Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon
14K games from Lichess · Updated January 2026
Black expected score · All ratings · All speeds
52.0%
the worst score you would still get, 90% confident. At best 52.7%.
Measured over 14K games at this level and clock.
Roughly even — the middlegame decides more than this opening choice does.
Outcomes for Black
Draw 3.7 · Score = win + ½ of the draws · 14K games
- Rank among the families Black can choose here
- not ranked — this is a variation, not a family
- Games in this context
- 14K
- Best context
- 53.9% at 2000-2199 Blitz
- Worst context
- 45.0% at 2500+ Bullet
- Average game length
- 35 moves
- Games that end decisively
- 96.3%
- Draws
- 3.7%
Best and worst are the strongest and weakest squares with at least 500 games behind them. The table further down shows every square, including thinner ones.
Where it holds · Black score by rating × clock
Green is clearly ahead for Black, grey is around even, red is behind. Tap a cell to measure there, and again to clear. It holds about the same all the way up, near 39.2%.
| Rating | UB | Bulle | Blitz | Rapid | Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-999 | — | — | — | ||
| 1000-1199 | — | — | |||
| 1200-1399 | — | — | |||
| 1400-1599 | — | ||||
| 1600-1799 | |||||
| 1800-1999 | — | ||||
| 2000-2199 | — | ||||
| 2200-2499 | — | ||||
| 2500+ | — | — | — |
Expected score matrix by rating bracket and time control
- 0-999 rating, Bullet: 39.5% expected score (8 games)
- 0-999 rating, Blitz: 38.9% expected score (3 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Bullet: 45.7% expected score (44 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Blitz: 57.8% expected score (24 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Rapid: 78.6% expected score (2 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Bullet: 49.0% expected score (92 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Blitz: 42.9% expected score (104 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Rapid: 34.0% expected score (11 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Bullet: 43.8% expected score (176 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Blitz: 45.2% expected score (257 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Rapid: 54.2% expected score (34 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Classical: 30.0% expected score (1 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, UltraBullet: 21.5% expected score (2 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Bullet: 51.4% expected score (326 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Blitz: 50.5% expected score (636 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Rapid: 50.0% expected score (97 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Classical: 63.4% expected score (6 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Bullet: 52.3% expected score (922 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Blitz: 53.1% expected score (1,840 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Rapid: 57.4% expected score (223 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Classical: 70.0% expected score (1 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Bullet: 50.3% expected score (1,457 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Blitz: 53.9% expected score (3,193 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Rapid: 53.1% expected score (275 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Classical: 42.4% expected score (5 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Bullet: 53.1% expected score (2,069 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Blitz: 52.7% expected score (1,526 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Rapid: 48.2% expected score (52 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Classical: 70.0% expected score (1 games)
- 2500+ rating, Bullet: 45.0% expected score (607 games)
- 2500+ rating, Blitz: 36.3% expected score (64 games)
Related Openings
Methodology
Across every rating and clock, the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon scores 52.0% for Black — we are 90% confident the real figure is between 51.3% and 52.7% — from 14K Lichess games. Win rate, draw rate and loss rate come from games played December 2023 to November 2025.
How the figures are made
- Whose games these are
- 14K+ rated games played on Lichess (2023-12 to 2025-11). The games are Lichess’s and free for anyone to use. What is ours is the reading of them. Last rebuilt January 2026.
- Which games we count
- Rated games only — nothing casual.
- Both players within 200 rating points of each other. A mismatch tells you about the gap, not about the opening.
- At least 2 moves played.
- A game is filed under White’s rating.
- Why every number comes with a range
- A number off a few hundred games is a guess. The same number off millions is a fact. The range is what tells them apart, and it is what the lists rank on — so an opening cannot reach the top on a lucky run of forty games. The more games behind a figure, the narrower its range.
- How much we need before we say anything
- An opening page needs 100 games. A gambit needs 50 games at a rating before we will say whether it pays there. The chaos and trap lists need 500 games overall and 250 games at one rating or clock.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon win rate?
Playing the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon, Black wins 50.1%, draws 3.7% and loses 46.2%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 52.0%. It rests on 14K rated games from Lichess.
At what rating does the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon perform best?
The Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon performs best for Black at 1800-1999, with an Expected Score of 53.2% (3.0K games) and the highest Floor of any rating with enough games to read.
Is the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon better in blitz or rapid?
For Black, the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon scores about the same in both: an Expected Score of 52.6% in Blitz (7.6K games) against 53.5% in Rapid (694 games).
How sharp is the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon?
The Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon has a sharpness score of 96.3 (very decisive), meaning 96.3% of games end decisively. Average game length is 35 moves.
What is the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon win rate at 1200-1399?
At 1200-1399, Black wins 44.4%, draws 1.2% and loses 54.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 45.0%. It rests on 207 Lichess games, which average 29 moves.
What is the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon win rate at 1400-1599?
At 1400-1599, Black wins 44.2%, draws 2.0% and loses 53.8%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 45.2%. It rests on 468 Lichess games, which average 31 moves.
What is the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon win rate at 1600-1799?
At 1600-1799, Black wins 48.9%, draws 3.7% and loses 47.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 50.8%. It rests on 1.1K Lichess games, which average 34 moves.
What is the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon win rate at 1800-1999?
At 1800-1999, Black wins 51.4%, draws 3.5% and loses 45.1%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 53.2%. It rests on 3.0K Lichess games, which average 35 moves.
What is the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon win rate at 2000-2199?
At 2000-2199, Black wins 51.0%, draws 3.6% and loses 45.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 52.8%. It rests on 4.9K Lichess games, which average 35 moves.
What is the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon win rate at 2200-2499?
At 2200-2499, Black wins 50.6%, draws 4.5% and loses 44.9%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 52.9%. It rests on 3.6K Lichess games, which average 36 moves.
What is the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon win rate at 2500+?
At 2500+, Black wins 42.3%, draws 3.6% and loses 54.1%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 44.1%. It rests on 671 Lichess games, which average 38 moves.
What is the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon win rate in Bullet?
In Bullet, Black wins 49.6%, draws 2.3% and loses 48.0%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 50.8%. It rests on 5.7K Lichess games.
What is the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon win rate in Blitz?
In Blitz, Black wins 50.3%, draws 4.5% and loses 45.1%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 52.6%. It rests on 7.6K Lichess games.
What is the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon win rate in Rapid?
In Rapid, Black wins 50.5%, draws 6.0% and loses 43.5%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 53.5%. It rests on 694 Lichess games.
Is the Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon a good opening?
The Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon is about level. Across all ratings, Black wins 50.1% of its games and loses 46.2%. It performs best at 1800-1999. Your results depend on your rating, time control, and how well you know the typical plans.