---
title: "The Most Famous Xiangqi Endgame Compositions · Xiangqi Master"
description: "The best-known are the four great composed positions, 七星聚會, 蚯蚓降龍, 野馬操田 and 千里獨行. How composed endgames differ from practical ones."
url: https://xiangqimaster.com/blog/what-are-the-most-famous-xiangqi-endgame-compositions
updated: 2026-09-29
source: Xiangqi Master (https://xiangqimaster.com)
license: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
---

# What are the most famous xiangqi endgames?

These answers restate the rules implemented by our open-source engine, which follows the WXF laws for movement, checkmate and both repetition rulings: a side that forces a repetition by perpetual check or perpetual chase loses rather than drawing. The chase half has not been validated against the official casebook. Where an answer refers to a specific position, that position lives on the linked reference page, where the build verifies it before publishing.

> Direct answer
>
> The best-known composed endgames are four positions often called the **four great endgames**: **七星聚會** ("seven stars gather"), **蚯蚓降龍** ("the earthworm subdues the dragon"), **野馬操田** ("the wild horse ploughs the field") and **千里獨行** ("travelling a thousand li alone"). They are composed problems, set positions with a hidden solution, rather than endings that arise in ordinary games.

## Composed endgames and practical endgames

Chinese uses two different ideas here. A **排局** is a composed position: someone arranged the pieces to hide a precise, often surprising solution. A **實用殘局**, a practical endgame, is the kind of position real games reach, such as a chariot against a full defence or a horse and soldier against a horse. The famous names belong to the first kind.

Many composed positions circulated as [江湖排局](https://xiangqimaster.com/blog/what-is-jianghu-paiju), the set positions street players used for wagers, where the whole point was that the position looked easier than it was.

## Why these four are famous

Each looks manageable at a glance, with an apparently obvious plan, and each turns out to be deep, with long, precise lines where one natural-looking move changes the result. That combination of an innocent appearance and hidden depth is what made them good for teaching, for wagers and for enthusiasts' study. Their poetic names describe the imagery of the play rather than the rules of the position.

## Should you study them?

They are a pleasure to work through and they train careful calculation. But if your aim is to win more games, the practical endings come first: the [basic checkmates](https://xiangqimaster.com/endgames/basic-checkmates), soldier endings and the key defensive draws. Come to the classics once those are automatic.

## Related questions

Where are these positions published?

In many collections of composed problems and endgame books. Work through them with a board beside you, since the notation is long.

Are there other classic collections?

Yes. Historical collections of composed problems exist alongside the famous opening manuals; [the classic xiangqi books](https://xiangqimaster.com/blog/what-are-the-classic-xiangqi-books) gives an overview.

## Related xiangqi resources

Xiangqi endgames

What beats what, and why

Basic checkmates

Mating with ordinary material

History of xiangqi

When the game was invented, and what is actually documented

## Try it on a real board

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