7 13.g5 Nh5 14.f5 – crushing.
If you are a club player who wants a solid, low‑maintenance, and psychologically cunning opening repertoire for White, this book is an excellent choice. It is the most theoretical or cutting‑edge work—but that is precisely its strength. It gives you a set of sound, practical lines that will never leave you lost in the opening, and it does so in a way that is easy to learn and remember.
In the dense forest of modern chess theory, where engines calculate millions of positions per second and "novelties" expire before the ink is dry, the club player often feels lost. We are told to play "principled" moves, to control the center, and to develop our pieces. But what happens when your opponent knows the principles just as well as you do?
The Reti Opening (starting with 1. Nf3) is the ultimate cunning choice. It is hypermodern, deeply flexible, and allows you to avoid early symmetry. a cunning chess opening repertoire for white pdf 18
: You can find the book on Amazon, Gambit’s own shop, and most chess book retailers. Note that some listings show the page count as 442 pages—that is an error carried over from an early PDF scan; the actual print book has 256 pages.
Instead of playing the absolute mainlines of the Open Games (like the highly theoretical lines of the Ruy Lopez ), a 1.d4 base allows White to dictate the structural nature of the game from move one. Core Pillars of the White Repertoire
The 10 Most Important Modern Chess Openings - House of Staunton 8…d6 9
The repertoire's "cunning" nature lies in its move orders. By playing followed by
White immediately develops the bishop to pin or trade off Black's knight on f6.
Based on reviews from GM John Watson and IM Jeremy Silman, the target audience is clear: If you are a club player who wants
Unlike the traditional, passive London System , the Jobava variation is highly aggressive. : Developing the knight to blocks the c-pawnc-pawn but threatens rapid kingside or center breakthroughs with The Goal : Force Black to defend against early threats targeting the weak The Delayed Wing Gambit For players who prefer but hate facing the rock-solid Sicilian Defense , a delayed
The Queen’s Pawn Approach: The Trompowsky and London System
before moving the c-pawn, White completely alters the dynamic of the game.