Starting position #458
Back-rank setup: RNNKBBQR
SP-458 · ThroneGuard — The king starts in the middle of the back rank, on d or e, and neither knight begins in a corner.
Move the pieces right on the board — full Chess960 rules, castle by dropping the king on the rook.
Position features
The king starts on d1, the rooks on a1 and h1, the queen on g1.
Castling ends where it always does: king to g1 and rook to f1 on the short side, king to c1 and rook to d1 on the long one.
The bishops stand on e1 and f1; their long diagonals reach a5 and a6 once the d- and e-pawns step aside.
One second-rank pawn starts with no defender at all: b2.
The setup belongs to the ThroneGuard family; read right to left it becomes position 693.
The engine's main line opens with Nb3, bringing the knight out to b3.
Every sentence here is computed from the setup itself and can be checked on the board.
Balance
MBI 37 Morozov Balance Index: 37 of 100 — class C — noticeable edge.
- Engine evaluation of the starting position: +30 centipawns for White (depth 48, 400 000 000 nodes).
- Rank 606 of 960 by balance — 1 is the most balanced start.
- Balance band M — moderate edge · dynamics along the play-out: equalizing
- Evaluation along the engine's main line (60 half-moves): +43 → +35 → +24 → 0
Position facts
- Mirror twin: position #693
- The king starts on d, the rooks on a and h
- It becomes the daily position in 99 days
Puzzles from this position
- Attack on the uncastled king: knight to a5 (b3·2) — Chess960 specifics · 780
- Attack on the uncastled king: knight to a5 (b3·7) — Chess960 specifics · 780
- Winning blow: king to h3 (g3·2) — Chess960 specifics · 970
- Mate in 2: rook to a8 (a5) — Chess960 specifics · 1090
- Winning blow: queen to d6 (c6) — Chess960 specifics · 1200
- Winning blow: queen to g7 (e5·5) — Chess960 specifics · 1290
- Attack on the uncastled king: bishop to f2 (g3) — Chess960 specifics · 1340
- Mate in 3: rook to g1 (h1) — Chess960 specifics · 1630
- Winning blow: bishop to h8 (f6·2) — Chess960 specifics · 1870
- Chess960 tactic on d5 (d1·4) — Chess960 specifics · 2400
This position appears in course day 69
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Commentary
The engine opens with a knight, Nb3 — the one from c1, with the second on b1 right beside it. The king begins on d1 and castling is ordinary in both directions, with the rooks in the corners on a1 and h1. On the second rank, b2 has no defender, and c2 leans on the king alone. The bishops sit together on e1 and f1, the queen on g1. The line runs Nb3 Nc6 f3 e5 e4 f5.
Written from the measured facts above and checked against the board before publishing. All 960 positions have one.