Play With TheoryQueen's Pawn Game · V. Opening Systems with 1.d4
Jobava-London System
The Jobava-London System is a relatively recent derivative of the traditional London System; the queenside knight develops to c3 instead of the usual d2. Conventional wisdom states that the knight should not block the c-pawn in d4 openings. Yet, the Jobava-London is filled with ideas and opening traps which offer great practical chances for White.
- Side
- white
Characteristics
- 🔱 FlexibleCan branch into either sharp or quiet structures depending on move order and player choices.
- ⚙ SystematicCan often be played from recurring setup ideas rather than heavy memorization of exact lines.
- 💎 UncommonLess common in practice, which can reduce opponent familiarity.
- 🍂 Very AttainableAppears extremely often relative to other openings, so practice opportunities are abundant.
Strategic guide
Plans and motifs
- White's usual move order is 1.d4, 2.Nc3, and 3.Bf4.
- Many motifs in the traditional London System carry over to the Jobava-London (e.g. kingside attack with Ne5, or prepare e4 break).
- After the natural-looking moves ...c5 and ...e6, Black's dark squares become very weak, making Nb5 a strong move. It establishes itself on an outpost and threatens Nc7+ forking Black's king and rook.
- With this threat in mind, Black should play ...a6 preemptively to guard against Nb5.
- If Black plays symmetrically with ...Bf5, White may choose to respond with an aggressive kingside pawn storm: f3, g4, and h4.
Train the opening
Training paths
A repertoire plan turns an opening into an ordered set of positions and branches to learn, practice, and review. Foundation paths cover the core branches. Mastery paths add deeper variations after the foundation is complete.
Foundation path
Start training this opening
Jobava London
intermediate
Imported Lines
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01
Queen Bait
-
02
Rook Heist
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03
Fork Breaker
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04
Central Pawn Grab
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05
Royal Fork Blitz
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06
Knight Invasion
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07
Triple Fork Trap
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08
Knight Shield
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09
B7 Plunder
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10
Rook Pawn Raid
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11
Queen Snatcher
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12
H7 Sacrifice
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13
Structure Crush
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14
Bishop Cage
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15
Queen's Perch
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16
Calm Defense
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17
Opposite Siege
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18
C7 Pressure
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19
Flank Ruin
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20
Knight Advance
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21
Pawn Splitter
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22
Aggro Pawns
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23
King's Flank Attack
-
24
Pawn Tsunami
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25
Bishop Nab
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26
Safe Harbor
Mastery path
View mastery plan
Jobava London Mastery
advanced
Imported Lines
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01
Jobava Fork
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02
C7 Raid
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03
1. d4 d5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Bf4 Nc6 4. Nb5 e6 5. Nxc7+
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04
C7 Fork
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05
C7 Fork
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06
C7 Fork
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07
C7 Fork
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08
F7 Finish
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09
Queen Heist
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10
Rook Heist
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11
1. d4 d5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Bf4 c5 4. e3 Nc6 5. Nb5 e5 6. Bxe5 Nxe5 7. dxe5 Ne4 8. Qxd5 Qa...
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12
C7 Fork
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13
Queen Bait
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14
C7 Invasion
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15
Central Pawn Grab
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16
C7 Fork
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17
Queen Ambush
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18
Fork Breaker
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19
Queen Bait
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20
1. d4 d5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Bf4 Nc6 4. Nb5 e5 5. Bxe5 Nxe5 6. dxe5 Ng4 7. Qxd5 Qxd5 8. Nxc...
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21
C7 Fork
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22
C7 Fork
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23
Queen Bait
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24
Knight Invasion
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25
Royal Fork Blitz
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26
Double Fork
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27
C7 Raid
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28
Queen Heist
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29
Queen Bait
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30
Queen Heist
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31
Queen Bait
-
32
Queen Heist
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33
C7 Squeeze
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34
Queen Bait
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35
Queen Bait
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36
Triple Fork Trap
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37
Knight Shield
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38
Queen Heist
-
39
Queen Ambush
-
40
1. d4 d5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Bf4 Nc6 4. Nb5 e5 5. Bxe5 Nxe5 6. dxe5 Ng4 7. Qxd5 Qxd5 8. Nxc...
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41
Fork Breaker
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42
B7 Plunder
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43
Queen Heist
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44
Queen Bait
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45
Rook Raid
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46
Queen Bait
-
47
Rook Pawn Raid
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48
Queen Snatcher
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49
H7 Sacrifice
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50
Structure Crush
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51
Kingside Clamp
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52
Bishop Cage
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53
Queen S Perch
-
54
C7 Fork
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55
Calm Defense
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56
Opposite Siege
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57
C7 Pressure
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58
Flank Ruin
-
59
Knight Advance
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60
Bishop Battery
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61
Pawn Splitter
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62
Aggro Pawns
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63
King S Flank
-
64
Pawn Tsunami
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65
Bishop Nab
-
66
Safe Harbor