The Riverbank Cannon

Companion study to the article of the same name: the verified theory lines of fog xiangqi’s opening cannon rush, twenty forced-rush games and ten forced rim-gambit games with the engine on both sides, eight scheme-test games, and sixteen free self-play games, all in full. Article: /blog/riverbank-cannon

73 chapters

The stealth rush7 moves
The invisible route. Up the empty d-file nothing Black owns sees a single point, and the general falls on move 4. Black developed normally and saw only that a red piece left home. This is why the defense has to be played every game, blind.
The poisoned advisor7 moves
The defense most players find first, and its landmine. Black’s second move went elsewhere, so Red takes the elephant on the wing whose advisor stayed home and the cannon fires along the back rank through it; from there all 41 of Black’s legal moves lose within two moves. The disa…
The tripwire4 moves
The soldier push, played FIRST. The pushed soldier watches the one point the cannon must fire from, and a cannon that lands there dies before it can shoot. Push before Red commits; the seal can wait one move, the tripwire cannot.
The push that came too late5 moves
The same push, one move late. The cannon is already on its firing point, and a pushed soldier still counts as one screen: the chariot falls straight over it. Order is everything.
The counter-battery6 moves
Black’s own riverbank plan. The battery on e6 is invisible to Red, and any grab spends the tempo the mate needed him to spend sealing: Red takes the chariot and is mated on the reply. Against a Red who seals first it concedes more than the soldier line (engine verdict +0.25 again…
Rush game 1 of 20 (ply cap, 110 plies)110 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 2 of 20 (black, 68 plies)68 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 3 of 20 (red, 43 plies)43 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 4 of 20 (ply cap, 110 plies)110 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 5 of 20 (black, 56 plies)56 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 6 of 20 (black, 94 plies)94 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 7 of 20 (ply cap, 110 plies)110 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 8 of 20 (black, 68 plies)68 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 9 of 20 (black, 60 plies)60 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 10 of 20 (red, 43 plies)43 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 11 of 20 (black, 60 plies)60 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 12 of 20 (ply cap, 110 plies)110 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 13 of 20 (ply cap, 110 plies)110 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 14 of 20 (ply cap, 110 plies)110 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 15 of 20 (red, 97 plies)97 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 16 of 20 (black, 62 plies)62 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 17 of 20 (black, 74 plies)74 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 18 of 20 (black, 66 plies)66 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 19 of 20 (red, 57 plies)57 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rush game 20 of 20 (ply cap, 110 plies)110 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the visible riverbank rush (cannon to b5, then e5, snipe if it is ever legal) and free afterwards. Black sealed in time in eighteen of the twenty and the snipe never fired once; from there it is a real game between equal engines.
Rim gambit game 1 (red, 75 plies)75 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the rim gambit: cannon to b5, then a5, chariot taken. The grab landed in all ten games, so every one is the guessed-wrong branch played out by equal engines. The landed cannon sits on the pin or slides out; it never donates itself.
Rim gambit game 2 (black, 84 plies)84 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the rim gambit: cannon to b5, then a5, chariot taken. The grab landed in all ten games, so every one is the guessed-wrong branch played out by equal engines. The landed cannon sits on the pin or slides out; it never donates itself.
Rim gambit game 3 (no result, 110 plies)110 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the rim gambit: cannon to b5, then a5, chariot taken. The grab landed in all ten games, so every one is the guessed-wrong branch played out by equal engines. The landed cannon sits on the pin or slides out; it never donates itself.
Rim gambit game 4 (no result, 110 plies)107 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the rim gambit: cannon to b5, then a5, chariot taken. The grab landed in all ten games, so every one is the guessed-wrong branch played out by equal engines. The landed cannon sits on the pin or slides out; it never donates itself.
Rim gambit game 5 (red, 23 plies)23 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the rim gambit: cannon to b5, then a5, chariot taken. The grab landed in all ten games, so every one is the guessed-wrong branch played out by equal engines. The landed cannon sits on the pin or slides out; it never donates itself.
Rim gambit game 6 (no result, 110 plies)57 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the rim gambit: cannon to b5, then a5, chariot taken. The grab landed in all ten games, so every one is the guessed-wrong branch played out by equal engines. The landed cannon sits on the pin or slides out; it never donates itself.
Rim gambit game 7 (red, 45 plies)45 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the rim gambit: cannon to b5, then a5, chariot taken. The grab landed in all ten games, so every one is the guessed-wrong branch played out by equal engines. The landed cannon sits on the pin or slides out; it never donates itself.
Rim gambit game 8 (black, 56 plies)56 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the rim gambit: cannon to b5, then a5, chariot taken. The grab landed in all ten games, so every one is the guessed-wrong branch played out by equal engines. The landed cannon sits on the pin or slides out; it never donates itself.
Rim gambit game 9 (red, 33 plies)33 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the rim gambit: cannon to b5, then a5, chariot taken. The grab landed in all ten games, so every one is the guessed-wrong branch played out by equal engines. The landed cannon sits on the pin or slides out; it never donates itself.
Rim gambit game 10 (red, 23 plies)23 moves
Misty against itself, with Red forced through the rim gambit: cannon to b5, then a5, chariot taken. The grab landed in all ten games, so every one is the guessed-wrong branch played out by equal engines. The landed cannon sits on the pin or slides out; it never donates itself.
Scheme test game 1 (red, 95 plies)95 moves
Black is forced through the recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched central elephant, far-side horse) while Red, a free-playing Misty, does as it pleases. Black won five of the seven decisive games in this set, against one of twelve when both sides chose freely: the three in…
Scheme test game 2 (red, 67 plies)67 moves
Black is forced through the recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched central elephant, far-side horse) while Red, a free-playing Misty, does as it pleases. Black won five of the seven decisive games in this set, against one of twelve when both sides chose freely: the three in…
Scheme test game 3 (black, 64 plies)64 moves
Black is forced through the recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched central elephant, far-side horse) while Red, a free-playing Misty, does as it pleases. Black won five of the seven decisive games in this set, against one of twelve when both sides chose freely: the three in…
Scheme test game 4 (black, 108 plies)108 moves
Black is forced through the recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched central elephant, far-side horse) while Red, a free-playing Misty, does as it pleases. Black won five of the seven decisive games in this set, against one of twelve when both sides chose freely: the three in…
Scheme test game 5 (ply cap, 110 plies)110 moves
Black is forced through the recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched central elephant, far-side horse) while Red, a free-playing Misty, does as it pleases. Black won five of the seven decisive games in this set, against one of twelve when both sides chose freely: the three in…
Scheme test game 6 (black, 60 plies)60 moves
Black is forced through the recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched central elephant, far-side horse) while Red, a free-playing Misty, does as it pleases. Black won five of the seven decisive games in this set, against one of twelve when both sides chose freely: the three in…
Scheme test game 7 (black, 68 plies)68 moves
Black is forced through the recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched central elephant, far-side horse) while Red, a free-playing Misty, does as it pleases. Black won five of the seven decisive games in this set, against one of twelve when both sides chose freely: the three in…
Scheme test game 8 (black, 42 plies)42 moves
Black is forced through the recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched central elephant, far-side horse) while Red, a free-playing Misty, does as it pleases. Black won five of the seven decisive games in this set, against one of twelve when both sides chose freely: the three in…
Engine self-play game 1 (red, 21 plies)21 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Engine self-play game 2 (ply cap, 100 plies)69 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Engine self-play game 3 (ply cap, 100 plies)100 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Engine self-play game 4 (red, 33 plies)33 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Engine self-play game 5 (red, 49 plies)49 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Engine self-play game 6 (red, 37 plies)37 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Engine self-play game 7 (ply cap, 100 plies)100 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Engine self-play game 8 (red, 15 plies)15 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Engine self-play game 9 (red, 51 plies)51 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Engine self-play game 10 (red, 67 plies)67 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Engine self-play game 11 (red, 59 plies)59 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Engine self-play game 12 (black, 60 plies)60 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Engine self-play game 13 (ply cap, 100 plies)100 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Engine self-play game 14 (red, 77 plies)77 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Engine self-play game 15 (red, 43 plies)43 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Engine self-play game 16 (red, 41 plies)41 moves
Misty against itself, both sides free to choose. Red never plays the riverbank rush: soldier pushes, horse development, the central cannon. This is what fog xiangqi looks like when nobody is running a script.
Rush vs the recommended line, game 1 (black, 58 plies)58 moves
Both sides forced through their openings: Red plays the rush, Black plays this article’s recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched elephant, far horse), then both engines are free. Black won six of the eight.
Rush vs the recommended line, game 2 (red, 55 plies)55 moves
Both sides forced through their openings: Red plays the rush, Black plays this article’s recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched elephant, far horse), then both engines are free. Black won six of the eight.
Rush vs the recommended line, game 3 (black, 42 plies)42 moves
Both sides forced through their openings: Red plays the rush, Black plays this article’s recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched elephant, far horse), then both engines are free. Black won six of the eight.
Rush vs the recommended line, game 4 (black, 54 plies)54 moves
Both sides forced through their openings: Red plays the rush, Black plays this article’s recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched elephant, far horse), then both engines are free. Black won six of the eight.
Rush vs the recommended line, game 5 (black, 52 plies)52 moves
Both sides forced through their openings: Red plays the rush, Black plays this article’s recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched elephant, far horse), then both engines are free. Black won six of the eight.
Rush vs the recommended line, game 6 (red, 43 plies)43 moves
Both sides forced through their openings: Red plays the rush, Black plays this article’s recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched elephant, far horse), then both engines are free. Black won six of the eight.
Rush vs the recommended line, game 7 (black, 40 plies)40 moves
Both sides forced through their openings: Red plays the rush, Black plays this article’s recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched elephant, far horse), then both engines are free. Black won six of the eight.
Rush vs the recommended line, game 8 (black, 50 plies)50 moves
Both sides forced through their openings: Red plays the rush, Black plays this article’s recommended line (edge soldier, wing-matched elephant, far horse), then both engines are free. Black won six of the eight.
Tripwire fires, game 1 (red, 51 plies)51 moves
Red walks the rim into the pushed soldier: cannon taken, soldier recaptured, and Black’s counter-shot wins the chariot through it. Black converted five of the six.
Tripwire fires, game 2 (black, 40 plies)40 moves
Red walks the rim into the pushed soldier: cannon taken, soldier recaptured, and Black’s counter-shot wins the chariot through it. Black converted five of the six.
Tripwire fires, game 3 (black, 52 plies)52 moves
Red walks the rim into the pushed soldier: cannon taken, soldier recaptured, and Black’s counter-shot wins the chariot through it. Black converted five of the six.
Tripwire fires, game 4 (black, 94 plies)94 moves
Red walks the rim into the pushed soldier: cannon taken, soldier recaptured, and Black’s counter-shot wins the chariot through it. Black converted five of the six.
Tripwire fires, game 5 (black, 46 plies)46 moves
Red walks the rim into the pushed soldier: cannon taken, soldier recaptured, and Black’s counter-shot wins the chariot through it. Black converted five of the six.
Tripwire fires, game 6 (black, 46 plies)46 moves
Red walks the rim into the pushed soldier: cannon taken, soldier recaptured, and Black’s counter-shot wins the chariot through it. Black converted five of the six.