A First Shogi Set for a Child: Which Board and Pieces to Start With, and When to Move Up

A child who has just learned that shogi exists usually wants to play today, not after a careful comparison of boards. That is the right instinct. The first equipment for a child should be the kind that comes out in ten seconds and goes away just as fast.

This page explains what to choose first, why “beginner” pieces with movement arrows are worth considering, whether plastic pieces are a problem, and how to move up to a wooden set later without buying twice.

The short answer

1. Choose for ease, not for grandeur. A light tabletop board or a folding board, used at the table where the child already sits, gets more games played than a fine board that has to be fetched.
2. While the rules are still new, pieces printed with how they move (often sold as study or beginner pieces) help a child play without asking an adult every turn.
3. Plastic pieces are a perfectly good start. They are light, tough and cheap enough that a dropped piece is not a crisis.
4. Move up in steps. When the child keeps coming back to the game, change to wooden pieces first, then to a thicker wooden board.

What a child actually needs

The equipment for a standard game of shogi is small. According to the Japan Shogi Association (Nihon Shōgi Renmei), a game uses eight kinds of pieces, 20 pieces per player, 40 pieces in total (Japan Shogi Association, “1. Setting up the pieces”, checked 2026-10-26). Add a board with 9 × 9 squares and you can play.

Two extras are nice to have but can wait:

• Komadai (駒台): small stands beside the board for the pieces each player has captured. In shogi, captured pieces can be dropped back into play, so keeping them visible matters. At first a small dish or the box lid does the same job.
• Komabako (駒箱): a box for the pieces. Anything that keeps all 40 pieces together will do. Losing one pawn is the usual way a children’s set stops being usable.

A fuller list for adult beginners is in The Equipment You Need to Start Shogi.

Choosing the board

A tabletop board comes first

A tabletop board (takujō-ban, 卓上盤) sits on an ordinary table. For a child this has three advantages:

• The height fits a chair. The child can play at the dining table or a desk, where they already spend their time.
• It is light enough to carry. A child can get it out and put it away without help.
• It can live on a shelf between games. Thick legged boards are meant to stay out on the floor; a tabletop board goes back on a shelf.

Legged boards (ashitsuki-ban) are lovely, but they assume players sitting on the floor, and they are heavy. For a child there is no hurry. Thickness in shogi listings is given in sun (1 sun ≈ 3 cm); how to read those sizes is in Shogi Board Sizes.

Folding and magnetic boards

If the set will travel, or storage space is tight, a folding board or a magnetic board is worth considering. A magnetic set also keeps the pieces in place in a car or on a train, which children appreciate.

The trade-off is feel. The click of a wooden piece on a wooden board is part of what makes shogi pleasant, and a folding or magnetic board gives less of it. That is fine for learning. It is also the first thing to change later.

Size and weight

Pick a size and thickness the child can handle alone. Exact dimensions vary from product to product, so check the listing, and if you can, lift the board in a shop. A board the child cannot carry is a board that waits for an adult, and fewer games get played.

Choosing the pieces

Pieces printed with how they move

Shogi has eight kinds of pieces, each moving differently, and most of them change into a different piece when they promote. That is a lot to remember at the start. Some pieces made for learners have arrows or dots on the face showing where the piece can move.

They help in two ways:

• The child can play without stopping to ask “how does this one move?”
• The child learns the moves by playing, rather than by memorising a chart first.

Product names and exactly what is printed differ between makers, so look at the photos on the listing before choosing.

Once the moves are in the child’s head, the arrows become unnecessary, and the child will usually ask for “real” pieces on their own.

Plastic pieces

Plastic pieces are light, durable and inexpensive. They survive being dropped, stepped on and packed in a school bag. For the first months, that matters more than the sound or the look.

Wooden pieces

Wooden pieces are the next step. The feel of the wood and the sound of the piece being placed on the board are a large part of shogi’s appeal, and some children play more once they have them.

Wooden pieces come in several kinds according to how the characters are made: painted on (kaki-goma), carved (hori-goma), and more elaborate kinds where the carving is filled or the lacquer is raised. For a child’s first wooden set, a simple painted or carved set is a sensible place to start. The kinds are explained in Shogi Piece Types, and the lettering styles in Shogi Piece Calligraphy Styles.

One practical tip: check the back of the pieces. Most pieces carry their promoted name on the back. The Japan Shogi Association notes that the king’s back is blank and that the king and the gold general cannot promote (Japan Shogi Association, “3. How the pieces move”, checked 2026-10-26). If a child asks why two kinds of piece have nothing on the back, that is the reason.

Buying a board and pieces as a set

For a first purchase, a matched set is the safer choice:

• The pieces are sized for the board, so they sit neatly inside the squares.
• Everything arrives together, so the child can play the same day.
• There is no risk of buying a board and finding the pieces you chose are too big or too small for it.

What is included varies, so check whether a set comes with komadai, a box or a bag, and how many pieces are listed. Choose by the child’s age, how keen they are, and your budget.

Moving up: an order that avoids buying twice

When the child keeps coming back to shogi, upgrade in this order:

1. Wooden pieces first. This is the change the child will feel most, and it costs the least.
2. Then a wooden board, still tabletop. A solid wooden board with a little thickness gives the pieces a clearer sound. The woods used for shogi boards are compared in Choosing the Wood for a Shogi Board.
3. A legged board, if ever, last. Only once you know where in the house the game is played and whether the family sits on the floor.

At each step, if you can, take the child to a shop or a shogi club and let them place a few pieces on different boards. Sound and feel are hard to judge from a listing.

Looking after a child’s set

A few habits keep a set in use for years:

• Wipe with a soft dry cloth after playing. A Japanese board maker, Maekawa Kaya Goban-ten, recommends gently dry-wiping with a soft, lint-free cloth such as cotton after use (Maekawa Kaya Goban-ten, care guide, checked 2026-10-26). Keep water and sticky fingers away from wooden boards and pieces.
• Count the pieces when putting them away. Forty pieces; a missing one is easiest to find the same day.
• Choose the storage spot. The same care guide says to avoid direct sunlight, places near heaters or air conditioners, and places where wind blows straight through, because rapid changes in temperature and humidity can cause cracks and warping. Also avoid sealing the set away somewhere damp. A windowsill is a poor home for a wooden board.
• Use a cover or bag for a wooden board that will be put away for a while. See Covers for Go and Shogi Boards.

FAQ

At what age can a child start? There is no fixed age. What matters is whether the child can follow the rules for each piece. Pieces printed with their moves lower that hurdle, so start when the child is interested.

Plastic or wooden pieces first? Plastic or learner pieces first, while the rules are new. Move to wooden pieces once the child is clearly sticking with the game.

Which board is best for a child? A light tabletop board or a folding board that the child can carry and put away alone.

Set or separate purchase? A set for the first purchase. Once the child has preferences, change the pieces or the board one at a time.

How do we learn to read game records together? Shogi records name squares by a column number and a row number. A guide for beginners is in How to Read a Shogi Board.

Summary

• Choose a child’s first shogi equipment for ease of use: a light tabletop or folding board the child can handle alone.
• Pieces printed with their moves let a child play before the rules are memorised; plastic pieces are a sound, durable start.
• A matched set avoids pieces that do not fit the board.
• Move up in steps: wooden pieces, then a wooden board, and a legged board only when you know where the game will be played.
• Look at the next step in person, at a shop or a shogi club, where the child can hear the difference.

Sources (checked 26 October 2026): Japan Shogi Association, “1. Setting up the pieces” (eight kinds of pieces, 20 per player, 40 in total); Japan Shogi Association, “3. How the pieces move” (the king’s blank back; king and gold do not promote); Maekawa Kaya Goban-ten, care guide (dry wiping; where not to store wooden equipment). This page is based on the Japanese version on this site. Products differ between makers; check the listing or ask the shop. This site is an independent information site about go and shogi equipment.