King's Knight OpeningBETA

Nf3 is the classic of all classic moves. The knight on f3 immediately fights for control of the center, by attacking the black e5 pawn. It also serves as supporting a potential d2-d4 move. Across many openings, it's common to develop the knight before the bishop. This is because, there is usually only one good square for the knight, while the bishop have several options. We can see this exemplified in black's most common response, Nc6.

After 2. ... Nc6, to defend the black e5 pawn, white can place the Bishop on b5 or c4. That is either Ruy Lopez or the Italian game.

Black could also go for Nf6, known either as Russian game or Petrov's. At the highest level of chess, Petrov's is often seen as a drawing weapon. In the Master Database on Lichess, it's represented with a draw percentage of 59%.