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Double Bongcloud

Both kings march out on move two: the meme opening that Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura played in a real tournament.

Viral opening · as White

How it goes

  1. 1.e4 · A perfectly normal first move. Enjoy it, because normal ends here.
  2. 1...e5 · Black answers the classical way, pawn for pawn.
  3. 2.Ke2?! · The Bongcloud. The king steps out in front of its army and blocks its own queen and bishop.
  4. 2...Ke7?! · Black copies it. Both kings out for a stroll on move two: the Double Bongcloud.
  5. 3.Ke1 · White's king walks straight back home.
  6. 3...Ke8 · Black's king does the same. The only change: neither side can castle anymore.
  7. 4.Ke2 · Out again. Neither king has anywhere it wants to go.
  8. 4...Ke7 · And out again. This exact position has now been on the board twice.
  9. 5.Ke1 · Back home once more. Neither player is trying to win this one.
  10. 5...Ke8 · Black follows, still in perfect mirror image.
  11. 6.Ke2 · The king steps out for the third time.
  12. 6...Ke7 · The same position for the third time: a draw by repetition, all in six moves.

How to beat it

  1. 2...d5! · Punish it instead. Black strikes in the center while White's king blocks its own pieces.
  2. 3.exd5 · White takes the pawn, but Black's pieces are ready to pour out.
  3. 3...Nf6 · The knight comes out and gets ready to win the pawn back on d5.
  4. 4.Ke1 · The king hurries home, two moves wasted and no castling left.
  5. 4...Bc5 · The bishop aims at f2. Black is well ahead in development and White's king is stuck in the middle.

The story

The Bongcloud began life as an internet joke. Walking your king forward on move two breaks nearly every rule a beginner learns: it blocks the queen and a bishop, throws away castling and does nothing for the center. Hikaru Nakamura turned it into his running gag, playing it in fast games online, now and then even against strong grandmasters, and sometimes winning with it.

Then came 15 March 2021, the last round of the qualifying stage of the Magnus Carlsen Invitational. Carlsen and Nakamura were both already through to the knockout, so nothing was at stake. Carlsen, the world champion at the time, opened 1.e4 e5 2.Ke2, Nakamura laughed and replied 2...Ke7, and the kings shuffled back and forth until the game was drawn by repetition after six moves.

It was billed as the first Double Bongcloud in history, and the internet loved every second of it. Should you play it? Only to make a friend laugh. Against anyone trying to win, the cure is simple: grab the center, develop fast and aim at the king stuck in the middle.

Sources: US Chess: Nakamura and So advance to the Magnus Carlsen Invitational quarterfinals · Chess.com: Magnus Carlsen Invitational 2021, day 3 · Know Your Meme: Bongcloud Attack

Verdict

Meme opening · a famous six-move draw

Meme · Streamer favorite

More

Opening names and lines: Lichess chess-openings (CC0) · Not affiliated with Lichess.