Slav Defence
D19 · Played as black · Beginner · Queen's Gambit
Defend d5 with the c-pawn and the problem bishop walks free
The main line
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 dxc4 5.a4 Bf5 6.e3 e6 7.Bxc4 Bb4 8.O-O Nbd7 9.Qe2 Bg6
Strategic ideas
- Support d5 with …c6 instead of …e6 so the c8-bishop keeps its diagonal
- Grab the c4-pawn and hold it with …b5 if White doesn't act quickly
- Develop the bishop to f5 or g4 before closing the position with …e6
- Reach a rock-solid structure that has almost no weaknesses to attack
- Play the opening that stayed at the top of world championship matches for a century
Key themes
- Solid — The c6/d5 pawn duo is one of the toughest structures in chess to break down
- Positional — The game is a long structural fight over c4, e4 and the queenside majority
- Piece Activity — Unlike the QGD, Black's light-squared bishop gets out before the pawns lock it in
Typical plans
The Slav answers the Queen's Gambit the same way the Caro-Kann answers 1.e4 — hold the centre with the c-pawn so the light-squared bishop stays free. That single difference from the Queen's Gambit Declined is why so many world champions have played it. Black can grab the c4-pawn and try to hold it with …b5, forcing White into the sharp a4 lines, or just develop solidly. The structure is famously tough: Black has no weaknesses, and White has to work extremely hard for anything.
Move by move
- d4 — White claims the centre.
- d5 — Black meets it symmetrically.
- c4 — White offers the Queen's Gambit, challenging d5.
- c6 — Black defends with the c-pawn. This is the Slav — and unlike the QGD's …e6, it leaves the c8-bishop's diagonal wide open.
- Nf3 — White develops and controls e5.
- Nf6 — Black develops and defends d5.
- Nc3 — White develops and adds pressure to d5.
- dxc4 — Black takes the pawn. It can't be held forever, but grabbing it forces White to spend time.
- a4 — White stops …b5 immediately. This costs a tempo and permanently weakens b4 — but the alternative is Black keeping the pawn.
- Bf5 — Black develops the bishop outside the pawn chain, the move the whole Slav is built around.
- e3 — White shores up the centre and opens the bishop's path to c4.
- e6 — Black now closes the diagonal — but only after the bishop is already out.
- Bxc4 — White recovers the gambit pawn.
- Bb4 — Black develops with tempo, using the b4 square that a4 conceded.
- O-O — White castles, connecting the rooks.
- Nbd7 — Black develops the knight to d7, keeping the position compact.
- Qe2 — White lines the queen up on the e-file, preparing the e4 break.
- Bg6 — Black tucks the bishop on g6, where it's safe from Nh4 tricks and still watching the b1–h7 diagonal. Black is solid, developed and has no weaknesses — the Slav doing its job.