My FAVORITE Chess Openings by Rating

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I get many questions about chess openings for beginners, intermediate, and advanced level players. In this video I share what openings I think work best across the rating ladder. London, Stonewall, Sicilian, Caro Kann, and many others are featured.

0:00 Intro
0:35 FOR BEGINNERS (LIKE 1100)
7:16 FOR INTERMEDIATE (LIKE 1800)
13:29 FOR ADVANCED (LIKE 1800+)

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470 Comments

  1. Yo beginner here,in the fried liver attack,after you move the bishop and getting ready to move the knight to g5 and getting ready to fork the queen and the rook,WHAT IF THE QUEEN TAKES THE KNIGHT IN G5?(if she/he doesn't move the knight)

  2. I got scared all of a sudden when i saw the thumbnail…

  3. Londen doesnt work everybody knows how to counter it its to overplayed

  4. So you probably don't check comments from ten million years ago, but against the Sicilian Defense, I play the Snyder Variation, as it is not very well-known, and partly counters the Sicilian Dragon. What would a lower rated player (800-1000) play then?

  5. As white I play Vienna and as black I play French and dutch since dutch covers everything but E4 and I'm like 1075

  6. I just finished watching your "Why the London opening SUCKS" video, so that was a funny way to start.

  7. this is for me

    Beginners
    00:38 White –> London System
    02:00 White –> Stone Wall
    02:37 White –> e4 Nf6
    04:34 Black –> King's Indian Setup
    05:35 Black –> Scandinavian Defense
    06:34 Black –> Sicilian Defense (Dragon Sicilian)

    Intermediate
    08:10 White –> The Vienna Gambit
    08:31 White –> Vienna Copycat Variation
    08:50 White –> Closed Sicilian
    10:31 Black –> Highly recommended: Caro-Kann Defense
    11:06 Black –> Against any but e4, The Dutch
    12:26 Black –> Traxler
    13:11 Black –> Stafford Gambit

    Advanced
    14:10 White –> The Trompowsky Attack
    14:43 White –> Trompowsky Raptor Variation
    15:00 White –> Catalan
    15:20 White –> The English
    16:20 Black –> e4 e5 (Ruy Lopez or Italian) play g6 system
    17:17 Black –> trickier sicilians, not main line (Nimzowitsch, Two-Knights Sicilian)
    18:05 Black –> e6 b6 setups

    thats it!

  8. I will always see you as an chess teacher.

  9. This channel has risen a lot, I don't know if that is the explanation or it is just "bad luck", but I decided to play the Vienna with white and the scandinavian defense with black, when possible. I played 5-6 times after watching this video and in none of them I got the main lines you show here. Anyways, I won them and I made it to 900 ELO.

    Time will tell if all this is just a coincidence or if I play better with these openings even if I am responded with weird combinations.

    It is the first time I plan to learn a combination of moves, besides fried liver and that kind of stuff. I'm curious to see if i'll really improve or not.

  10. I almost win my chess teacher with the london system

  11. I've been winning 80% of my games since I started playing the london I learned here (I'm like 550 blitz)

  12. if i stop drinking like a maniac,i could get good,i understand the game,but i can only punish peeps sober :(((( Not 2 sober last couple of……

  13. GothamChess: If you under 1000 learn london system, if over learn e4 …
    Me who got 1900 elo without knowing anything about openings: Why even bother with openings below 2000, if opponents blunder everything anyway?

  14. Me who can't reach 1000 elo 🙁 and I'm here to improve myself sooo thank you very much levy for your tutorial ✨

  15. i would never recommend someone to play the london

  16. Chess has changed, even at 400 people know basic opening principles, and some easy openings like London system, wayward queen, Italian, Sicilian, and four knights, at 1000 is truly when I consider it intermidiate, 750 is when people know how to play chess, they just suck, but they know a lot
    Of principles, but at 1000 is when I truly consider it intermediate because you can go through a whole game without blunders, they known slightly more advanced principles, they know how to take discovered attacks to their advantage, and aren’t as blind, sometimes know a bit of the queens gambit (probably because of the show) and the kings gambit, know how to play endgames, sometimes the basics of the ruy Lopez but no one plays it out of fear of going up against THAT guy who knows the ruy Lopez, at 1750 is when I consider it advances because they know all principles, know how to play without blunders and few mistakes, know some of the caro-kann, have king gambit repertoire or know theory, don’t fall for any more beginner tricks and actually know ruy Lopez

  17. i tried the London system i just couldn't understand what's good about it i keep loosing using it🙂💔

  18. Is it worth trying for early checkmates or traps? Like if you win because your opponent did something stupid in the opening, does that still teach you useful chess skills?

  19. I am a 1660 rated player, I only play London system on white and Scandinavian for black

  20. Is c3 Levy's favourite move? It inadvertently comes up in so many of his lines. Ponziani, Alapin, etc.

  21. Don’t waste time playing for the light squares as black. You make the game a lot harder to win. Just trust me

  22. me when i destroy the sislian defence with the alpalin

  23. Levy: for beginners (like 1100)

    Me: cries in corner with 100 Elo😢

  24. I've watched about 50 Gotham chess videos. This is by far the most helpful video I've seen Levy 🎉

  25. what about the InterContinental Ballistic Missile gambit?

  26. Youknow Levi, you have taught me to play the fllowing

    When I'm White, I play
    1. the english
    2. italian game
    3. ponziani opening
    4. stonewall

    When I'm Black, as soon as I see e4 I play c6, and as soon as I see any other move I play f5. And now I have a specific repertoire that takes opponents by surprise.

  27. It's crazy how once you get above 2000 you basically just start playing 50 different sicilians lol

  28. Why dont i have to play against people like this

  29. having only been playing for a few months, knowing the english reverse sicilian at a low elo has actually been incredible for me, i was hovering around 750-800 playing either queen's gambit or london but consistently winning now with the english because low level players don't know how to play against c4, im closing in on 1k elo now!

  30. Cracks 1100 after months of playing the pirc and the London exclusively. “Okay I’ll ruin my rating by playing something new”

  31. 3:10 I would recommend going for Jerome gambit(Bxf7, Nxe5, Qh5 check) because at this level It's just like a fried liver but with more risk and more reward. If your opponent doesn't know what he's doing, you will win in 10 moves(your queen will just simply eat everything), but if he does know you just simply resign. It works more often than it doesn't. You save time and get fast wins – totally usable on below 1000 level. Wayward queen attack is also great for below 700-800

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