Tree path 4 levels King's Pawn Game › King's Knight Opening › Normal Variation › Three Knights Opening
- Caissa Codex
- King's Pawn Game C20
- King's Knight Opening C40
- Normal Variation C44
- Three Knights Opening C46 you are here
Three Knights Opening 2…Nc6 3. Nc3
Overview
Three Knights Opening is a named branch in the Open Games group of chess theory, classified under ECO C46.
The Open Games group covers open games — classical 1.e4 e5 openings where both sides contest the centre directly with pawns.
It is reached after 5 plies of play, with the move sequence 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Nc3.
In the opening tree, this line branches off from King's Knight Opening: Normal Variation, part of the broader King's Pawn Game system.
4 named variations grow from this line, including Four Knights Game, Three Knights Opening, Steinitz Defense, and others.
Below the direct variations, the full subtree contains 46 documented sub-variations.
Use the board to walk through every move, check how the position has scored on Lichess, or take it head-to-head against Stockfish.
- ECO code
- C46
- Group
- Open Games (C)
- Plies
- 5
- Direct variations
- 4
- Total in subtree
- 46
This overview is generated automatically from the opening's metadata. Know this line well? Write a description — submissions are reviewed before publishing.
Statistics from Lichess
20,958,666 games · White 49.3% / Draw 5.0% / Black 45.7%
| Moves | Games | W / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Nf6 | 10,075,859 | |
| Bc5 | 5,771,937 | |
| d6 | 2,057,277 | |
| Bb4 | 1,411,603 | |
| f5 | 355,506 | |
| a6 | 306,752 | |
| h6 | 259,903 | |
| Be7 | 231,229 |
Source: Lichess Opening Explorer · cached 2026-09-26 01:13:31
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Variations (4)
Show all 46 sub-variations (full subtree)
- C47 Four Knights Game 6-ply
- C46 Three Knights Opening 6-ply
- C46 Steinitz Defense 6-ply
- C46 Winawer Defense 6-ply
- C47 Glek System 7-ply
- C47 Gunsberg Variation 7-ply
- C47 Halloween Gambit 7-ply
- C47 Naroditsky Variation 7-ply
- C47 Scotch Variation 7-ply
- C48 Spanish Variation 7-ply
- C46 Schlechter Variation 8-ply
- C46 Three Knights Opening: Steinitz-Rosenthal Variation 9-ply
- C47 Four Knights Game: Glek System 13-ply
- C47 Oldtimer Variation 16-ply
- C47 Plasma Variation 22-ply
- C47 Four Knights Game: Scotch Variation Accepted 8-ply
- C47 Krause Gambit 9-ply
- C47 Oxford Gambit 10-ply
- C48 Classical Variation 8-ply
- C49 Double Spanish 8-ply
- C48 Ranken Variation 9-ply
- C48 Rubinstein Variation 8-ply
- C47 Main Line 17-ply
- C47 Four Knights Game: Scotch Variation, Belgrade Gambit 9-ply
- C47 Leonhardt Defense 10-ply
- C47 Four Knights Game: Scotch Variation, Schmid Defense 10-ply
- C48 Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation, Bardeleben Variation 18-ply
- C49 Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation, Double Spanish 11-ply
- C49 Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation, Nimzowitsch Variation 11-ply
- C48 Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation, Rubinstein Variation 9-ply
- C48 Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation, Rubinstein Variation Accepted 9-ply
- C48 Marshall Gambit 12-ply
- C48 Marshall Variation 12-ply
- C48 Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation, Spielmann Variation 20-ply
- C47 Modern Defense 12-ply
- C49 Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation 12-ply
- C49 Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation, Alatortsev Variation 14-ply
- C48 Maróczy Variation 18-ply
- C49 Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation, Symmetrical Variation 12-ply
- C49 Janowski Variation 15-ply
- C49 Svenonius Variation 14-ply
- C49 Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation, Symmetrical Variation 14-ply
- C49 Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation, Symmetrical Variation 13-ply
- C49 Metger Unpin 16-ply
- C49 Four Knights Game: Spanish Variation, Symmetrical Variation 20-ply
- C49 Blake Variation 20-ply