The English Opening – Tactic and Strategy Toolbox by Mihail Marin


Widely regarded as a positional opening, the English essentially features a tight connection between strategy and tactics or, as an even more fateful description, between statics and dynamics. Play starts in a slow mode, indeed, with White trying to set up a control over the light squares with the help of his mighty bishop on g2, but later a crucial moment inevitably arises when concrete decisions are needed to crown his previous strategic play. Depending on the situation, this may be an unexpected combination, switching to dynamic play or to an apparently different plan. But a well conducted English opening game ideally looks like a harmonious whole, with strategy and tactics as two facets of the same truth. The tests included on this DVD are aimed at explaining all these aspects, actively involving the viewer into the process. While the material is structured according to general patterns and structures, the character of the solutions (tactical or strategic, for instance) varies depending on the concrete circumstances in each example. This DVD is a good way to refresh your repertoire as well as to start with the English and get an idea of how to play the opening without learning tons of theory.

• Video running time: 5 hours 30 min (English)
• With interactive training including video feedback
• Extra: Database with further examples

1. Introduction
2. Exercises 01-10
3. Exercise 01
4. Exercise 02
5. Exercise 03
6. Exercise 04
7. Exercise 05
8. Exercise 06
9. Exercise 07
10. Exercise 08
11. Exercise 09
12. Exercise 10
13. Exercises 11-20
14. Exercise 11
15. Exercise 12
16. Exercise 13
17. Exercise 14
18. Exercise 15
19. Exercise 16
20. Exercise 17
21. Exercise 18
22. Exercise 19
23. Exercise 20
24. Exercises 21-30
25. Exercise 21
26. Exercise 22
27. Exercise 23
28. Exercise 24
29. Exercise 25
30. Exercise 26
31. Exercise 27
32. Exercise 28
33. Exercise 29
34. Exercise 30
35. Exercises 31-40
36. Exercise 31
37. Exercise 32
38. Exercise 33
39. Exercise 34
40. Exercise 35
41. Exercise 36
42. Exercise 37
43. Exercise 38
44. Exercise 39
45. Exercise 40
46. Exercises 41-50
47. Exercise 41
48. Exercise 42
49. Exercise 43
50. Exercise 44
51. Exercise 45
52. Exercise 46
53. Exercise 47
54. Exercise 48
55. Exercise 49
56. Exercise 50
57. Bonus
58. Analysis
59. Further Examples

Mihail Marin, born in 1965, has several times been Romanian champion and first made the leap over the Elo barrier of 2600 in 2001. Marin possesses a rare gift for a grandmaster - he is able to explain in readily comprehensible terms the ideas behind moves, variations and positions. This ability is there for all to admire in his contributions to ChessBase Magazine. Marin has written some books which have earned the highest of praise, among which are “Secrets of Chess Defence” and “Learn from the legends”.

System requirements:

Minimum: Pentium III 1 GHz, 1 GB RAM, Windows 7, DirectX9 graphic card with 256 MB RAM, Windows Media Player 9 and internet connection for program activation. Recommended: PC Intel Core i7, 2.8 GHz, 4 GB RAM, Windows 7 / 8 or 10, DirectX10 graphic card (or compatible) with 512 MB RAM or better, 100% DirectX10 compatible sound card, Windows Media Player 11, internet connection for program activation.