Xiangqi (Chinese Chess) Set
Thirty-two engraved wooden discs and a folding board with the river and the palaces.
We have not pinned this to a single listing we have checked by hand, so both buttons open a search for this type of set rather than one seller’s page.
- Game
- Xiangqi (Chinese chess); 9×10 board, pieces play on the intersections
- Pieces
- 32 pieces: 16 red, 16 black
- Piece size
- Disc diameter 3.5–5 cm (sold by number: #4 to #8)
- Material
- Wood or acrylic discs with engraved painted characters; leather, cloth or folding wood board
- Includes
- Board, 32 pieces, often a storage box or pouch
Piece dimensions are the common nominal figure for this type of set and vary by a millimetre or so between factories.
What this set actually is
Xiangqi is the most-played chess variant in the world, and a set is cheap and simple: a board of nine by ten lines with a river across the middle and two palaces, and 32 flat discs marked with characters in red and black. Pieces sit on the intersections, not in the squares.
The thing to check is piece size against board size. Sets are sold by piece number, roughly #4 at 3.5 cm to #8 at 5 cm, and the board grid should match: a 5 cm piece on a small travel board overlaps its neighbours. For a table set, #6 or #7 pieces on a 40 to 45 cm board is the comfortable standard.
Learners should look for a set whose discs show the Western-style letters or pictures as well as the characters, or buy a plain set and print a character key; the pieces are easy to learn within a few games. Wooden discs with engraved characters wear better than printed acrylic.
What sets it apart
- Pieces are discs with characters, so a set with clear engraving matters more than a pretty one
- Folding wooden boards double as the box
- Some sets print the Western-style piece symbols alongside the characters for learners
Who should buy it
Chess players who want the faster, more open Chinese game, and anyone with family who plays.
Not sure which game to start with? Read our guide to go, xiangqi and shogi.
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