King's Indian Attack
One setup against everything: Nf3, g3, Bg2, d3 and e4 — then the e5 wedge and a kingside attack that follows a script.
The King’s Indian Attack (typically 1.Nf3 d5 2.g3, or via 1.e4 against the French and Sicilian) is not a body of variations but a complete system for White: knight to f3, fianchetto with g3 and Bg2, castle short, then d3, Nbd2 and e4. The same coherent formation arrives against almost anything Black sets up — it is the King’s Indian Defense played with an extra tempo, and this time White does the attacking.
Its greatest advertisement is Bobby Fischer, who used the KIA through the 1960s to score crushing kingside wins against French and Sicilian structures. The system trades opening study for middlegame understanding: you learn one structure and one attacking scheme, then reuse them for years. This guide covers the setups where the KIA bites hardest, the standard attacking plan, and how it performs across rating levels.
Main lines
- 1.e4 e6 2.d3 d5 3.Nd2 Nf6 4.Ngf3 c5 5.g3The KIA against the French — Fischer’s treatment: e5 comes next, then the kingside build-up rolls while Black seeks queenside play.
- 1.Nf3 d5 2.g3 Nf6 3.Bg2 e6 4.O-O Be7 5.d3 O-O 6.Nbd2 c5 7.e4The universal move order — White completes the whole setup before committing to e4; the thematic e5 wedge follows.
- 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d3 Nc6 4.g3 d5 5.Nbd2Against the Sicilian with …e6 — White sidesteps Open Sicilian theory entirely and steers into the familiar attacking structure.
- 1.Nf3 Nf6 2.g3 g6 3.Bg2 Bg7 4.O-O O-O 5.d3 d5 6.Nbd2The symmetrical fianchetto — no e5 wedge here; White plays e4 and c3 and keeps a small, flexible pull in a manoeuvring game.
Key plans & ideas
- Build the system in almost any order: Nf3, g3, Bg2, O-O, d3, Nbd2, e4 — the same eight moves against nearly every Black formation.
- Win the e5 wedge: against …e6 and …d5 structures, e4–e5 cramps Black’s kingside and fixes your attacking targets around it.
- Climb the attacking ladder: after e5, reroute with Nf1, push h4–h5, and land a knight on g4 — the standard KIA build-up piece by piece.
- Let Black have the queenside: …b5–b4 races are part of the bargain — count tempi toward the king, not pawns on the far wing.
- Against a mirrored …g6 setup, change gears: the wedge loses its bite, so take the centre instead with c3 and a timely d4 or e4–e5 only when it gains something concrete.
Practice the King's Indian Attack
An interactive course for this opening is coming soon.
Coming soonFrequently asked questions
Is the King’s Indian Attack an opening or a system?
A system. You can reach it from 1.Nf3, or from 1.e4 when Black chooses the French or a …e6 Sicilian — the final formation is the same. That flexibility is its practical strength: opponents cannot target you with concrete preparation.
What is the difference between the King’s Indian Attack and the King’s Indian Defense?
Same formation, opposite colour. The KID accepts a space disadvantage to counterattack; the KIA plays the identical structure a full tempo up, which turns it from a counterpunching defence into an attacking weapon.
Against which defences does the KIA work best?
Against …e6 plus …d5 structures — the French and many Sicilians — where the e5 wedge cramps the kingside and the standard attack flows naturally. Against a mirrored …g6 fianchetto it remains perfectly sound, but the attack is slower and White plays for a central or queenside edge instead.
Is the King’s Indian Attack good for club players?
Very. You invest in one structure and one plan rather than a catalogue of variations, and the attacking scheme — e5, Nf1, h4, Ng4 — wins games on autopilot when Black reacts slowly. Just stay honest about the positions where the wedge never comes.