Russian Openings

Russia has more possible opening moves than any other power. In order to produce a rationalised system for naming Russian openings, Richard Sharp introduced the following plan:

• F StP/sc H openings are known as the Northern Houseboat Opening.
• F StP/sc-Lvn is known as the Kronstadt Opening.
• F StP/sc-Fin is known as the Lapland Lurch, but otherwise considered (for the purpose of naming openings) as equivalent to a move to the Gulf of Bothnia. These openings are named after the order of A Moscow. There are therefore six systems for openings involving F StP/sc-BOT or F StP/sc-Fin:
• The Inertia System (A Mos H)
• The Livonia System (A Mos-Lvn)
• The Northern System (A Mos-StP)
• The Southern System (A Mos-Sev)
• The Ukraine System (A Mos-Ukr)
• The Warsaw System (A Mos-War)