Brinckmann Attack

The Brinckmann Attack, 4. Bf4, declines to resolve the central tension at once. White develops the queen's bishop outside the pawn chain before playing e3, eyeing c7 and the e5-square, and settles for a smaller center than in the Exchange Variation. It is regarded as one of the more conservative ways to meet the Grünfeld. Black almost always replies 4...Bg7, with 4...c6 and 4...a6 as occasional alternatives. The engine considers the position balanced, and Lichess results are close to even.

The main branches revolve around the c7-pawn. After 5. e3, castling with 5...O-O leaves c7 unprotected and constitutes the Grünfeld Gambit. White can accept with 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. Nxd5 Qxd5 8. Bxc7, winning the pawn while Black gains a centralized queen and a lead in development against an uncastled king. In the Reshevsky Gambit, 5. Rc1 O-O 6. e3 c5 7. dxc5 Qa5, Black instead gives up the c-pawn to pin the c3-knight and pressure White's queenside, aiming to regain material with active pieces.