Magnus Smith Trap
You push a pawn into Black's knight. If the d pawn takes it, a bishop check pulls the king away and you take the queen.
47%of players rated around 800 take the pawn here
Your opponent's Chess.com rating
Playing Black against it? Defend against it
Good to know
- Opening
- Sicilian Defence
- You play
- White
- The trap is set on
- Move 8
- What you win
- Black's queen
- If they do not bite
- A small edge, game on
- Games counted
- 43,706 on Lichess
How to defend against the Magnus Smith Trap
Jump your knight forward. 17% of players rated around 800 find it. The knight attacks the pawn on e5, and the d pawn stays put.
A playable game, nothing lost.
The way out, move by move, as BlackMagnus Smith Trap moves
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Bc4 g6 7.Nxc6 bxc6 8.e5 dxe5 9.Bxf7+ Kxf7 10.Qxd8
- 1.e4Push your king's pawn
The usual first move.
- 1…c5Black pushes the c pawn
This is the Sicilian Defence.
- 2.Nf3Bring your knight out
Get ready to open the centre.
- 2…d6Black pushes the d pawn one square
A common setup.
- 3.d4Push your d pawn
You offer a trade of pawns.
- 3…cxd4Black takes the pawn
Take back with your knight.
- 4.Nxd4Take back with your knight
Your knight sits in the centre.
- 4…Nf6Black's knight attacks your pawn
Guard the pawn on e4.
- 5.Nc3Bring your other knight out
The knight guards the pawn.
- 5…Nc6Black's other knight comes out
Both sides have two knights out.
- 6.Bc4Bring your bishop out to c4
The bishop points at f7, the pawn beside Black's king.
- 6…g6Black pushes the g pawn
Black wants to bring the bishop out to g7. This is the slow move the trap needs.
- 7.Nxc6Trade knights on c6
A pawn takes back, and the black queen loses a guard.
- 7…bxc6A pawn takes back
Now push in the centre.
- 8.e5Push your e pawn
Your pawn attacks the knight. You want Black's d pawn to take it.
- 8…dxe5The d pawn takes your pawn
47% of players rated around 800 take it. Nothing stands between the two queens now.
- 9.Bxf7+Take the pawn on f7 with check
You give up the bishop. The king is the only piece that guards the queen.
- 9…Kxf7The king takes your bishop
The queen has lost her guard.
- 10.Qxd8Take the queen
You win the queen for a bishop.
You win the queen.
See it one move at a timeMagnus Smith Trap questions
What if they do not fall for the Magnus Smith Trap?
53% of players rated around 800 play something else. Then a small edge, game on.
How do you defend against the Magnus Smith Trap?
As Black, jump your knight forward. 17% of players rated around 800 find it. The knight attacks the pawn on e5, and the d pawn stays put. A playable game, nothing lost.
What do you win with the Magnus Smith Trap?
Black's queen. In the main line, you win the queen.
At what rating does the Magnus Smith Trap work?
It works best against players around 800, where 47% take the pawn. Against players at 2100 and up, 9% do.
More traps
All opening trapsCounted from the rated blitz, rapid and classical games on Lichess that reached this position. Ratings are shown as Chess.com ratings: the games are grouped by Lichess rating, which runs higher, and each group is named by the Chess.com rating it comes to in ChessGoals' comparison of players with an account on both. A rating with fewer than 300 such games shows no number.