21 Pages Posted: 29 Jul 2014

Date Written: July 28, 2014

Abstract

It is demonstrated that a methodology previously described for comparing a number of different test openings with a neutral and perfect opening may also be used to make pairwise comparisons of alternate continuation lines of any chess opening. Such comparisons show, for example, that Accelerated Dragon variations initiated by black are not robust because they depend on white's cooperation. Rather than these specific findings, however, the real purpose of this paper is to further refine, validate, and demonstrate an objective methodology for evaluating the relative merit of chess openings, a subject of great interest to chess players at all levels of play.