No. 22: Horse and Cannon with Full Advisors and Elephants Win by Rule vs Horse with Full Advisors and Elephants (1)

"No. 22: Horse and Cannon with Full Advisors and Elephants Win by Rule vs Horse with Full Advisors and Elephants (1)" is a Xiangqi (Chinese Chess) puzzle from the collection Practical Endgames. Red moves first and wins in 11 moves; the key first move is H8-6. Below you will find the full solution, what each move achieves, where it could go wrong, and the alternative defences.

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Pieces on the board

Red has a General, 2 Advisors, 2 Elephants, a Horse, a Cannon. Black has a General, 2 Advisors, 2 Elephants, a Horse.

Solution move by move

1. Red H8-6 (threatens mate next move)
Why it works
Creates an immediate mating threat that must be answered.
What to watch out for
Not forcing: the defender has 8 replies, so compare each one before playing it.
1. Black K6+1
1. Black K6+1
2. Red K4=5
Why it works–
What to watch out for
Not forcing: the defender has 7 replies, so compare each one before playing it.
2. Black H7-9
2. Black H7-9
3. Red C4-4
Why it works–
What to watch out for
Not forcing: the defender has 9 replies, so compare each one before playing it.
3. Black H9+7
3. Black H9+7
4. Red H6-4 (check, the General has no escape square)
Why it works
Takes away the General's escape squares.
What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
4. Black A5+6
4. Black A5+6
5. Red K5=4
Why it works–
What to watch out for
Not forcing: the defender has 8 replies, so compare each one before playing it.
5. Black E5+3
5. Black E5+3
6. Red C4=3
Why it works–
What to watch out for
Not forcing: the defender has 11 replies, so compare each one before playing it.
6. Black H7-8
6. Black H7-8
7. Red C3=6
Why it works–
What to watch out for
Not forcing: the defender has 13 replies, so compare each one before playing it.
7. Black A6-5
7. Black A6-5
8. Red C6=4 (check, the General has no escape square)
Why it works
Takes away the General's escape squares.
What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
8. Black A5+6
8. Black A5+6
9. Red H4+6 (check, the General has no escape square)
Why it works
Takes away the General's escape squares.
What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
9. Black A6-5
9. Black A6-5
10. Red H6-5
Why it works–
What to watch out for
Not forcing: the defender has 12 replies, so compare each one before playing it.
10. Black +E-5
10. Black +E-5
11. Red H5+4 (check, the only legal reply, the General has no escape square)
Why it works
Forcing: the opponent has only one reply, so the line cannot be avoided.
Takes away the General's escape squares.
What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
11. Red H5+4

Variations and alternative defences

The source manual records 5 variations. Each branch starts from the move number shown.

Variation 1, from move 6: +E-5 7. C3=6 A6-5 8. C6=4+ A5+6 9. H4+5+ Try it on the board
Variation 2, from move 5: K6=5 6. H4+6+ K5-1 7. H6+7+ K5+1 8. C4=6 Try it on the board
Variation 3, from move 3: A5+4 4. H6-5 K6=5 5. H5+4+ K5=4 6. H4+6 Try it on the board
Variation 4, from move 2: A5+4 3. H6-5 +A-5 4. H5+4+ A5+6 5. H4+2+ K6=5 6. H2-3 Try it on the board
Variation 5, from move 1: H7-8 Try it on the board

Final position

The record ends here.

Questions about this puzzle

Who moves first in "No. 22: Horse and Cannon with Full Advisors and Elephants Win by Rule vs Horse with Full Advisors and Elephants (1)"?

Red moves first, as in every puzzle of Practical Endgames.

How many moves does the solution take?

11 moves. The main line is shown above; alternative defences are covered in the variations section.

What is the key move?

The first move H8-6 starts the combination. Everything that follows depends on it.

Can I play this position myself?

Yes. Open it on ChessZing, where the board checks your moves and shows the solution if you get stuck.

← Previous puzzle: No. 21: Horse, Cannon, Advisor and Elephant Win by Rule vs Horse, Two Elephants and One Advisor Next puzzle: No. 23: Horse and Cannon with Full Advisors and Elephants Win by Rule vs Horse with Full Advisors and Elephants (2) →