The Scandinavian meets 1.e4 with 1...d5, trading the d-pawn for White’s e-pawn at once. Black gets a Caro-Kann-like structure with an early queen sortie and easy development. It is a great first defence for Black: the plans are simple and there is only one main move for White each turn.
Key ideas
1After 2.exd5 Qxd5 3.Nc3 the queen goes to a5 (or d6/d8) and stays out of trouble.
2The set-up ...c6, ...Nf6, ...Bf5 (or ...Bg4), ...e6 is solid and hard to attack.
3Never let the queen get trapped: watch for Nd5, Bd2 and b4 tricks against a queen on a5.
4The light-squared bishop comes out before ...e6 so it is never locked in.
5Castle queen side or king side depending on where White puts the pieces.
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About this opening
Playing Black against 1.e4 usually means learning what White wants in five different openings. The Scandinavian cuts that down. After 1...d5 White has one good move, 2.exd5, and after the recapture the game is already in Black's structure. You give up a little time with the queen and get a position you know better than your opponent.
What you will learn
01Recapture on d5 and move the queen to a5, d6 or d8 without losing it to Bd2 and b4 tricks.
02Build the ...c6, ...Nf6, ...Bf5, ...e6 wall in an order that never shuts the bishop in.
03Play 2...Nf6 when you would rather keep the queen at home and let the knight recapture.
The main line
The line runs 1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Qxd5 3.Nc3 Qa5 4.d4 Nf6 5.Nf3 c6 6.Bc4 Bf5 7.Bd2 e6. White takes the pawn, hits the queen with the knight and builds a centre with d4. Black puts the queen on a5, pinning the c3 knight to the king, then develops around it: knight to f6, pawn to c6 for a retreat on c7, bishop to f5 before ...e6 closes its diagonal.
7.Bd2 is White's point. It unpins the knight and prepares Qe2 with Nd5 or Bb4 against the queen. Black answers 7...e6 and usually follows with ...Bb4, ...Nbd7 and castling. The structure is a Caro-Kann with the queen already out.
The mistake that loses the most Scandinavian games is a greedy queen: ...Qxd5 on move two is fine, leaving it on a5 once White has played Bd2 and b4 is not. The other is ...e6 before ...Bf5, which buries the bishop.
How to practise it
Learn the 3...Qa5 line first, with attention to the moves that protect the queen. In Drill you play Black, so White's moves appear and you answer from memory. When the main line is clean, add 3...Qd6, which asks the same questions with a different answer, and leave 3...Qd8 and 2...Nf6 to their review dates.
It is one of the easiest defences to 1.e4 to learn: White has a single main move each turn early on and Black's set-up is the same across the lines. The one skill it demands is keeping the queen safe.
What is the main line of the Scandinavian?
1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Qxd5 3.Nc3 Qa5 4.d4 Nf6 5.Nf3 c6 6.Bc4 Bf5 7.Bd2 e6. The modern 3...Qd6 and 3...Qd8 lines reach a similar structure with the queen on a quieter square.