Starting position #778
Back-rank setup: QRKNBBRN
SP-778 · BastionScout — A knight on the a- or h-file, king on c or f — the mirror twin lands here as well.
Move the pieces right on the board — full Chess960 rules, castle by dropping the king on the rook.
Position features
The king starts on c1, the rooks on b1 and g1, the queen on a1.
The king already stands on c1, so castling long moves only the rook, from b1 to d1.
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: h2.
The setup belongs to the BastionScout family; read right to left it becomes position 181.
The engine's main line opens with b4.
Every sentence here is computed from the setup itself and can be checked on the board.
Balance
MBI 26 Morozov Balance Index: 26 of 100 — class C — noticeable edge.
- Engine evaluation of the starting position: +34 centipawns for White (depth 45, 400 000 000 nodes).
- Rank 702 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): +59 → +39 → +22 → +15
Position facts
- Mirror twin: position #181
- The king starts on c, the rooks on b and g
- King and rook are neighbours — castling from adjacent squares feels unusual
- This position does not come up as the daily position in the next four years
Puzzles from this position
- Attack on the uncastled king: bishop to a6 (d3) — Chess960 specifics · 780
- Attack on the uncastled king: rook to b5 (b1·3) — Chess960 specifics · 780
- Attack on the uncastled king: rook to b6 (b1·2) — Chess960 specifics · 920
- Winning blow: king to d2 (d1·2) — Chess960 specifics · 970
- Winning blow: bishop to f4 (g3) — Chess960 specifics · 1060
- Winning blow: king to c3 (c2·2) — Chess960 specifics · 1390
- Mate in 3: queen to b6 (c5) — Chess960 specifics · 1630
- Winning blow: queen to c3 (b2·4) — Chess960 specifics · 1870
- Winning blow: king to b1 (c1·42) — Chess960 specifics · 2060
- Chess960 tactic on b7 (b1·2) — Chess960 specifics · 2400
This position appears in course day 26
In your browser or in the Android app. Nothing to install · Free, no ads
Commentary
The king already stands on c1, so long castling moves the rook alone; the rooks are on b1 and g1. The bishops stand side by side on e1 and f1, one on each colour. Among the pawns, h2 begins without a defender, and the pawn on c2 leans on the king alone. The queen begins in the far corner on a1, the knights on d1 and h1 — the cornered one has g3 as its only move. White's edge is +34 centipawns: b4 d5 a4 Ng6 f4 e6.
Written from the measured facts above and checked against the board before publishing. All 960 positions have one.