The Four Knights arises after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 (ECO C47) - both sides develop their knights quickly and symmetrically. It is one of the oldest and most principled of the open games.
Behind the outward simplicity and symmetry lies a subtle fight: White tries to break the balance (with the Spanish 4.Bb5 or the Scotch 4.d4, for instance), while Black aims to equalise in time or to seize the initiative.
The Four Knights is ideal for learning the classical principles of development. It leads to healthy, comprehensible positions where understanding counts for more than memorised lines.
Set it up on the board, move the pieces around and copy the FEN - or open the full walkthrough of the opening in a separate article.
Drag a piece onto the board, or click a piece and then click the squares. The cross beside the pieces sweeps every piece of that colour off the board, and a single piece can be dragged off the edge.
The pieces will be arranged into the chosen pattern.
It is the mating side to move. Find mate in one.
Openings, endgame positions and breakthrough studies - the set-up appears on the board.
Build your own position in the board editor, read up on the rules of chess or run a tournament on your own positions in the free app.
The Vibe Chess app is built for an evening over the board, not for online play: it keeps the sign-up list, the pairings and the table while you deal with people and the venue. All of it free.
Sign up to the Vibe Chess bot on Telegram - it carries the schedule of meetups and chess events across the cities we run in.
