Shogi glossary
Knight
Japanese: 桂馬
In shogi, the knight (keima, 桂馬) jumps to one of the two squares two ranks ahead and one file to the side. It is the only piece that leaps over others, and it can never move backward or sideways.
Jumps two squares forward and one to the side; the only piece that jumps.
How it moves
A Black knight on 5e can go only to 4c or 6c, which is far narrower than the chess knight with up to eight targets. Black's knights start on 2i and 8i, next to the lances.
A knight with no squares ahead could never move again, so it may not be dropped on the opponent's last two ranks, and a knight that jumps there must promote.
How it is used
The knight's attack cannot be blocked, and its two target squares lie on the same rank. That makes it the classic forking piece, a shape called fundoshi no kei. Knight checks cannot be answered by interposing either, so dropped knights appear in many mating nets.
The cost is that an advanced knight cannot come back. A knight that jumps too early becomes an easy target for pawns, and a well-known Japanese proverb warns that a high-jumping knight ends up as food for pawns. Jump when it wins material or helps a mate.
FAQ
How is the shogi knight different from the chess knight?
It only jumps forward, two squares ahead and one to the side, so it has at most two moves instead of eight. Like the chess knight, it leaps over pieces and its checks cannot be blocked. It is worth about 4 on the usual scale.
I don't do defense. Hope you brought a castle!
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