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Chinese Chess

Xiangqi
The board of xiangqi
Xiangqi board and starting setup
Genre(s) Board game
Abstract strategy game
Players 2
Setup time < 1 minute
Playing time Informal games: may vary from 20 minutes to several hours
Blitz games: up to 10 minutes
Random chance None
Skill(s) required Strategy, tactics
Synonym(s) Chinese chess
Elephant game
Elephant chess
Xiangqi
Chinese 象棋

Xiangqi (Chinese: 象棋; pinyin: xiàngqí), also called Chinese chess, is a strategy board game for two players. It is one of the most popular board games in China, and is in the same family as Western (or international) chess, chaturanga, shogi, Indian chess and janggi. Besides China and areas with significant ethnic Chinese communities, xiangqi (cờ tướng) is also a popular pastime in Vietnam.

The game represents a battle between two armies, with the object of capturing the enemy's general (king). Distinctive features of xiangqi include the cannon (pao), which must jump to capture; a rule prohibiting the generals from facing each other directly; areas on the board called the river and palace, which restrict the movement of some pieces (but enhance that of others); and placement of the pieces on the intersections of the board lines, rather than within the squares.

Xiangqi is played on a board nine lines wide and ten lines long. As in the game Go (Wéiqí 圍棋), the pieces are placed on the intersections, which are known as points. The vertical lines are known as files (columns), and the horizontal lines are known as ranks (rows).

Centered at the first to third and eighth to tenth ranks of the board are two zones, each three points by three points, demarcated by two diagonal lines connecting opposite corners and intersecting at the center point. Each of these areas is known as 宮 About this sound gōng, a "palace" or "fortress".


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Wikipedia

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