I always start my hippo openning with 1. h3 when play bullet with white. You know what? They often resign directly....That's the power of hippo. Never in my life my opponent being afraid and resign on move one with other openning ❤❤❤😅😅😅
Many thanks for another instructive Hippo video, Solomon! 💪🏿🦛 And winning against a GM, no less! The Hippo only looks slow when you're just setting up -- but after that, it often gets *very* aggressive.
3:50 When playing black, and the question is black's knight pinned to the king, it's better to avoid the possibility of the pin by white, because if black then tries to drive the bishop away with the rook's pawn, the bishop can simply back up to the rook file, maintaining the pin. This can only be broken by moving the king or by pushing the knight's pawn, which creates a weakness easily exploited by white. In my experience this is the Hippo's Achilles's heel.
For sure! I would recommend playing a quick Ng6 after you drive that bishop back! Then start looking towards pawn h5 as a potential way to gain some space!
I taught the basics of the Hippo to a friend whom I've been beating for decades. I still managed to win the couple of games we played afterwards, but only through fancy tactics and better endgame knowledge - his position was absolutely solid and the material near equal until the late middle game, which almost never happened before. Very powerful opening indeed - and those games made me appreciate how frigging annoying it is to have to defeat.
Oh that's cool! Ya a friend of mine sometimes plays the Hippo against me when I play e4 or something like that.... and I hate playing against it! People ask me how to beat it and my answer is I don't know! There's some setups that are hard to play against if you are the Hippo Defense player, but there's always ideas and transpositional stuff etc.
Good stuff, Solomon. Love my Queen on F3 and a Knight on F5. I particulary enjoyed the potential threats to white in this game, and the essential sense of King safety. Just surrounding your King with pieces isn't effective. You need to have the correct pieces in order to guard the appropriate light and dark squares. Loved your balance/rhythm betwern attacking and defending.
It's always great help with middlegame videos!! That's a big problem, most times... Getting lost in the moves and remembering to not leave hanging pieces thank you!!!
I don't let either bishop come out. Not even to the f or c file. But I'm going to start experimenting with closing the center so I'll probably be less aggressive overall.
Hey man, since the hippo is extremely closed and Stockfish can't play closed positions properly can you make a video of you playing the hippo against Stockfish? That would be so cool...
Ya this is a good idea! And by the way, Stockfish would still totally beat me. But, playing more closed/positional is the best thing I can do in terms of extending the game.
I'm curious if you've ever played or played around with The Nimzo-Larsen 1.b3, 2.Bg2 opening as white, and depending on what black plays on moves 1 and 2, you either continue with the Nimzo or switch over to the Hippo? I like multiple openings that have synergy (if that's the correct term). I know you prefer opening the Hippo on the King side with 1.g3, but I'm thinking you could sometimes surprise your opponents who are expecting you to play the Hippo against them by going with the Nimzo instead. Or is playing the Hippo as white still such a new concept that you're basically the only one playing it and thus no one is preparing against it yet? Maybe an idea for a new course to teach on your channel would be the 1.b3 Nimzo? I have a few 1.b3 Chessable courses, but 1 doesn't have a video and the other 1 has a video but it's an Indian GM who speaks so fast I could barely understand him. You're such an incredible teacher and produce such top-notch quality videos, I'd definitely buy a 1.b3 course (I already have your Hippo Course) Or maybe you can create your own new Opening - The Nimzo-Hippo :)
I like this idea!! Well first off thanks for the kind words. And ya man I think this would be super fun to produce + your thoughts on b3 are spot on. I have played it at times and it's a nice way to mix things up. I sometimes view it as an Owen's Defense for white (if black throws their pawns in the center) which I can turn into a Hippo if I want to. (Although I have a hard time with d5/e5/f5 Hippo when playing b3 as white) And ya this would be a fun course to make. I'll keep this in mind! Thanks, Solomon
Hi Solomon ! Another great video... Beating the GMs with Hippo - nice series...! I watched GM Daniel Naroditsky's video on his anti hippo system. What can be an antidote to that ? Normal stuff, or something else? Thank you.
Excellent video… especially: A) review of g5 & Nxh4 sac & follow up vs various defensive tries & B) the central pawn play & danger of a knight infiltrating on f4 etc. Every game has teaching moments. Bravo!
3:40 I usually put the knights where they are pinned and then I push the issue. At my rank they usually take the knight and I get bishop pair. I know it is an advantage and I am trying to learn how to make that true for me. I win some and I lose some. Maybe I will try to H3 instead when I am white.
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I always start my hippo openning with 1. h3 when play bullet with white. You know what? They often resign directly....That's the power of hippo. Never in my life my opponent being afraid and resign on move one with other openning ❤❤❤😅😅😅
Many thanks for another instructive Hippo video, Solomon! 💪🏿🦛
And winning against a GM, no less!
The Hippo only looks slow when you're just setting up -- but after that, it often gets *very* aggressive.
3:50 When playing black, and the question is black's knight pinned to the king, it's better to avoid the possibility of the pin by white, because if black then tries to drive the bishop away with the rook's pawn, the bishop can simply back up to the rook file, maintaining the pin. This can only be broken by moving the king or by pushing the knight's pawn, which creates a weakness easily exploited by white. In my experience this is the Hippo's Achilles's heel.
For sure! I would recommend playing a quick Ng6 after you drive that bishop back! Then start looking towards pawn h5 as a potential way to gain some space!
I taught the basics of the Hippo to a friend whom I've been beating for decades. I still managed to win the couple of games we played afterwards, but only through fancy tactics and better endgame knowledge - his position was absolutely solid and the material near equal until the late middle game, which almost never happened before. Very powerful opening indeed - and those games made me appreciate how frigging annoying it is to have to defeat.
Oh that's cool! Ya a friend of mine sometimes plays the Hippo against me when I play e4 or something like that.... and I hate playing against it! People ask me how to beat it and my answer is I don't know! There's some setups that are hard to play against if you are the Hippo Defense player, but there's always ideas and transpositional stuff etc.
Good stuff, Solomon. Love my Queen on F3 and a Knight on F5.
I particulary enjoyed the potential threats to white in this game, and the essential sense of King safety. Just surrounding your King with pieces isn't effective. You need to have the correct pieces in order to guard the appropriate light and dark squares. Loved your balance/rhythm betwern attacking and defending.
It's always great help with middlegame videos!! That's a big problem, most times... Getting lost in the moves and remembering to not leave hanging pieces thank you!!!
Glad you foud it helpful! More Hippo content on the way in the coming week!
I don't let either bishop come out. Not even to the f or c file. But I'm going to start experimenting with closing the center so I'll probably be less aggressive overall.
Sounds like a plan Walter!
Hey man, since the hippo is extremely closed and Stockfish can't play closed positions properly can you make a video of you playing the hippo against Stockfish? That would be so cool...
Ya this is a good idea! And by the way, Stockfish would still totally beat me. But, playing more closed/positional is the best thing I can do in terms of extending the game.
Thanks for the great content, Solomon!
You got it! What is your current chess opening repertoire? I think last time we played you were going with e4/e5 type stuff right?
I'm curious if you've ever played or played around with The Nimzo-Larsen 1.b3, 2.Bg2 opening as white, and depending on what black plays on moves 1 and 2, you either continue with the Nimzo or switch over to the Hippo? I like multiple openings that have synergy (if that's the correct term).
I know you prefer opening the Hippo on the King side with 1.g3, but I'm thinking you could sometimes surprise your opponents who are expecting you to play the Hippo against them by going with the Nimzo instead. Or is playing the Hippo as white still such a new concept that you're basically the only one playing it and thus no one is preparing against it yet?
Maybe an idea for a new course to teach on your channel would be the 1.b3 Nimzo? I have a few 1.b3 Chessable courses, but 1 doesn't have a video and the other 1 has a video but it's an Indian GM who speaks so fast I could barely understand him. You're such an incredible teacher and produce such top-notch quality videos, I'd definitely buy a 1.b3 course (I already have your Hippo Course)
Or maybe you can create your own new Opening - The Nimzo-Hippo :)
I like this idea!! Well first off thanks for the kind words. And ya man I think this would be super fun to produce + your thoughts on b3 are spot on. I have played it at times and it's a nice way to mix things up. I sometimes view it as an Owen's Defense for white (if black throws their pawns in the center) which I can turn into a Hippo if I want to. (Although I have a hard time with d5/e5/f5 Hippo when playing b3 as white)
And ya this would be a fun course to make. I'll keep this in mind!
Thanks,
Solomon
Hi Solomon !
Another great video... Beating the GMs with Hippo - nice series...!
I watched GM Daniel Naroditsky's video on his anti hippo system.
What can be an antidote to that ? Normal stuff, or something else?
Thank you.
Thanks! And ya I saw he has come out with another video on taming the Hippo.... haven't watched it yet but I will have to give it a look!
Excellent video… especially: A) review of g5 & Nxh4 sac & follow up vs various defensive tries & B) the central pawn play & danger of a knight infiltrating on f4 etc. Every game has teaching moments. Bravo!
Thanks! Hope you have been well and look forward to talking soon!
3:40 I usually put the knights where they are pinned and then I push the issue. At my rank they usually take the knight and I get bishop pair. I know it is an advantage and I am trying to learn how to make that true for me. I win some and I lose some. Maybe I will try to H3 instead when I am white.
Knife-f5!
Yes!!
i like Hippo now.
The hippo is OP
You know what it is 🦛🦛🦛🦛
👍
🦛🦛🦛🦛
Noice!
🦛🦛
Ok it looks like you got what you wanted but if it was some one else stronger your gonna wish😊
Hopefully I get to play some more GMs soon!