The Practical Philidor A Complete Fighting Repertoire by NM Luke Calhoun

It Turns the Club Player’s “Main Lines” on Their
Heads — Netting You A Decisive Advantage
in Less Than 15 Moves

No good deed goes unpunished against The Practical Philidor: A Complete Fighting Repertoire! At the 1000 to 2000-level, this counter to 1.e4 turns White’s “textbook” opening play against them — often winning a pawn plus more before move 15.

And rest assured you’ll reach these near-winning positions in the Philidor, game after game.

That’s because National Master Luke Calhoun grounds the repertoire on the variations you WILL play — the club players’ “main lines” in online and over-the-board games under 2000 Elo.

Players at this level, when surprised in the opening, often settle for normal moves…

And “normal moves” are all the Philidor needs to score 60% or higher!

Here’s an example:

After 1.e4, you surprise the majority of players with 1…d6. Then watch them fall back to what “feels right.”

They seize the center with 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3…

Ruin Black’s castling rights after 3…e5 4.dxe5 dxe5 5.Qxd8+ Kxd8…

White does everything “right” in the club
players’ main lines of the Philidor

And develop the queenside with 6.Bg5 followed by 7.O-O-O+…

Almost walking you by the hand to a pleasant at-least-equal position, where you clinch the point 6 to 7 times out of 10.

Looks tame especially without queens…
but Black is crushing this position
online with a 65% win rate!

Most amateurs cannot deal with the pressure on their a- and e-pawns… your knights taking up outposts in the center… and the threat of a queenside pawn avalanche.

So they panic and walk into the unique tactics of the Philidor, giving you an extra pawn plus more before the 15th move!

Pawn-up and threatening to win one more:
Many of your Philidor games will look like this

Of course, White has other ways to play.

And whether you’re facing a rare second move sideline — a move-order switcheroo — or a knee-jerk defense non-masters play all the time, you can…

Count On Calhoun’s Spring-Loaded Repertoire
To Swing The Eval Bar To Your Favor

Among many things, you’ll learn how to:

🧠 Tame White’s knights with the velociraptor trainer. So your queenside attack can press on undisturbed.

The “velociraptor trainers” on e5 and e6 are your allies in
many variations — keeping White’s knights at bay,
so your rooks can do the heavy lifting

🧠 Seize ⅔ of the board to ensure you have the superior, more active minor pieces.

🧠 Fight for the d-file with the magic bishop, while masking forks and discovered checks.

Shaking the magic bishop off of the g4-d1 diagonal
is impossible! See chapter 6 for all the tactics
this bishop has under the sleeves.

And those are just to name a few.

“But what if I run into someone who’s booked to the teeth, while I only have limited time to prepare?”

Not to worry, because with the Quickstarter “for masters”…

You can hold your own against the most challenging moves at the grandmaster level.

Plus, you also get 4 more chapters “for masters,” where Calhoun dives deeper into the engine-approved best lines… and ensures you’re making full use of your chances — no matter the competition.

One of your go-to setups against the masters’
main lines — tight-knit and ready to explode
in the center with …exd4