Chess Opening Theory/1. e4/1...e6/2. d4/2...d5/3. Nc3/3...dxe4

Rubinstein French
The Rubinstein French is a move that is often played to reduce theory, as it can also be played after the Tarrasch where in both cases the most common move by a landslide is 4. Nxd4. After this, black will most likely play either 4...Nf6, 4...Nd7, 4...Bd7, or 4...Be7. 4...Nf6 is usually followed with 5. Nxf6, where 5...Qxf6 is solid but uneventful while 5...gxf6 is similar to the aggressive Bronstein-Larsen variation of the Caro-Kann. 4...Bd7, the Fort Knox variation is designed to solve the problem of the French Bishop by moving it to c6, and is also the simplest of the 4. 4...Be7 and 4...Nd7 (the main line) both have similar ideas of playing Nf6 later and recapturing with a minor piece, and following with a pawn break with either c5 or e5.