Soldier
兵 (Red) / 卒 (Black) · bīng / zú
Five soldiers each, one step at a time, no double move, no promotion and no going back. Before the river they are a wall. After it they can step sideways too, which turns a plodding soldier into a genuine attacker. Knowing which soldier to push, and when, separates players who have a plan from players who are shuffling.
A Soldier that has crossed the river can step sideways as well as forward, which is where its value comes from.
How it moves
- Moves one point straight forward, never backward.
- After crossing the river it may also move one point sideways, still never backward.
- Captures the same way it moves, one point at a time.
- There is no double first move, no capturing diagonally, and no promotion.
- Worth
- Least valuable at home, dangerous once it crosses the river
- Also called
- Pawn
Crossing is the whole point
An uncrossed soldier does one job: it blocks a file and screens a cannon. A crossed soldier attacks, supports and can reach the palace. Pushing a soldier across the river is one of the cheapest ways to add an attacker to a position.
Because there is no promotion, that is as good as it gets, and it is enough. Two or three crossed soldiers, supported, will break a palace on their own.
Which soldier to push
- The one that opens a line for your own chariot or horse.
- The one that will still be defended after it crosses. An undefended soldier deep in enemy territory is usually just a gift.
- Not the one screening your cannon, unless you have worked out what the cannon does afterwards.
Soldiers in the endgame
Endgames with soldiers against defenders are their own field of study. A single soldier on the right square, supported by a General and a cannon, can force a win against a palace that looks perfectly safe. That is why trading down into an endgame a soldier up is often a real advantage rather than a technicality.
Common questions
- Do pawns promote in Chinese chess?
- No. There is no promotion in xiangqi. A soldier that reaches the last rank keeps moving sideways only, so pushing it that far is usually a mistake.
- Can soldiers move sideways in xiangqi?
- Only after they have crossed the river. Before that they move one point straight forward and nothing else.
- Can a soldier move backward?
- Never, on either side of the river.
Terms worth knowing
- Soldier兵 / 卒The pawn of xiangqi: one step forward at a time, never backward, and able to move sideways as well once it has crossed the river.
- River楚河汉界The empty band across the middle of a xiangqi board that separates the two armies and changes what your pieces can do once they cross it.
- Crossing the river过河Moving a piece into the opponent's half of the board, where soldiers gain sideways movement and chariots become attackers.
- Endgame残局The final phase, with few pieces left, where exact technique and known positions decide the result.