Against the French, an approach you should consider is the Papa-Ticulat Gambit. It goes 1. e4 e6 2. b3 d5 3. Bb2. You follow this up with Nc3, Qe2, and 0-0-0. It's a lot more sound than it looks and I know a 2000 who plays it OTB.
Looking to complete my repertoire (volume 2)

Against e4 you can play najdorf my favorite
Against d4 play grunfeld also my favourite and the good thing is you can play grunfeld against english, reti, NLA
And dont check my account I play on lichess org @chessprodigy_Nkr
Against e4 you can play najdorf my favorite
Against d4 play grunfeld also my favourite and the good thing is you can play grunfeld against english, reti, NLA
And dont check my account I play on lichess org @chessprodigy_Nkr
Homie how are you 1800 OTB and 1800 Lichess? I am 1400 OTB and 1950 Lichess. (You saying ‘don’t check my account’ prompted me to check your account.)

If you like the Dragon, but find it too dangerous, learn the Accelerated Dragon, which, despite the name, is a much safer line as White can't get a really dangerous version of the Yugoslav attack against it.
If you like the Dragon, but find it too dangerous, learn the Accelerated Dragon, which, despite the name, is a much safer line as White can't get a really dangerous version of the Yugoslav attack against it.
See, I actually find the Maroczy Bind more frustrating then the Yugoslav. I really enjoy the Yugoslav in theory, but I seem to crumble under pressure against it. If I were to learn a Sicilian, I would probably steer clear of any g6 related stuff - I've had pretty poor records with the KID, Pirc and Modern as well as the Dragon.

Eric schiller's complete guide to queens pawn openings is a very good tarrasch book and an easy read.
I like the scotch game. Perhaps try the scandinavian with qa5.
#1
You are rated 1150. Do not worry about openings, worry about blunder checking.
"I am still really enjoying e4, most notably the Scotch." ++ That is good.
"I have found more comfort in main lines with 3.Nc3 against the French and 3.e5 against the Caro." ++ Those are good.
"I found it significantly more enjoyable to play for Open Sicilians, and I have had reasonable success doing so, particularly with setups starting in the English and Yugoslav attacks."
++ This is good, but heavy on theory. Some lines go beyond 20 moves.
https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=2290237
As Black vs e4:
"I ended up losing a lot of games very early to uncharacteristic blunders"
++ This is characteristic of 1150 rating. Do not blame the opening for your blunders.
"this has generally been one of the reasons why I have hesitated with 1...e5."
++ Do not blame your blunders on the Petrov.
"I have been studying Easy Guide to the Dragon by Mikhail Golubev"
++ It would be more efficient to study endgames.
"I have had very mixed success dealing with the sharpness of the Dragon"
++ 'Weak players even beat grandmaster with it' - Fischer on the Yugoslav Attack
"I'm not intimidated by the theory" ++ It is not a matter of intimidation, but of efficiency
"I'm not sure if it's a good use of my time" ++ No, it is not.
"I still have so much to learn about tactics and positional play, as well as endgames."
++ Yes, focus on that is more efficient.
"I have also tried out the Caro"
++ Do not try too much: pick one opening and stick to it so as to accumulate experience
"would prefer a more open type of position (although I'm not sure how I could get that as black)." ++ Well, the Petrov is open and good.
As Black vs d4:
"Queen's Gambit Accepted, however I ultimately found it unsatisfying."
++ It is open and it is good. What is unsatisfying about it?
"I have sampled the Tarrasch, and I feel like this counterattacking type of position is enjoyable and solves a lot of problems that I was struggling with." ++ Yes, Tarrasch is open and good too.
"Is this a decent long term choice" ++ Yes.
"are there any good resources to understanding the opening more?"
++ Look at the early games of Kasparov: he played the Tarrasch exclusively in his younger years.
"Really enjoying e4, particularly the Scotch and its ideas. Are there any black openings against 1.e4 that emulate this?" ++ Petrov.
"Is the Tarrasch a viable choice against d4" ++ Yes
"are there any good places to learn it in more depth?" ++ Early Kasparov games
https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1070105
#9
It is possible to study the games unannotated without or with engine help.
It is also possible to look for annotations, e.g. "Test of Time" - Kasparov or Chess Informant
It is certainly more helpful than "Easy Guide to the Dragon" Golubev

There is nothing wrong with going through master games if they have a high accuracy. They can be added to a database for later review. You think through every move note your ideas and reasons for why you think your idea for the next move should work then compare your notes at the end of the game to the actual game and the computer analysis. Has to be a great learning method for the whole game not just a phase of the game.
I think if you are going to spend time playing a mainline Sicilian as black, I would pick the Najdorf over the Dragon...there are just some White setups that are unpleasant for Black...no matter how much work Gawian Jones and others have put into it. So if I'm going to stretch my mind with a Sicilian might as well sit on the shoulders of Giants that have played the Najdorf.

There is nothing wrong with going through master games if they have a high accuracy. They can be added to a database for later review. You think through every move note your ideas and reasons for why you think your idea for the next move should work then compare your notes at the end of the game to the actual game and the computer analysis. Has to be a great learning method for the whole game not just a phase of the game.
Aimlessly sifting through databases is even worse for other parts of the game. Nobody learns their endgames like that.
Another poster brings up Gawain Jones: a world known king's indian expert, who originally learnt by reading the famous book "play the king's indian" by Joe Gallagher.
As it's the opening section, I went through a line of his recent in a Catalan course on chessable:
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 O-O 5. Nc3 d6 6. Nf3 Nc6 7. O-O a6 8. b3 Rb8 9. d5 Na5 10. Bg5 b5 11. cxb5 axb5 12. b4 c5

You like the Sicilian Dragon but struggle with it. Chess Geek made a whole masterclass on it here. It should have almost everything you need to play it. Also, I know that FM Lefong Hua plays the Dragon against e4 very regularly so I would recommend checking his games out on Chess.com or Lichess (Lichess has more games) so you can see what someone who consistently plays it does and maybe compare it to your games
Against 1.d4, I play the Semi-Slav which I've created 3 studies on what to do. These are based on a Grandmaster Repertoire book so don't think you have to memorize everything I put into them. It should give you more of an idea of what to do in the middlegame and the common plans by using overkill
So I posted relatively recently asking for tips on completing my repertoire. I am grateful to everyone that replied, and I wanted to share my progress as well as post a new call for help based on what has worked and what hasn't. (TLDR at the end)
As White:
- I am still really enjoying e4, most notably the Scotch. I adore the open and free-flowing positions, and while I'm not the sharpest tactician, I feel like play is quite natural in the middlegames that I am able to get.
- Against the French and Caro, while I initially wanted to try the exchange variations (Panov for Caro-Kann) as recommended by some of you, I found myself ironically quite uncomfortable in those positions, however I have found more comfort in main lines with 3.Nc3 against the French and 3.e5 against the Caro.
- While I tried to learn the Alapin as a way of meeting the Sicilian, I found it significantly more enjoyable to play for Open Sicilians, and I have had reasonable success doing so, particularly with setups starting in the English and Yugoslav attacks.
As Black vs e4:
- My initial choice was the Petroff - my research suggested I would get play that was in some ways similar to the Scotch, which is the ideal scenario for me. However, due to my carelessness and fear more than anything else, I ended up losing a lot of games very early to uncharacteristic blunders, which meant that I was unable to maximise the potential of the opening. While I am not averse to retrying the Petroff, this has generally been one of the reasons why I have hesitated with 1...e5.
- More recently, I have been studying Easy Guide to the Dragon by Mikhail Golubev, and while the positions seem electric and exciting on the page, I have had very mixed success dealing with the sharpness of the Dragon, particularly the critical Yugoslav Attack. I do want to learn a Sicilian variation, and I'm not intimidated by the theory, merely, I'm not sure if it's a good use of my time when I still have so much to learn about tactics and positional play, as well as endgames.
- I have also tried out the Caro, and while I haven't had bad results with it, I find it somewhat boring and ideally would prefer a more open type of position (although I'm not sure how I could get that as black).
As Black vs d4:
- This was a long haul project. I have been miserable against d4 for a long time. I was a big fan of someone's suggestion for the Queen's Gambit Accepted, however I ultimately found it unsatisfying.
- I tried multiple setups, however, none of them gave me any sort of comfort, and I often found myself choked to death on the queenside. Recently, however, I have sampled the Tarrasch, and I feel like this counterattacking type of position is enjoyable and solves a lot of problems that I was struggling with. Is this a decent long term choice, and are there any good resources to understanding the opening more?
TLDR
- Really enjoying e4, particularly the Scotch and its ideas. Are there any black openings against 1.e4 that emulate this?
- Is the Tarrasch a viable choice against d4, and are there any good places to learn it in more depth?
Thanks for all the help!