Editing Chess960 (section)

==Theory==
{{More citations needed section|date=March 2015}}
{{Chess diagram small
 |tright
 |
 |nd|nd|rd|kd|bd|rd|qd|bd
 |pd|pd|pd|pd|pd|pd|pd|pd
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | 
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | 
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | 
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | 
 |pl|pl|pl|pl|pl|pl|pl|pl
 |nl|nl|rl|kl|bl|rl|ql|bl
 |In this starting position, the players' a- and b-pawns are unguarded and subject to immediate attack if either player moves their f- or g-pawns, respectively.
}}

The study of openings in Chess960 is in its infancy,<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://chess960jungle.blogspot.com/search/label/opening%20theory |title=Chess960 Jungle – opening theory}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://chess960jungle.blogspot.com/search/label/SP%20analysis |title=Chess960 Jungle – SP analysis}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://lichess.org/@/visualdennis/blog/my-ultimate-guide-to-chess960/de25UOqM |title=Lichess – My Ultimate Guide to Chess960 – NM visualdennis}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.chessable.com/the-ascent-wesley-sos-fischer-random-strategies-and-tactics/course/31697/ |title=Chessable – The Ascent – Wesley So's Fischer Random Strategies and Tactics}}</ref> but fundamental [[Chess opening#Aims of the opening|opening principles]] still apply, including: protect the king, control the central squares (directly or indirectly), and develop rapidly, starting with the less valuable pieces.

Unprotected pawns may also need to be dealt with quickly. Many starting positions have unprotected pawns, and some starting positions have up to two that can be attacked on the first move. For example, in some Chess960 starting positions (see diagram), White can attack an unprotected black pawn on the first move, whereas in classical chess it takes two moves for White to attack, and there are no unprotected pawns.

===White's advantage===
It has been argued that two games should be played from each starting position, with players alternating colors, since [[First-move advantage in chess|the advantage offered to White]] in some initial positions may be greater than in classical chess.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://en.chessbase.com/post/the-problem-with-chess960 |title=The problem with Chess960 |last=Friedel |first=Frederic |date=2018-02-28 |work=Chess News|access-date=2018-03-02 }}</ref>

However, Sesse<ref name="Sesse 1"/><ref name="Sesse 2"/> (which used [[Stockfish (chess)|Stockfish 9]]) evaluated the starting positions (SP) to be between 0.00 and 0.57, with an average of 0.18 advantage for White. BBNNRKRQ (SP 80) was the least balanced position with 0.57 advantage for White, while 27 different starting positions evaluate as equal, or 0.00 advantage for White or Black, ex. BBRNNQKR (SP 432). The standard chess starting position RNBQKBNR (SP 518) was evaluated at 0.22 advantage for White. Hence, on average, a Chess960 starting position is actually 18.2% more balanced than the standard starting position.