London System: The Setup Move by Move

The lovely thing about the London System is that you don’t have to memorize a maze of forcing lines. You learn one setup and repeat it. So instead of “main line, sub-line, sub-sub-line,” this page is really a checklist: here’s each move, here’s why it goes where it goes, and here’s the finished formation you’re aiming for.

The 30-second version

• Target setup: d4, Bf4, e3, c3, Bd3, Nf3, Nbd2, h3, 0-0.
• Golden rule: get the bishop to f4 before e3, so it never gets trapped behind your own pawns.
• Modern order: 2.Nf3 then 3.Bf4 dodges a few of Black’s early pokes.
• The endgame of the opening: the Bf4 + Bd3 battery plus a knight ready to jump to e5.

Move 1: 1.d4 — claim the center

Standard opening principle: put a pawn in the middle and grab space. The d4-pawn also opens the door for your dark-squared bishop, which is the whole point of what comes next. Black usually replies 1…d5 (mirroring) or 1…Nf6.

Move 2: 2.Bf4 — the defining move (get the bishop out first)

Here’s the move that makes it the London. Before you play e3 and lock your pawns, you fling the bishop out to f4, where it has an open diagonal and helps eye Black’s kingside.

Why this matters so much: in a lot of Queen’s Pawn openings, the c1-bishop becomes a sad “problem piece,” stuck behind its own pawns for ages. The London solves that on move 2. Get the bishop out, then build the pawn wall behind it.

The modern wrinkle — 2.Nf3 first. Many strong players prefer 1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Bf4. Developing the knight before the bishop sidesteps a couple of Black’s early annoyances (a quick …c5 with …Qb6, or …Nh5 jabbing at the bishop) and reaches the same setup. If you’re a beginner, 2.Bf4 is totally fine; the knight-first order is a small refinement you can pick up later.

Move 3: 3.e3 — build the pyramid, open the king’s bishop

Now you play e3. It supports d4, and — crucially — it opens a path for your other bishop (the f1-bishop) to come to d3. Because you already developed the dark bishop to f4, e3 doesn’t trap anything. That’s the order working as designed.

Move 4: develop the knight — Nf3

The knight comes to f3, controlling the key central squares (especially e5) and getting ready to castle. After 4.Nf3, the position looks like this in a typical game:

(That diagram shows the position after both bishops are out — Bf4 and Bd3. This battery is the London’s main source of attacking ideas.)

Move 5: c3 — quiet, solid, supportive

The c3-pawn props up d4 and gives the queen a little breathing room on c2 or b3 later. It’s not flashy, but it’s the glue that holds the formation together — and it means if Black ever plays …c5 to attack d4, you’re not forced to give up the center.

Move 6: Bd3 — complete the battery

The light-squared bishop goes to d3, lining up behind the f4-bishop on the same diagonal aimed at h7. Together they form the bishop battery — the engine room of any London kingside attack. (If Black has fianchettoed with …g6 and …Bg7, you’ll often choose Be2 instead, but against a normal …d5/…e6 setup, Bd3 is the move.)

Move 7: Nbd2 — the second knight, flexibly

The queenside knight develops to d2 (not c3, where it would block the c-pawn). From d2 it can reroute to f1–g3 for kingside duty, or support the big Ne5 jump. Flexible and quiet — very London.

Moves 8–9: h3 and 0-0 — tidy up and get safe

h3 gives your f4-bishop an escape hatch (to h2) if Black plays …Nh5 or …Bd6 to challenge it, and it prevents an annoying …Bg4 or …Ng4 pin/poke. Then you castle short and the setup is complete.

The finished position (the tabiya)

Here’s the full formation White is aiming for. Once you’ve built this, you’ve “completed” the opening and can start making plans:

Notice the bishop has slid from f4 to g3 in this picture — that’s a common and useful nudge after Black plays …Bd6 (offering a trade). On g3 the bishop stays safe and keeps its diagonal.

What’s the plan once the setup is done?

You’ve built the house; now you live in it. The two main plans:

1. The kingside attack. Jump a knight into e5, swing the queen toward the kingside, and use the bishop battery. Sometimes you push h4–h5 to crack open Black’s king.
2. The queenside squeeze. Expand with b4 (and a3), gaining space and pressing on the queenside. Calmer, very effective at the club level.

Where does the game branch?

The branches come from Black’s choices, not yours. The big ones:

• Black plays …c5 and …Qb6, hitting d4 and b2 — the most testing setup, and the one you must know. (White answers with Qc1, Nc3, or b3 — note that Qb3 isn’t available here, since the c2-pawn blocks the diagonal.)
• Black fianchettoes (…g6, …Bg7) — you adjust with Be2 and h3.
• Black develops the light bishop early with …Bf5 or …Bg4 — fine, just keep building.

We cover all of these in depth on the variations page, and the sneaky tactical shots in the traps guide.

Quick recap: the London in nine moves

1. d4 — center
2. Bf4 — bishop out first (the defining move)
3. e3 — support d4, free the f1-bishop
4. Nf3 — develop, eye e5
5. c3 — glue the center together
6. Bd3 — complete the bishop battery
7. Nbd2 — flexible knight
8. h3 — luft for the bishop, stop pins
9. 0-0 — king safe, setup complete

Keep going

• London variations & setups
• London System traps & tricks
• The London System for beginners
• How to beat the London (as Black)
• Back to the London System overview and the openings hub

New to setups in general? The opening principles explain why this move order works — and the Queen’s Gambit shows the more theoretical alternative with the same d4 first move.

Written and fact-checked by the Chess Lab Academy Editorial Team (AI-assisted, human-edited) · Lines checked against mainstream opening theory and verified with Stockfish 17 · ECO D02 / A45–A48 · Last verified 2026-06-25 · Sources · How we verify content.