---
title: "How to Meet the Elephant Opening (飛相局) as Black · Xiangqi Master"
description: "Take the centre with your own cannon, or mirror the elephant move for a quiet game. Neither reply is refuted, so pick based on the middlegame you want."
url: https://xiangqimaster.com/blog/how-do-i-meet-the-elephant-opening-as-black
updated: 2026-09-22
source: Xiangqi Master (https://xiangqimaster.com)
license: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
---

# How should Black meet the Elephant Opening (飛相局)?

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
>
> **Take the initiative with a central cannon, or mirror the elephant move if you prefer a quiet game.** 飛相局 gives up nothing concrete on move one, so Black is not answering a threat the way Black must against the Central Cannon. That freedom is the whole point of the choice: pick the kind of middlegame you want rather than the one forced on you.

## Playing for the initiative

Since Red has spent a move defending rather than attacking, a central cannon of your own puts Black slightly ahead on active development. This is the sharper option and rewards a player who already knows what a [Central Cannon](https://xiangqimaster.com/blog/what-is-the-central-cannon) is threatening, because you are effectively playing it with an extra tempo in hand.

## Playing to equalise

Mirroring the elephant move, or developing a soldier and a horse without committing to an attack, keeps the position balanced and pushes the decision further into the middlegame. This suits a player who would rather outplay an opponent slowly than calculate sharp lines early.

## Related questions

Is 飛相局 dangerous for Black?

No. It is a solid, unforcing move, and Black has no less freedom than usual on move two.

Should I avoid theory entirely against it?

You can. Because Red has committed to little, general opening principles carry you a long way here.

## Related xiangqi resources

The Elephant Opening

A quiet first move that avoids theory

The Central Cannon

The most played first move in the game

Opening principles

What the first ten moves are actually for

## Try it on a real board

Reading an answer is one thing; playing it is another. Free, instant, and nothing to install.