How To Play Chinese Chess!
This will be my first post in a series of guides I am writing about Chinese Chess! Also known as 象棋 (Xiangqi) is an ancient Chinese board game rife with history, with immortal games left behind by many players in the past & present. It has different pieces than in Chess, but with the same daring sacrifices and mysterious endgames. If you have come to learn Xiangqi or improve your understanding, you have come to the right place!
This article will be organized into 3 sections. First you will learn the board, pieces, & miscellaneous rules, then there will be endgames that familiarize you with these chess pieces, and finally a brief history of the game along with learning the Chinese writing for each piece.
Playing Chinese Chess
-Pieces
-Endgames
-The History of Chinese Chess
The Xiangqi Board is made of 9 files, and 10 ranks. Among these, are the river & palace. The river creates a natural boundary in the middle of the board that separates the two sides, and palaces are the boxes made of 9 points where each general resides.
Chariot
Chariot (車) - This piece is exactly the same as a rook. It may move any amount of spaces horizontally or vertically. A Chariot's speed and mobility across the Xiangqi board, pressure it exerts on other Xiangqi pieces, and great attacking potential make it easily the strongest piece on the board, higher than the combined power of a horse and a cannon.
Cannon
Cannon (炮) - The cannon moves exactly like a chariot, however, to take a piece - it must jump over another piece ( called the cannon's mount / stand ) and kill the next piece in the cannon's line of fire. Only firing in the direction they would naturally move, cannons are able to leap over a mount of any color, any distance away, to land on the piece they will capture. The abundance of pieces in the opening makes a cannon stronger than a horse, as it has many pieces to use as mounts. This piece's unique movement leads to many interesting combinations.
Horse (馬) - A horse moves like a chess knight, however, it can be blocked. If there is a piece in the immediate direction of that jump, next to the horse, it will be blocked and unable to perform those two moves. This is called "hobbling the horse's leg". The power behind the horse's movement in Chinese Chess lies in its niche attacking method, a skill perhaps even more coveted in this game. When the late middlegame & endgame approaches, more pieces are cleared off the board, giving the horse the ability to leap around freely, reposition itself, and maneuver to attack pieces. In this phase, its power often exceeds that of a cannon.
[Bottom Left] In the image above, a piece immediately left of the horse prevents the 2 leftmost moves, immediately north of the horse prevents the northward 2 moves, and so on. [Right] The horse on the upper right has all 8 moves available, since the two soldiers diagonal to it aren't directly north/east/south/west to it, therefore it isn't affected.
Soldier
Soldier (兵 / 卒) - The last of the attacking pieces, this little soldier cannot be underestimated. Soldiers move and take one space forwards. Never moving backwards, when they cross the river, soldiers gain the power of horizontal movement. Being able to take both forwards & horizontally by one space now, soldiers are reborn much stronger than the ones still on the other riverside.
A real thorn in the opponent's side, soldiers can impede development of horses & control them, or outright attack them as well as cannons. Using each move as a tempo to close in on the opponent's palace, soldiers become like an extra piece to attack the general with. And against a tightly guarded assembly of your opponent's pieces with no clear way of breaking through, crossed-river soldiers can be the final tipping point that sends your opponent's position falling to shards. It is no wonder there is a saying (exaggeration) "A soldier past the river becomes strong as a chariot"
Elephant
Elephant (相) - A defensive piece that forms part of the full guard, along with a pair of advisors. Elephants move 2 squares diagonally in any direction, but they can't cross the river. When a piece is placed in the middle of that diagonal- right between the elephant & its destination, it blocks the elephant's "eye" and prevents movement across that diagonal. A pair of elephants link up to form a sturdy defense; one advantage they have is elephants have a wider control of your territory than advisors. Their weakness, however, is that they can be separated if a piece is placed between them.
Advisor
General
The cannon pins one advisor & elephant to the black general. The chariot checks from the bottom rank- however, once taken, the red general can execute his flying general move and deliver checkmate.
Starting Position
Chariots start on the edge of the board. Next to them are the horses, elephants, advisors, and finally the general. The other side is a reflection. Each side's soldiers have their own rank, while cannons start on a rank below them in a different file.
Extra Rules:
- In Chinese Chess, stalemating your opponent is a win & is the same as checkmate.
- You can't repeatedly check your opponent's general forever, you have to actually deliver checkmate, or find another way to progress / hold a draw
- In the same way, pieces can't be aimlessly chased forever if you are simply unable to trap them
Draws -
- If a 3-fold repetition occurs outside of these conditions, the game will be drawn
- When 60 moves pass by with no captures, the game is a draw (60 moves made by red, and 60
made by black)
This is all you need to know to start playing!
These are endgames made to familiarize you with each piece, along with a few demonstrations. In the first four, each of the pieces has a spotlight, while the last puzzle has all four kinds coordinating at once.
If you are unfamiliar with the Chinese writing on these pieces, you can read History first.
Your side has two red cannons, fighting against a black chariot. Can you use their unique strengths to overcome this foe?
Black’s horse is pinned in a passive position, but he has an overwhelming material advantage. Your greatest advantage is that your red cannon pins it to the general, preventing it from moving on from this awkward place. Can you maneuver your own horse well enough before both chariots rampage?
Four soldiers at the palace door, like angry spirits. If you take one, the others will checkmate you. Red is still winning, find the checkmate.
This puzzle is more of an early midgame sequence, from a real game I played. Black went first, but can you trap his horse using the soldiers?
Endgame 5
You’ve succeeded in trapping Black’s horse. However, in the chaos, Black managed to create paths for two soldiers across the river. One of them blocks the check made by your red cannon, threatening it, while also being guarded by the black chariot. What is the best response to this move?
Either cannon below the red advisor works! The red cannon seizes the moment and pins black’s chariot to their general, putting black in zugzwang. Notice how the black chariot moving to either side reveals a check, while your own king occupies the central file- threatening checkmate if the black general were to enter.
If black’s chariot crashes through and kills the advisor, it would become the only piece between your red cannon and the enemy general; becoming a cannon mount that lets you fire on their king. Therefore, black’s only possible moves are moving the chariot up 1-5 spaces, just before taking the advisor- and your cannon captures it for free.
The black general can only move up & down in waiting as you bring your other cannon over to form the double cannon checkmate! The cannon behind is the attacker, using the cannon in front as a mount. The frontal cannon stares down the empty lane, with no piece to use as a stand. Even if black could conjure up an advisor from nowhere to block the check, it would backfire, becoming a mount for your empty cannon. This is the strength of doubled cannons, creating an unblockable check- it forces the general out of its file, and if there is nowhere else to move- then it is checkmate.
Note that in this endgame, only one cannon is needed to win. The two red advisors are like platforms the cannon can launch from- After capturing the chariot, red can just re-route their cannon back behind a red advisor to checkmate.
⊹ Current Endgame ⊹ ➯Next Endgame➯
The horse leaps forward to fork two checkmates. Black’s horse is doing them a terrible disfavor, it blocks the natural connection of his advisors while also getting itself pinned, along with the elephant. If black could just link advisors, there would be at least an escape route for the general- buying just enough time for the chariots to launch a counter. But alas, it is too late. Whichever chariot Black brings to guard a checkmate, your red horse will play the other. 
As the black chariot on the right lifts to guard a checkmate on the palace's corner, the horse leaps to the other side. 
When the chariot on the left comes to guard a checkmate, the red horse leaps to the palace's corner.
If this position were slightly different, and black was fast enough to kill the cannon without giving check, your red horse would still have time to play checkmate.
⊹ Current Endgame ⊹ ➯Next Endgame➯
A crazy sacrifice in front of the black general! The cannon guards the red chariot so that Black’s general can’t take, and when black recaptures your piece with his remaining advisor, your other chariot descends to the bottom rank for a checkmate! 
The cannon orchestrates a pin of the black advisor & elephant, while your chariot strikes through the bottom rank. If either black piece were to move down to block the chariot or capture him, it would reveal a discovered check by the cannon. The black general has no place to escape, so this position is a chariot + cannon checkmate!
(The way you would find a sacrifice like this, comes from imagining whimsical, or ludicrous moves. For example, “if only the black advisor could take his own advisor in the center. Then my chariot could move down and deliver checkmate for certain. How much would I give for this move…?” If you are unsure whether or not a position is checkmate, consider every single one of your opponent’s possible moves. You will gain a greater understanding of the position, and then it will become very clear in your mind where checkmates are, and sacrifices will come naturally. )
Black’s other move is to refuse the sacrifice and sidestep his general. The red chariot will again descend to the bottom rank, guarded by the cannon that allows it to extend right next to the opponent’s general. As the general moves upwards, the other chariot comes in to create a ladder mate. (if the advisor blocks, either chariot can take & checkmate on the next turn)
⊹ Current Endgame ⊹ ➯Next Endgame➯
The red soldier steps toward black’s horse, threatening to spear him. This move also squashes in his leftmost moves, chasing the horse across the riverbank.
Your other red soldier pushes forward, sandwiching the horse between the two soldiers on either side. Every move either lands in front of one of your soldiers, or backs up into his own pieces. The horse is successfully trapped and can be captured on any proceeding turn, as long as its escape squares are still covered.
⊹ Current Endgame ⊹ ➯Next Endgame➯
The horse sacrifices itself for the black soldier anyway! If the black chariot were to take, it would become the second piece in between his own general and your red cannon- moving away would reveal a single piece- and black's general would be fired upon. Because of this, in the next photo Black’s chariot is momentarily locked in the central file. 
Red develops their chariot to attack Black’s cannon, threatening to take back a cannon for the piece he just sacrificed. Black follows and develops his own chariot to guard it- however, the threat of taking the black cannon was fake! Red’s pieces immediately seize the opportunity to overrun the black chariot in the center, stayed a moment too long.
Red’s horse backs up to tempo away the chariot in the center, threatening one of the four available points in the middle file, while the red soldier positioned across the river attacks one more. The red chariot developed one move prior to attack the cannon now charges up the board, along with your other chariot- to ladder mate an enemy chariot in the middle of the board!
The History of Chinese Chess
This is the story of Xiangqi
After causing the fall of the Qin dynasty, Liu Bang and Xiang Yu engaged in a fierce battle, with 70 large battles across the riverside. The fight lasted 4 long years, and at the end the two sides were exhausted, each army sustaining great injuries. Liu Bang and Xiang Yu agreed to a two-month long truce; the territory west would belong to Liu Bang, while the eastern half was given to Xiang Yu. Each was the respective general of their own armies- Liu Bang especially liked red, so his soldiers all wore red armor; even his army's banner was changed to red. Xiang Yu loved black, so all his men wore black clothes, even the horse he rode was a great black horse. This is the origin of the generals in Xiangqi, the red general represents Liu Bang, while the black one represents Xiang Yu.
The river dividing the two sides was a huge canal 300 meters across, constructed by the king of Wei in the warring states period for the ease of transportation of food and supplies during wartime. It connected the Yellow river, originating from the mountain springs and valleys of the Tibetan Plateau, to the Huai river, which ran through rice fields and farmland. By the Han Dynasty, this channel had been pulverized in the countless ensuing battles along the riverside, becoming flooded and unusable. This is where the river in Chinese Chess comes from, written as 楚河汉界. (楚 - Chu, Kingdom of Chu, sometimes used as a surname ..... 河 - he , river .... 汉 - Han, Kingdom of Han; sometimes referring to the Han ethnicity in China .... 界 - jie , boundary or borderline, in this case the boundary is the river between Chu & Han)
During the truce, although Xiang Yu was honorable and kept his word - two months of ceasefire meant waiting two months - Liu Bang immediately began plotting an attack, preparing the horses, soldiers, and all weapons to engage Xiang Yu when he was least expecting it. The sudden onslaught left Xiang Yu shocked- without even a warning, how could Liu Bang break the truce? Eventually, Xiang Yu was lured to Gaixia where his entire army was wiped out, along with himself, ending the Chu-Han war. The game of Chinese Chess today is named Xiangqi- Xiang 象 might reference the shape of pieces, astronomy, or even an ancient style of Kung Fu, while qi 棋 means "board game." Together, these two translate to just "chess" because in China, Chinese chess is just called chess. (The name of this game has no relation to the elephant piece, or to Xiang Yu, since the "Xiang" in his name is written 项 ) These famous battles fought along the river are represented by a board game, Chinese Chess, complete with the 楚 and 汉 riversides. Liu Bang started the fighting, which is also the reason red goes first, followed by black. 
The Flying General move comes with a legend that Xiang Yu once aimed his bow & arrow at Liu Bang from across the river, fired an arrow from three-hundred meters away and shot right through Liu Bang's chest; but he managed to survive.
Before China's first dynasty, the land was occupied by various tribes settled in the mountains and plains. History in this ancient time was often passed down through legend, mixing truth with mythology. The most prosperous of these tribes, the (Huang - 黄 meaning yellow) tribe, was ruled by The Yellow Emperor- the first ruler to advocate for medicine, growing plants & feeding silkworms, along with being the inventor of navigational items such as the compass, and diplomacy. He led an alliance of tribes to fight Chi You, known as the War God, with fighting talent that appeared insurmountable. Since the alliance of tribes had no hierarchy, he decided to coordinate the advancement and retreat of certain parties using a dice roll, as unusual as it felt at the time. The Yellow Emperor's inventions were enough to turn the tide of battle at pivotal moments, and finally with the strength of the coalition, he managed to defeat War God - Chi You, engraving these symbols on his grave in honor of his formidable opponent.
In the Xia Dynasty, a courtier named Wu Cao invented a game called Liu Bo (六博- meaning six sticks) based on the Yellow Emperor's fighting strategy in the previous era, to please the emperor. This game involved 6 chopsticks that were attempted to be thrown into a narrow bowl or vase, and as if each one could mirror a side of the dice, every stick came with a piece's engraving on it -determining the movements of one king, and five soldiers - each carved with the name of an animal or item. Winning a game came upon capturing the opponent's king. 
In the Spring and Autumn period in China, Zhou Dynasty - Liu Bo became so popular it was almost a must-have in everyone's lives. Even the Emperor Mu of Zhou ( 周 ) played it for three days straight, without once leaving court for administration. Through the ages, gradual changes were made to this game, and when the Zhou dynasty fell, and in ages past came the Northern & Southern Dynasties, a new game was recorded- the earliest precursor to Chinese Chess- it had the soldiers and king, along with horses, and elephants. The pieces back then were 3-Dimensional carved ivory figures.
The Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou even wrote a book about this game, called (Xiang Jing - 象经) ... "treasures of Xiangqi" It is unknown how similar the pieces in Ancient Chinese Chess moved compared to the current one. If the elephant moved in a different manner, it may have been spread elsewhere or disappeared entirely. The horse piece in modern day Xiangqi moves exactly like horses do in real life; they leap wildly in a random direction. After all, a movement in the "L" or "日" shape is the first point from the starting one where it can no longer be described using simple directions. In this way, the horse is just as likely to have evolved by itself than from ancient chaturaji- and if this is the case- we call this "convergent evolution"
In the proceeding Sui (隋) Dynasty, Chinese Chess was banned along with his book, but upon its fall came the Tang (唐) and Song (宋) Dynasties, where the expanding popularity of Chinese Chess and revival brought it to new heights, creating the Chinese Chess we know today.
In the Tang Dynasty, Emperor Taizong came across a book while reading, titled Xiang Jing. The game appeared to be quite interesting, but Taizong didn't understand it. So a Minister named Lu Cai spent a large amount of time studying this game, until at last he came to the emperor, and by using pictures, explained it to him. Emperor Taizong was overjoyed, and Lu Cai was at once promoted to a court official. This ancient form of Chinese Chess became widely popular again, and received various developments, including the addition of an ancient chariot, carved like a covered wagon. The Emperor Taizong was widely accepting of religion and philosophy, and in his time reopened the Silk Road, entering the golden age of trade & development.
The Song Dynasty is when Chinese Chess was finalized, with three revisions to an ancient game. In the first, a cannon piece was added - inspired by the invention of gunpowder. In the second, from across the silk road came Chaturanga, where the royal guard in Chinese Chess came from - a set of elephants & advisors, along with the design of the palace. In the third, the Chinese Chess pieces were standardized. A 3D design of the pieces was changed in favor of the circle-cut pieces used in Chinese Chess sets today, and the game was officially named 象棋.
If you enjoyed reading the history for this game, be sure to give it a try!
This is a guide to help you learn the Chinese Characters for pieces in Xiangqi! If you write each one on paper, you’ll always remember it.
 ( 車 - jū ) Meaning Chariot, the two lines at the top & bottom are wheels from an aerial view, and the box in the middle is a carriage. |
|
 ( 炮 - pào ) Meaning Cannon. The character on the left 火 means fire, while the one on the right is there for pronunciation. Often, you will see black's cannons with 石 on the side, meaning stone. This is a stone cannon or trebuchet |
 ( 馬 - mǎ ) Meaning Horse. This character is meant to represent a horse raising its legs for a charge- in the past, Chinese writing was made of pictographs, and were simplified to the characters they are today. |
 ( 兵 - bīng ) Meaning Soldier. The strokes on the bottom are legs |
 ( 卒 - zú ) The Black Soldier. The two 人's in the middle are patterns on a uniform, but I like to think of them as eyes. |
 ( 相 - xiàng ) Literally meaning Minister, but at heart they are elephants. 木 means wood, while 目 depicts an eye. |
 ( 象 - xiàng ) A picture of an elephant with it's trunk. |
 ( 士 - shì ) Advisor. Distantly related to the meaning, the ancient carving represented an axe through wood. |
 ( 仕 - shì ) Advisor. The stroke on the left 亻is a warped 人, meaning person. When added to characters in Chinese Chess however, they hold no additional meaning other than to differentiate between red & black. |
 ( 帥 - shuài ) The Red General. Meaning a military leader, the picture shows a general carrying a flag |
 ( 將 - jiàng ) The Black General. Meaning a commander, this picture looks like the general drawing a bow & arrow |
If you see Xiangqi Characters written differently than these, then you are looking at the Simplified / Traditional writing for them. Regardless of writing, all pieces on either side move the same
The horse is said to move in a 日 shape, using the character for "sun" to represent a 1 x 2 grid. Elephants move in a 田 shape, using the character for "field" to depict a 2 x 2 grid.
