Semi-open games

King's Pawn Game

1.e4

The King's Pawn Game starts with 1.e4 and is catalogued under ECO B00, in the semi-open games half of the book. The catalog indexes 38 lines inside it, grouped into 35 named variations, and the position after those moves has 1 playable continuation to walk from here.

Opening repertoire map

Root edges show how often each move is played around your Elo. Use the arrow on a position to reveal the next replies.

Current position
Nimzowitsch Defense: El Columpio Defense
Popularity by Elo
Share of Lichess blitz, rapid, and classical games that continued with each move.
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Current setup

Move ideas

  1. 1.e4

    Claims the center with a pawn and opens lines for the queen and king’s bishop.

    Idea: Build quick development and make early castling possible.

  2. 1Nc6

    Develops the knight to c6, bringing it into the game.

    Idea: Improve piece coordination and clear the back rank for castling and the rooks.

  3. 2.Nf3

    Develops the knight to f3, bringing it into the game.

    Idea: Improve piece coordination and clear the back rank for castling and the rooks.

  4. 2Nf6

    Develops the knight to f6, bringing it into the game.

    Idea: Improve piece coordination and clear the back rank for castling and the rooks.

  5. 3.e5

    Advances to e5 to claim central space and control nearby key squares.

    Idea: Give the pieces room to develop behind a durable central foothold.

  6. 3Ng4

    Repositions the knight to g4, where it influences a new part of the board.

    Idea: Improve the piece’s activity and support the next stage of the plan.

  7. 4.d4

    Advances to d4 to claim central space and control nearby key squares.

    Idea: Give the pieces room to develop behind a durable central foothold.

  8. 4d6

    Advances to d6 to claim central space and control nearby key squares.

    Idea: Give the pieces room to develop behind a durable central foothold.

  9. 5.h3

    Advances the h-pawn to gain kingside edge space and control new squares.

    Idea: Create useful wing space while keeping the central structure flexible.

Book continuations

Waiting for Lichess game popularity.

1 move

Named variations

Each line below is an indexed entry under King's Pawn Game. Open one to load it on the board and keep exploring from that position.

11 more named lines sit inside this family — the tree above walks all of them.

ECO groups openings by the structures they lead to, so these families tend to share plans with the King's Pawn Game.