White and Black square off in the following contest, tossing suspect openings against each other. If the Blackburne Shilling Gambit is (like the Jerome) more a bluff than a solid opening, then clearly here the second player gets out-bluffed. nalder - Pinckman blitz, FICS, 2014 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 The Blackburne Shilling Gambit. Black hopes White doesn't know the opening, or doesn't give his next move much thought and quickly grabs the e-pawn with 4.Nxe5? only to be met with the gamy 4...Qg5!? 4.Bxf7+
The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit. Meeting "tricky" with "tricky" - although the BSG is rated "objectively" better for White, while the BSJG is rated "objectively" even. 4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke6 6.Qg4+
This is scary, but a bluff. The proper way to continue is 6.c3. 6...Kxe5 7.f4+ More bellicosity. 7...Kxe4 The "Exit" sign pointed to 7... Kd6. 8.Nc3 checkmate
This attack, invented by Count Vitzthum, was very much practised about twenty years ago. [Here, Readers may recall Meek - Morphy, Mobile, Alabama, 1855; Meek - Morphy, New Orleans, 1855; and Kennicott - Morphy, New York, 1857 as examples; although Lowenthal, in Morphy's Games (1860), had already opined "This {5.Ng5}is far from an effective mode of proceeding with the attack, and is decidedly inferior to castling" and "This mode of proceeding with the attack is comparatively obsolete, as with the correct play the defense is perfectly satisfactory."] It is now abandoned in contests of strong players, as the analysis proved that Black can maintain his Pawn with a good position.
Cook's Synopsis of the Chess Openings (1874) had been equally dismissive
This attack is now seldom played; with correct play it results in an even game.
Wait a minute! What if White is happy with "an even game" and is interested in tricky play? I am surprised that the opening is not played more often! As it turns out, a recent game of mine, with the Black pieces, at Chess.com (3 days / move) started with 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Bc5 (I was thinking about a reversed Jerome Gambit) 3.Bc4 Nc6 4.d4 exd4 5.Ng5 Nh6 6.Nxf7 Nxf7 7.Bxf7+ Kxf7 8.Qh5+ g6 9.Qxc5. In fact, after 9...d5 10.Nd2 Re8 11.0-0 12.Re1 Bf5 13.c3 Kg7 14.cxd4 Nxd4 (instead of ...Qxd4!) Blacks game fell apart quickly.
As promised, I have done more research on an opening variation that I previously looked at (see "A Bridge To... Somewhere" and "Abridged") as a possible inspiration to Alonzo Wheeler Jerome in his creation of the Jerome Gambit.
A variation of the Scotch Gambit - called either the Sarratt Attack or the Vitzthum Attack - has similar sacrifical fireworks on f7: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.Bc4 Bc5 5.Ng5!? with the possible followup of 5...Nh6 6.Nxf7+ Nxf7 7.Bxf7+ Kxf7 8.Qh5+ g6 9.Qxc5.