How do you play Chinese Chess (Xiangqi)?

You play Red, AI plays Black. Click one of your red pieces to select it — legal moves highlight in yellow. Click a highlighted square to move. Chariot moves like a rook, Horse moves in an L-shape (can be blocked), Cannon captures by jumping over exactly one piece. Checkmate the enemy King to win.

What difficulty levels are available?

Three levels: Easy (great for beginners), Medium (a real challenge), Hard (AI looks multiple moves ahead). Changing difficulty starts a new game. Use Undo to take back your last move and the AI's response.

What are the special movement rules?

Cannon: moves like a Rook but must jump over exactly one piece to capture. Horse: moves 1 step orthogonally then 1 diagonally — a piece on the first step blocks it (马腿). Elephant: moves exactly 2 diagonal steps and cannot cross the river. These restrictions make Xiangqi tactics unique.

Chinese Chess AI Online

Best Free Online Chinese Chess (Xiangqi) AI in 2026 — Play in Browser, No Download

Chinese Chess (Xiangqi) is one of the world's oldest and most-played strategy games, with over a thousand years of history. On a 9×10 board divided by the "Chu River and Han Border," two armies battle with Chariots, Horses, Cannons, Elephants, Advisors, and a General. Simple enough to learn in minutes, deep enough to study for a lifetime.

MeTool Xiangqi lets you play against AI directly in your browser — no registration, no download. You play Red (bottom), AI plays Black (top). Three difficulty levels: Easy for beginners learning piece movements, Medium for casual players who want a challenge, and Hard with full Minimax + Alpha-Beta pruning for serious strategy practice. The Cannon's unique capture rule, the Horse's blocking mechanic, and the "flying general" prohibition make every game unique.

Xiangqi vs Chess: Key Differences Every Beginner Should Know

If you know international Chess, Xiangqi will feel familiar — but there are crucial differences. The Cannon has no Chess equivalent: it slides like a Rook but can only capture by jumping over exactly one piece (the "cannon platform"). This makes it extremely powerful when pieces crowd the board, and weak in open endgames.

The Horse moves like a Chess Knight (one orthogonal + one diagonal) but can be blocked — if a piece occupies the first orthogonal step, the Horse cannot move in that direction. This "hobbled horse" tactic is central to defense in Xiangqi.

The General must stay in the 3×3 palace and cannot face the opponent's General with no pieces between them (the "flying general" rule). This creates unique tactical threats — you can sometimes force the enemy General to expose itself through clever piece alignment.