FUN XIANGQI GUIDES
How to Move the Advisor in Xiangqi (仕 / 士)
By The Fun Xiangqi Team · Published · 3 min read
Video walkthrough coming soon
Steps
Find your advisors
Each side has two advisors: 仕 for Red, 士 for Black. They start directly left and right of the general, on the two back corners of the palace.
Move one point diagonally
An advisor steps exactly one point diagonally, along the X lines drawn inside the palace. It never moves straight along a line.
Stay on the five palace points
Because the X has only five points — the four palace corners and the centre — an advisor can only ever stand on one of those five. It never leaves the palace.
Capture on the diagonal
An advisor captures by stepping onto an enemy piece one diagonal point away, on one of those five points.
Use advisors to block checks
Advisors stay close to your general. Stepping one onto the line of an attack is a common way to block a check.
The advisor's five points
The advisor has the smallest range of any piece in xiangqi. It moves only along the X inside the palace, and that X has just five points.
d e f
3 o . o
2 . o .
1 o . o
o = the five points an advisor can ever stand on, in Red's palace. The advisors start on d1 and f1, with the general between them on e1. From a corner, an advisor has only one move — to the centre point e2. From the centre it can step to any corner not held by one of your own pieces.
Why advisors matter
Rough piece values put the advisor at about 2 points — sources differ — against about 9 for a chariot. That number undersells them. With both advisors home, your general has walls on its sides; lose them, and a single enemy chariot or horse near the palace becomes far more dangerous.
Advisors earn their keep in two ways:
- Blocking checks. When an enemy chariot or cannon checks your general along a line, stepping an advisor onto that line — for example onto the centre point — is often the simplest answer.
- Covering palace points. An advisor on the centre point watches all four corners, so enemy pieces can't settle there easily.
Common mistakes
- Moving an advisor straight. Advisors only move diagonally. A move from d1 to e1 isn't allowed.
- Taking an advisor out of the palace. It can't leave. The advisor's world is the same five points for the whole game.
- Moving advisors without a reason early on. Aimless early advisor shuffles waste moves you could spend getting your chariots out.
- Blocking your own general. An advisor on the wrong point can take away the general's escape point — keep at least one route open.
Quick questions
Can an advisor capture? Yes, by stepping onto an enemy piece one diagonal point away inside the palace.
Is the advisor like the queen in chess? No. It's one of the lowest-valued pieces, and there's no queen in xiangqi.
Should I trade an advisor early? Usually not. Advisors look cheap, but without them your general is much easier to attack.
The advisor only makes sense next to its general, so read how to move the general if you haven't. Then meet the other defender in how to move the elephant, or start a free game from the Fun Xiangqi home page.