Philidor According to Roiz: A Complete Repertoire for White
The Idea Behind the System
The Philidor Defense has a reputation that works against it. Labelled "solid but passive" for most of chess history, it has quietly become a practical weapon at every level — from club players seeking simplicity to grandmasters looking for a reliable equalizer. Yet that reputation is precisely what makes it dangerous: many White players drift into comfortable-looking positions without a clear plan, and suddenly find themselves outplayed.
This course reframes the problem entirely. Rather than treating the Philidor as a minor nuisance, GM Michael Roiz — one of the most respected opening theoreticians — has constructed a complete system for White built around the fianchetto with g3 and early rook-to-g1 ideas. The recurring idea running through the course is a structural and dynamic one: White is not trying to refute the Philidor, but to impose a pawn storm and piece activity that consistently forces Black to solve concrete problems. The g2-g4 thrust becomes a recurring theme, signaling intent long before Black has solved the question of where to place the pieces.
What the Course Covers
The course is organized around the main tabiya arising after 1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 e5 4.Nf3, and branches systematically through every meaningful Black response. Below is a map of the key variations:
After 4…Nbd7 (main line)
- Chapter 1 — Black's rare 4th moves
After 4…exd4 5.Nxd4
- 5…Be7 6.g3 (fianchetto system)
- 6…0-0 7.Bg2 Re8 8.0-0 Bf8 9.h3 c6 10.g4 — Chapter 3
- 6…d5 7.e5 Ng4 8.Bg2 Nxe5 9.Qe2 — Chapter 5
- 6…d5 and Black's alternatives to 8…Nxe5 — Chapter 4
- 6…0-0 and other alternatives to 6…d5 — Chapter 3
- 5…g6 and other rare 5th moves — Chapter 2
After 4…Nbd7 5.Rg1 (intending g2-g4)
- 5…c6 6.g4 h6 7.Be3 Be7 8.a3 — Chapter 9
- 5…h5 6.h3 c6 7.a3 — Chapter 6
- 5…Be7 6.g4 c6 7.g5 Nh5 8.Be3 — Chapter 7
- 5…g6 6.g4 Bg7 7.g5 Nh5 8.Be3 — Chapter 8
The 5.Rg1 idea is one of the most original contributions of the course. White immediately signals the intention to push g2-g4, gains flexibility in the position, and introduces problems that Black has rarely faced at a practical level. Against 5…c6, for instance, after 6.g4 h6 7.Be3 Be7 8.a3 — a quiet prophylactic move limiting Black's queenside counterplay with …b5-b4 — White keeps a space advantage and long-term attacking prospects.
The Authors
The course is co-authored by GM Petar Arnaudov, GM Michael Roiz, and IM Nikola Nikolovski. Roiz is the primary theoretical architect, bringing his characteristically deep and practical approach to a defense that has resisted systematic treatment for decades. Arnaudov, who has a long track record of co-authoring ambitious repertoire courses with Roiz — including their Revolutionary Repertoire against the Caro-Kann Defense — contributes his feel for concrete variations and over-the-board practicality. Both courses share the same philosophy: building a 1.e4 repertoire that creates genuine problems rather than dry equality.
IM Nikolovski brings a distinctive perspective as both a chess professional and a psychologist — an approach already visible in his 9 Steps to Endgame Mastery. That influence is felt in the course's structure: chapters build on each other naturally, and the emphasis throughout is on understanding plans rather than memorizing lines.
Course Features
- 9 Chapters covering every major Black setup
- 20 test positions to reinforce the material
- Memory Booster for efficient long-term recall
- To Go Version of every chapter for quick study
- Video instruction walking through key ideas and lines
- Multilingual PGN availability — English, German, French, Spanish
Get Philidor for White - According to Roiz and add a concrete, well-prepared answer to one of Black’s most resilient setups.