Caro-Kann Defense: Maróczy Variation
The Fantasy Variation is 1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.f3: against the Caro-Kann Defense White supports the e4-pawn with the f-pawn. Read the guide
Play any move on the board to explore from there, or step through the line with ‹ › and the arrow keys.
Statistics from Lichess
2,529,923 games: White 52.4% / Draw 4.4% / Black 43.2%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 1,269,5471.3M | ||
| 511,109511K | ||
| 215,207215K | ||
| 152,028152K | ||
| 124,046124K | ||
| 107,882108K | ||
| 36,88037K | ||
| 30,27830K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.26 The position is about equal
Best play: 3... e6 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Bd2 Nd7 6. Bd3 Ne7 7. a3 Ba5 8. f4
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
The stronger the players, the better this line does for White: White scores 51% under 1400, 54% at 2200 and up and 54% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 573K | |
| 1400–1799 | 1.1M | |
| 1800–2199 | 1.5M | |
| 2200 and up | 378K | |
| Masters, over the board | 2,515 |
Master games
- Duda, J. – Carlsen, M.
- Caruana, F. – Firouzja, A.
- Caruana, F. – Anand, V.
- Morozevich, A. – Leko, P.
- Gukesh, D. – Anand, V.
Rated blitz, rapid and classical Lichess games by rating band, and over-the-board games of players rated 2200+ from the Lichess masters database, updated Sep 26, 2026
Description
The Fantasy Variation is 1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.f3: against the Caro-Kann Defense White supports the e4-pawn with the f-pawn. It is also known as the Maróczy Variation, the name this site uses, and the Tartakower Variation. White invites 3...dxe4 4.fxe4, with a big pawn centre.
Main lines
- 3...dxe4 4.fxe4 e5 is the main move. Nigel Davies describes it as the sharpest line of the Fantasy and dangerous for Black. The sacrifice 5.Nf3 exd4 6.Bc4 was played as early as 1899 by Géza Maróczy. Grandmasters Lars Schandorff and Sam Shankland prefer 5...Bg4 6.Bc4 Nd7 7.O-O Ngf6 8.c3 Bd6, with sharp, double-edged play, though recent theory suggests that 7.c3 is more critical and gives White a small advantage. After 3...dxe4, the recapture 4.Nc3 transposes to a line of the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit.
- 3...e6 is probably the most solid answer, preparing to use the dark squares with ...c5.
- 3...g6, fianchettoing the king's bishop, has been tried by Yasser Seirawan.
- 3...e5 is rarer and aims at White's weaknesses on the a7–g1 diagonal.
- 3...Qb6, championed by Baadur Jobava, has grown in popularity.
The idea
The pawn on f3 protects e4. If Black takes on e4, White recaptures with the f-pawn and keeps pawns on d4 and e4. Against the solid 3...e6 Black aims to use the dark squares with ...c5.
The numbers
On Lichess White wins 52.4% of the 2.5 million games and Black 43.2%. Under 1400 it is closer, 49.3% against 46.8%, and from 1400 up White wins about 51 to 53%. In 2,515 master games over the board White won 37.5%, Black 30.4%, and 32.2% were drawn.
Suggest an improvement or report a mistake
How to play against the Caro-Kann Defense: Maróczy Variation
3…e6 scores best for Black: 48.2%, with Black winning 45.8% and White 49.4% of 511K games. The most played answer, 3…dxe4, scores lowest: 42.8% in 1.3M games. Stockfish's first choice is also 3…e6.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: Black's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings
Popularity by year
The Caro-Kann Defense: Maróczy Variation is played more than twice as often as in 2016: 0.13% of Lichess games in 2025, up from 0.053%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.053% | 19,027 |
| 2017 | 0.06% | 32,768 |
| 2018 | 0.06% | 46,764 |
| 2019 | 0.053% | 66,388 |
| 2020 | 0.051% | 150,689 |
| 2021 | 0.074% | 290,338 |
| 2022 | 0.092% | 343,655 |
| 2023 | 0.12% | 456,280 |
| 2024 | 0.13% | 457,033 |
| 2025 | 0.13% | 465,628 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.14% | 151,119 |
Share of rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500 (blitz, rapid and classical) that reach this position, by year; 2026: January to April. Which openings are rising and falling
Variations (1)
Sources
- History and theory: adapted from the Wikipedia article Caro–Kann Defence, version of 20 October 2026, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Results: Lichess opening explorer, figures collected from September to November 2026.
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Caro-Kann Defense: Maróczy Variation (B12)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/caro-kann-defense-maroczy-variation