Slav Defense: Modern Line
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Statistics from Lichess
10,460,130 games: White 51.7% / Draw 6.0% / Black 42.3%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 6,242,4646.2M | ||
| 1,562,0021.6M | ||
| 992,239992K | ||
| 736,562737K | ||
| 441,565442K | ||
| 150,852151K | ||
| 99,945100K | ||
| 67,76068K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 8, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.23 The position is about equal
Best play: 3... Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 dxc4 7. e4 g5 8. Bg3
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: White scores 54% under 1400, 55% at 2200 and up and 57% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 1.2M | |
| 1400–1799 | 4M | |
| 1800–2199 | 6.1M | |
| 2200 and up | 1.9M | |
| Masters, over the board | 75K |
Master games
- Aronian, L. – Carlsen, M.
- Carlsen, M. – Topalov, V.
- Ding Liren – Carlsen, M.
- Ding, L. – Carlsen, M.
- Carlsen, M. – Nakamura, H.
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
Slav Defense: Modern Line (ECO D11, Closed & Semi-Closed Games) is a variation of the Slav Defense, reached after 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 (3 moves).
In 10,460,130 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 51.7%, Black 42.3% and 6.0% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 3…Nf6, in 60% of those games.
It branches into 7 named variations; the most played are Slav Defense: Three Knights Variation and Slav Defense: Quiet Variation. In all, 65 named lines continue from it.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the Slav Defense: Modern Line
The most played answer, 3…Nf6, also scores best for Black: 46.1%, with Black winning 42.9% and White 50.7% of 6.2M games. Of the main answers, 3…Bg4 scores lowest: 43.0%. Stockfish's first choice is also 3…Nf6.
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 Slav Defense: Modern Line peaked in 2018 at 0.5% of Lichess games and has slipped since: 0.4% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.46% | 164,206 |
| 2017 | 0.48% | 265,692 |
| 2018 | 0.5% | 394,074 |
| 2019 | 0.45% | 567,541 |
| 2020 | 0.41% | 1,210,674 |
| 2021 | 0.38% | 1,472,272 |
| 2022 | 0.4% | 1,494,513 |
| 2023 | 0.4% | 1,488,605 |
| 2024 | 0.39% | 1,390,256 |
| 2025 | 0.4% | 1,379,137 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.4% | 443,643 |
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 (7)
- D46 Semi-Slav Defense: Chigorin Defense 3…e6 4. e3 Nf6 5. Nc3 Bd6 6. Bd3 dxc4 7. Bxc4 b5 8. Bd3 Nbd7 9. O-O O-O 10. Qc2
- D11 Bonet Gambit 3…Nf6 4. Bg5
- D11 Breyer Variation 3…Nf6 4. Nbd2
- D13 Exchange Variation 3…Nf6 4. cxd5 cxd5
- D11 Modern Line 3…Nf6 4. g3 dxc4 5. Bg2 g6
- D11 Quiet Variation 3…Nf6 4. e3
- D15 Three Knights Variation 3…Nf6 4. Nc3
All 65 named lines that continue from here
No line matches.
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Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Slav Defense: Modern Line (D11)”. Lichess data as of 8 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/slav-defense-modern-line