--- title: "How to Know When the Xiangqi Opening Has Ended ยท Xiangqi Master" description: "Roughly once both chariots have a purpose and every piece bar the advisors and elephants has moved at least once, usually around move ten." url: https://xiangqimaster.com/blog/how-do-i-know-when-the-opening-has-ended updated: 2026-09-22 source: Xiangqi Master (https://xiangqimaster.com) license: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) --- # How do I know when the opening has ended? These answers restate the rules implemented by our open-source engine, which follows the WXF laws and is regression-tested against the official 110-diagram repetition casebook. Where an answer refers to a specific position, that position lives on the linked reference page, where the build verifies it against the engine before publishing. > Direct answer > > **When both chariots have somewhere useful to be and the rest of your pieces bar the advisors and elephants have moved once.** There is no fixed move number, but for most systems it lands around move ten. After that point, every move should be justified by a plan rather than by opening theory. ## The practical checklist - Both cannons are on useful files. - Both horses have reached productive squares. - At least one chariot has an open or semi-open file. - No piece has moved twice without gaining anything concrete. Once that list is true, you are in the middlegame whether or not you can still name the opening. ## What changes once you are there The question stops being "what does theory say" and becomes "what does counting attackers and defenders say". See [how to make a plan](https://xiangqimaster.com/blog/how-do-i-make-a-plan-in-xiangqi) for what replaces opening moves once development is done. ## Related questions Is it a problem to still be developing after move fifteen? Usually, yes. It generally means a tempo was lost somewhere earlier. Do advisors and elephants count toward this? No, they are not part of the development count unless a concrete reason requires moving them. ## Related xiangqi resources Opening principles What the first ten moves are actually for Attacking the palace How xiangqi attacks are built Choosing an opening How many you need, and which pair to learn ## Try it on a real board Reading an answer is one thing; playing it is another. Free, instant, and nothing to install.