Philidor Defense is a chess opening with the ECO code C41. It goes 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6. White opens with 1. e4 (the king's pawn) and Black answers 1... e5. After 4 moves it is White to move. The lesson on the board explains every move of the line and lets you play it yourself; it is free.
The moves
1. e4 – White plays the pawn to e4
1... e5 – Black plays the pawn to e5
2. Nf3 – White plays the knight to f3
2... d6 – Black plays the pawn to d6
About the Philidor Defense
After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3, Black defends e5 with 2...d6. It is solid but a bit passive, because the f8 bishop is blocked.
Black keeps a strong e5 point with ...Nf6, ...Nbd7, ...Be7 and ...c6.
White plays d4 and gets more space; Black must not give up the centre too early.
Watch f7: Bc4 and Ng5 tricks are common against this setup.
chessGM