FUN XIANGQI GUIDES
How to Play the Screen Horses Defense in Xiangqi (屏風馬)
By The Fun Xiangqi Team · Published · 3 min read
Video walkthrough coming soon
Steps
Spot the Central Cannon
Your opponent has slid a cannon to the middle file. Through their central soldier, it threatens to capture yours.
Bring the first horse up
Move one horse forward to the point on its elephant's file, two lines up and level with your cannons. From there it guards your central soldier.
Bring the second horse up
Do the same with the other horse on the other side of the centre. Your central soldier now has two guards instead of none.
Keep the horses' legs clear
A horse can't jump. Keep the point next to each horse on the side facing the centre empty, or it can no longer reach the central soldier.
Bring your chariots out
With the centre solid, get your chariots into play early instead of shuffling advisors or elephants without a reason.
Before you start
Screen Horses, 屏風馬, is the solid, classic reply to the Central Cannon. It doesn't try to win material or force anything. It just makes your centre safe, so an aggressive opening runs out of steam. Because it's usually played by Black against Red's first move, the diagram below shows Black's half of the board.
The position on the board
Files run a to i from Red's left, lines 6 to 10 on Black's side.
a b c d e f g h i
10 R . E A G A E . R
9 . . . . . . . . .
8 . C H . . . H C .
7 S . S . S . S . S
6 . . . . . . . . .
G = general, A = advisor, E = elephant, H = horse, R = chariot, C = cannon, S = soldier. Both horses have left b10 and h10 and now stand on c8 and g8: on the elephants' files, two lines up, level with the cannons. Each one reaches e7, the central soldier, through an empty point next to it (d8 and f8).
Now if Red's cannon jumps its own soldier and takes the soldier on e7, a horse takes the cannon straight back. Losing a cannon for a soldier is a bad trade, so the threat is gone.
Tips for playing it
- Watch the legs. A horse never jumps. If d8 or f8 gets filled, that horse stops guarding e7. Don't park your own pieces there.
- Don't move the same horse twice early on. Get both up, then develop other pieces.
- Bring your chariots out. The corner chariots are your strongest pieces. With the horses up, each chariot can step sideways onto its horse's old point.
- Stay calm. Screen Horses is a defence first. Counter-attack once your pieces are out, not before.
Quick questions
Do I need both horses? Yes — that's the point of the name. One horse is one guard; two horses make the centre solid.
Can Red play Screen Horses too? Yes. The idea of guarding the central soldier with both horses works for either side.
What should I do after both horses are up? Keep developing and get your chariots out early. Avoid moving advisors or elephants without a reason.
For a quieter way to start, read how to play the Elephant Opening next, or put both openings to work against the classic engine. Levels 1–4 are free from the Fun Xiangqi home page.