Chinese Chess (Xiang Qi):  
How To Play Chinese Chess

Capture

Guards (pronounced as the Shi) is technically the weakest piece in both armies. They move one point in any diagonal direction. This, incidentally, is exactly the way that the Queen once moved in medieval Chess, before it became much stronger in the fifteenth century. The Guard has a further restriction in that it cannot leave the palace. This means that there are only five points that can ever be occupied by the Guard. Before the game begins, they are positioned on each side of the General.

Elephant (pronounced as Xiang) moves exactly two points diagonally, no more or less. Its movement is very similar to that of the Bishop in International Chess. However, the Elephant cannot cross the river so there are only seven points that the Elephant can occupy. The Elephant cannot jump and its movement is blocked if there is a piece on an intervening point. Since the Elephant cannot cross the river, its purpose is defensive in nature. This makes it less powerful than the Bishop in International Chess. Typically, one Elephant is moved so that it is two points in front of its own General, whereas the other remains on its original point. In this way, the Elephants protect each other and defend their General.

Soldier (pronounced as Bing or Jui; its brother in the International Chess is the Pawn). Soldiers can only move and capture one point forward until they cross the river. They can never retreat. Unlike the Pawn in International Chess, the Soldier does not capture by moving diagonally. Once the Soldier crosses the river, it may move one point to the left or right instead of forward. However, Soldiers do not get promoted when they reach the far side of the board. Instead, they can only move sideways.

Value of the Pieces

From H.T. Lau’s book Chinese Chess, this is the precise ranking of the pieces: