Chess is played on a square board of eight rows (called ranks and denoted with numbers 1 to 8) and eight columns (called files and denoted with letters a to h) of squares. The colors of the sixty-four squares alternate between light and dark, and are referred to as "light squares" and "dark squares". The chessboard is placed so that each player has a white square in the near right hand corner, and the pieces are set out as shown in the diagram, with each queen on a square that matches its color.
Xakea taula lauki batean jokatzen da: laukidun zortzi errenkada ditu (1etik 8ra zenbakituak) eta zortzi zutabe (a-tik h-rako letradunak). Hirurogeita lau laukien kolorea zuria eta beltza da, txandaka, eta "lauki zuriak" eta "lauki beltzak" deitzen zaie. Xake-taula kokatzen den moduagatik, jokalari bakoitzak lauki zuri bat du eskuineko eskuaren aldeko izkinan, eta piezak diagraman azaltzen den bezala kokatzen dira, erregina bakoitza bere koloreko laukiaren gainean.