On openings

[Kaepo]

Lovely resource! I appreciate this so much

You are very welcome.

However, my one thing is, as a new player, telling me optimal moves is less important than telling me why nonoptimal moves are not optimal.
For example, when explaining the start of c4, you say that c3 and d4 are bad responses... but WHY are they bad? How can I punish players for playing wrong?

I guess I just think that this opening theory is more so for intermediate players than newer players, if that makes sense.

You right, explaining why bad moves are bad is very important, at any level actually.
First, let's agree on the fact that playing c3 or d4 after c4 is the same move, regarding some symmetry. So let's consider c4 then d4.
A logical followup for Gray is to play d3 (I also looked at e3, and it seems at Gray's advantage as well).
If Orange wants to separate Gray's kittens, Orange must play either c4 or c3. Then Gray plays c3 is Orange played c4, and vice-versa. Gray has then a double knight jump shape, which is an ideal start.

But to be honest, I feel that this "bad" opening deserves to be properly restudied. It was quickly abandoned in favor of the classical opening, but perhaps it has not yet revealed its full potential.

[MarianNyah]

there's a pretty fun line after 1. b4 c4.

the line provided here was: 1. b4 c4 2. d3 d4, but i'll replace 2...d4 with 2...c4

the game continues: 3. c3

and we get 3 gray kittens lined up in an L-shaped pattern. it is very hard to attack the formation without booping them into a 2 in a row. which is why we don't attack them and play something else with the intention of forcing a response.

3...d5 4. b6 b5 5. c4 c3

after this, gray's threat is more or less neutralized. i'm not sure how gray will continue from here. it's probably a line one should avoid as gray.

please feel free to point out errors/improvements/alternative moves in the line provided. i may also have entered the wrong coordinates somewhere (hopefully not).

for fun, i'm also considering 1...b5 in response to b4 to try to force a messy opening with many edge footholds for future rows there, but i don't think it'll work out well...



now deviating from the b4 opening, other interesting openings that seem sound are 1. a6 (typical responses are 1...b5, 1...c4, 1...d4) and 1. b5 (just counter with typical center-focused play).

a6 has some nasty traps that delay cat acquisition for a very long time, and b5 is just funny and similar to Go openings. with the correct response, both openings lead to gray losing its first move advantage (seems more pronounced in boop. than chess). but you can be creative and go for asymmetric positions (both on-boad material count and piece placement), the entire point of the strange openings. asymmetric openings are very tricky, and one small mistake can lead to a huge delay in development, something that doesn't seem to happen often in symmetric ones like 1. c4 d3 unless you reply as gray with 2. c3, which leads to other fun lines as well.

[junibegood]

Thanks a lot for this thread !

I'm quite terrible early game, so I'm not going to contribute, but I'll definitely study it !

[Ceaseless]

Openings are largely to get you in familiar positions and get your mental footing. I don't think specific lines will do you as much good, it's too easy to deviate. Knowing a trick or two can be nice, but I find having moves listed as general tactics instead of line specific tricks is more helpful in these sorts of games.

As far as openings are concerned, a few thoughts. These aren't absolute rules so much as basic ideas to get your footing in the game, after which you can learn the nuances that determine how accurate these are for a given position. And with this post, I have finally learned that BGA's list feature is used for each bullet in the list, not the entire list itself, lol.

• You can score each pieces by how many turns it would take to knock them off of the board. More points is better.

• While numerically I'd only score each piece one at a time, having your pieces aligned that multiple can be knocked close to off the board is weaker than pieces that aren't that way.

• 2 in a row threats are forcing for your opponent. Don't think of them as "better" so much as "my opponent is more likely to have to respond to this". They have to either break it or create a matching/stronger problem.

• 8 kitties tend to be stronger than 3 in a rows, since they often find a way to convert to 3 in a rows later even as they sneak an extra cat. Quantity advantages are real. Be mindful of how close they get to converting to 8s or forcing a nasty concession to prevent it.

• Know the 6 different squares in Boop. Center squares, base side squares, base corner squares, edge side squares, isolated pair squares, and corner squares, which I'd roughly rank in that order. Even if my naming choices don't quite click for you, if you take a look at the board you'll probably get a pretty good idea of which squares are which in context. If you want to determine what the 6 squares are, determine how many unique first turn moves can be made.

What I prefer to openings are finishing structures, as in structures that ensure 3 in a rows. Or concepts like protected squares, etc. If there was a Boop Discord I would probably have an easier time posting some of them, I don't have anything made with Boop pieces illustrated, just generic-colored squares.