HT Games
The number of starting pieces varies entirely by game. There is no universal standard. Below are the starting counts for the most common two-player abstract and board games:
| Game | Pieces per Player | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Chess | 16 | 1 King, 1 Queen, 2 Rooks, 2 Bishops, 2 Knights, 8 Pawns |
| Checkers (Draughts) | 12 | Placed on dark squares of first three rows |
| Backgammon | 15 | Arranged in a specific starting formation |
| Go | 180 (Black) / 181 (White) | Effectively unlimited supply; players draw from bowls |
| Connect Four | 21 | Colored discs |
| Othello / Reversi | 32 | Shared pool; 2 placed initially, rest played from reserve |
| Hive | 11 | Hexagonal tiles (Queen Bee, Spiders, Beetles, etc.) |
| Patchwork | Variable | Polyomino tiles purchased from a central market |
| Jaipur | 5 cards + 2 tokens | Hand limit 7; goods tokens vary |
For Card Games: Starting hand size is typically 5–13 cards depending on the game (e.g., 7 in Gin Rummy, 13 in Bridge, 5 in Poker variants).
If your game isn't listed: Check the rulebook's "Setup" section. If you've lost the rules, search "[Game Name] setup" or "how many pieces per player" online—BoardGameGeek.com is an excellent resource.