What is the technique for cannon and advisor versus a bare general?
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
Bring your advisor to a point that can serve as the cannon's screen on the general's file or rank, then use the cannon to take away escape points one at a time until the general has nowhere left to go. The advisor rarely does anything else in this endgame, its whole job is being the screen the cannon cannot mate without.
Why the advisor has to lead
A lone cannon cannot even check a bare general, since an empty palace supplies no screen. The advisor solves that at a stroke: once it is on the right point, the cannon threatens through it immediately, and from there the technique is just cornering the general with the cannon while the advisor holds its position.
The one thing to watch for
Do not let the advisor drift off the file or rank that matters just because it looks safe elsewhere, its value here is entirely positional, not defensive. Keeping it exactly where the cannon needs it is the whole of the technique.
Related questions
Does the advisor ever need to move more than once?
Sometimes, if the general's own manoeuvring forces you to shift which line the cannon is using, but the advisor's job stays the same throughout.
Would an elephant work instead of an advisor here?
No, it can never cross the river, so it cannot reach the enemy palace to act as a screen there. See why a lone cannon cannot checkmate.
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