Alias wrote on 11/15/12 at 14:47:26:


March 2013? I want it NOW!

Interesting title as it alludes to my own thoughts, i.e. that the perfection lies in combining both the Pirc and Modern, rather than playing excluisively one of them, transposing as appropriate.

TN wrote on 11/15/12 at 13:49:48:


Some player repertoires I look at,  I see "Pirc" players opening with 1. ...g6, with the intention to transpose into a Pirc against most systems, and by that I mean playing eventually Nf6, which has a necessary precursor of d6, but retaining the option to keep the King's Knight back in base modern style against something like Be3.

Black could also go d6 and g6 on moves 1 and 2 in either order. The are a number of slippery move order options that could be used to try and divert White from a particular player's favourite line.

both 1...d6 and 1...g6 have their pluses and minuses. If you're ready for playing pirc or modern i believe there's no problem with reveal you oponent that  Bg7 is coming. Anyway move order issues are important. For instance, an anti KID line wich is btw quite interesting:
1.d4 d6 2.Cf3 g6 3.g3 Bg7 4.Bg2 Nf6 5.00
(still is not clear if we will play a pirc/modern defence or a king's indian.) 5...00 6. Re1!? (also 6.a4 is interesting). If black plays 6...Nbd7, then e4 is a rare pirc fianchetto where black's knigth is not best placed in d7 (true, white's belongs to f3). With your pawn still in d7 6.Te1 can be answered with d5 in one tempo.

The "acelerated" Gurgenidze: Comparing 1.d4 g6 2.e4 Bg7 3.Nc3 c6 4.f4 d5!? 5.e5 with 1.d4 d6 2.e4 g6 3.Nc3 c6!? (a move order favoured sometimes by german GM Hickl) 4.f4 d5 5.e5, black has won a tempo rather than lost, because his bishop is better placed in the f8-a3 diagonal than g7, where doesn't do anything and often has to be relocated.

One more with the Gurgenidze: 1.e4 g6 2.d4 Bg7 3.Nc3 c6 4.Be3!? This move has been recently advocated in a recent yearbook survey by Naroditsky; If black doesn't want to enter in this sub-line of the Gurgenidze can transpose to pirc with 4...d6 and next Nf6 but then has to take into account that once the bishop is in g7 a quick Be3-h6 gains force in that pirc variation. Of course it's a playable option but it has to fit in your repertoire. (Sometimes black prefers play with his bishop still in f8 for a while) When designing your move orders you'll always have to figure what you're gaining and what your losing with your choices...there's not a magical solution 

I would think 1...d6 has a lot going for it (especially the 1.d4 d6 2.c4 e5 option you mentioned) but if you want to include the quite possibly not complete sound options of the Sniper, Dzindi and 1.d4 g6 2.d4 Bg7 3.e4 Nc6, then of course you'd have to start with 1...g6.  Also already mentioned is the possibility of ...d5 in one go, another variation where this sometimes this occurs is 1.d4 g6 2.e4 Bg7 3.Nc3 a6 but not often.

There may be some other better reasons, but one I can think of is when the Black player wants to use 1. e4 g6 as a try to avoid various anti-Sicilians. Then if White enters the Sicilian (that's a big 'if'!) there are ways to strive for an Acc. Dragon set-up while avoiding the Maroczy Bind. If you manage all this you are king, since the Yugoslav attack is now difficult as Black has kept the option of d7-d5 in one go.

For example: 1. e4 g6 2. Nf3 c5 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Nc6 6. Be3 Bg7 7. Bc4 O-O 8. Bb3 Qa5 9. f3 d5.

But now I posted this continuation, the whole idea seems rather far fetched to me!