Modern Defense 2. d4 Bg7
Play any move on the board to explore from there, or step through the line with ‹ › and the arrow keys.
Statistics from Lichess
26,725,640 games: White 49.7% / Draw 4.6% / Black 45.7%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 8,350,2138.4M | ||
| Standard Line | 4,947,4334.9M | |
| 2,637,2732.6M | ||
| 2,511,4312.5M | ||
| 2,479,6032.5M | ||
| Three Pawns Attack | 2,248,5822.2M | |
| 2,127,8182.1M | ||
| Bishop Attack | 516,929517K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.50 White is slightly better
Best play: 3. Nc3 d5 4. exd5 Nf6 5. Bc4 c6 6. dxc6 Nxc6 7. Nge2 O-O
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: Black scores 49% both under 1400 and at 2200 and up, and 46% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 6.1M | |
| 1400–1799 | 16.6M | |
| 1800–2199 | 14.6M | |
| 2200 and up | 2.5M | |
| Masters, over the board | 37K |
Master games
- Topalov, V. – Carlsen, M.
- So, W. – Carlsen, M.
- Carlsen, M. – Nakamura, H.
- Giri, A. – Carlsen, M.
- Praggnanandhaa, R. – Carlsen, M.
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
Overview
Modern Defense (ECO B06, Semi-Open Games) is a variation of the Modern Defense, reached after 1. e4 g6 2. d4 Bg7 (2 moves).
In 26,725,640 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 49.7%, Black 45.7% and 4.6% were drawn. White's most played move here is 3. Nf3, in 31% of those games.
It branches into 15 named variations; the most played are Modern Defense: Standard Line and Modern Defense: Three Pawns Attack. In all, 35 named lines continue from it.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
Write a description or report a mistake
How to answer 2…Bg7
3. Nc3 (Standard Line) scores best for White: 55.4%, with White winning 53.0% and Black 42.2% of 4.9M games. The most played, 3. Nf3, scores 51.5% in 8.4M games, and 3. e5 scores lowest: 47.0%. Stockfish's first choice is also 3. Nc3.
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
Popularity by year
This line has stayed between 0.94% and 1.1% of Lichess games a year since 2016 (1.0% in 2025).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.94% | 335,859 |
| 2017 | 1.0% | 562,877 |
| 2018 | 1.1% | 826,712 |
| 2019 | 1.1% | 1,333,856 |
| 2020 | 1.0% | 2,991,315 |
| 2021 | 1.0% | 3,921,091 |
| 2022 | 1.0% | 3,851,347 |
| 2023 | 1.0% | 3,903,857 |
| 2024 | 1.1% | 3,783,616 |
| 2025 | 1.0% | 3,631,519 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 1.0% | 1,143,903 |
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 (15)
- B06 Bishop Attack 3. Bc4
- B06 Dunworthy Variation 3. c4 d5 4. exd5 c6 5. dxc6 Bxd4
- B07 Geller's System 3. Nf3 d6 4. c3
- B06 Mongredien Defense, with Nf3 3. Nf3 b6
- B06 Semi-Averbakh Variation, Pterodactyl Variation Declined 3. c4 c5 4. Nf3 d6 5. Be2 Qa5+
- B06 Standard Line 3. Nc3
- B06 Three Pawns Attack 3. f4
- B06 Westermann Gambit 3. Bd2
- B06 Wind Gambit 3. Bd3
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Central, Anhanguera 3. c4 c5 4. Nc3 d6 5. Be3 Qa5
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Central, Benoni Quetzalcoatlus 3. c4 c5 4. d5 d6 5. Nc3 Qa5
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Central, Quetzalcoatlus Gambit 3. c4 c5 4. Nc3 d6 5. dxc5 Qa5
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, King Pterodactyl 3. g3 c5 4. Nf3 Qa5+
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Rhamphorhynchus 3. g3 c5 4. dxc5 Qa5+
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Western, Anhanguera 3. Nf3 c5 4. Be3 Qa5+
All 35 named lines that continue from here
No line matches.
- B06 Bishop Attack 3 moves
- B06 Dunworthy Variation 5 moves
- B07 Geller's System 4 moves
- B06 Mongredien Defense, with Nf3 3 moves
- B06 Semi-Averbakh Variation, Pterodactyl Variation Declined 5 moves
- B06 Standard Line 3 moves
- B06 Three Pawns Attack 3 moves
- B06 Westermann Gambit 3 moves
- B06 Wind Gambit 3 moves
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Central, Anhanguera 5 moves
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Central, Benoni Quetzalcoatlus 5 moves
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Central, Quetzalcoatlus Gambit 5 moves
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, King Pterodactyl 4 moves
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Rhamphorhynchus 4 moves
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Western, Anhanguera 4 moves
- B06 Modern Defense: Anti-Modern 5 moves
- B06 Bücker Gambit 3 moves
- B06 Modern Defense: Gurgenidze Defense 5 moves
- B06 Modern Defense: Lizard Defense, Mittenberger Gambit 3 moves
- B06 Modern Defense: Modern Pterodactyl 3 moves
- B06 Modern Defense: Mongredien Defense, with Nc3 3 moves
- B06 Modern Defense: Standard Defense 3 moves
- B06 Modern Defense: Two Knights Variation, Suttles Variation 4 moves
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Austrian, Austriadactylus Western 4 moves
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Austrian, Pteranodon 4 moves
- B06 Modern Defense: Pseudo-Austrian Attack 4 moves
- B06 Modern Defense: Two Knights Variation 4 moves
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Eastern, Anhanguera 4 moves
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Eastern, Benoni Pteranodon 5 moves
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Eastern, Rhamphorhynchus 4 moves
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Sicilian, Quetzalcoatlus 5 moves
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Sicilian, Siroccopteryx 5 moves
- B06 Suttles Variation, Tal Gambit 6 moves
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Eastern, Pteranodon 5 moves
- B06 Pterodactyl Defense: Eastern, Pterodactyl 4 moves
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Modern Defense (B06)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/modern-defense-2