D30

Semi-Slav Defense: Quiet Variation 5. Nbd2 Nbd7

Chess diagram: Semi-Slav Defense: Quiet Variation after 5…Nbd7

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

78,860 games: White 53.2% / Draw 7.4% / Black 39.5%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
40,16940K
16,85717K
7,7187,718
6,8096,809
2,6212,621
1,5221,522
1,2591,259
1,0641,064

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 4, 2026

Engine evaluation

+0.28 The position is about equal

Best play: 6. b3 Be7 7. Bd3 O-O 8. O-O b6 9. Qe2 Bb7 10. Bb2 c5

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

Overview

Semi-Slav Defense: Quiet Variation (ECO D30, Closed & Semi-Closed Games) is a variation of the Semi-Slav Defense: Quiet Variation, reached after 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nbd2 Nbd7 (5 moves).

In 78,860 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 53.2%, Black 39.5% and 7.4% were drawn. White's most played move here is 6. Bd3, in 51% of those games.

It continues into one named variation, Queen's Gambit Declined: Semmering Variation.

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How to answer 5…Nbd7

The most played answer, 6. Bd3, also scores best for White: 58.6%, with White winning 54.7% and Black 37.5% of 40K games. Of the main answers, 6. a3 scores lowest: 53.0%. Stockfish's first choice is 6. b3.

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

Variations (1)

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “Semi-Slav Defense: Quiet Variation (D30)”. Lichess data as of 4 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/semi-slav-defense-quiet-variation-2