Caissa Codex
E84

King's Indian Defense: Sämisch Variation, Panno Main Line

Chess diagram: King's Indian Defense: Sämisch Variation, Panno Main Line after 8…Rb8

Type a move and press Enter: e4, Nf3, O-O, or from and to squares like g1f3 (e7e8q to promote). The board is also played with the mouse.

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Statistics from Lichess

42,832 games: White 47.3% / Draw 6.2% / Black 46.5%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
7,9787,978
7,7957,795
5,0675,067
3,6523,652
3,6083,608
3,5753,575
2,9202,920
2,5312,531

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 29, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.53 White is slightly better

Best play: 9. Rc1 Bd7 10. Nd1 Re8 11. Nf2 b5 12. c5 dxc5 13. Rxc5 e5

Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.

Overview

King's Indian Defense: Sämisch Variation, Panno Main Line (ECO E84, Indian Defenses) is a variation of the King's Indian Defense: Sämisch Variation, Panno Formation, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. f3 O-O 6. Be3 Nc6 7. Nge2 a6 8. Qd2 Rb8 (8 moves).

In 42,832 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 47.3%, Black 46.5% and 6.2% were drawn. White's most played move here is 9. Nc1, in 19% of those games.

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How to play against the King's Indian Defense: Sämisch Variation, Panno Main Line

9. Rc1 scores best for White: 55.9%, with White winning 52.7% and Black 40.8% of 7,795 games. The most played, 9. Nc1, scores 54.1% in 7,978 games, and 9. g4 scores lowest: 42.6%. Stockfish's first choice is also 9. Rc1.

Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: White's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “King's Indian Defense: Sämisch Variation, Panno Main Line (E84)”. Lichess data as of 29 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-indian-defense-samisch-variation-panno-main-line

https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-indian-defense-samisch-variation-panno-main-line