Open games & French

Petrov's Defense

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6

The Petrov's Defense starts with 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 and is catalogued under ECO C42, in the open games & french half of the book. The catalog indexes 50 lines inside it, grouped into 43 named variations, and the position after those moves has 3 playable continuations 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
Petrov's Defense: Modern Attack
9 plies
Modern Attack, Tal Gambit
9 plies
Modern Attack, Center Attack
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. 1…e5

    Meets White’s center directly and opens lines for Black’s queen and bishop.

    Idea: Fight for equal central space in a balanced, open position.

  3. 2.Nf3

    Develops the king’s knight and attacks Black’s e5-pawn.

    Idea: Increase central pressure while getting ready to castle.

  4. 2…Nf6

    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.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.

  6. 3…exd4

    Captures the pawn on d4 and changes the local pawn or piece balance.

    Idea: Open lines in the center and reshape the center for the next phase.

  7. 4.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.

  8. 4…Ne4

    Repositions the knight to e4, where it influences a new part of the board.

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

Book continuations

Waiting for Lichess game popularity.

3 moves
Qe2Petrov's Defense: Modern Attack, Steinitz Variation2 named lines · Petrov's Defense: Modern Attack, Bardeleben VariationRepositions the queen to e2, where it influences a new part of the board.Idea: Coordinate threats carefully while avoiding unnecessary tempi against the queen.Bb5Petrov's Defense: Modern Attack, Tal Gambit1 named lineDevelops the bishop to b5, bringing it into the game.Idea: Improve piece coordination and clear the back rank for castling and the rooks.Qxd4Petrov's Defense: Modern Attack, Center Attack1 named lineCaptures the pawn on d4 and changes the local pawn or piece balance.Idea: Remove an active defender and improve the moving piece’s influence.

Named variations

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

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

Openings from the same volume

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