8 Weird Opening Traps You've Never Seen Before

Thank you so much to Audible for sponsoring this video!
Visit audible.com/imrosen or text "imrosen" to 500-500 to sign up for a free trial and to get a free audiobook of your choice!
In this video, I share some unusual and rare chess opening traps and tricks that I have not shown before in previous videos! Some of the featured openings include the Trompowsky/Torre Attack, Caro Kann Defense, Alekhine's Defense, Sicilian Accelerated Dragon, Smith Morra Gambit, and more!
Analyze all the traps shown in this video: lichess.org/study/JBLySYqC
Chapters
0:00 What to expect in this video
0:45 Thank you Audible for sponsoring this video
2:11 GM Crushes me in 11 Moves -- Torre Attack Trap
5:34 Dumb Qe7 Trap
9:05 Bizarre Caro Kann Trap
13:50 Tipsy Grandmaster Alekhine Trap
18:10 Unexpected Checkmate -- French Defense Trap
23:10 Crush the Smith Morra in 8 moves
28:05 "Du Berry Trap" -- Accelerated Dragon Sicilian
33:21 Weirdest Trap Ever???
I'm now a chess.com affiliate! Visit go.chess.com/imrosen to get a free trial or paid membership of premium features like beginner lessons, unlimited puzzle training, and access to their extensive video library. Signups through the link will support my content!
Watch live on Twitch: / imrosen
Stream schedule: imrosen.com/schedule
Support my content: www.paypal.me/ericrosenchess
Now accepting fan mail! My mailbox address:
Eric Rosen
4579 Laclede Ave 205
St. Louis, MO 63108
♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙
WEBSITE: imrosen.com/
TWITCH: / imrosen
DISCORD: bit.ly/2KTDlBK
TWITTER: bit.ly/2sFmNqa
INSTAGRAM: bit.ly/2HspaBa
LICHESS: lichess.org/@/ericrosen
CHESS.COM: www.chess.com/member/imrosen
♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙
See Eric in the chess documentary Chess State (2015): vimeo.com/ondemand/chessstate
Chess book recommendations: imrosen.com/book-recommendati...
London Opening 8-hour video course: www.ichess.net/sale/8020-tact...
#chess #ericrosen

[@tgwrtsepgr]

That day Eric added "Oh no I'm drunk" to his repertoire

[@loldirt2893]

Wuack

[@andrew_owens7680]

Picked the wrong day to stop sniffing glue!

[@guitarmaniac847]

Eric :- 8 weird opening traps Me-: all my openings are weird

[@mukyumukyun]

but the real question is, is it still theory?

[@coconuttree5045]

I like to open with f3 then g4

[@0de1337]

@@coconuttree5045 i feel you

[@yahya3800]

@@mukyumukyun wrong eric

[@sabkxw9834]

@@mukyumukyun yes

[@user-sz6bs7vw6p]

Everybody gangsta til "oh yes my queen"

[@Andrew-wr6rs]

Yeah, when you hear Eric say "Oh no, my queen" that is the least expected thing he could say next

[@caleby4915]

I laughed too hard

[@w451-qx3kx]

🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🚬

[@Ryan-kb8ui]

I know a couple gangsters that love chess... I thought I had a nice chess game, but there was this triple OG blood who i could NOT beat

[@Logic-ys7rw]

I never thought I would see Eric simping

[@cybergetae5608]

Man now that i think about it,Eric's voice is perfect for Audiobooks.

[@torben22.16]

Yeah I think he should just get a part time job as book reader, his voice just soothes the pain away

[@samshankar9413]

Ngl at night, sometimes I fall asleep at his videos because his voice is so soothing to the ears.

[@torben22.16]

@@samshankar9413 same

[@space0015]

@@torben22.16I think mrwhosetheboss voice is better and is recommended by viewers to make him male google assistant

[@xZombieJoe]

@@space0015 Damn bro didn't realise only 1 guy can have a nice voice at once

[@chrisko-pelago8753]

Been in a slump recently, I don't seem to be enjoying games. But listening to Eric and watching long analytical videos like this always perks me right up. The positive energy that emanates from this man is something I haven't seen since Bob Ross.

[@highkage9535]

When he gets old, he'd literally be the Bob Ross of chess.

[@chrisko-pelago8753]

​@@highkage9535 One of these days Eric should make a Bob Ross-themed thumbnail

[@sanchayjain4609]

Levy does that for me too.

[@lioneleminence3401]

That's high praise!

[@mypony891]

@@chrisko-pelago8753 only thing I don't think will go over well is "No mistakes, just happy accidents." Nope, those were definitely mistakes... And blunders

[@catpham1858]

35:40 After knight f6, King f8, Bishop h6, checkmate That rhyme is smooth as hell

[@Lifeislife102]

Bars

[@julianooms327]

Oh wow that's some poetic structure as well.

[@watchingaccount]

That Caro Kann trap was dope af. Queen sacrifices are the best

[@philbanddrummer]

Incredible trap, the only thing wrong with it is it's such a hard position to achieve

[@ryou8820]

I had the same line but I didn't know until now

[@unlucky4794]

12:12 oh yes my queen 😂😂😂

[@natedangergolf]

Who knew pulling an all nighter would perfectly time this video so Eric can talk me to sleep

[@TheNatewag]

Literal same boat bro. Gn

[@properdude_6866]

hope you have a good sleep

[@simonmultiverse6349]

I'm a lumberjack and I'm OK I chess all night and I sleep all day.

[@ondrejtoman7433]

5:23 All the top games won by the same guy... you are runing his strat Eric

[@JimmyBoosterCrate]

That guy is the one who beat Eric lol

[@EaZea]

Eric is such a nice person that I didn’t skip the audible sponsor

[@medoanwar9854]

Trueeeeee this is the only time I have ever done it

[@educat1on166]

i did, i saw it in other of his videos and theres no point watching it teice

[@Vengaard]

"Or, what the germans call 'swischensuug'" Every german: The what?

[@SebastianBohn]

Somebody should teach Eric that the German 'z' is more pronounced like a sharp 's' or 'c' in English, e. g. like in 'see' or 'cymbal'. If one prepends a 't', it's getting even closer, so like 't-cymbal'.

[@ryanolson2405]

lol you’re german thats tough 😂

[@Evidiestv]

@@SebastianBohn z more like the hissing sound of a snake ? or maybe " tse " im not sure if the english use tse as such. but nice try with cymbal. makes sense

[@dominikf.1409]

For anyone interested it's called Zwischenzug

[@SebastianBohn]

@@Evidiestv It's more like 'ts' as in cymbal, not like in snake or symbol 😉. Tricky to find an English term that fits. This is the best attempt I could find.

[@elmereng2171]

eric: don’t try this trap at home! proceeds to try it over the board instead

[@PeteDoesGames]

Glad to see Eric get a sponsorship, get that money

[@quantumblip4715]

ikr! Eric is one of the few KZbinrs who deserve ad revenue and I’ll gladly tune in lol

[@jwcfive7999]

@@quantumblip4715 I almost skipped over it out of muscle memory but then I realized it was Eric getting money is I watched it in full

[@maxwellerobini1603]

@@jwcfive7999 it doesn't matter if you watch it or not you know

[@tsjawesome6289]

I was so ecstatic when I managed to calculate Bb4# in my head for one of the traps

[@highkage9535]

wait which trap was it?

[@katgpt]

21:50

[@highkage9535]

@@katgpt thank you

[@31redorange08]

I don't get it. It's already written down.

[@sashachapin]

Thanks for the shout-out Eric! I actually contacted you while I was writing the book to get your help with opening prep but I don't think we ever scheduled a session... oh how things could've been different

[@enochingham5004]

Man I was beginning to doubt my chess play until number 5, thank you for throwing in a nice calculation puzzle like that, made me feel good about my visualisation skills, love you IM Eric Rosen!

[@nagmumuryot]

we need to start gatekeeping eric from our opponents because these traps will be circulating for the next few weeks

[@remainconfident1]

You want to play the best opponent. You have to have deeper preparation than your opponent. Never suppress the truth out of fear of be “lesser” than. Chess is about spreading the knowledge....never hoarding it.

[@dukes1lv3r48]

@@remainconfident1 no I want to play trap against dumb opponent

[@PhilNEvo]

Is that a bad thing? Now you know the traps and can play around them :b

[@smrtfasizmu6161]

I have also noticed that whenever Eric Rosen shows a trap everybody on lichess start playing it

[@AnglosArentHuman]

@@remainconfident1 Never supress dairy, either.

[@neko_aple]

Eric Rosen and Levy Rozman casually referencing each other is like two running TV series in a single universe. HAHAHAHAAHAHA

[@ja-k0]

Love it how chill and professional you are. No politics, no drama, no religion, no trash content. I am always so happy when you upload a chess video. CHESS video. Keep up the good work mate!

[@hiks6539]

Shut up atheist

[@ja-k0]

@@hiks6539 how do you know I'm an atheist?

[@hiks6539]

Because u no like religion

[@ja-k0]

@@hiks6539 I hate religion, I love Jesus

[@repossessedphone7308]

@@ja-k0 hypocrite asss colonizer shut up and go play chess 🤣

[@conormolloy7043]

This was a really interesting and we'll constructed video Eric :) more like this would be great :)

[@shmoopty8950]

Great video Eric! I really enjoyed the stories that accompanied some of these traps, especially the tipsy GM lol

[@jamesgriffin7046]

Consistently solid content and teaching, Eric. It's rare to find a keen mind that can clearly express the thought process at a pace and level that all can follow and enjoy. Thank you!

[@danya5211]

That Caro trap was amazing! I've been playing this h5 line for some time, but this is new for me. Thanks for the video Eric!

[@Justt_us]

Thanks for some more amazing traps. Been loving your videos as well as all the thumbnails. Cheers for all the great work

[@miowins2335]

tipsy gm alekhine trap is really aesthetic

[@ianism1103]

Definitely love these sorts of trap videos! Also, my favourites were the smith-morra trap and the last one!

[@Dan-yd2jq]

"Oh yes my Queen!" ..... My marriage in a nutshell.

[@Bennysol]

Don't be a simp

[@SSBossman]

Bro it’s his wife

[@perwagenius3721]

I haven't seen any of these traps. Loving the content, great commentary and interesting lines. Keep it up (:

[@TimeisaSquigglyLine]

I love these prepared youtube-exclusive videos, reminds me of your saint louis lectures, so interesting, chill and professional at the same time!

[@eddiescherer]

You are awesome Eric. Great content! Fun openings. I haven't encountered any of them before.

[@NathanHarrison7]

Awesome video. Love the pace and excellent explanations. Thank you for putting in the time to help us all be better Chess players.

[@MLG4TheWin]

I didn't know any of them until now but I really liked the 7th one! Thanks alot for showing it Eric!

[@iTaLenTZ027]

The Torre trap and Caro Kahn trap were my favorite. Really enjoy these trap videos.

[@Fahad1897]

I actually "physically" laughed when I saw the last trap. Keep up the good content 👌👏🏻

[@Shwooody]

This was a really great interesting video. Thanks Eric!

[@SirSquittles]

1. Really enjoyed the "oh no I'm drunk" trap. Mostly for the backstory lol 2. I haven't seen these before 3. I'd really enjoy you making a youtube series out of your old shoebox games like you did on stream the other day. I think people would really enjoy that sort of content. Seeing you rise and realizing that becoming a stronger player is always attainable, as well as going along with your passion to teach and make instructive content.

[@yinge101]

Love this format! Education, entertainment, and puzzles!

[@DoubleDYouTube]

Eric: You shouldn't try this at home. Me: goes to friend's house to try the opening.

[@yorickstrangefield2976]

Some really interesting traps here, thanks Eric.

[@fejfo6559]

I've seen 7) "Du berry" trap when using the opening explorer following the highest winrate moves for white, but I didn't understand the point of Nd5 so it's great that confusion was cleared up

[@jeydenmasocha2744]

Thank Rosen, really needed this

[@mingozzz1]

Very great content! I would love more trap videos Maybe best opening traps that top-20-level players have fell into? My favorite from this list was the first one.

[@benkasper4035]

Keep up the sponsorships! Ive heard every audible add on the planet but you make me wana buy it

[@CeilingPanda]

I love all traps, would love more content, and I haven't yet seen these.

[@REKKnives]

Great video Eric! I would love to see a video with "adaptive defenses" for black depending on different moves white makes in the beginning. Or vise versa 👍👍

[@paulspl2581]

The caro kann trap was really cool. I found the moves, or I guess the idea behind it because I've seen a puzzle like that before

[@36swill]

Fantastic content and you totally deserve a sponsor!

[@alexanderkaufman3575]

Hey Eric! Great content! You were my introduction to the Stafford Gambit and I would love to learn the opening (unfortunately have not been able to play it hardly at all though)! With future videos such as this, you might want to consider explaining how to counter the traps?

[@ItsAsparageese]

He does show the best move for the opposing side in most of these examples 🤷

[@LordSoviet]

Beautiful video Eric love this content.

[@JM_-ix7yh]

Looking over my games I did play someone who it appears tried the "tipsy grandmaster" one on me, but by sheer luck I managed to avoid it and win the game due to better development.

[@ramphislopezortiz3024]

More opening studies, and potential traps please! :)

[@kevlarmcquevlar]

Bb4# is so beautiful - it's like some accelerated opera mate with the queen...

[@elle_ie9943]

my favorite trap was the guaranteed promotion queen sac one. that was insanely cool with the way the queen was reborn. it should be called the phoenix trap :) thanks for the fantastic content eric!!

[@aurelien1759]

German prononciation crash course: Luft --> Looft Zwischenzug --> Tsvishen Tsoog The «u» is a oo sound as in room, but short.

[@ajedrezz]

Cool and interesting video and of course, the traps are amazing

[@PlatypusPower89]

The first trap or the caro kann trap would be my pick of the bunch, board geometry is always super satisfying

[@jfrey123]

The Du Berry was my favorite trap out of this video. But the tipsy alekhine was fun to watch too thanks to the story behind it.

[@adityamurai6989]

Great ⚡ Thnk u Eric

[@RyanEmmett]

I hadn't seen any of these traps before. The Torre and the Caro-Kann ones were my favourites. 👍

[@daviddelille1443]

I liked the Caro trap, because I might actually play this and I didn't see it even after I paused. Would love to see more videos like this.

[@jeanconan1812]

I enjoy the Légal Trap very much, especially the ''oh no my queen line''

[@pdroa6666]

congrats on another sponsorship eric! you deserve it

[@brianidzior5488]

When Eric says OK in between traps it reminds me of Jim Carrey as Andy Kaufman in Man on the Moon.

[@RaviSeth1]

First one and the Last one is amazing. Thank you for this Video.

[@SteveBennett1]

Ah, awesome. Particularly loved that last one.

[@ajparsons1935]

Hi Eric! Absolutely loved this video. #5 unexpected checkmate against French defense and #7 the Du Berry trap were my favorites. #5 is a beautiful checkmate and the du berry was an excellent tactical and spatial advantage

[@ajparsons1935]

Caro Kann trap also a favorite

[@sollertia_]

As a Torre and Alekhine player, proud to already have known about those traps in addition to the main idea of the last one.

[@johnchessant3012]

I've gotten the Lasker Trap once against someone and it felt so good

[@hailmary7283]

I hadn't seen these traps before, and I really liked the last one the most.

[@xanbex8324]

Thank u Eric well done!

[@Sventimir]

Very nice material. I've never seen any of these traps before! I wonder if you could perhaps do some end-game related content? I feel that my end-game skills lag far behind everything else, because most of my games (around 1800 rating points on Lichess) end early either because someone gets mated or just get advantage enough to make the other side surrender the game. Therefore when it does come to play an end-game (especially one including queens and pawns) I often get outplayed.

[@user-svqmbiv]

I was really proud of myself for visualizing that line and finding that double checkmate at the end.

[@LegendaryFartMaster]

The last trap is my favourite personally. Sure the setup to it is very dubious, but the queen sac out of nowhere is amazing!

[@blargh6143]

I’ve gotten so much better at chess just by seeing how you think through your videos

[@nikolaytsvetkov4661]

Good content! Thanks.

[@kenwilson2597]

As a Smith Morra player... I liked the black bishop move! Will be using that also! (Would love a Smith Morra video if you ever do one) I have a book, but books are so hard to digest to dig out the traps sometimes.

[@UM96lol]

Would love to see more Van Geet openings, or something similar that's actually playable in blitz or rapid

[@jonathanleonard1152]

I do like how Eric shows his errors with such good attitude.

[@taco3131]

420k subscribers! Congrats!

[@cheesiechess3656]

My favorite was the Caro Kann trap, so crazy and so abnormal but so satisfying to see it work out perfectly. Haven't seen these traps btw.

[@jamesallen3911]

Great video, great traps.

[@SAlam-bo3ww]

Thank you Audible for supporting the man the myth the legend Scott Sterling

[@vernicterus]

opening traps from eric are the reason I picked up chess again :)

[@robsch1473]

Hello Mr. Rosen The Caro-Kann trap was the coolest idea - especially because i am a caro-kann player. I do have one question you may want to cover in your next video: what do you think about the e6/b6 build against 1.d4?

[@joedebeer8563]

I haven’t seen these before. I would love to see a video on the K-gambit as it’s my default :-)

[@tobiahabramson]

I think I speak for everyone when I say we want a off-beat gambits video along this same structure

[@flpsnk4848]

I have encountered Du Barry trap in some other variations of Sicilian too, I think even in English attack, good to scan for it if black allows it.

[@Poup_o7]

All of these traps are beautiful

[@S3l33ngrab]

I'd love to see some stuff on the scandinavian - there's a lot of funny lines in there!

[@CheapShotFail]

The Nd5 Bb6 trap is a very common idea in certain lines of the smith morra, specifically it's a must know for the Nge7 variation. It's a common tactical justification to the Nd5 push that forces black to accept the sacrifice and unleash the floodgates. Cool to see it show up in other Sicilian variations with a6 creating a dark square complex on the queenside, I'd imagine it's possible to run into in other openings like the Italian or Ruy Lopez just much rarer.

[@Hennnerzz]

Great video!! X

[@chadetrikrout]

All are excellent Eric...

[@Erkki146]

19:42 does not quite trap the Queen, because Bb4+.

[@tadhgrush1752]

I liked the sicillian traps. They were the most applicable, and it was cool to see normal looking positions get wrecked.

[@nikitagh5656]

Yeah I think combining traps and specific openings is a neat idea. Pick something fun like Kings Gambit and instead of main lines that make sense cover some traps in it.

[@esper_lvl4900]

calculation exercise was my favorite. It's kind of a deep trap which is really hard to defend against, ince it started (if you're not high rated enough)

[@jell0pudding580]

“never judge your opponent on how sober they may or may not be”

[@dermotshaw6775]

Qd4 in the alekhine. Creating trip fork then another trip fork on b3 with king, bishop and rook straight after. Beautiful

[@hgjgjfjfmd]

congrats on the sponsor from audible