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Shogi Kuzushi Strategy and Tips

Here is how to think about winning at Shogi Kuzushi, split into short lessons. Each one reads on its own, and each one comes with a real position: press Try it on the board and you play the move yourself.

Pull pieces with nothing resting on them

Lesson 1

In a Shogi Kuzushi pile, pieces overlap in layers. If you try to pull a piece that has another resting on it, it touches that piece the moment it moves and the pull fails on the spot — the online version of a piece shifting and clicking in the real game.

So the first thing to look for is a piece with nothing on top of it. Pieces on the outside of the pile that don't overlap anything are usually safe. In the 2D view from above, pieces in higher layers are drawn brighter with a thicker edge; in 3D you can turn the view to check the layers from the side.

Here, the Gold rests on the Pawn in the middle, so the Pawn can't be pulled cleanly. The Rook on the left has nothing on it, so sliding it left takes it. Select the glowing Rook, set the fan range, stop the arrow, then drag it left.

The direction matters: read the path

Lesson 2

Once you've found a piece you can pull, choose the direction. The piece slides straight off the board that way, and if a collision or scrape with another piece pushes the noise meter past the fail line, the pull fails. The same piece can succeed or fail just by changing direction.

Choose a clear path toward the outside of the board. Select the piece, set the fan range, stop the arrow, then drag it that way.

The Rook here would hit the Silver if slid straight back. Slid diagonally to the back right, it passes beside the Silver and leaves the board. Select the glowing Rook, set the fan range, stop the arrow, then drag it back-right.

With points, take the most valuable piece you can

Lesson 3

With Points selected, Shogi Kuzushi is decided by the total value of the pieces you take: King 10, Jeweled king 8, Rook 7, Bishop 6, Gold 5, Silver 4, Knight 3, Lance 2, Pawn 1. Seven Pawns are worth the same as one Rook.

When two or more pieces are safe to pull, take the valuable one first. A successful pull lets you keep going, so collecting high-value pieces while you can leaves you ahead even if a later pull fails. On the other hand, valuable pieces are often buried deep, and forcing a risky pull hands the turn to your opponent. Tap a piece during your opponent's turn and its value is shown at the top of the description.

Here, both the Rook on the left and the Pawn on the right have nothing on them. Slide the more valuable Rook to the left.

You can slide over pieces lying underneath

Lesson 4

Pieces sitting on top of the pile are the easy ones. Nothing rests on them, and they can slide over lower pieces without touching them. A pull fails if a collision or scrape pushes the noise meter past the fail line.

With real pieces, gently sliding over lower pieces doesn't count as a fail as long as nothing makes a sound. Here too, the noise meter measures the sound of contact between pieces, and crossing the fail line means failure. Tiny collisions and quiet scrapes are safe. In the 2D view from above, brighter pieces with thicker edges are on top; in 3D, they sit higher.

The Bishop here rests on a Pawn. Slide it to the right and it passes another Pawn on the way, but that Pawn lies lower than the Bishop, so nothing is touched. Select the glowing Bishop, set the fan range, stop the arrow, then slide it out by dragging it right.

Try it on the board

Pick a lesson and the board starts from that position. Start over as often as you like.

Now put it to work

Play with friendsLearn how to play (4 min)

Last updated 2026-10-01 · Run by Qdan, Inc.