King's Indian Defense: Steiner Attack
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Statistics from Lichess
251,706 games: White 52.3% / Draw 5.1% / Black 42.6%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 63,65764K | ||
| 52,24752K | ||
| 45,95946K | ||
| 31,75332K | ||
| 18,72519K | ||
| 16,67117K | ||
| 7,2857,285 | ||
| 3,7333,733 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.19 The position is about equal
Best play: 6... c5 7. d5 a6 8. Qd2 b5 9. cxb5 Nbd7 10. a4 Qa5 11. Be2
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
The stronger the players, the better this line does for White: White scores 50% under 1400, 56% at 2200 and up and 57% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 5,599 | |
| 1400–1799 | 39K | |
| 1800–2199 | 147K | |
| 2200 and up | 77K | |
| Masters, over the board | 2,567 |
Master games
- Nakamura, H. – Caruana, F.
- Carlsen, M. – Erigaisi, A.
- Nakamura, H. – Firouzja, A.
- Ivanchuk, V. – Svidler, P.
- Lautier, J. – Kasparov, G.
Rated blitz, rapid and classical Lichess games by rating band, and over-the-board games of players rated 2200+ from the Lichess masters database, updated Sep 27, 2026
Overview
King's Indian Defense: Steiner Attack (ECO E81, Indian Defenses) is a variation of the King's Indian Defense: Sämisch Variation, Normal Defense, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. f3 O-O 6. Bg5 (6 moves).
In 251,706 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 52.3%, Black 42.6% and 5.1% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 6…c5, in 25% of those games.
It branches into 3 named variations.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the King's Indian Defense: Steiner Attack
The most played answer, 6…c5, also scores best for Black: 48.0%, with Black winning 45.3% and White 49.2% of 64K games. Of the main answers, 6…e5 scores lowest: 36.0%. Stockfish's first choice is also 6…c5.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: Black's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings
Popularity by year
The King's Indian Defense: Steiner Attack has lost ground since 2016: 0.0081% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.012% (its peak: 0.016% in 2018).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.012% | 4,204 |
| 2017 | 0.012% | 6,840 |
| 2018 | 0.016% | 12,335 |
| 2019 | 0.012% | 15,315 |
| 2020 | 0.012% | 36,031 |
| 2021 | 0.0094% | 36,927 |
| 2022 | 0.0096% | 35,932 |
| 2023 | 0.0089% | 33,349 |
| 2024 | 0.0083% | 29,730 |
| 2025 | 0.0081% | 27,983 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.008% | 8,824 |
Share of rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500 (blitz, rapid and classical) that reach this position, by year; 2026: January to April. Which openings are rising and falling
Variations (3)
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “King's Indian Defense: Steiner Attack (E81)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-indian-defense-steiner-attack