Caissa Codex
E81

King's Indian Defense: Steiner Attack 8…h6 9. Bxh6

Chess diagram: King's Indian Defense: Steiner Attack after 9. Bxh6

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Statistics from Lichess

167 games: White 36.5% / Draw 6.6% / Black 56.9%

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Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
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Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 27, 2026

Engine evaluation

0.00 The position is about equal

Best play: 9... Nxe4 10. Nxe4 Qh4+ 11. g3 Qxh6 12. Qxh6 Bxh6 13. Nxd6 Na6 14. f4

Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.

Overview

King's Indian Defense: Steiner Attack (ECO E81, Indian Defenses) is a variation of the King's Indian Defense: Steiner Attack, reached after 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. f3 O-O 6. Bg5 c5 7. d5 e6 8. Qd2 h6 9. Bxh6 (9 moves).

In 167 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 36.5%, Black 56.9% and 6.6% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 9…Nxe4, in 78% of those games.

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Other lines from the same position

Instead of 6…c5 7. d5 e6 8. Qd2 h6 9. Bxh6, the position after King's Indian Defense: Steiner Attack also goes on to:

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “King's Indian Defense: Steiner Attack (E81)”. Lichess data as of 27 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-indian-defense-steiner-attack-4

https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-indian-defense-steiner-attack-4