Here is another recent game by aymmd, featuring a variation in an opening line that looks good, but turns out to be significantly different than the original, much to Black's dismay. More devastation.
aymmd - LochChessMonster
blitz, FICS, 2011
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nc3 Nc6 4.Bc4 Bc5 5.Bxf7+
The Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit.
5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.d4
7...Nxe4
Black is up two pieces, and he finds a creative way to return one of them; but, as addressed in "Delayed Devastation", the strongest move here is 7...Bd6 (not 7...Bxd4).
8.Nxe4 Bb4+
Other ideas: 8...d5 in HauntedKnight - astalaveesta, FICS, 2011 (1-0, 29); 8...Be7 in perrypawnpusher - sdockray, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 28); 8...Qh4 in perrypawnpusher - kfollstad, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 24); 8...Bb6 in perrypawnpusher - BallsOfFire, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 9); while 8...Bxd4 seems best as in yorgos - josephjorkens, FICS, 2009 (1-0, 45).
9.c3 Qh4
Black plays va banque... This position is oddly like the one in "Beyond Gloom and Doom" only White has a Knight, not a pawn. at e4. The difference favors White.
Previously seen was 9...d5 in perrypawnpusher - richiehill, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 19); but 9...Re8 or 9...Nc6 are probably better choices.
10.Ng5+ Kg6
I suppose this move was inspired by Black's wish to keep the 8th rank open so that he could place his Rook aggressively. However, he would have done better to try 10...Ke8, e.g. 11.cxb4 h6 12.g3 Qg4 13.dxe5 Qxd1+ 14.Kxd1 hxg5 15.Bxg5 and White has a lesser advantage.
11.dxe5 Be7
Black saves his Bishop and attacks White's Knight a third time – but the house falls in on him.
12.Qc2+ Kh6 13.Nf3+ Kh5 14.Nxh4 Bxh4 15.Qf5+ g5 16.g4+ Kh6 17.Qf6 checkmate
If a chess game is like a puzzle, the following contest shows that my opponent and I could find only pieces of it, never quite putting together the full picture.
perrypawnpusher - richiehill
blitz, FICS, 2010
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bc5
The Italian Four Knights Game.
5.Bxf7+
The Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit.
5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+
Last year my opponent tried his hand with this opening and scored quickly: 6.Ng5+ Ke7 7.d4 exd4 8.Nd5+ Nxd5 9.exd5 Kd6 10.Nf7+ Black resigned, richiehill - SullenKhan, FICS, 2009.
He also had a successful go with the Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit, richiehill - PlatinumKnight, FICS, 2009.
6...Nxe5 7.d4
7...Nxe4
An interesting defensive idea that I've looked at in "Nothing Much Happened" and "Navigating On One's Own".
Most often seen is 7...Bxd4 and best is 7...Bd6.
My opponent once tried 7...Bb4 8.dxe5 Nxe4 9.Qd5+ Kf8 10.Qxe4 Bxc3+ 11.bxc3 d5 12.Qf4+ Kg8 13.0-0 c6 14.Qg3 Bf5 15.Bg5 Qd7 16.f4 Bxc2 17.Qe3 Bf5 18.Rf3 Re8 19.Rg3 g6 20.Bf6 Kf7 21.Bxh8 Rxh8 22.Qd4 Re8 23.Qxa7 Be4 24.Qe3 Kg8 25.Rg5 Rf8 26.Rf1 Ra8 27.c4 Rxa2 28.cxd5 cxd5 29.Qb3 Rc2 30.Re1 h6 31.Rg3 Qc6 32.Rxe4 Rc1+ 33.Kf2 Rc2+ 34.Re2 Qc5+ 35.Rge3 Rxe2+ 36.Kxe2 Black resigned, jfhumphrey - richiehill, FICS, 2009.
8.Nxe4 Bb4+
This is actually better than either 8...Bxd4 (yorgos -josephjorkens, FICS, 2009, [1-0,45]), 8...Be7 (perrypawnpusher - sdockray, blitz, FICS, 2010 [1-0, 28] or 8...Bb6 (perrypawnpusher - BallsOfFire, blitz, FICS, 2010, [aborted by adjudication, 9]).
9.c3 d5
10.Ng5+ Kg6
The King would be safer at g8.
11.dxe5 Bc5
Since Black removes a piece from danger and points it at f2, it is not immediately clear that this move makes his situation worse.
After the game Rybka suggested 11...h6 12.Nh3 Bxh3 13.gxh3 Bc5 14.Rg1+ Kh7 15.Qd3+ Kg8 16.Be3 Bxe3 17.Qxe3 c6 18.0-0-0 Qe7 when White is stll better, but his advantage is less than after the text.
12.h4
I was so happy with the "boldness" of this move that it took me a while to realize that I had actually moved the wrong pawn.
After 12.g4, Black has no time for 12...h6, as 13.Qd3+ Bf5 14.Qxf5 is mate. His best defense, 12...Qf8, still would lose a piece to 13.Qc2+ and after 13...Bf5 White can even throw in the gnarly 14.h4! just to see if Black is paying attention.
analysis diagram
Of course, if Black now takes the Queen it is 15.h5 mate. However, after 14...h5 the King is okay for the moment, and White has to settle with winning the Bishop after all with 15.gxf5+.
12...h5
13.0-0
Rybka prefers 13.Qd3+ but there are still some fireworks left in the position.
13...Bg4
My opponent understandably guards against dicovered checks.
Again, Rybka, which, after the game, understood more than either richiehill or I did, suggested 13...Bf5. After 14.Qf3 Be7 White has the leap 15.Nf7 which either wins the exchange or, after 15...Kxf7 16.Qxf5+ Kg8 allows White to build the pressure with 17.Bg5.
analysis diagram
14.Qd3+ Bf5 15.Qg3 Bg4
Again, the Bishop shields the King. Against what? Rybka gives a peek: if instead 15...Qe7, then 16.Bf4 Rhf8 17.Ne4+ Kh7 18.Bg5 Bxe4 19.Bxe7 Bxe7 and White has won the Queen for two pieces.
16.Be3
Still worrying about that Bishop on c5!
It turns out that there was another Knight leap available to White: 16.Ne6 Qe7 17.Nxc5 Qxc5 18.Be3 Qe7 19.f3 and the shield (Black's Bishop) has become the target!
16...Qe7 17.f4
Hoping to get something going by advancing the "Jerome pawns", but Black's heroic Bishops can again thwart much of that with 17...Bxe3+ 18.Qxe3 Bf5.
17...c6
Taking a breath to shore up his position, Black lets the pawn distract the powerful prelate...
18.f5+ Bxf5
If 18...Kh7 then 19.f6 rips the position open. The text move finally allows a discovered check, winning a piece.
19.Ne4+ Black resigned
Sometimes when my opponent innovates against the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) I am content to take my opening advantage (in this case, a pawn or two) and slowly reduce it to an endgame advantage. In such games it seems like "nothing much happened" – only a win for White.
perrypawnpusher - sdockray
blitz, FICS, 2010
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bc5
The Italian Four Knights Game.
5.Bxf7+
The Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit.
5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.d4
7...Nxe4
The same defense used by kfollstad earlier this year (see "Navigating on One's own"). It is at least as old as Alby - asalamon, FICS, 2000, which continued 8...Qh4 9.dxc5 Qxe4+ 10.Kf1 Qc4+ 11.Kg1 Qxc5 12.Qf3+ White resigned.
8.Nxe4 Be7
A new idea. Also possible was 8...d5.
9.dxe5 Re8 10.0-0 d6
11.exd6 cxd6 12.Bf4 Bf5 13.Nxd6+ Bxd6 14.Qd5+ Be6 15.Qxd6 Bc4 16.Qxd8 Raxd8
I have simplified the game: all Black has for his two missing pawns is the hope that he can make it to a drawish Bishops-of-opposite-colors endgame.
17.Rfe1 Rd4 18.Rxe8 Kxe8 19.Be3 Rd7 20.b3 Be2 21.Bxa7 Bd1 22.c4 Rd2
23.Kf1 Bc2 24.Be3 Bd3+ 25.Ke1 Re2+ 26.Kd1 h6 27.Rc1
Sloppy play, as Black can now capture the a-pawn, reducing White's advantage. Instead...
27...Kd7 28.Rc3 Black resigned
