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Castles 囲い
Step through how each castle is built, one move at a time. Only the builder's moves are shown — the opponent stands still — so you can see the shape form. In a real game you play these between your opponent's moves, and the order bends to what they do.
Use the arrows, the ← → keys, or swipe the board.
Crab 蟹囲い
kani-gakoi · Crab castle
A quick, flat castle — two golds like claws either side of a silver. Often the first stage of a Yagura.
- Strong
- Fast. Good when the fighting starts early.
- Weak
- The king is still near the centre; it does not survive a long attack.
Builds on the — its first moves are the same.
Move order
- Open the bishop.
- Space on the sixth file.
- Silver to f2, the crab's body.
- Left gold — the left claw.
- Right gold — the right claw.
- King tucked in behind. From here many players continue into a Yagura.
Why castles matter and how to choose one: the castles lesson · see which castles players here actually reach in the opening explorer.