It can be fun for Black to play a game of "duelling Knights" in certain lines of the Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit - his Knight is busy on one side of the board while White's is busy on the other - but he has to be careful not to fall victim of a poisoned piece.
aguisou - Gomenovich
blitz, FICS, 2015
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Bxf7+
The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke8 6.Qh5+
Interestingly, drumme - Gomenovich, blitz, FICS, 2014 continued 6.c3 Nc6 before the Queen check, 7.Qh5+ g6 8.Nxg6 Qf6 9.Nxh8+ Kd8 10.Nf7+ Ke7 11.d3 Qxf7 12.Bg5+ Nf6 13.Bxf6+ Qxf6 14.Qxh7+ Qg7 15.Qh4+ Ke8 16.0-0 Ne5 17.Nd2 Nxd3 18.Nf3 d6 19.e5 Qg4 20.Qh8 dxe5 21.Nxe5 Nxe5 22.Qxe5+ Be7 23.Rae1 Bd7 24.Qxe7 checkmate.
Kicking the Knight first didn't work in gregweb - Gomenovich, blitz, FICS, 2015 as Black had an effective counter 6.c3 d6 7.cxd4 dxe5 8.dxe5 Qe7 9.d4 Bd7 10.0-0 Nh6 11.Nc3 c5 12.Nd5 Qd8 13.Bxh6 gxh6 14.Nf6+ Kf7 15.Qh5+ Ke7 16.d5 Bg7 17.d6+ Kf8 18.e6 Bxe6 19.e5 Bxf6 20.exf6 Qxf6 21.Qxc5 Kf7 22.Qc7+ Kg6 23.Qxb7 Rhb8 24.Qe4+ Bf5 25.Qe7 Qxe7 26.dxe7 Re8 27.Rfe1 Kf7 28.Rac1 Rac8 29.Rcd1 Rxe7 30.Rxe7+ Kxe7 31.Rd5 Be6 32.Ra5 Rc7 33.Rh5 Rc1 checkmate.
aguisou has had some experience with 6.c3 as well, in a couple of games played a couple of months apart: 6...Qg5 7.cxd4 Qxg2 8.Qf3 Qg5 9.Qf7+ (here Black resigned in aLmaLja - aguisou, blitz, FICS, 2014) Kd8 10.Qxf8 checkmate, aLmaLja - aguisou, blitz, FICS, 2014.
6...g6 7.Nxg6 Nxc2+
The pawn is digestible, but the Rook is poisoned.
8.Kd1 Nxa1
A quick look at The Database shows 65 games with this position. White scores 82%.
9.Nxh8+ Ke7
10.Qf7+
Or 10.Qe5 checkmate. perrypawnpusher - mbranimir, blitz, FICS, 2009.
10...Kd6 11.e5+
Or 11.Qd5+ Ke7 12.Qe5 checkmate. Yes, I missed the mate, too, in perrypawnpusher - robertpthom, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 32).
White has his own ideas on how to win the game.
11...Kc6 12.Qc4+ Bc5
There is danger everywhere: 12...Kb6 13.Nc3 (13.d3 Qg5 14.Bxg5 Black resigned, Handlangari - PlatinumKnight, FICS, 2005) 13...c5 14.Nf7 Qe7 15.Nd5+ Black resigned, GOH - Neca, FICS, 2008.
13.d4 b5 14.Qxc5+ Kb7 15.Qxb5 checkmate.
In the Blackburne Shilling Gambit, Black has high hopes that his third move will bamboozle White and lead to a killing attack. However, in the following game, Black's fourth move practically cedes the point. If this is a "Jedi Mind Trick", it is no match for a good blaster at your side...
sahistonline - aguisou
blitz, FICS, 2013
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4
The Blackburne Shilling Gambit.
4.Bxf7+
The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.
4...Ke7
The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit Declined.
A word to the wise defender: Don't.
In 475 games in The Database, White scores 70%
For a good discussion of this Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit Declined see "Idées Fixes et Manqués",
5.Nxe5!?
This complicating move appears in 201 games in The Database, where White scores 66%.
That is a good bit better than 5.Bd5, which appears in 10 games in The Database, where White scores only 50%. Half-way measures, it seems, score half the time.
"Best" according to Houdini, is 5.Bb3, which appears in a mere 14 games in The Database, where White scores "only" 68%. Perhaps the retreat is too "conservative" for many Jerome Gambiteers!
On the other hand, 5.Nxd4 appears in 78 games in The Database, where White scores 70%.
Alternately, 5.Bc4 appears in 32 games in The Database, where White scores 75%.
Finally, 5.Bxg8 appears in 102 games in The Database, where White scores 77%.
So, for White: hang onto your piece with 5.Bb3, or swap it off with 5.Bxg8; but you are by no means limited to these two good, contrasting, ideas.
5...Nf6 6.Bc4
White can tell his opponent what Al Capone said in "The Untouchables" - You got nothing.
6...d5 7.exd5 Nxd5 8.c3 Nf5 9.Qf3 White won by adjudication
I've had my problems in the past with adjudication at FICS (see "A Sneaky Way to Defeat the Jerome Gambit") but things look fine here. Down two pawns, with less development and an unsafe King, Black is finished.
