Chess960 rules
The bishops begin on opposite-colored squares, the king starts between the rooks, and the queen and knights fill the remaining squares. These constraints create 960 legal back-rank arrangements.
Chess960 Generator
Generate Fischer Random start positions and preview on board.
Preview
King between rooks; bishops on opposite colors
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Chess960 (Fischer Random) shuffles the back rank while preserving key rules: bishops must start on opposite colors and the king must be placed between the two rooks. Pawns remain on the second rank for each side.
Use this generator to create valid start positions, copy the FEN, and explore ideas. Castling conventions follow standard flags in FEN; engine behavior for Chess960 may vary.
How does the Chess960 Generator work?
Our Chess960 generator produces one of the 960 legal Fischer Random starting positions by placing the white back-rank pieces under three constraints: the two bishops sit on opposite-colored squares, the king is placed strictly between the two rooks (so castling is always possible), and the remaining squares are filled with the queen and both knights. The black back rank mirrors white's setup. The result is a fresh, symmetric position you can copy as FEN and drop into any compatible engine or board.
Click Generate to roll a new Chess960 start position, Copy FEN to use it elsewhere, and Flip Board to study from black's perspective. Want to analyze a Chess960 game move-by-move? Paste the moves into our PGN Analysis tool, or try the full Stockfish online engine.
Chess960 Generator — FAQ
What is Chess960 (Fischer Random)?⌄
Chess960, also called Fischer Random Chess, is a variant invented by Bobby Fischer in which the back-rank pieces are shuffled into one of 960 legal starting setups. Standard pawn structure, captures, checkmate, and most rules remain identical to classical chess.
How many Chess960 starting positions are there?⌄
There are exactly 960 legal starting positions — hence the name. Each respects the bishops-on-opposite-colors and king-between-rooks constraints required for legal castling.
Is this Chess960 generator free?⌄
Yes. The Plychess Chess960 generator is 100% free, runs entirely in your browser, and requires no sign-up. You can generate unlimited positions and copy the FEN for use with any chess engine.
Can I analyze the generated position with Stockfish?⌄
Absolutely. Copy the FEN, then paste it into our Stockfish online analyzer at /analyze to get an instant evaluation, best moves, and multi-line analysis.
Chess960 vs standard chess
Pawns, movement, captures, check, and checkmate stay familiar. The opening is different because memorized standard positions no longer decide the first moves; castling follows the rook and king destination squares for the generated setup.
A short history
Bobby Fischer proposed the variant to reduce opening memorization and reward original play. It became known as Fischer Random and was later standardized as Chess960.
Ready to study a position? Send the FEN to the chess board editor, or use the best chess move calculator to compare engine candidates.