---
title: "Should You Keep Both Cannons in Xiangqi? · Xiangqi Master"
description: "Keep both while the board is full, especially if you are attacking — two cannons make 重炮 possible. Trade one heading into an endgame."
url: https://xiangqimaster.com/blog/should-i-keep-both-cannons
updated: 2026-09-22
source: Xiangqi Master (https://xiangqimaster.com)
license: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
---

# Should I keep both cannons or trade one?

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
>
> **Keep both while the board is full**, particularly if you are the attacker: two cannons can stack into **重炮**, which needs no other support, and each can screen for the other. **Trade one heading into an endgame**, where cannons fade and the horse you get in return is gaining value.

## The attacking case for two

Two cannons are more than twice one cannon, because each solves the other's screen problem. Against a general on an open central file, a second cannon can convert a positional bind into a forced mate in a single move.

If your opponent has both cannons and your general's file is clear, that is a concrete danger worth spending a move on.

## The endgame case for trading

A cannon weakens with every exchange, so its value is highest now and lower later. Trading a cannon for a horse while the board is still full is buying a piece that is about to appreciate with one that is about to depreciate.

## Related questions

Is one cannon and one horse a good pair?

Very — it is the 馬後炮 pair, and it forces mate against a bare general.

Should I trade cannons when defending?

Usually yes. It removes 重炮 from the position entirely.

## Related xiangqi resources

The double cannon mate

重炮 — two cannons on one file

Cannon endgames

The piece that fades as the board empties

What the pieces are worth

And the three times the numbers stop being true

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