The Müller-Schulze Gambit, also known as the Halloween Gambit, or the Halloween Attack, is an aggressive but dubious gambit in chess, in which White sacrifices a knight for just one pawn. It is a branch of the normally conservative Four Knights Game. The opening sequence is (see algebraic notation)

1.e4 e5

2.Nf3 Nc6

3.Nc3 Nf6

4.Nxe5?!

The goal of the gambit is to seize the center with pawns and drive back Black's knights. After 4...Nxe5, White usually plays 5.d4, in preference to 5.f4, which does not facilitate his development. After 5.d4 the black knight can retreat to g6 or c6. If 5...Ng6, White chases the knight on f6 with 6.e5. If 5...Nc6, White plays 6.d5, and if 6...Ne5, 7.f4. After 7...Ng6, the game usually continues 8.e5 Ng8 9.d6, completing the most commonly seen sequence in this opening. In the final position White is on the attack and will generally continue that with tactics such as Nb5 after a pawn trade at d6.

International Master Larry Kaufman, in his 2004 book The Chess Advantage in Black and White (p. 328), says that the Müller-Schulze Gambit is refuted by 4...Nxe5 5.d4 Nc6 6.d5 Bb4! 7.dxc6 Nxe4 8.Qd4 Qe7, which he attributes to Jan Pinski.

A similar gambit can be used by Black: after 4.g3, Black can play 4...Nxe4!? This line is arguably sounder than its White counterpart because 4.g3 weakened the f3 square. Moreover, White cannot play the line recommended by Kaufman with colors reversed because 5.Nxe4 d5 6.Nc3 d4 7.Bb5? dxc3 8.Nxe5? Qd5 9.Qe2? loses to 9...Qxh1+.

Illustrative games

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The following speed chess games show what can befall an unprepared player of the Black pieces:

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nxe5 Nxe5 5.d4 Ng6 6.e5 Ng8 7.Bc4 c6 8.Qf3 f6 9.O-O d5 10.exd6 Bxd6 11.Ne4 N8e7? 12.Qxf6!! gxf6? 13.Nxf6+ Kf8 14.Bh6# Brause-N.N., German Internet Chess Server 1997.

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nxe5 Nxe5 5.d4 Nc6 6.d5 Nb8 7.e5 Ng8 8.d6 Nc6 9.Nb5 cxd6 10.exd6 Bxd6? (10...Qf6) 11.Qxd6 Qe7+ 12.Be3 Qxd6 13.Nxd6+ Kf8 14.Bc4 Ne5 15.Bb3 Ne7 16.O-O-O f6 17.f4 Ng4 18.Rhe1 (threatening 19.Bc5 and 19.Nxc8 Rxc8 20.Rxd7) 1-0 Brause-N.N., Internet Chess Club 1997.

External links

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• Article which covers this opening in depth - Part 1
• Article which covers this opening in depth - Part 2
• The Halloween-Attack in the Four Knight Game
• Another Article
• A leading expert on the opening
• chess database

Chess openings

Halloween-Gambit