Playing the Richter-Veresov Attack: c6 as White

This position is all about central control and piece activity without overextending. White's set-up with 4.e3 supports the d4 pawn and opens a diagonal for the light-squared bishop while keeping a solid pawn chain. Your dark-squared bishop on g5 pins the knight on f6, which puts immediate pressure on Black's centre — Black's d5 pawn is indirectly attacked because the knight that defends it is pinned. Black's most popular move here is Bf5 (played in nearly 10,000 games), developing the bishop before committing to a pawn structure. Your job is to finish development with Nf3, then decide how to pressure Black's centre — often by playing c4 later or preparing an e4 break. The engine's top choice is Nbd7 for Black, followed by Nf3 Qb6 Rb1 — a line where Black targets your b2 pawn early, and you calmly defend with Rb1 while continuing development.

Black has six reasonable moves here, and your responses are straightforward in each case. Against Bf5 (9,886 games, White scores 46.7%), simply develop with Nf3 — you'll follow up with Bd3 or c4 depending on Black's next move. When Black plays h6 (6,393 games, White scores 49.6%), you have a choice: retreat the bishop to h4 or f4, or simply exchange on f6. The statistics favour keeping the bishop and continuing development. Against e6 (5,286 games, White scores 50.1% — your best-scoring common reply), Black transposes toward Queen's Gambit Declined structures; play Nf3 and aim to castle quickly. The sharpest test is Nbd7 (the engine's top choice), after which the line Nf3 Qb6 Rb1 keeps your position sound — you defend the b-pawn and let Black's queen look slightly misplaced.

Black's move Bg4 (2,315 games, White scores just 45.7%) is actually Black's worst-scoring popular reply. It pins the knight to your queen, but it also allows you to gain time. You can play f3, forcing the bishop to move, and then continue development with a tempo. This gains space in the centre and opens lines for your pieces. However, be careful not to weaken your kingside unnecessarily — only play f3 if you've calculated that Black can't immediately exploit the e3-f3-d4 pawn triangle. Against g6 (1,894 games, White scores 48.3%), Black prepares a fianchetto; develop naturally with Nf3 and Bd3, and consider castling queenside if Black commits to a kingside fianchetto attack.

The Richter-Veresov Attack: c6 is perfect if you want to avoid the mountains of theory in the Queen's Gambit or the main lines of the Veresov itself. You get a playable, no-nonsense position where you can outplay your opponent through understanding, not memorisation. Since the assessment is +0.00, you're not fighting against the position — you're fighting against Black. Your middlegame will typically feature a battle for the e4 square, with White trying to break with e3-e4 and Black trying to keep the centre closed. Most club players facing this line are less familiar with it than they are with 1.d4 d5 2.c4 lines, so you get a practical edge even if the engine says the position is equal.