r---n---m---g---k---g---m---n---r 9 | | | | \ | / | | | | +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ 8 | | | | / | \ | | | | +---c---+---+---+---+---+---c---+ 7 | | | | | | | | | p---+---p---+---p---+---p---+---p 6 | | | | | | | | | +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ 5 | R I V E R | +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ 4 | | | | | | | | | P---+---P---+---P---+---P---+---P 3 | | | | | | | | | +---C---+---+---+---+---+---C---+ 2 | | | | \ | / | | | | +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+ 1 | | | | / | \ | | | | R---N---M---G---K---G---M---N---R 0 A B C D E F G H IFor cultural purists, you may prefer this one. The coordinates are lined up in traditional ways.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 setup: black 1 (j)_(m)_(x)_(s)_(i)_(s)_(x)_(m)_(j) 10 (i): 51 ijang 将 | | | |\ | /| | | | (s): 41, 61 shi 士 2 |___|___|___|__\|/__|___|___|___| 9 (x): 31, 71 xiang 象 | | | | /|\ | | | | (m): 21, 81 ma 马 3 |__(p)__|___|/__|__\|___|__(p)__| 8 (j): 11, 91 ju 车 | | | | | | | | | (p): 23, 83 pao 炮 4 (z)__|__(z)__|__(z)__|__(z)__|__(z) 7 (z): 14, 34 zu 卒 | | | | | | | | | 54, 74, 94 5 |___|___|___|___|___|___|___|___| 6 | | 6 |_______________________________| 5 | | | | | | | | | SETUP: RED (moves first) 7 (B)__|__(B)__|__(B)__|__(B)__|__(B) 4 (I): 51 shuaI 帅 | | | | | | | | | (S): 41, 61 Shi 仕 8 |__(P)__|___|___|___|___|__(P)__| 3 (X): 31, 71 Xiang 相 | | | |\ | /| | | | (M): 21, 81 Ma 马 9 |___|___|___|__\|/__|___|___|___| 2 (J): 11, 91 Ju 车 | | | | /|\ | | | | (P): 23, 83 Pao 炮 10 (J)_(M)_(X)_(S)_(I)_(S)_(X)_(M)_(J) 1 (B): 14, 34 Bing 兵 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 54, 74, 94^
Each side has the following pieces: 2 Rooks (R) (or chariots) 2 Knights (N) (or horses) 2 Ministers (M) (or bishops or elephants) 2 Guards (G) (or assistants or counselors) 1 King (K) (or generals) 2 Cannons (C) 5 Pawns (P) (or soldiers) ROOKS The rooks move and capture as in chess ........k........9 KNIGHTS .................8 The knights move and capture as in chess, with .................7 one important difference: they can be blocked. .................6 Example: if a knight sits on c2 and another piece .................5 (either your own or the opponent's) sits on c3, . river . the knight cannot move to d4 or b4; but it could .................4 move to b0 or d0 or a1 or e1 or e3. If a knight ....R............3 sits on c2 and another piece is on d2, then it ....N.c..........2 cannot move to e1 or e3. ..............C..1 ........K...M....0 a b c d e f g h i MINISTERS The ministers can move only two diagonal spaces at a time. They cannot cross the river (see River below) to the other side of the board. It captures on the square to which he is moving. A minister on g0 can move to e2 or i2. If an opposing piece sits on e2, he can capture it. If his own piece sits on e2, he cannot move there. If he sits on g0 and another piece sits on h1, he cannot move to i2 because he is blocked. GUARDS The guards can move only 1 space diagonally, and cannot leave the palace (see Palace below). They capture the same way they move. KING The king moves as in chess, only he cannot move diagonally, only 1 square vertically or horizontally. The king must remain in the palace. CANNONS Cannons move like rooks, as many squares vertically or horizontally as they want, as long as there is no other piece in the way. However, cannons capture by jumping over a piece to capture another piece. Example: a cannon sits on e1; a knight sits on f1 (the piece can belong to either side); and an opposing rook sits on h1. The cannon could capture the rook by jumping over the knight. It can only capture by jumping, and can jump over only one piece. If there were two pieces between the cannon and the rook, then the rook could not be captured by that cannon. The cannon cannot jump if it isn't going to capture something, it must simply move like a rook. PAWNS Pawns move 1 square forward (never two, as is possible on the first move in chess). While the pawn is on its own side of the board, it captures by moving 1 square forward and taking an opposing piece that may be sitting there (the pawns don't capture diagonally as in chess). Once a pawn moves across the river onto the other side of the board, it acquires an additional power: it can then move 1 square sideways in addition to being able to move 1 square forward. On the other side of the board, the pawn could then capture by moving sideways or forward. The pawn can never move backward. The pawn does not promote when it reaches the back rank of the opponent--it can then just move sideways. PALACE The king and guards cannot leave the palace (except the guards who leave when they are captured :-) ). If we call the king's starting point e0, then the palace is defined as these 9 points: d0, e0, f0, d1, e1, f1, d2, e2, f2. RIVER The river is nothing more than an empty space in the middle of the board dividing the two sides. A piece cannot move into the river--no one can sit in the river because he would drown. It doesn't count as a space. The word "river" is not printed on most sets; usually there are some Chinese characters printed on it. The minister and guard are considered purely defensive pieces because they cannot cross the river and attack the opposing king. Once a piece crosses the river, it becomes more important for attack than defense. INTERSECTIONS The pieces move on the intersections of the board, not in the spaces between them, as in chess. COLORS In chess, the player who moves first has the "white" pieces. In Chinese chess, the player who moves first moves red pieces. The second player's pieces are usually black or sometimes green or blue.^
Here are some rules to remember: a) the object of the game is to checkmate or stalemate the opponent. This is accomplished by: 1. Placing the opponent in check so that he has no legal move to get out of the check. 2. Stalemating your opponent so that he has no legal move (when you stalemate your opponent, you win--it is not a draw as in chess). b) Red usually moves first. c) You cannot check your opponent indefinitely by moving the same piece to the same squares (resulting in perpetual check and a draw in chess). You cannot put the opponent in check more than 3 times in a row with the same piece without either side moving any other piece. d) Similar to the rule above, you cannot indefinitely "chase" an opposing piece from one square to another if your opponent has no other way to avoid losing the piece. If you move a rook to e5 threatening a cannon on e6, and your opponent's only move to avoid capture is to move the cannon to f6, then you cannot keep chasing it from e6 to f6 by moving from e5 to f5 indefinitely. The idea of this rule and the rule above is to avoid perpetual check draws. Some of these situations can be complicated but usually the person who is initiating the perpetual move loop must break it off. e) The two kings cannot face each other on the same file. If red's king is on e1 and black's king is on e9 and there are no pieces directly between them on the e-file, then that is an illegal position. If black's king is the only piece on the f-file, then red's king on the e-file cannot move to the f file. f) When neither side can capture the opposing king, the game is a draw.^
Here are some rough values, which of course, can change depending on the game situation or how skillful a particular player is in maneuvering a particular piece: Rook 9 Cannon 4.5 Knight 4 Minister 2 Guard 2 Pawn 2 (after crossing river) Pawn 1 (before crossing river)^
It seems every writer or organization uses different notation. We are generally following ICCS notation in the FAQ for compatibility: the rows are A to I from left to right (from red's viewpoint), and the files are number 0-9 from bottom of the board to the top. It is wished (by me, I mean) that all would follow the simple notation used in XiangQi Review, but that seems an idle dream at this time.^
The Central Cannon is the most popular. Red moves Ch2-e2. Black usually replies with Ch7-e7 or Nh9-g7 or Nb9-c7. The Minister's (or Bishop's) opening was popularized by Hu RongHua. The starting move is Mg0-e2. Other starting moves are Pc3-1 or Pg3-1 or Nh0-g2.^
Rook Odds The side giving odds as red plays without the left rook. There are 3 "iron" pieces. Red's leftmost pawn, left knight and left cannon can't be captured unless they've moved. 2 Knights Odds Red plays without his knights. "Iron" center pawn. Red's center pawn can be captured only by check & only by the piece giving check. Knight and Move(s) Odds The side giving odd plays black and without his left knight; red makes 1 or more moves before black replies (possible red moves--see Moves Odds). 1 Knight Odds Red plays without his left knight. 4 Plus Moves Odds The side receiving odds plays red & makes 4 or more moves before black moves. No pieces except pawns can be moved to the player's own river edge for these 4 (or more) moves. 3 Moves Odds The side receiving odds as red makes 3 moves before black replies. About equal to 1 knight odds. No pieces are allowed to cross the river during these 3 initial moves. 2 Moves Odds Side receiving odds as red makes 2 moves. 1 Move Odds The side receiving odds plays red. Less Than 1 Move Odds Half-move odds would be playing 2 games as red & 1 as black. Agree to the conditions before play begins to avoid disputes. Giving cannon odds is rare & much harder than giving knight odds.^
There are really only 2 books in English that are widely available: 1. Chinese Chess by H.T. Lau. Basic rules, opening, middle and endgame play. Many exercises. Material needed to win or draw various endings. Descriptions of popular opening variations. 2. Chinese Chess for Beginners by Sam Sloan. English-speaking Chinese chess fans needed a book like this; unfortunately, Sloan wrote it. Filled with exaggerations & misleading statements. An alleged "entertaining" writing style that some might call inept or juvenile. Still, some useful information. The revised edition contains a few new things & not many corrections. "You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear." Other books in English you might find in a library or old book store: 3. Hsiang Ch'i: The Chinese Game of Chess by Terence Donnelly. 4. A Manual of Chinese Chess by Charles Wilkes. 5. The Chess of China by Dennis Leventhal. (A good read, if you find it.) 6. Shang Chi--The Chinese Chess by Chen-Chih Sun.^
1. XiangQi Review is the best English language publication. It is published 6 times a year, usually 20 pages. $10/year in US, or $15/year overseas. Address is: Chinese Chess Institute PO Box 5305 Hercules, CA 94547-5305 2. Chinese Chess Newsletter. Published from England, so focuses on Europe. The "usual" subscription rate is 10 pounds a year. Not much on production quality but contains useful news. C.K. Lai 12 Lagan House Sumner Rd London SE15 5RB England 3. Chinese Chess News/Korean Chess. The copy I have is one 8 1/2 by 11 sheet of paper, typewritten on both sides. Some news and addresses for Chinese chess and information on Korean chess. David Rockwell 8514 Trumbull Ave Skokie, IL 60076-2440 Or, if writing from Europe: Malcolm Horne 10B Windsor Square Exmouth, Devon EX8 1JU England 4. Xiangqi Mi Tong Bao. In Italian. Supposedly a slick production with a professional look to it. Agostino Guberti Via Don Gnocchi 20/D 20075 Lodi (Milano), Italy^
Chinese Chess for Beginners is published by: Ishi Press International 76 Bonaventure Dr San Jose, CA 95134 (408) 944-9900 They may also sell Chinese Chess by H.T. Lau. Otherwise, this book is published by: Charles E. Tuttle Co. PO Box 410 28 S. Main St. Rutland, VT 05702 800/526-2778 The Chinese Chess Institute sells some books written in Chinese. A translation guide is provided. A new title is a text devoted to the games of Lu Qin ($10). They are also working on some things in English for beginners. See address for XiangQi Review above.^
From Ishi Press (mentioned above) or The Game Place (mentioned below) or at your nearest Chinatown (Fat Ming at 903 Grant in San Francisco) if you live near a large city, or from Chinese grocery & gift shops in smaller cities.^
The best software program is Chinese Chessmaster III. But this program cannot be bought from North America. It originates from Taiwan and is difficult to buy from North America. There are two programs for DOS: Uncle Wang, XIAN, and Battle Chess II: Chinese Chess. ICD claims that Uncle Wang is better than XIAN. You can get Uncle Wang or XIAN from: ICD Corp. 21 Walt Whitman Rd Huntington Station, NY 11746 800/645-4710 $49.95 You may also get XIAN from: The Game Place 4512 University Way NE Ste. 102 Seattle, WA 98105 800/826-GAME (We haven't verified that this program is indeed XIAN) $39.95 A windows version of XIAN is available from: TSoft PO Box 3642 Odessa, TX 79760 (915) 366-2168 Battle Chess II: Chinese Chess (the weakest commercial program) InterPlay Productions 3710 S. Susan, Ste. 100 Santa Ana, CA 92704 (714) 545-9001 $49.95 (Exciting graphics) For the Macintosh, there is a new shareware program written by Tie Zeng available on the Internet by ftp. Ftp to: mac.archive.umich.edu. The program is in the path: /mac/game/board and is called chinesechesspro1.01.cpt.hqx There is a shareware DOS Chinese chess program available on the Internet, but it is very weak. Available via anonymous ftp at: chess.uoknor.edu in the path: /pub/chess/DOS/chinechs.exe^
Los Angeles Area: Chinese Chess Association of Los Angeles 539 E. Garvey Ave Monterey Park, CA 91754 San Francisco Area: Chinese Chess Association 153-A Waverly Pl San Francisco, CA 94108 (415) 391-1236 New York City Area: The Chinese Chess Confederation is apparently no longer at their Bowery Street location. Try writing them at: PO Box 1079, G.P.O. Brooklyn, NY Toronto: Toronto Chinese Chess Association 32 Scott Dr. Richmond Hill, Ontario L4C 4C3 (416) 492-7581^
You can play real time games on the Internet Chinese Chess Server (ICCS). Telnet to: coolidge.harvard.edu 5555 or 128.103.28.15 5555 Login with a short name & choose your own password. Type "help" or "help intro" if you're new. You may also play real time Chinese chess on the Internet Go Server at hellspark.wharton.upenn.edu 6969. You will probably have to use the "shout" command to find players since most will be playing go.^
No. Organization of Chinese chess in the United States lags behind most other countries, including those in Europe. Also, Europe seems to enjoy a great deal of cooperation between Asian "experts" and western "novices," unlike the situation in the US. Chinese chess "organization" in the US is basically confined to Chinatown clubs, which are not usually as accessible as the tourist shops. A suggestion for future development would be to organize Chinese chess activities at regular chess or go clubs & then try to branch out on your own after a regular clientele has been established. Perhaps try to find a local Chinese chess expert who would agree to give a simul or lecture to drum up interest. Around 1990, there was an organization called the Vietnamese-American Chinese Chess Association based in Virginia. They planned to publish some books on the game in English; however, apparently nothing was produced and recent attempts to contact this organization have failed, so they must be considered defunct at this time. ^Who are some of the strongest players around the world?
Most of the strongest players live in China. Here are the Chinese National Ratings for the first half of 1993: MEN: Lu Qin 2556 (Has won 5 Ram Cup 5 years in a row) Zhao GuoRong 2534 (Two-time Chinese National Champion--1990 & 1992) Hu RongHua 2524 (Greatest player in Chinese chess history?) Li LaiQun 2510 (Current holder of QiWang [Chess King] title) Xu TianHong 2502 (Won Third World Cup in Beijing in April) Liu DaHua 2468 (Won Chinese National title in 1980 & 1981) Yu YouHua 2460 Lin HongMin 2451 Xu YinChuan 2437 (18-year-old just won 1993 Chinese National title) WOMEN: Xie Siming 2418 (Inactive) Hu Ming 2345 (Has won women's title 3 years in a row) Shan XiaLi 2324 Huang YuYing 2285 (Inactive) Huang ZiJun 2276 (Inactive) OTHER COUNTRIES Taiwan Wu KuiLin Liang JinYi Hong Kong Chiu YuKuen Vietnam Mei QingMing Japan Shen Hao (formerly of Shanghai) Singapore Lee KhengSoi Teo SimHua Thailand Ma WuLian Malaysia Li JiaQing Chieng KuokWu Chen JieYu Indonesia Ifan ChungMing Germany Huebner Robert (GM of chess) Siewert Hans-Joachim Italy Yu JianGuo Hu YunXi Nastasio Davide Guberti Agostino USA Lee Michael Gong Fan Chien Chi Yan TatSun Ng Hak Lok Canada Der Lawrence Yu Chou Jen Li ChungGo back to table of content. ^