Once you know the rules of chess and how the pieces and pawns move and kill you can, in theory, play chess. Really you can't though. Chess is about history.  People have played a variation of this game for at least 1500 years and in that time have learned a thing or two about ideal ways of playing and beginning a game. The basic rule of chess openings is to control the center four squares. The idea is that you can attack better and control more of the board from the center. You do this with the pawns in front of your king and queen and the minor pieces which are your knight and bishop. These are the important openings you have to know, and understand the implications of, if you want to learn how to actually play chess. Why they are remembered is because they offer different ways to get your minor pieces out and position your pawns in order to try and control the center. You don't have to start with your king pawn or queen pawn its just a good idea to understand these beginner concepts before you go off and break them and forge a whole new style of play. Take a look at sabre23t chess notation node as well.

King Pawn Openings

• Blackmar-Diemer Gambit
  
• Damiano's Defense
  
• The Ruy Lopez
  ----- Morphy's Defense, The Worrall Attack, The Ruy Lopez Exchange Variation
-----The Noah's Ark trap
• Petroff Defense
----- Cochrane Gambit
• King's Gambit
  ----- Falkbeer Counter-Gambit,King's Gambit/Kieseritsky Variation
----- Cunningham Variation
• Scandinavian Defense
  
• Philidor's Defense
• Latvian Gambit
• Halloween Attack
• The Scotch
• Scotch Four Knights Game
• Elephant Gambit
• The Giuoco Piano
  ----- Evans Gambit
• Caro-Kann defense
• French Defense
----- Diemer-Duhm Gambit, Alapin-Diemer Gambit, Winkelmann-Reimer Gambit
Bishop's Opening
----- Scholar's Mate,Urusov Gambit,Boden-Kieseritsky Gambit
• Vienna Game
• Sicilian Defense
  ----- Richter-Rauzer Attack, Dragon Variation, Smith-Morra Gambit, Kalashnikov Variation, Najdorf Variation, Yugoslav Attack
• Danish gambit
• Alekhine's defense
  ----- O'Sullivan Gambit
• The Pirc
  ----- Austrian Attack

Queen Pawn Openings

• Queen's Gambit Declined (QG that dont take the pawn on the second move)

----- Tchigorin Variation,Albin Counter Gambit,The Slav, Tarrasch Defense.
• Queen's Gambit Accepted
• King's Indian Attack
• Benko Gambit
• Queens Indian
• Dutch Defence
• Colle System
• Nimzo-Indian Defense

Other Openings

• Solosky's Opening
• From Gambit
• Modern Defense
• Pudding Bowl
• Dunst Opening
• King's Indian Attack
• Bird's opening
• The English
  ----- The English/Four Knights variation


See ECO Chess Codes for a complete bare bones listing of all openings. please message me with any mistake you find, or anything that might be a mistake. I really appreciate.