Answers.Body: <p>At such an early stage, there is plenty of room for speculation, but the answer is that it can be dangerous in some positions, and not so dangerous in others. I will go into detail in a moment. The biggest drawback of playing those moves so early is that you are not yet sure if they will fit into, and if they will be useful (very important), as the position develops. A good rule of thumb is to play moves that you know you will need earlier, and then see what other moves fit in with your plan as the game has developed.</p>
  
  <p>In the first position, you have a double-king-pawn opening, aka an open game. It is called an open game for a reason...because the position will be very open. Very open positions often rely on tactics and tempo, so losing a tempo on move three could easily evolve into a lost game by move 15. I would say in that position, it is the most dangerous.</p>
  
  <p>In the second and third positions, both are closed games, and thus, losing a tempo is not as likely to be fatal. Again, whether you can make a6 valuable in those positions, it is not clear. In either case, even if it does not lead to an immediate win, I would expect white to have a MUCH better chance at obtaining a solid +/- out of the opening, instead of the more typical +/= or =.</p>
  
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Answers.CreationDate: 2019-12-14T00:16:32.083Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2019-12-14T00:16:32.083Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: PhishMaster
Answers.Body: <p>That early the answer is usually yes against a good player.  </p>
  
  <p>Don't know the level of your opponents, but not everybody can take advantage of those type moves.</p>
  
  <p>In that English there is less risk it is wasted but still not one of the better moves.  </p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2019-12-13T21:41:50.687Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2019-12-13T21:41:50.687Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: yobamamama
Body: <p>Is a wasted tempo in the opening for Black with an early ...a6 or ...h6 really dangerous? For example, in the following opening:</p>
  
  <pre><code>[FEN ""]
  
  1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 a6 (or 3...h6)
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>Or in the following:</p>
  
  <pre><code>[FEN ""]
  
  1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 a6 (or 3...h6)
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>Or in the English Opening: </p>
  
  <pre><code>[FEN ""]
  
  1.c4 a6 (or 1...h6) 
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>And so on. Is Black's position really compromised, or can he afford to do that without much trouble? </p>
  
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2019-12-13T21:49:04.150Z
Comments.Text: Does this answer your question? [How to decide when is a3/h3 needed?](https://chess.stackexchange.com/questions/19734/how-to-decide-when-is-a3-h3-needed)
Comments.UserDisplayName: Ellie
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2019-12-13T21:52:21.337Z
Comments.Text: Question is about cases in which a6 / h6 or a3 / h3 is not needed, in other words a waste of a tempo.
Comments.UserDisplayName: A. N. Other
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2019-12-13T22:30:01.343Z
Comments.Text: That is a totally different question.
Comments.UserDisplayName: PhishMaster
Tags: <opening><strategy>
Title: Is a wasted tempo with an early ...a6 or ...h6 by Black in the opening really compromising?
ThreadText: # Is a wasted tempo with an early ...a6 or ...h6 by Black in the opening really compromising?
  
  (Asked by: username_0 on 2019-12-13)
  
  Is a wasted tempo in the opening for Black with an early ...a6 or ...h6 really dangerous? For example, in the following opening:
  
  ```
  [FEN ""]
  
  1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 a6 (or 3...h6)
  
  ```
  
  Or in the following:
  
  ```
  [FEN ""]
  
  1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 a6 (or 3...h6)
  
  ```
  
  Or in the English Opening:
  
  ```
  [FEN ""]
  
  1.c4 a6 (or 1...h6) 
  
  ```
  
  And so on. Is Black's position really compromised, or can he afford to do that without much trouble?
  
  **Tags:** opening, strategy
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_1**: Does this answer your question? [How to decide when is a3/h3 needed?](https://chess.stackexchange.com/questions/19734/how-to-decide-when-is-a3-h3-needed)  
  > **username_0**: Question is about cases in which a6 / h6 or a3 / h3 is not needed, in username_0 words a waste of a tempo.  
  > **username_2**: That is a totally different question.  
  
  ---
  
  ## 2 answers
  
  ### Answer by username_2 on 2019-12-14. Score: 3
  
  At such an early stage, there is plenty of room for speculation, but the answer is that it can be dangerous in some positions, and not so dangerous in others. I will go into detail in a moment. The biggest drawback of playing those moves so early is that you are not yet sure if they will fit into, and if they will be useful (very important), as the position develops. A good rule of thumb is to play moves that you know you will need earlier, and then see what username_0 moves fit in with your plan as the game has developed.
  
  In the first position, you have a double-king-pawn opening, aka an open game. It is called an open game for a reason...because the position will be very open. Very open positions often rely on tactics and tempo, so losing a tempo on move three could easily evolve into a lost game by move 15. I would say in that position, it is the most dangerous.
  
  In the second and third positions, both are closed games, and thus, losing a tempo is not as likely to be fatal. Again, whether you can make a6 valuable in those positions, it is not clear. In either case, even if it does not lead to an immediate win, I would expect white to have a MUCH better chance at obtaining a solid +/- out of the opening, instead of the more typical +/= or =.
  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_3 on 2019-12-13. Score: 1
  
  That early the answer is usually yes against a good player.
  
  Don't know the level of your opponents, but not everybody can take advantage of those type moves.
  
  In that English there is less risk it is wasted but still not one of the better moves.
  
  
  ---
  
  