Old Indian Defense

The Old Indian Defense arises when Black answers the queen's pawn with an early ...d6 and White claims space with c4. Black has not yet committed the knight, the kingside bishop or the e-pawn, so the position after 2. c4 serves as a crossroads. The most common reply by a wide margin is 2...Nf6, reaching the Old Indian proper, which is more often entered by the order 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 d6. The engine considers the position roughly balanced, and on Lichess Black scores almost as well as White.

The defining plan is to support ...e5 with ...Nbd7 and to develop the dark-squared bishop on e7 rather than g7. The resulting position is more cramped than a King's Indian, but it is harder for White to attack. Black usually holds the e5 point or exchanges on d4, depending on how White arranges the center. White has extra space and normally plays e4 and Nf3, as in the Normal Variation, 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 d6 3. Nc3 Nbd7 4. e4 e5 5. Nf3. Black then chooses between keeping the central tension and releasing it, and the play is mostly a slow maneuvering struggle.

Several named branches diverge on move three. The Ukrainian Variation, 3. Nc3 e5, advances the e-pawn at once. White can answer with the Two Knights Variation, 4. Nf3, or with the quieter Duz-Khotimirsky Variation, 4. e3 Nbd7 5. Bd3. The Czech Variation plays ...c6 against either 3. Nc3 or 3. Nf3, preparing ...e5 or queenside expansion. The Janowski Variation, 3. Nc3 Bf5, and the Tartakower-Indian, 3. Nf3 Bg4, develop the light-squared bishop before the pawn structure is settled. White can also try the Aged Gibbon Gambit, 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 d6 3. g4, a provocative sideline.

Other second moves lead into neighboring systems. After 2...c6 the game becomes a Queen's Pawn Game known as the Anglo-Slav Opening. 2...g6 heads toward fianchetto setups. 2...e5 is the English Rat, a purely d-pawn approach in which Black challenges d4 before playing ...Nf6. 2...f5 transposes to the Dutch Defense.