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Hello and welcome to the page that details the volcano position on a chessboard.
This position is fairly uncommon and difficult to achieve, but may offer substantial
rewards if it is achieved. Do not go out of your way to achieve this position. However,
sometimes the opportunity presents itself, and then you could possibly attain a similar
position to this one.
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Advantages
- The twinned Bishops on b2 and c2 have open lines of attack. Getting rid of Bb2 is
difficult, and nearly impossible for Bc2. Both assassination attempts consume a lot of
manpower and time.
- The Knights go to their standard positions on c3 and f3. Although the role of the
Knight is quite limited in this game, the possibilities of maneuvering the Knights
around for favorable exchanges are strong.
- The "Volcano" is the d-file, where the castled rook lies in wait, its pawn
ever-ready to advance. The other rook is free to exploit the f, g, and h-files to its
advantage, depending on what the opponent plays.
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Disadvantages
- The c-Knight is particularly vulnerable to attacks by the opposing Black-Bishop, but
the trade would not be a big loss as it cements the position of your own b2 Bishop.
- Your Queen is pretty much secluded. This protects the Queen from early attacks, but
also marginalizes her influence on your attack combinations.
- The a2 pawn is not defended by the King, and requires one more move by the King to
make it complete.
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Move Sequence
- c4. This prevents ...d5. Only ...c5 or ...e5 prevents d4.
- b3. The danger from ...Bg7 is minimized by a possible Nc3.
- Bb2. Taking control of the a1-h8 diagonal.
- e4. Releasing the f1 Bishop and preventing ...Nd4.
- Bd3. Only preventable by an earlier ...Bf5.
- h3. To prevent ...Bg4 or Ng4.
- Nc3. Diffuse the pin on the King, defend against ...e4.
- Qe2. This allows the long castle, which black would probably not be expecting.
- 0-0-0. Allows the d3 Bishop to go to b1 if necessary.
- Bc2. Bb1 also evades a possible pawn fork at ...e4.
- Nf3. If the black Queen takes out g2, then dRg1 will aim a missile straight at a
King that has castled short.
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Pitfalls
Throughout the entire opening sequence, black can give white trouble with these
moves:
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Similar Openings
1. c4 is the English Opening, with a response of 1...e6.
The Bremen Variation of the English Opening responds with 1...e5.
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Volcaneus