---
title: "What Is 三步虎, the Three-Step Tiger Opening? · Xiangqi Master"
description: "三步虎 develops a cannon, then a horse, then swings a chariot quickly onto an open file, aiming to reach an active position faster than a slower build-up allows."
url: https://xiangqimaster.com/blog/what-is-san-bu-hu-the-three-step-tiger
updated: 2026-09-23
source: Xiangqi Master (https://xiangqimaster.com)
license: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
---

# What is 三步虎, the 'three-step tiger' opening system?

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
>
> **三步虎** ("three-step tiger") is a rapid development pattern, most often for Red, that develops a **cannon**, then a **horse**, then swings a **chariot** quickly onto the file the horse just vacated, aiming to reach an active, coordinated position faster than a slower build-up allows. The name reflects the speed of the plan rather than any single named position.

## Why speed is the whole point

Each of the three moves develops a different piece toward a useful square, so by the time all three are played, Red already has a cannon, a horse and a chariot working together rather than still deciding where they belong. Reaching that coordination quickly can catch a slower-developing opponent before their own pieces are ready to resist it.

## What can go wrong with rushing it

Playing the three moves mechanically, without checking what the opponent is actually doing in response, can walk into a concrete threat the plan never accounted for. The speed is only valuable if each of the three moves is still the best available response to the position in front of you, not a fixed sequence played on autopilot.

## Related questions

Does this work well against Screen Horses specifically?

It can, since a fast chariot swing pressures a position that is still completing its own development, but it needs the same care against any solid, well-developed reply.

Is this considered an aggressive or a solid system?

Aggressive; it prioritises quick activity over the kind of unhurried structural solidity a system like 飛相局 offers.

## Related xiangqi resources

The Central Cannon

The most played first move in the game

Opening principles

What the first ten moves are actually for

Xiangqi openings

The opening reference

## Try it on a real board

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