Vienna Game

1. e4White opens with e4, taking the centre and freeing the queen and light-squared bishop.
2. e5Black answers symmetrically with e5, staking an equal claim and blocking White's pawn from advancing further.
3. Nc3The move that defines the Vienna: the knight comes to c3 before the king's knight. It guards e4 and, crucially, leaves the f-pawn free for a later f4.
4. Nf6Black develops Nf6, attacking e4 and following the most natural developing scheme.
5. Bc4White plays Bc4, pointing the bishop at f7 — the weakest square in Black's camp.
6. Nxe4Black grabs the pawn on e4. It is the most tempting move on the board and the reason this line has claimed so many victims.
7. Qh5Qh5! The point. The queen hits e5 and f7 at the same time, and the knight on e4 is loose. Black has only one move that holds everything together.
8. Nd6Nd6 is that move — it blocks the queen's path to f7 and attacks the bishop on c4. Anything else loses material on the spot.
9. Bb3White retreats to b3, keeping the bishop on the f7 diagonal rather than trading it off.
10. Nc6Black defends e5 with Nc6, finally getting a piece out and covering the loose pawn.
11. Nb5Nb5 keeps the pressure on: the knight eyes c7 while the queen still ties Black to the defence of e5. Stockfish gives White around +0.7 here — a pleasant, easy-to-play edge rather than a forced win.

The Vienna Gambit — essentially a King's Gambit with the useful Nc3 already played. White throws in f4 to blast open the centre and the f-file. Black's correct answer is not to grab material but to hit back immediately with ...d5, and after the main line the engine sees the position as roughly level (+0.1), which is a good result for Black against such an aggressive setup.

1. e4White plays e4.
2. e5Black replies e5.
3. Nc3Nc3 — the Vienna, keeping f4 available.
4. Nf6Black develops Nf6 and attacks e4.
5. f4f4! The gambit. White offers the f-pawn to open lines, the same idea as the King's Gambit but with a developed knight already in place.
6. d5d5! The correct reply. Rather than taking on f4, Black strikes in the centre and opens lines for their own pieces.
7. fxe5White captures on e5, taking the pawn Black offered in return.
8. Nxe4Black recaptures on e4 with the knight, restoring material balance in the centre.
9. Nf3Nf3 develops and supports the e5 pawn.
10. Be7Black develops Be7, preparing to castle out of the coming storm.
11. d4d4 builds the big centre and gives the c1 bishop a diagonal.
12. O-OBlack castles. The position is sharp but balanced — Stockfish reads it as about +0.1, meaning Black has fully met the gambit.

The Meitner-Mieses Gambit, one of the most spectacular traps in the whole opening. White ignores the attack on f2, plays Nd5, and invites Black to take with the queen. It is objectively unsound against precise defence, but over the board it wins a lot of games — and after 6...Kf8 the engine still reads about +0.5 for White, so the practical risk is smaller than it looks.

1. e4White plays e4.
2. e5Black plays e5.
3. Nc3Nc3, the Vienna move order.
4. Nc6Black develops Nc6 to defend e5.
5. Bc4Bc4 takes aim at f7.
6. Bc5Black mirrors with Bc5, and now both bishops eye the weak f-squares.
7. Qg4Qg4!? The queen swings across to attack g7, ignoring the danger to f2.
8. Qf6Black defends g7 with Qf6, which also piles onto f2.
9. Nd5Nd5!! The point — White ignores f2 completely and hits the queen and c7 at once.
10. Qxf2Black takes on f2 with check. It looks winning, and against most opponents it works; against the correct follow-up it is playing with fire.
11. Kd1Kd1! The king steps aside and the attack on the black queen continues. White's pieces are all pointing at the black king.
12. Kf8Black plays Kf8 to unpin and hold the position together. Stockfish still favours White by about half a pawn — the gambit is not sound, but it is very much playable.

The Smyslov Variation with 3.g3 — the quiet face of the Vienna. White fianchettoes, castles, and plays a slow, sound positional game with no gambits at all. After the main line Stockfish reads dead level (-0.1), which is exactly the point: this is the version you play when you want a solid game and a long middlegame rather than a shootout.

1. e4White plays e4.
2. e5Black plays e5.
3. Nc3Nc3 keeps all the Vienna options open.
4. Nf6Black develops Nf6.
5. g3g3 — the Smyslov approach. White prepares Bg2 and a quiet positional game instead of f4.
6. d5Black strikes in the centre with d5, the standard equalising break.
7. exd5White captures on d5.
8. Nxd5Black recaptures with the knight, which now sits actively in the centre.
9. Bg2Bg2 completes the fianchetto and puts pressure on the long diagonal.
10. Nxc3Black trades on c3, forcing White to accept doubled pawns.
11. bxc3bxc3 recaptures. The doubled pawns look ugly but they support d4 and open the b-file for the rook.
12. Bd6Black develops Bd6, guarding e5. The position is level and strategically rich — Stockfish reads it at about -0.1.