Philidor DefenseC41
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6. Black guards the e5 pawn with a pawn on d6 instead of a knight. It is solid, but Black has a little less room.
Move by move
2... d6: pawn to d 6
- White: e4, pawn to e 4.
- Black: e5, pawn to e 5.
- White: Nf3, knight to f 3.
- Black: d6, pawn to d 6.
What each side wants
⚪ White: Play d4 straight away and bring your pieces out. You will have more space.
⚫ Black: Keep the e5 pawn strong, bring out Nf6 and Be7, and castle.
Black made the last move, so after this it is White's turn.
You will also hear it called the Philidor.
⚠️ Légal's mate: the queen is bait
3. Bc4 Bg4 4. Nc3 g6 5. Nxe5 Bxd1 6. Bxf7+ Ke7 7. Nd5#
White can leave the queen to be taken! After 3.Bc4 Bg4 4.Nc3 g6 5.Nxe5, if Black grabs the queen with 5...Bxd1, then 6.Bxf7+ Ke7 7.Nd5 is checkmate. The lesson for Black: when something big is free, look for why.
That last move is checkmate.
Three things every opening does
The Philidor Defense follows the three ideas strong players use in every opening. Get a pawn or two into the middle of the board, because pieces in the middle can reach more squares. Bring out your knights and bishops before you move the queen a lot, so she is not chased around. And castle early, so your king is tucked behind a wall of pawns and your rook joins the game. When you forget the moves, those three ideas will still help you find a good one.
Try it
Play it against Peabody on Play, then solve today's puzzle. Openings that start the same way:
- Italian Game
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 - Giuoco Piano
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 - Two Knights Defense
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 - Fried Liver Attack
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. Ng5 d5 5. exd5 Nxd5 6. Nxf7 - Evans Gambit
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. b4 - Scotch Game
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4
Name, code and moves from the Lichess openings list (CC0), checked . The words are Peabody's own, and every move on this page is checked by Peabody's chess engine.