: Written by: Jim Png

Chapter 6: Block 拦截

This chapter will discuss the tactic of blocking enemy material and how it can be applied to various situations.
Blocking is an essential tactic in Xiangqi. When you block and enemy piece:
a) you severe any relationship between that piece and other enemy pieces,
b) truncate the control that the piece has over the line or intersections,
c) create obstacles on those lines and intersections for the enemy, et cetera.

These tactics are commonly used in the midgame and endgame phase and can be achieved with clever intermediate tactics.
If the tactic is used during attack, it would usually represent a dynamic form of harassing the enemy's defense such that piece cannot perform its duties correctly.
The tactic is also used extensively on defense. Sometimes, the tactic is used simultaneously for both offense and defense.

The tactic of blocking can further be discussed as:
(i)"借势拦截" blocking while taking advantage of the situation (leveraging the situation),
(ii)"将、抽截断", truncating the enemy pieces via checks and discovered checks,
(iii)"设置障碍", placement of roadblocks.
They will be discussed separately below.

Note: The examples have also been made into short videos with corresponding tags to offer a clearer explanation. The URL would be: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSgklQ5ZjutrQ24JjNmVwnkp82VKWHgHQ

c) Placement of Roadblocks

In this section, we will be discussing the tactic of creating obstacles, which is how to make use of the tactic of blocking to limit the space that an enemy piece can move and thus control its mobility. Simply put, it would be a tactic that increases the difficulty of the enemy piece when moving.