Cannon
炮 / 砲 · pào
A piece that moves like a chariot but can only capture by jumping exactly one piece, called the screen, on its way to the target.
The Cannon slides along ranks and files like a chariot when it is not capturing. To capture, it needs exactly one piece between it and its target, no more and no fewer. That piece is the screen, and it can belong to either player.
The consequence is that cannons are at their most dangerous early, when the board is full of screens, and they lose power as pieces come off. It also means a cannon can be defused by removing the screen it depends on, which is one of the most satisfying defensive resources in the game.
In practice
When a cannon is aimed at your General, look for the screen before you look for a block. Taking the screen away is often free and ends the threat permanently.
Related terms
- Screen炮架The single piece a Cannon jumps over in order to capture, which may belong to either player.
- Hollow cannon空头炮A cannon on the middle file with nothing between it and the enemy General, which paralyses the defence and usually wins.
- Cannon behind the horse马后炮A mating pattern where a horse covers the General's escape squares and a cannon checks along the line with the horse itself as the screen.
- Double cannons重炮Two cannons on the same file, one behind the other, where the front cannon is the screen for the back one and checkmate follows.