King's Indian Defense

The favorite weapon of Garry Kasparov and Bobby Fischer to counter 1.d4 with dynamic attacks on the King.

One of the most asymmetrical and fascinating defenses in chess. Black initially concedes space in the center only to counterattack with ...e5 or ...c5, preparing a direct assault on the kingside or undermining the White pawn structure.

Chapter 1: Classical Mar del Plata & Bayonet Attack

The theoretical heart of the King's Indian: closed center with d5, knight maneuvers, and the race between Black's kingside attack and White's queenside advance.

  1. 1. Classical Mar del Plata (9.Ne1 Nd7 10.Nd3 f5) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 O-O…
  2. 2. Bayonet Attack with 9.b4 (The Response with Nh5) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 O-O…
  3. 3. Mar del Plata with 9.Nd2 (Positional Variation) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 O-O…
  4. 4. Gligoric System with 7.Be3 (Central Flexibility) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 O-O…
  5. 5. Petrosian System with 7.d5 a5 (Iron Grip) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 O-O…
  6. 6. Exchange Variation 7.dxe5 dxe5 (Balanced Endgame) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 O-O…
  7. 7. Modern Variation with 6...Na6 and Rapid c6 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 O-O…
  8. 8. Greed Trap on the e5 Pawn 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 O-O…

Chapter 2: Sämisch Variation, Four Pawns & Fianchetto

How to tackle White's aggressive and positional setups: the wall with 5.f3, the broad center with 5.f4, the solid g3 fianchetto, and the Averbakh and Smyslov systems.

  1. 9. Classical Sämisch Variation (5.f3 O-O 6.Be3 c5) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O…
  2. 10. Sämisch Panno System (6.Be3 Nc6 7.Nge2 a6 8.Qd2 Rb8) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O…
  3. 11. Four Pawns Attack (5.f4 O-O 6.Nf3 c5!) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f4 O-O…
  4. 12. Averbakh System with 6.Bg5 (Counterplay with c5 or h6) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Be2 O-O…
  5. 13. Fianchetto Variation G3 (White's Solid Choice) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.g3 Bg7 4.Bg2 O-O 5.Nf3 d6…
  6. 14. Makogonov Variation with 5.h3 (Preventing Ng4) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.h3 O-O…
  7. 15. Smyslov System with 5.Nf3 O-O 6.Bg5 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Nf3 O-O…
  8. 16. Danube Gambit (3...c5 4.d5 b5!?) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.Nf3 c5 5.d5 b5…
  9. 17. Long Castling Trap in the Sämisch 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O…
  10. 18. Zinnowitz Variation (6...Bg4 and 7...Nfd7) 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.Nf3 O-O 5.e4 d6…