Janggi (Korean Chess)
Janggi (장기) is the Korean form of chess, descended from the same historical lineage as Xiangqi but evolved independently into a distinct game. Key differences include no river, a different Elephant movement path, and a Cannon that must jump a screen piece to both move and capture. Ancient public domain origin: no copyright concern.
Janggi — starting position (inner elephant setup)
https://engine.moddable.games/play/?game=xiangqi&variant=janggi
The Board
The board is a 9×10 grid. Pieces are placed on the 90 intersection points. There is no river. Each side has a palace: a 3×3 area marked with diagonal lines (files d–f, ranks 1–3 for the bottom player; files d–f, ranks 8–10 for the top player). The General starts at the centre of the palace.
Pieces
Each side has 16 pieces.
| Piece | Korean/Chinese | Count | Movement |
|---|---|---|---|
| General | 將/帥 | 1 | One step orthogonally or diagonally within the 3×3 palace |
| Advisor | 士 | 2 | Same as the General: one step orthogonally or diagonally within the palace |
| Elephant | 象 | 2 | One step orthogonally, then two steps diagonally outward. Blocked if any intermediate point is occupied |
| Horse | 馬 | 2 | One step orthogonally, then one step diagonally outward. Blocked if the first orthogonal step is occupied |
| Chariot | 車 | 2 | Slides any number of points orthogonally. May also move along the palace diagonal lines |
| Cannon | 砲 | 2 | Must jump over exactly one non-Cannon piece to both move and capture. Cannot jump over another Cannon or use a Cannon as its screen |
| Soldier | 卒/兵 | 5 | One step forward or one step sideways, from the very start of the game |
Key differences from Standard Xiangqi:
- No river: Elephants may move anywhere on the board
- Soldiers move sideways from the very start (no river-crossing promotion)
- Elephant follows a longer path: one orthogonal step, then two diagonal steps outward
- General and Advisor can move diagonally within the palace (along the palace diagonal lines)
- Cannon must jump to both move and capture (in Xiangqi, the Cannon moves freely and only jumps when capturing)
- Cannon cannot jump another Cannon or use a Cannon as its screen
Byunsu: Choosing the Starting Position
Before play begins, each player independently chooses the arrangement of their Horses and Elephants. Four configurations exist per side:
| Left side | Right side | Name |
|---|---|---|
| Horse, Elephant | Horse, Elephant | Inner Elephants (most common) |
| Elephant, Horse | Horse, Elephant | Left Elephant out |
| Horse, Elephant | Elephant, Horse | Right Elephant out |
| Elephant, Horse | Elephant, Horse | Outer Elephants |
Han (Red) places their pieces first, then Cho (Blue) places second, giving Cho the strategic advantage of responding to Han’s configuration. Cho moves first.
Fixed starting positions (inner elephant configuration shown in diagram):
- Chariots: a1, i1 (Han: a10, i10)
- Guards: d1, f1 (Han: d10, f10)
- General: e1 (Han: e10)
- Cannons: b2, h2 (Han: b9, h9)
- Soldiers: a3, c3, e3, g3, i3 (Han: a8, c8, e8, g8, i8)
Horse and Elephant positions at b1, c1, g1, h1 (Han: b10, c10, g10, h10) vary by chosen configuration.
Special Rules
Bikjang (laughing generals): when both Generals face each other on the same open file with no intervening piece, the player to move has two choices: make a move that breaks bikjang (move the General or interpose a piece), or pass their turn, which ends the game immediately as a draw.
Passing: a player may always legally pass their turn. Because passing is always available, stalemate is impossible in Janggi.
Bikjang and check simultaneously: when bikjang and check occur at the same time, bikjang takes priority.
Tournament Material Counting
In tournaments that do not permit draws, when bikjang is reached the remaining pieces are counted by value to determine the winner:
| Piece | Value (jeom) |
|---|---|
| Chariot | 13 |
| Cannon | 7 |
| Horse | 5 |
| Elephant | 3 |
| Guard | 3 |
| Soldier | 2 |
| General | not counted |
Han (Red) receives 1.5 bonus points (deom) because Cho (Blue) moves first. The 0.5 point prevents ties. The player with the higher total wins.
Winning
Checkmate the opponent’s General: place it under threat with no legal move to escape.
Attribution
Janggi (장기). Public domain. Traditional Korean origin, ancient derivation from Xiangqi. Rules consistent with the Korean Janggi Association standard.