Three. One for White, so you always start the game the same way. And two for Black: one answer to 1.e4 and another to 1.d4. You do not need more: up to the level of a confident club player that covers almost every game.
Depth - four or five moves. After that it is no longer memory but chess: develop your pieces, get the king to safety, connect the rooks. If your opponent leaves the set-up on move three, that is not a problem, it is normal - which is exactly why ideas matter more than variations.
Three opening rules that matter more than any set-up: occupy the centre with pawns, bring out the minor pieces (knights and bishops) before the heavy ones, and castle within the first ten moves. Almost every opening a beginner loses breaks one of the three.
The clearest start for a beginner: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4. Three moves do everything the opening is supposed to do - they take the centre, develop a knight and a bishop and prepare castling.
White's idea is simple: the bishop on c4 eyes f7 - Black's weakest square, defended only by the king. Then 4.0-0, followed by c3 and d4 to take the centre. There is nothing to memorise: every move is explained by a rule.
A full guide with every branch and trap - the Italian Game. If you want something more positional, the same first moves lead into the Ruy Lopez - but it is harder and needs more theory.
The symmetrical reply 1...e5 is the best choice for a beginner. It fights for the centre, opens lines for the bishop and the queen, and leads to positions where ordinary principles work rather than memorised lines.
In practice you may then face the Italian Game, the Ruy Lopez, the Scotch Game or the King's Gambit - and all of them are played by the same principles. You do not need to know each one by heart; it is enough to understand what the fight in the centre is about.
An alternative for those who do not like open play is the Caro-Kann Defence: a solid set-up with ...c6 and ...d5 and very few forcing lines. The Sicilian Defence, on the other hand, is worth putting off: it gives the best winning chances but demands real theory.
After 1.d4 d5 2.c4 the most comfortable choice for a beginner is 2...c6 - the Slav Defence. The c6 pawn defends d5, and the c8 bishop stays free: that is the whole difference from the similar 2...e6, where the bishop is shut in by its own pawn.
The plan for the next few moves: ...Nf6, ...Bf5 or ...Bg4, then ...e6 and castling. The set-up repeats against almost any White formation, and that is what makes it valuable for a beginner.
The guide - the Slav Defence. Closely related is the Queen's Gambit - worth a look to understand why Black cannot hold on to the c4 pawn.
Not every opening is equally useful to a beginner. Three kinds are better put off - not because they are bad, but because they demand memory instead of understanding.
Traps are worth knowing from the other side, though - so you do not fall into them: opening traps.
Reading variations is useless: they are forgotten within a week. What works is playing them through - making the moves with your own hands and seeing after each one why it was made.
In the openings catalogue every set-up opens on a board: you can go through the line move by move with notes, turn off into another variation at a branching point, and then switch on quiz mode and try to recall the moves yourself.
Not sure where to start? Take the quiz which chess opening suits you: it matches a set-up to your playing style. After that it all comes down to recorded games, where afterwards you can see exactly where you left the opening.
Three: one for White and one answer each to 1.e4 and 1.d4. Depth - four or five moves. That is enough up to the level of a confident club player; beyond that, understanding the centre and development matters more.
The Italian Game: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4. Every move is explained by a general rule - centre, knights, bishops, castling - so there is nothing to memorise.
For a beginner the simplest is 1...e5: a fight for the centre and clear positions. If you do not like open play, the Caro-Kann Defence is a good fit. The Sicilian Defence is better put off - it demands real theory.
As an experiment, yes - they teach you to value initiative and development. As your main opening, no: against a prepared opponent you are simply a pawn down, and it does nothing for your understanding of the position.
Four or five. After that your opponent will almost certainly deviate, and the game will be decided not by memory but by your ability to develop and not give up the centre.
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The bot is constantly improved based on real tournaments. If you need a feature that isn't there yet, message the developers right inside the bot with the /support command. Many features appeared exactly because organizers asked for them, and useful ideas get added quickly.
Openings - the catalogue of guides, for White, for Black, traps. The basics - the rules of chess and tactics for beginners.
