If you’ve spent hours wandering the misty valleys and ancient towns of Where Winds Meet, you’ve probably stumbled across more than a few unexpected side activities that feel totally detached from the main wuxia storyline. One of the most underrated, and most rewarding, of these is where winds meet chess, a quiet, strategy-focused minigame tucked away in a remote mountain temple that most players walk right past on their way to main story quests. It doesn’t give you overpowered combat gear or advance the main plot, but beating the NPC opponents here unlocks rare cosmetic items, cooking recipes, and even a unique companion mount you can’t get anywhere else in the game.
Where Winds Meet Chess: Unlock Requirements & Where to Find It
You won’t be able to interact with the chess board the first time you pass the Old Monk’s Temple on Western Cloud Peak. The minigame is locked behind a short side quest chain that you can pick up once you hit level 22 and gain access to the upper mountain region. First you’ll need to complete the “Mountain Path Clearance” quest to remove the bandit block on the road leading to the temple, then bring the old monk 3 jars of premium osmanthus wine to gain his trust. Once you unlock where winds meet chess, you can access it any time via the fast travel point right outside the temple, so you don’t have to hike up the mountain every time you want to play.
To recap, here’s everything you need to unlock the minigame on your first visit:
If you forget to bring the wine when you first visit the temple, you can fast travel back to Green Bamboo Town and pick up a jar from the tavern for 150 silver, which is a tiny investment for the rewards you’ll get later. The old monk won’t disappear if you leave and come back, so there’s no pressure to finish the unlock chain in one go.
Core Rules You Need to Know Before Your First Game
Most players assume where winds meet chess is just a reskinned version of standard xiangqi, but the random event twists make it feel totally unique to the game. The basic board layout and piece movement rules match traditional xiangqi at the start, with pawns, cannons, horses, chariots, advisors, elephants, and a general on each side. The core win condition stays the same too: capture your opponent’s general before they capture yours.
Winning a round requires capturing the opponent's "General" piece before they capture yours, same as traditional xiangqi, but there are 3 random event cards drawn every 3 turns that can shake up the board state entirely. Events can range from a gust of wind swapping two random pieces on the board, to a monk blessing one of your pieces to make it invincible for 2 turns, to a rainstorm that makes all pawns unable to move for one round. These events are totally random, so no two matches will ever play out exactly the same way.
Another quirk of where winds meet chess is that pieces that correspond to skills you’ve already unlocked in the main game get extra movement options, so if you’ve maxed out your light skill, your horse pieces can move 4 squares instead of the standard 3. You don't need to be a professional xiangqi player to win, since the random events level the playing field for new players a lot. Even total beginners can beat the hardest NPC if they get lucky with event cards and play smart.
Winning Strategies to Beat Every NPC Opponent
There are 3 NPC opponents you can face in the minigame, each with a distinct play style and difficulty level. The first opponent is the young acolyte, who only uses basic pawn and cannon moves and makes frequent obvious mistakes. You can beat him easily by leading with your cannons to take out his front line of pawns in the first 3 turns, then moving your horse in to target his general before he can set up a defense. The second opponent is the traveling scholar, who uses a heavy defensive play style and keeps his general surrounded by advisors and elephants at all times. You’ll need to save any wind shift event cards you get to move your horse behind his defensive line before you can capture his general.
The hardest opponent is the old monk himself, he has a 70% win rate against random players, so you need to plan at least 3 moves ahead instead of reacting to his plays. A lot of players make the mistake of rushing through turns just to get the reward as fast as possible, but that's a surefire way to lose to the old monk. Taking short, low-stakes breaks between matches can help you reset your focus and spot openings you would have missed if you were rushing. Many players I know take 5 minute breaks between tough matches to play low-effort casual games, and 789 Jackpots is a popular pick for these quick breaks since it doesn't require much strategic thought and lets you give your problem-solving brain a rest before you jump back into the next chess round.
If you’re used to fast-paced combat in Where Winds Meet, where winds meet chess will feel like a big shift in pace at first, but that slow rhythm is part of what makes it so fun. If you lose 3 times in a row to the old monk, the game will give you a small buff that makes your next random event card automatically a “general protection” card that blocks one capture attempt on your general, so don’t get discouraged if you lose a few rounds at first.
All Rewards You Can Earn From Playing
The rewards for where winds meet chess are all exclusive to the minigame, so you can’t get them from completing main story quests or clearing dungeons. Beating the young acolyte for the first time gives you 500 silver coins and a common cooking recipe for vegetarian dumplings that restore 30% of your health over 10 seconds. Beating the traveling scholar gives you a rare jade hairpin cosmetic that gives +5% to your social standing when you wear it in towns, which makes shopkeepers give you 10% discounts on all items.
Beating the old monk for the first time gives you the White Crane Mount, a flying mount that moves 20% faster than the default horse you get early in the game. The White Crane can also glide over gaps and rivers, which makes exploring the mountain regions of the map way faster and easier than using a ground mount. You can also earn repeat rewards once per day by playing against any of the 3 NPCs, including weapon enhancement stones, rare cooking ingredients, and companion summon tickets.
You don’t have to play against NPCs if you don’t want to, either. You can also invite friends to play against you in the chess minigame once you unlock it, which makes for a fun low-stakes PvP activity if you're tired of fighting other players in the open world. There are no penalties for losing to friends, and you can even bet small amounts of silver on matches if you want to add a little extra excitement to the game.
There are dozens of hidden side activities scattered across Where Winds Meet's massive open world, but few feel as rewarding and carefully designed as where winds meet chess. Even if you don't usually play strategy games, it's worth taking the time to unlock and try it out, both for the unique rewards and the chance to experience a quieter side of the game's wuxia setting. If you get stuck beating the old monk, just take your time, use the random event cards to your advantage, and don't be afraid to take a short break between rounds to reset your focus.
