Help with Slav/Semi-Slav Opening Theory

This is another defense that I have been deeply considering. First, I would really love to learn some opening theory about this defense. Any help is greatly appreciated,

Thanks

~Happy

Slav

1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 3 Nf3 Nf6 4 Nc3 dxc4 5 a4 e6 6 Bg5

SemiSlav

1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 3 Nf3 Nf6 4 Nc3 e6 5 Bg5 dxc4 6 a4

Noteboom

1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 3 Nf3 e6 4 Nc3 dxc4 5 a4 Nf6 6 Bg5

Great thanks so much for your help! Its very appreciated! Thanks for those detailed diagrams! Does anyone know what each side's objective is throught the game,(ie: The strong pieces to keep, the weak pieces to trade, and the goals for each side.)

Thanks,

~Happy

One small correction:

1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 e6 4.Nc3 dxc4 5.a4 is indeed noteboom, but typically the noteboom will follow 5..Bb4 6.e3 b5 and so on. Your line (5..Nf6 6.Bg5) simply transposes into a sideline of the anti-meran variation.

As for OP, the slav and semi slav are vast oceans of opening theory that cannot possibly be given in any depth on a single topic. I suggest you do some research, find a slav/semi-slav variation that interests you and ask some questions on these specific variations.

Thanks for your input!

There's a decent series on YouTube you can watch if you just search up the slav defense. But there is a ton to know. In general you're fighting for the center directly. Dark square bishop is good, light bad. Shallop variation, or however it's spelt, is what's covered in the series I mentioned. It just simply gets your light squared bishop out of the pawn chain if your opponent allows it. Check out the Aronian Anand game. I think it was the Tata steel tournament. Again search it on youtube, should be easy to find. Shows how crazy the slav can get

Goob63 wrote:

There's a decent series on YouTube you can watch if you just search up the slav defense. But there is a ton to know.

In general you're fighting for the center directly. Dark square bishop is good, light bad. Shallop variation, or however it's spelt, is what's covered in the series I mentioned. It just simply gets your light squared bishop out of the pawn chain if your opponent allows it.

Check out the Aronian Anand game. I think it was the Tata steel tournament. Again search it on youtube, should be easy to find. Shows how crazy the slav can get

Ill search and I appreciate your feedback!

Semislav and Slav are both wide openings. First of all white can choose to transpose into the meran variation, where he plays e3 instead of getting his bishop out with bg5. In the meran, black looks for breaks with e5 or c5. In the Bg5 semi-slav, there are 3 lines for black.

The Botvinnik- Bg5 xc4 the craziest and most theoretical, opposite side castling(sometimes black doesn't even castle). Black has queen pawn majority and attack on the white king. White also has an attack against the black king and a king side majority.           *White also has some sidelines with a4 instead of e4, or bg3 instead of nxg5

The Moscow- Bg5 h6 Black tries to take advantage of his bishop pair OR white goes into a crazy gambit

The Cambridge Springs- Bg5 Nd7 More quiet play, not the most exciting

The slav is probably a bit more "solid". I don't know too much about this one but white has aggresive ways to play such as e4 and some more solid ways to play.

Both openings are fine for black. If you are black and don't want to play the exchange slav, you can play e6 first instead of c6, but then you have to know the catalan and marshall attack + you have to know how to play the semi-slav, not slav

Wow Yoony, thank you very much for that detailed response! I really appreciate you taking the time to help me out with this one! Thanks!

Thanks for those helpful variations! It helps a lot!