Benoni Defense:Modern Variation

Black gets a queenside pawn majority and active pieces in exchange for a weak d6 pawn; Mikhail Tal and Bobby Fischer both played it.

It is reached after 6 moves: 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 e6. It is a line of the Benoni Defense.

White is to move and has 31 legal moves. Over the next four moves — two for each side — the game can branch into 693,615 different games. Those games reach 232,617 different positions: most positions can be reached in more than one way, 3 on average.

The Lichess opening list names 15 further lines after this position, such as King's Pawn Line (4. Nc3 exd5 5. cxd5 d6 6. e4) and Snake Variation (4. Nc3 exd5 5. cxd5 Bd6).

The same moves can be played in 12 different legal orders that all reach this position. For example 1. c4 Nf6 2. d4 c5 3. d5 e6, which starts as the English Opening.