Starting position #546
Back-rank setup: BRNKNBQR
SP-546 · ThroneGuard — King on a central file (d/e) with both knights on inner files — the classic-type setup.
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 b1 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.
A bishop starts in the corner on a1: it has a single diagonal, which the b-pawn unlocks, running out to h8.
The pawn on d2 is defended by the king alone — the same soft spot f2 is in the classical setup.
The setup belongs to the ThroneGuard family; read right to left it becomes position 503.
The engine's main line opens with f3.
Every sentence here is computed from the setup itself and can be checked on the board.
Opening: main line
Stockfish's main line from the start of this setup, 15 moves deep (100 million nodes per move):
1. f3 f6 2. d4 b6 3. b3 h5 4. e4 e6 5. c4 Ne7 6. Bd3 g5 7. Ne2 O-O-O 8. d5 Bg7 9. Nc2 f5 10. Qe3 g4
Evaluation after the line: +0.05 for White.
Best first moves for White (evaluation in pawns):
- f3 — +0.34
- b3 — +0.34
- g3 — +0.33
Balance
MBI 51 Morozov Balance Index: 51 of 100 — class B — balanced.
- Engine evaluation of the starting position: +26 centipawns for White (depth 44, 400 000 000 nodes).
- Rank 471 of 960 by balance — 1 is the most balanced start.
- Balance band M — moderate edge · dynamics along the play-out: stable
- Evaluation along the engine's main line (60 half-moves): +27 → +34 → +22 → 0
Position facts
- Mirror twin: position #503
- The king starts on d, the rooks on b and h
- It becomes the daily position in 499 days
Puzzles from this position
- Attack on the uncastled king: pawn to e4 (f3·6) — Chess960 specifics · 780
- Attack on the uncastled king: queen to d4 (f2·2) — Chess960 specifics · 780
- Attack on the uncastled king: pawn to e4 (f3·29) — Chess960 specifics · 780
- Winning blow: rook to e8 (e6·2) — Chess960 specifics · 970
- Winning blow: queen to e6 (e1·3) — Chess960 specifics · 1060
- Winning blow: rook to a7 (a2·2) — Chess960 specifics · 1280
- Castling-960 to the rescue on b1 (d1·12) — Castling-960 · 1480
- Mate in 3: queen to e5 (f5·2) — Chess960 specifics · 1630
- Winning blow: bishop to g4 (h3) — Chess960 specifics · 1870
- Chess960 tactic on f7 (g7·2) — Chess960 specifics · 2350
This position appears in course day 67
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Commentary
The king begins on d1 and castling is ordinary in both directions, with the rooks on b1 and h1. A bishop is shut into the corner on a1 with a single diagonal to h8; the second bishop is on f1. The pawn on d2 leans on the king alone; no other second-rank pawn starts short of a defender. The queen is on g1, the knights on c1 and e1. The engine's main line opens f3 b6, then e4 e5 b4 f6.
Written from the measured facts above and checked against the board before publishing. All 960 positions have one.