About this opening
Semi-Slav Defense: Normal Variation is an opening in the Encyclopedia of Chess Openings,
classified under code D45. ECO group D (D00–D99)
covers closed games and semi-closed games beginning 1.d4 d5, covering the Queen's Gambit, Slav, Grünfeld and related queen-pawn structures. This particular variation is reached
after 10 half-moves from the
starting position, with the move sequence 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nf3 Nbd7.
It belongs to the Semi-Slav Defense family. Within that family this is a sub-variation (the Normal Variation line).
The opening sequence in prose form: 1.d4 d5, 2.c4 c6, 3.Nc3 Nf6, 4.e3 e6, 5.Nf3 Nbd7. From this position the encyclopaedia records no further canonical continuations — practical play branches into unnamed transpositions or returns to the parent line for alternative ideas.
Use the interactive board above to walk through the moves position-by-position. Click any move in the navigation to step backwards, or use the keyboard arrow keys. For statistical data — how often master-level players have reached this position, White's win-rate, draw frequency, Black's score — see the panel in the right column.
Caissly's coverage of D45 extends through every named sub-variation in this line and across all four locales (English, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian). Where editorial commentary exists for a specific variation it appears as the page body; otherwise the page presents the structural data, board, and statistics as shown here.