King's Indian Defense: Sämisch Variation
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3
Sämisch Variation
1.2.3.4.5.
What Is The Sämisch Variation?
5.f3 defends e4 before it is attacked, and that one move reshapes the whole King's Indian. Black gets no ...Ng4 hitting a bishop on e3, so White completes the ideal formation with Be3, Qd2 and Nge2, then castles queenside. You pay for it with development: the knight is exiled to e2 and White's kingside sits undeveloped for several moves.
Games here are decided by a race: White storms with g4 and h4-h5 against the fianchettoed king, while Black counters with ...c5, or the Panno plan of ...Nc6, ...a6 and ...b5. Treat f3 as an attacking move, not a timid one. Judge each candidate by whether it accelerates your own break, because a tempo spent on safety hands the opponent the initiative.
What Do Players Choose At The Decision Point?
| Move | Share | Games | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nf3 | 26% | 586 | |
| f4 | 16% | 359 | |
| f3 | 15% | 338 | |
| Be2 | 11% | 254 |
The Named Lines Of The Sämisch Variation
| Line | Moves |
|---|---|
| Normal Defense | 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O |
| Bobotsov-Korchnoi-Petrosian Variation | 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O 6.Nge2 |
| Sämisch Gambit | 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O 6.Be3 c5 |
| Double Fianchetto | 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O 6.Be3 b6 |
| Orthodox Variation | 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O 6.Be3 e5 |
| Yates Defense | 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O 6.Be3 Nc6 |
| Closed Variation | 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O 6.Be3 e5 7.d5 c6 |
| Byrne Defense | 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O 6.Be3 c6 7.Bd3 a6 |
| Panno Formation | 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O 6.Be3 Nc6 7.Nge2 a6 |
| Ruban Variation | 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O 6.Be3 Nc6 7.Nge2 Rb8 |
| Closed Variation, Main Line | 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O 6.Be3 e5 7.Nge2 c6 8.d5 cxd5 |
| Panno Main Line | 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O 6.Be3 Nc6 7.Nge2 a6 8.Qd2 Rb8 |
| Sämisch Gambit Accepted | 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O 6.Be3 c5 7.dxc5 dxc5 8.Qxd8 Rxd8 9.Bxc5 |
| Bronstein Defense | 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O 6.Be3 e5 7.d5 Nh5 8.Qd2 Qh4+ 9.g3 Nxg3 10.Qf2 Nxf1 11.Qxh4 Nxe3 12.Ke2 |
| Orthodox Variation, Bronstein Variation | 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.f3 O-O 6.Be3 e5 7.d5 Nh5 8.Qd2 Qh4+ 9.g3 Nxg3 10.Qf2 Nxf1 11.Qxh4 Nxe3 12.Ke2 Nxc4 |