Starting position #877
Back-rank setup: QRKBRNBN
SP-877 · BastionScout — A c- or f-file king with at least one knight out on the edge.
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 e1, 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 d1 and g1; their long diagonals reach h5 and a7 once the e- and f-pawns step aside.
One second-rank pawn starts with no defender at all: g2.
The setup belongs to the BastionScout family; read right to left it becomes position 88.
The engine's main line opens with e4, putting a pawn straight into the centre.
Every sentence here is computed from the setup itself and can be checked on the board.
Balance
MBI 31 Morozov Balance Index: 31 of 100 — class C — noticeable edge.
- Engine evaluation of the starting position: +32 centipawns for White (depth 47, 400 000 000 nodes).
- Rank 657 of 960 by balance — 1 is the most balanced start.
- Balance band M — moderate edge · dynamics along the play-out: volatile
- Evaluation along the engine's main line (60 half-moves): +35 → +64 → +40 → +14
Position facts
- Mirror twin: position #88
- The king starts on c, the rooks on b and e
- King and rook are neighbours — castling from adjacent squares feels unusual
- It becomes the daily position in 432 days
Puzzles from this position
- Attack on the uncastled king: bishop to a4 (b5) — Chess960 specifics · 780
- Attack on the uncastled king: queen to d7 (g7) — Chess960 specifics · 850
- Winning blow: queen to c4 (f4·3) — Chess960 specifics · 970
- Attack on the uncastled king: rook to c6 (b6) — Chess960 specifics · 1150
- Attack on the uncastled king: rook to b2 (b1·13) — Chess960 specifics · 1200
- Mate in 2: rook to a8 (a6) — Chess960 specifics · 1220
- Winning blow: bishop to e2 (f3·2) — Chess960 specifics · 1390
- Attack on the uncastled king: rook to g8 (g1·10) — Chess960 specifics · 1630
- Mate in 3: queen to b4 (a3) — Chess960 specifics · 1760
- Mate in 3: queen to c7 (a5·2) — Chess960 specifics · 1990
This position appears in course day 43
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Commentary
The king already stands on c1, so long castling moves the rook alone; the rooks are on b1 and e1. The bishops are on d1 and g1, one on each colour. The pawn on g2 is the one that begins without a defender. The queen begins in the far corner on a1, the knights on f1 and h1 — both can reach g3, so the third half-move carries a letter. The engine takes the centre with e4, and White's edge is +32 centipawns: e4 e5 Nhg3 Ne6 Ne3 a5.
Written from the measured facts above and checked against the board before publishing. All 960 positions have one.