Black's sharpest reply to 4.Ng5: let White take on f7 and hit back at f2. Forcing, risky, and only good if you know the lines.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 Bc5
The Traxler Counter Attack, also called the Wilkes-Barre Variation, starts after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5, the knight move that sets up the Fried Liver Attack. Instead of defending f7 with 4...d5, Black plays 4...Bc5 and lets White take on f7, so that the bishop can strike at f2 and the knights can chase White's king. It carries the name of Karel Traxler, the Czech priest and problem composer who played it in 1890. The resulting positions are forcing and tactical: one inaccurate king move decides the game for either side. Its standing should be stated plainly. Engines prefer White, mainly because of the calm 5.Bxf7+ rather than the greedy 5.Nxf7, and 4...d5 is the more solid answer to 4.Ng5. The Traxler is a practical weapon that works when you know its lines better than your opponent does, which is why it rewards drilling.
Each variation below comes with a diagram and the main plan. Click "Train this opening" to drill every line with spaced repetition.
Want to drill the Traxler Counter Attack from memory? Practice your openings move by move in the free opening trainer, then come back to the variations you missed.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 Bc5 5.Nxf7 Bxf2+ 6.Kxf2 Nxe4+
White accepts everything: the knight forks queen and rook on f7, the king takes the bishop, and 6...Nxe4+ drags it into the open. 7.Kg1 is the main reply (7.Ke3 is the other serious try). White is up material, but the king has no shelter, and with best play engines rate the line as roughly balanced, with perpetual check a frequent outcome.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 Bc5 5.Nxf7 Bxf2+ 6.Kf1 Qe7 7.Nxh8 d5
White declines the bishop and steps aside with 6.Kf1, then takes the rook. Black is a rook down but White's king and the h8 knight are stranded, and 7...d5 opens lines; 8.exd5 Nd4 brings another piece into the attack. Both sides need concrete knowledge here, and engines see it as close to balanced.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 Bc5 5.Bxf7+ Ke7
The cold-blooded answer, and the main reason engines don't trust 4...Bc5. White takes the pawn with check and forces the king to e7 without giving Black the f2 counterattack. Black gets the half-open f-file and quick development (...Rf8, ...d6, sometimes ...Qe8), but White keeps the extra pawn and a clear edge. 6.Bb3 and 6.Bd5 are also played.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 Bc5 5.d4 d5
A rarer try: White strikes in the centre before taking anything. 5...d5 is Black's best counter, and after 6.Bxd5 Nxd4 the game stays tactical, with Bxf7+ still in the air. Less forcing than 5.Nxf7; engines keep a modest edge for White.
Watch the trap unfold on the board, or step through move by move. These are patterns you can punish in your own games.
After 6.Kxf2 Nxe4+, the natural-looking 7.Kf1? walks into 7...Qh4!, and grabbing the rook with 8.Nxh8?? allows 8...Qf2 mate, the queen protected by the e4 knight. Even without that blunder, engines rate 7.Kf1 as clearly better for Black.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 Bc5 5.Nxf7 Bxf2+ 6.Kxf2 Nxe4+ 7.Kf1 Qh4 8.Nxh8 Qf2#
Start position
Stepping to e2 to avoid the bishop is a common club mistake. 6...Nd4+ gains time on the king: after 7.Kxf2 Nxe4+ or 7.Kd3 Qe7, White's king is caught in the centre and engines give Black a decisive advantage.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 Bc5 5.Nxf7 Bxf2+ 6.Ke2 Nd4+
Start position
Learn the 5.Nxf7 Bxf2+ lines and the two traps: most opponents at this level take on f7 with the knight and walk into the attack. Know that 5.Bxf7+ exists so it doesn't catch you off guard.
Drill the king moves after 6.Kxf2 Nxe4+ (7.Kg1, 7.Ke3, 7.Kf1?) and the 6.Kf1 line, where one wrong check lets the attack fizzle out. Have a plan against 5.Bxf7+ Ke7: ...Rf8, ...d6 and fast development.
Treat it as a surprise weapon, not a main defense. Prepared opponents answer 5.Bxf7+ and keep a lasting edge; 4...d5 5.exd5 Na5 is the sounder main line against 4.Ng5.
Objectively it is risky. Engines give White a clear advantage after 5.Bxf7+ Ke7, while the famous 5.Nxf7 Bxf2+ lines tend to end in dynamic balance or perpetual check with best play. 4...d5 is the more reliable answer to 4.Ng5. The Traxler is a practical weapon, strongest against opponents who don't know the lines.
Both arise after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5. In the Fried Liver, Black plays 4...d5 5.exd5 Nxd5?! and White sacrifices a knight with 6.Nxf7. In the Traxler, Black plays 4...Bc5 and gives up f7 to counterattack f2 and White's king. Our Fried Liver Attack page covers the 4...d5 lines.
5.Bxf7+ Ke7 is the engine's choice: White wins a pawn, displaces the king and avoids most of the complications. 5.Nxf7 Bxf2+ is the critical but double-edged try, where 6.Kf1 and 6.Kxf2 Nxe4+ 7.Kg1 or 7.Ke3 must be known precisely. 5.d4 d5 is a less common alternative.
Players from the chess club of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, analysed it and made it popular in the United States, so American books use that name. Elsewhere it is named after Karel Traxler, who played it in 1890.
The lines are forcing, so precision matters more than understanding: you need the exact king move, check and capture. Spaced repetition suits that well. ChessAtlas brings each line back just before you would forget it, so 7.Kg1, 7.Ke3 and 6.Kf1 stay sharp for the day an opponent plays 4.Ng5.
The most famous attacking line in chess. A knight sacrifice for a devastating king hunt.
The fastest-developing 1.e4 opening. Aim the bishop at f7 and play for the attack.
An unusual surprise gambit against 1.d4. Pure tactics and zero theory.
Every variation above is a drill on ChessAtlas. Spaced repetition schedules each move so you never forget a line again. Free to start, no credit card.