How do I stop missing cannon threats?
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
Make it mechanical: after your opponent moves, look at every cannon — theirs and yours — and count the pieces on the line between it and anything valuable. One piece means a real threat; zero or two means none. It takes two seconds per cannon and catches the overwhelming majority of what beginners miss.
The scan, in order
- Their cannons facing your general. Count the screens. One is check or a threat of it.
- Their cannons facing your chariots. The chariot is worth 9; it is the piece a cannon most wants.
- Your own cannons. Did their last move add or remove one of your screens?
The move that creates threats from nothing
Remember that a cannon threat can appear without the cannon moving — because any piece arriving on the line becomes the screen. So a quiet-looking developing move by your opponent can switch a cannon on three files away. That is the threat that gets missed most.
Related questions
Do I need to check my own cannons too?
Yes — both for threats you have gained and for screens you are about to remove with your own next move.
Does this get faster?
Yes. After a few weeks it stops being a conscious count and becomes recognition.
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