---
title: "Is It Okay to Look Up How a Piece Moves Mid-Game? · Xiangqi Master"
description: "Yes, completely. Checking a rule while you play is a normal part of learning, and it teaches the movement far better than reading about all seven pieces before ever touching a board."
url: https://xiangqimaster.com/blog/is-it-okay-to-look-up-how-a-piece-moves-mid-game
updated: 2026-09-23
source: Xiangqi Master (https://xiangqimaster.com)
license: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
---

# Is it okay to look up how a piece moves in the middle of a game instead of memorising everything first?

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
>
> **Yes, completely, and it is a genuinely good way to learn.** Checking how a piece moves in the middle of an actual game, right when it matters, teaches the rule far more effectively than reading through all seven pieces beforehand and hoping it all sticks. There is no rule requiring memorisation before you are allowed to play.

## Why this order works better for most people

A rule read in isolation, before you have ever needed it, is abstract and easy to forget. The same rule looked up at the exact moment you are trying to move a piece and cannot, because you misjudged its movement, attaches itself to a specific, memorable situation instead, which is usually enough to make it stick permanently.

## What to do if you keep needing to check the same piece

That is useful information, not a failure: it tells you exactly which piece to spend two extra minutes on deliberately, rather than re-reading everything else you already know. The cannon and the horse are the two pieces most players need to look up more than once, and that is completely ordinary.

## Related questions

Will a digital board just refuse an illegal move anyway?

Yes, and that refusal is itself a useful, immediate way to learn the rule, often faster than reading about it first.

Is it bad to keep a reference open while playing casually?

Not at all. Plenty of experienced players still glance at a reference for an unusual rule interaction; there is no penalty for checking.

## Related xiangqi resources

Xiangqi rules

The complete reference, rule by rule

How the cannon moves

Captures only by jumping exactly one screen

How the horse moves

An L-shape that can be blocked — it never jumps

## Try it on a real board

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