---
title: Glinski's Hexagonal Chess
slug: glinski
board: "hex radius 5"
players: "2"
parent: chess
win: Checkmate
special: "Chess on a 91-cell hexagonal board. Pieces slide along hex edges and vertices. Three bishops per side (one per cell colour)."
engine:
  topology:
    type: hex
    radius: 5
    shape: hexagonal
    orientation: flat
  surface:
    colors:
      cell-light: "#ffce9e"
      cell-dark: "#d18b47"
      cell-mid: "#e8ab6f"
      stroke: "rgba(0,0,0,0.15)"
      background: "#2c2c2c"
      border: "#6b4226"
  render:
    cellSize: 22
    cellColor: tricolor
    frame: true
  pieces:
    set: mce-fairy-complete
  players: [white, black]
  setup: "-1,-1:p,-1,-4:q,-1,2:P,-1,5:Q,-2,-1:p,-2,-3:n,-2,3:P,-2,5:N,-3,-1:p,-3,-2:r,-3,4:P,-3,5:R,-4,-1:p,-4,5:P,0,-1:p,0,-3:b,0,-4:b,0,-5:b,0,1:P,0,3:B,0,4:B,0,5:B,1,-2:p,1,-5:k,1,1:P,1,4:K,2,-3:p,2,-5:n,2,1:P,2,3:N,3,-4:p,3,-5:r,3,1:P,3,2:R,4,-5:p,4,1:P"
  plugins:
    chess:
      pieces:
        king:
          type: rider
          dirs: all
          maxSteps: 1
        queen:
          type: rider
          dirs: all
        rook:
          type: rider
          dirs: orthogonal
        bishop:
          type: rider
          dirs: diagonal
        knight:
          type: leaper
          offsets: hex-knight
        pawn:
          movement: pawn
      castling: false
      enPassant: false
published: true
---

## Glinski's Hexagonal Chess

{{svg:glinski-board.svg "Glinski's Hexagonal Chess — starting position"}}

Created by Wladyslaw Glinski in 1936, this is the most popular hexagonal chess variant. Played on a 91-cell hexagonal board (radius 5 in axial coordinates), it adapts all standard chess pieces to hex geometry.

### Board

A regular hexagon composed of 91 hexagonal cells arranged in concentric rings. Cells come in three colours (light, medium, dark) following the hex-alternation pattern — each bishop is bound to one colour.

### Setup

**White pieces (starting from the bottom):**
- King on f1
- Queen on e1  
- Bishops on d1, f2, g2 (one per colour)
- Knights on c1, g1
- Rooks on b1, h1
- Pawns on b2, c2, d2, e2, f3, g3, h3, i2, j2 (9 pawns)

**Black pieces (mirrored at the top):**
- King on f11
- Queen on g11
- Bishops on h11, f10, e10 (one per colour)
- Knights on i11, e11
- Rooks on j11, d11
- Pawns on j10, i10, h10, g10, f9, e9, d9, c10, b10 (9 pawns)

### Pieces

**Rook** — slides along any of 6 orthogonal hex edges (the 6 directions adjacent cells touch). Equivalent to a rook on a square board but with 6 directions instead of 4.

**Bishop** — slides along any of 6 diagonal hex directions (vertex-to-vertex, skipping the adjacent cell). Colour-bound — never leaves its starting cell colour.

**Queen** — combines rook and bishop movement (all 12 hex directions).

**King** — moves one step in any of the 12 directions (6 edges + 6 vertices).

**Knight** — leaps to any cell exactly 2 orthogonal steps and 1 turn away. From a centre cell, a knight threatens 12 cells (compared to 8 on a square board). Offsets in axial coordinates: (2,-1), (1,-2), (-1,-1), (-2,1), (-1,2), (1,1) and their reflections.

**Pawn** — advances toward the opponent's edge of the board. Can move one hex forward (toward far edge) or capture one hex diagonally-forward. No double-step and no en passant in Glinski's original rules. Promotion occurs when a pawn reaches any cell on the far edge of the board.

### Rules

- Standard chess rules apply for check, checkmate, and stalemate
- No castling (king starts centrally, no rook-corner relationship)
- No en passant (no double pawn step)
- Pawns promote on the far edge (the opposite rim of the hexagon from their starting position)
- Three bishops per side — one for each hex cell colour
- Stalemate is a draw

### Key Differences from Square Chess

| Concept | Square board | Hex board |
|---------|-------------|-----------|
| Rook directions | 4 (orthogonal) | 6 (hex edges) |
| Bishop directions | 4 (diagonal) | 6 (hex vertices) |
| Knight targets | 8 | 12 |
| Bishop colours | 2 | 3 |
| Pawns per side | 8 | 9 |
| Board cells | 64 | 91 |