What is 起馬局, the horse-first opening?
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
起馬局 is any opening where Red's first move brings out a horse rather than the more common central-cannon or pawn-opening first move. It is flexible by design: Red delays committing to an attacking plan and often transposes into Screen Horses or another familiar setup a few moves later.
Why play a horse first at all
It develops a piece immediately without revealing whether Red intends a central-cannon attack or a quieter plan, which can make it harder for Black to choose the sharpest reply. It also sidesteps some of the most heavily analysed lines that follow directly from a first-move central cannon.
What it tends to become
Because it is a flexible move rather than a committal one, 起馬局 frequently transposes into standard middlegame structures, most often ones resembling Screen Horses, once both sides have developed further. It is less a fixed system than a starting move order that keeps options open.
Related questions
Is this a beginner-friendly opening?
Reasonably, since it avoids memorising sharp forcing lines, though the resulting positions still require understanding basic opening principles.
Does Black have a natural reply?
Developing symmetrically or heading toward Screen Horses of their own is a common and sound response.
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