Flank openings

Queen's Pawn Game

1.d4

The Queen's Pawn Game starts with 1.d4 and is catalogued under ECO A40, in the flank openings half of the book. The catalog indexes 82 lines inside it, grouped into 49 named variations, and the position after those moves has 10 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
Indian Defense: Knights Variation
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.d4

    Takes central space with a protected pawn and frees the queen’s bishop.

    Idea: Build a stable center that supports a broad positional setup.

  2. 1…Nf6

    Develops a knight and prevents White from occupying e4 unchallenged.

    Idea: Keep the central pawns flexible and choose an Indian setup after White commits.

  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.

Book continuations

Waiting for Lichess game popularity.

10 moves
g6East Indian Defense20 named lines · London System · London System, with Bd3Advances the g-pawn to gain kingside space and control new squares.Idea: Create useful wing space while keeping the central structure flexible.e6Indian Defense: Knights Variation15 named lines · Rubinstein Opening · Yusupov-Rubinstein SystemAdvances to e6 to claim central space and control nearby key squares.Idea: Give the pieces room to develop behind a durable central foothold.b6Pseudo Queen's Indian Defense4 named lines · Marienbad System · Indian Defense: Schnepper GambitAdvances the b-pawn to gain queenside space and control new squares.Idea: Create useful wing space while keeping the central structure flexible.c5Indian Defense: Spielmann-Indian3 named lines · Indian Defense: Pseudo-Benko · Benoni Defense: Hawk VariationAdvances the c-pawn to gain queenside space and control new squares.Idea: Create useful wing space while keeping the central structure flexible.d5Queen's Pawn Game: Symmetrical Variation2 named lines · Queen's Indian Defense, with e3 · London System: Poisoned Pawn VariationAdvances to d5 to claim central space and control nearby key squares.Idea: Give the pieces room to develop behind a durable central foothold.a6Indian Defense: Knights Variation, Alburt-Miles Variation1 named lineAdvances the a-pawn to gain queenside edge space and control new squares.Idea: Create useful wing space while keeping the central structure flexible.b5Indian Defense: Polish Variation1 named lineAdvances the b-pawn to gain queenside space and control new squares.Idea: Prepare a fianchetto or discourage the opponent’s expansion on that wing.c6Indian Defense: Czech-Indian1 named lineAdvances the c-pawn to gain queenside space and control new squares.Idea: Create useful wing space while keeping the central structure flexible.d6Indian Defense: Wade-Tartakower Defense1 named lineAdvances to d6 to claim central space and control nearby key squares.Idea: Give the pieces room to develop behind a durable central foothold.Ne4Döry Defense1 named lineRepositions 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.

Named variations

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

25 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 Queen's Pawn Game.