My First Opening Repertoire for Black 1. d4 and Sidelines by GM Alex Colovic + PGN Mar 10, 2025

The Black Triangle Formation Transforms You From Clueless To Confident

The Black Triangle Formation bulletproofs your center from any danger. It gives your pieces clear paths to their strongest squares, plus a step-by-step plan to reach them. So you can match White’s rapid development in the opening, and set up for success in the middlegame.

From a bomb-proof stronghold in the center…

With your pawns on c6, d5, and e6, you’re
safe from sudden tactics and sacrifices

Your triangle turns into a sledgehammer, breaking down White’s center in two swings…

After …dxc4 and …e5, White’s center
disintegrates. Plus, your rooks get
easy access to open files, opposite
the enemy queen!

A huge wave of pawns, beating back enemy pieces en route to creating a new queen…

The pawns will always be a threat. And
with every exchange of pieces, the
closer they come to promotion!

Or ironclad control of the queenside!

After …b5, …Rc8, and …Na5, the
queenside is under your control!

And who better to guide you through these transformations than Grandmaster Alex Colovic?

He holds at least 18 national titles… plus record-setting performances at the Chess Olympiad and the European Club Cup.

He’s been a FIDE trainer since 2018. He’s a Chessable OG, too. He won our 2021 Author of the Year Award — thanks in no small part to the 18 best-sellers and over 2,300 stellar ratings credited to his name.

Colovic has seen beginners struggle against non-e4 openings.

They dread the “boring” closed structure of 1.d4. So they force the position open, blundering badly as a result.

Against the rare 1.c4 and 1.Nf3, they never feel like they’re playing ‘their’ game. Throw in all the sneaky transpositions between these 3 openings…

And no wonder beginners doubt their every move. They always worry about walking into a trap, leading to analysis paralysis.

That’s why Colovic created My First Opening Repertoire for Black: 1. d4 and Sidelines.

His complete repertoire puts you in control by…

Narrowing Your Prep For Non-e4 Openings
Down To One Main Strategy

Reach the Black Triangle as soon as possible — then press forward from a rock-solid position.

Here’s the strategy in action against 1.d4:

You play 1…d5 2.c4 c6 to cement your control of the center. Then 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nf3 a6 — the first key move. With it, you allow your bishop to develop before locking down the center with …e7-e6.

Mission accomplished, Black
Triangle Formation reached!

With your pawns on c6, d5, and e6, the rest of your pieces enjoy stress-free development.

Your b8-knight links up with its twin via d7. Your dark-squared bishop settles along the f8-a3 diagonal, while your king castles kingside.

Your queen can add more support to the center or exert pressure on the queenside. Then once the position starts opening up, your rooks can take control of the files.

Smooth, simple development — thanks to the triangle shielding you from crazy tactics.

Of course, White will try to mess with you.

For example:

Between 1000 and 2500 rating online, roughly 1 in 4 players will pin you, trying to win easy material. So you serve them exactly that — a juicy exchange no less. Because while they’re busy looting, you light a fire under their king!

White must choose between 14.Ke2
losing castling rights and “preserving” it
then losing a piece with 14.Nd2?? Ne4!

The same triangle setup solves White’s transposition tricks between 1.c4 and 1.Nf3. Rarer sidelines like 1.f4 and 1.b3 are covered, too.

Sure, a slight move-order tweak might pop up here and there. But count on our Chessable OG to keep the lines consistent, clear, and easy to learn.

Here’s a quick recap of what you’re getting:
🗻 A complete counter to 1.d4 and the sidelines. Only 35 MoveTrainer variations, so you can learn the entire repertoire in a week!

🗻 7 hours of video explanations plus 5-star support by Chessable’s original GM author.

🗻 Plus 9 model games revealing how these lines unfold in practice.
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