---
title: "Advisors or Elephants: Which to Keep in a Xiangqi Endgame? · Xiangqi Master"
description: "It depends what is attacking. Advisors defend against cannons and chariots; elephants defend against horses and soldiers."
url: https://xiangqimaster.com/blog/should-i-keep-elephants-or-advisors
updated: 2026-09-22
source: Xiangqi Master (https://xiangqimaster.com)
license: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
---

# If I can only keep two, should they be advisors or elephants?

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
>
> **It depends entirely on what is attacking you.** Keep the **advisors** against chariots and cannons, because they fill the palace points those mates need. Keep the **elephants** against horses and soldiers, because they cover the points a horse wants to land on. Against mixed material, advisors are usually the more valuable pair.

## Why advisors edge it

The most common attacking material in xiangqi is chariot and cannon, and both are answered by advisors. Most cannon mates require a specific palace point to be empty, and an advisor filling it is what makes the difference between a draw and a loss.

## The worst outcome

Losing one of each. That opens a hole in both defences simultaneously, and it is precisely what a good attacker aims for — which is why they will often take an advisor at material cost rather than take a second elephant for free.

## Related questions

Is two elephants and no advisors ever better?

Against two horses, yes. It is an unusual material distribution but it happens.

Should I give a soldier to keep an advisor?

In the endgame, usually yes.

## Related xiangqi resources

Advisors and elephants

The defence that decides most endgames

Horse endgames

The piece that gains as the board empties

Cannon endgames

The piece that fades as the board empties

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