What Is The Skibidi Chess Opening?
There are many ways to begin a game of chess. Some of the chess openings are highly respected, having been studied extensively by the greatest minds in chess history. At the other end of the spectrum, there are the skibidi chess openings.
Especially if you are a bit older, then it is quite possible you may not have even heard the word “skibidi” before. What does skibidi mean?
“Skibidi” was popularized by Generation Alpha - as in, those born after 2010 or so. The word is mostly used as an adjective. If something is “skibidi”, then it is absurd, crazy, or ridiculous.
Still confused? Then this short video should clear things up.
There are plenty of wacky chess openings which fit this description. In this article, we cover the most skibidi openings in chess.
Damiano Defense
The Damiano Defense is the OG skibidi chess opening.
It begins 1. e4 e5, 2. Nf3 f6.
This opening is named after a Portuguese chess author named Pedro Damiano, who released one of the very first chess guidebooks all the way back in the year 1512. Back then, chess was still a relatively new game. Damiano’s book contains 72 chess puzzles for the reader to solve, along with his thoughts on several opening moves.
When a person’s name gets attached to a chess opening, it is usually because they used that opening to win an important game or tournament, or because they played an important role in developing the theory behind it. The Damiano Defense is an exception. Pedro Damiano clearly advises against playing the opening that now bears his name.
Damiano was correct to caution his readers against 2. …f6. It seems that Black’s pawn on f6 adequately defends the e5 pawn from the attack posed by the White knight. But appearances can be deceiving!
The most critical test of Damiano’s Defense is 3. Nxe5! - where White sacrifices the knight for an immediate attack. Once Black captures the knight with 3. …fxe5, then White can play 4. Qh5+.
Blocking the check with 4. …g6 would result in Black losing a rook after 5. Qxe5+: forking the Black king and rook on h8. Therefore, Black’s king has to venture forth out into the open with 4. …Ke7. From there, it is up to White to prove that their attack is worth the knight sacrifice.
The Damiano Defense is a supremely skibidi chess opening. If White’s attack can be fought off and the Black king brought to safety. Then Black will have a decisive material advantage, given their extra knight. But that is easier said than done. It’s a wild way to play!
Toilet Variation
The word “skibidi” owes a great deal of its popularity to a web video series called Skibidi Toilet. The series went viral, led to an internet meme, and resulted in the word “skibidi” entering into common usage among the younger generation!
Given the skibidi origin story, there is fittingly a chess opening called the “Toilet Variation”. This opening gained its name because apparently the inventor came up with it while visiting the restroom. However, whether this is true or not is hard to say.,
The Toilet Variation is within the Sicilian Defense (1. e4 c5). One way White that can face the Sicilian is with the so-called Grand Prix Attack. This is characterized by playing a quick f4 - potentially as early as move two.
Related: Smash the Sicilian with the Grand Prix Attack for White.
Black may respond by striking in the center immediately with 2. …d5. It is at this point that White can choose to play the Toilet Variation with 3. Nc3.
As is the case with all skibidi chess openings, the Toilet Variation has a downside. Black can push on with 3. …d4, gaining space and forcing White’s knight to a suboptimal square.
The main value of the Toilet Variation is surprise. Your opponent will probably not have studied such a skibidi chess opening in much detail. Therefore, you still might be able to get an advantage with the Toilet Variation if you know it better than your opponent does!
Frankenstein-Dracula Variation
There is a skibidi chess opening that references two well-known figures from popular culture: Count Dracula and Dr. Frankenstein.
The lead-up to the Frankenstein-Dracula Variation is 1. e4 e5, 2. Bc4 Nf6, 3. Nc3… all of which are normal-looking moves.
However, in this position Black may play the surprising 3. …Nxe4 - capturing the pawn which White may have assumed was safely defended. This is the Frankenstein-Dracula Variation.
The point behind this capture is that Black can quickly regain the sacrificed piece via a simple tactic. After 4. Nxe4, Black plays 4. …d5, forking the two White pieces on c4 and e4.
The origin of the Frankenstein-Dracula Variation name can be traced to a British / Irish chess author named Tim Harding. In Harding’s 1973 book Bishop’s Opening, he opined that the “sharp and often hair-raising play” resulting from this move would not seem out of place in “a game between Dracula and the Frankenstein Monster.”
The name stuck, and we now have this skibidi name for this skibidi chess opening.
Related: Bc4 Against The Open Games, by GM Alexander Delchev
Bongcloud Attack
Less charitably-minded opponents may interpret your choice to play this opening as an attempt to insult them.
The Bongcloud Attack goes 1. e4 e5, 2. Kf2.
This move violates practically every principle of chess opening play. It forgoes castling rights, and blocks the development of White’s own queen and bishop. But then again - that’s what makes the Bongcloud Attack so skibidi in the first place!
GM Hikaru Nakamura is particularly well-known for employing the Bongcloud Attack in online blitz chess. As one of the best chess players in the world - especially when it comes to fast time controls - Hikaru is capable of playing this skibidi chess opening against grandmasters and still winning.
Can you be like Hikaru and win with the Bongcloud? It won’t be easy, but if you can manage the feat then you are sure to gain bragging rights over your defeated adversary!
Carlsen Gambit
This skibidi chess opening is named after Magnus Carlsen - the 16th World Chess Champion. You may have thought that any chess opening named after one of the greatest players of all time would be a strong one… but nothing could be further from the truth!
Related: Magnus Carlsen, 60 Memorable Games by Andrew Soltis.
The Carlsen Gambit is even more brazen than the Bongcloud Attack. It uses the first few moves to switch the places of the king and the queen from their starting squares. It can be played by either color.
The opponent’s moves do not matter too much. With White playing the Carlsen Gambit, the beginning could be along the lines of: 1. f3 e5, 2. c3 d5.
Black has sensibly taken space in the center, while White’s pawn moves have freed the way for their king to make its way to the queen’s starting square via f2 -> e3 -> d3 -> c2 -> d1.
Let’s see how the game might continue, assuming that Black plays naturally developing moves.
3. Kf2 Nc6, 4. Ke3 Nf6, 5. Kd3 Bd6, 6. Kc2 0-0
Now all that remains is to slide the White queen over with Qe1, and then play Kd1 to complete the maneuver.
7. Qe1 Re8, 8. Kd1
And there we have it! The king and queen have switched places!
Stockfish gives this position as over -3 in Black’s favor. It is the ultimate “disrespect” opening.
Giving your opponent a free hand to do whatever they want while you spend time swapping the king and queen’s position - it doesn’t get much more skibidi than that. To top it all off, it isn’t even a gambit - so even the name itself is skibidi in the extreme.
Summary: Skibidi Chess Openings
Playing chess doesn’t always have to be about making the best moves.
Chess is a game, after all, and as such, you should feel free to spice things up with some dubious openings from time to time, which will lead to wild, unpredictable play. Win or lose, it’s bound to be entertaining!
If you want to learn some more skibidi chess openings, check out our articles on:
Have fun!