1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6
The Pirc Defense starts 1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6. Black fianchettoes the bishop to g7, castles and only then challenges White's centre with ...e5 or ...c5. It is a hypermodern defence: Black controls the centre with pieces first and pawns later.
White has a wide choice of setups, from the quiet Classical (Nf3 and Be2) to the aggressive Austrian Attack (f4) and the 150 Attack (Be3, Qd2 and Bh6). Against all of them Black's task is the same: strike at the centre before White's space advantage turns into an attack.
The Pirc is closely related to the Modern Defense (1...g6), which delays ...Nf6, and to the King's Indian, which arises after 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6.
Step through the main line with Next and Prev, or click any move. Flip the board to see it from Black's side.
Black avoids heavy main-line theory and gets a flexible, unbalanced game. The plans (...e5 or ...c5, the g7 bishop on the long diagonal) are similar to the King's Indian, so the ideas carry over.
1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Be2 O-O 6.O-O Bg4 7.Be3 Nc6 8.Qd2 e5 9.d5 Ne7
New to the notation? Learn how to read chess notation in five minutes.
In the Pirc White starts with the classical d4 and e4 centre and Black waits behind a small pawn on d6. That centre only stays good for White if it remains stable. Black's pawn breaks ...e5 and ...c5 decide the game: once one of them lands, the g7 bishop opens up.
If White closes the centre with d4-d5 after ...e5, the structure becomes King's Indian-like. Black usually plays for ...f5 on the kingside, while White expands on the queenside.
Against the Austrian Attack, where White adds f4, Black's main resource is ...c5. If White's centre advances too far, it can become a target.
1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 4.f4 Bg7 5.Nf3 O-O 6.Bd3 Na6 7.O-O c5 8.d5
White builds a three-pawn centre on d4, e4 and f4 and prepares e4-e5. Black has to hit back quickly, here with ...Na6 and ...c5. The Austrian is the most direct test of the Pirc.
1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 4.Be3 Bg7 5.Qd2 c6 6.f3
White plays Be3, Qd2 and f3, planning Bh6 to trade Black's g7 bishop and then h4-h5 against Black's king. Black usually replies with queenside play: ...c6, ...b5 and ...Nbd7. The name comes from British club chess, where a grade of 150 was a typical club player's rating.
1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 4.Bg5 Bg7 5.Qd2
The bishop goes to g5 to pin the f6 knight and prepare Qd2 and a later Bh6. It is less forcing than the Austrian and leads to flexible positions.
The defence is named after Vasja Pirc, a Slovenian grandmaster who analysed it. In Russian sources it is often called the Pirc-Ufimtsev Defence, after Anatoly Ufimtsev, who worked on it independently.
It was long regarded as a fringe opening and became established in top-level chess only in the second half of the 20th century, as hypermodern ideas gained respect.
Copy the position at the end of the main line, open the chess move calculator, paste it into the “Paste FEN” box under the board and press the FEN button next to it. Stockfish 19 then suggests a move for the side to play, at the strength set on the calculator's slider, and you can play on from there to test your own ideas.
r2q1rk1/ppp1npbp/3p1np1/3Pp3/4P1b1/2N1BN2/PPPQBPPP/R4RK1 w - - 1 101. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 g6 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Be2 O-O 6. O-O Bg4 7. Be3 Nc6 8. Qd2 e5 9. d5 Ne7For a move-by-move review of a whole game you played with this opening, use the chess analysis board.
Knowing the moves is not the same as playing them under pressure. Play chess against the computer with the black pieces and answer 1.e4 with the Pirc Defense, then sharpen the tactics that come out of it with chess puzzles.
Go deeper: Chess tactics for beginners · How to improve your chess rating
Yes, it is sound, though it gives White more space than the Sicilian or the French. It suits players who like flexible, counter-attacking positions and know when to strike with ...e5 or ...c5.
In the Pirc, Black plays ...d6 and ...Nf6 early, attacking e4. In the Modern (1...g6), Black delays ...Nf6 and keeps more options, such as ...c6 and ...d5 or ...a6 and ...b5.
The Austrian Attack (4.f4) is the most aggressive, the 150 Attack (Be3, Qd2, Bh6) is the easiest to learn, and the Classical (Nf3, Be2) is the safest.
In spirit, yes. Black fianchettoes on g7, plays ...d6 and strikes with ...e5 or ...c5. The difference is that White has not played c4, so both sides' queenside plans are different.
See all chess openings, with the best choices for White, for Black and for beginners.
Practice These Openings
Want more? Try Pro — Try Pro for AI analysis of your opening play