[luis]

Hi all,

I'd like to intoruce a System that was once available on the web but I lost track of it now, it is called "The Shadow". Is a strong diamond system with light openings, canapes and kamikaze 1NT.


Basic approach and openings:

1c: Catch all. Includes balanced hands 13-17. One suited hands 12+. Three suiters and two suiters 5-5.
1d: 18+ (strong). Answers: 1h=0-6 1s=7+ less than 2 ctrls 1n=2 ctrls, 2c=3, etc...
1h: 8-12 hearts only or 12+ canape
1s: 8-12 spades only or 12+ canape
1n: 10-12 kamikaze. (2c=Stayman, 2d=GAme forcing Stayman,2h/2s=nat, etc)
when vul 1NT is changed to 15-17 (same continuations!)
2c: 8-12 clubs only or 12+ canape
2d: 12+ Diamonds one-suited or canape with clubs.
2h: hearts and another 12+
2s: spades and another 12+
2n: 8-11 both minors

Anyone wants to try this online with natural continuations to see what happens? :-)
If this is fun (I think it is) we may develop some openings, add some conventions and create the "Forums Shadow" System.

[tysen2k]

First impression:

• I love light openings
  
• Those 2M openings are horrible and the 2m openings are almost as bad
  
• In response to strong 1♦, it's better to show suits first, not controls

I'm just not sure what advantages this system would have over something like MOSCITO.

[luis]

tysen2k, on May 6 2004, 04:45 PM, said:

First impression:

• I love light openings
  
• Those 2M openings are horrible and the 2m openings are almost as bad
  
• In response to strong 1♦, it's better to show suits first, not controls

I'm just not sure what advantages this system would have over something like MOSCITO.

Advantages? It's worst than Moscito that's for sure. But you can play it in half
a day and it's very fun to play and simple.

[Free]

Most stuff about moscito you can play in half a day as well Luis. Only relay schemes might be a problem, but how many time do they occur?

[luis]

Free, on May 6 2004, 06:35 PM, said:

Most stuff about moscito you can play in half a day as well Luis. Only relay schemes might be a problem, but how many time do they occur?

Disagree,
Relay schemes are the heart of the system and they appear in a lot of hands,mainly in important hands.
And you have to know how to respond to the other openings as well, how to break out of relays, how to invite, etc.
You can play a "semi-Moscito" system in half a day, you can't pretend to play Moscito in one day.

[hrothgar]

>Disagree,
>Relay schemes are the heart of the system and they appear in a lot of >hands, mainly in important hands.

Luis, you're 180 degrees off on this one.

The "heart" of MOSCITO is the natural response structure over constructive openings. The relay response structure is a tool to achieve this end.

Its best to view relays as being "equivalent" to the strong club opening. No good players select a strong club system because that they that a strong club opening is the best way to open hands with 15+ HCP. Rather, the strong club is a necessary evil that we tolerate because we want to open light with limited openings.

In much the same manner, the relay structure is a tool that permits us many more options to hands with less than game forcing values after a constructive opening.

For what is worth, I'd estimate that I relay approximately 20% of the time.

[Free]

luis, on May 7 2004, 03:46 AM, said:

Free, on May 6 2004, 06:35 PM, said:

Most stuff about moscito you can play in half a day as well Luis.  Only relay schemes might be a problem, but how many time do they occur?

Disagree,
Relay schemes are the heart of the system and they appear in a lot of hands,mainly in important hands.
And you have to know how to respond to the other openings as well, how to break out of relays, how to invite, etc.
You can play a "semi-Moscito" system in half a day, you can't pretend to play Moscito in one day.

Semi moscito? LOL! I think you're confusing things here. I thought you played German Moscito, right?

Most of the time, biddings in moscito are natural, a few times you need one single relay to know the basic shape or to show a certain handtype of your own, and in a seldom case you need full relay auction for slam investigation.
After a 1♣ opening however, I'm used to play full relay, so that part people would possibly not be able to play in just half a day, but almost every other most common auctions they can...

And ok, if you consider this as semi-moscito, you might have a point, but the heart of the system isn't the relay auctions at all! It's the transfer openings which gain the most imo.

[Flame]

How do you bid 5M 4m 7-12 ? (1M and then 2M ?)

[mishovnbg]

Horrible system, sorry Luis...
Misho