Guide to King David's Opening

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Bongcloud_420

Jul 7, 2018

This opening is one of psychological warfare, and of unexpected brute force. Even IM Lawrence Trent nearly blundered his queen due to the mere presence of this opening. Named after King David, the man who defeated Goliath in the Bible and led a nation, he always knew this: To win a battle, the king must lead it.

Now this opening may seem horrible at first, it is exposing your king to potential attacks and blocking both your queen and bishop and wasting a valuable opening tempo. That is why the rest of the opening and mid-game will be devoted to mitigate the effects of this opening and exploit it's few strengths.

Starting off, we see Nc6. The mainline for the boring old Sicilian, and the most common response you will see to King David's Opening. In this position, you must try to gain control of the center. Use your king to protect your pawns, let your opponent think he has an attacking chance, but don't actually let your king experience a real threat. This can cause your opponent to lose tempos, and help you gain greater control of the center.

This here is a real man's King's Gambit. It is not only pushing the king's pawn, but gambiting the king itself. Of course, that is what you want your opponent to think. Give him places to put his pieces, only to push them back with your pawns.

I have trapped my opponent's Queen countless time utilizing this opening or another variation of the bongcloud opening. However, just as your opponent should be wary of losing his queen, you must be wary of losing your king! Make sure all possible attacks are covered before you make a rash move such as this.

Opening up the position with the king in the center of the board and none of your pieces developed is never a good idea. Look to develop your pieces and underdevelop your opponent's whenever possible. Push those pawns! (but keep them protected!)

Here are some real example games utilizing King David's opening before I send you on your way: Good luck and may the King make a touchdown! (these are actually just my recent games, some aren't King David's and most have a lot of blunders, but they can give your an idea!)

and when you close your position too much:

Thanks for reading, or scrolling to the bottom to read this! All comments are welcome!

blueemu