How to play Ludo
Ludo is a race game for two to four players. Each player has four tokens that start in their yard. Roll a 6 to bring a token out, race it once round the board and up your home column, and send other players' tokens back by landing on them. The first player to get all four tokens home wins.
Step by step
Put your tokens in your yard
Each player takes the four tokens of one colour and places them in the big square of that colour in a corner of the board.
Roll a 6 to come out
Take turns rolling the die. You need a 6 to move a token out of your yard onto your coloured start square.
Move round the board
Move one token forward by the number you roll, going clockwise round the outside track. If no token can move, your turn passes.
Roll a 6, roll again
A 6 gives you another roll after you move. In the usual rule, a third 6 in a row ends your turn without moving.
Capture by landing on a token
Land exactly on another player's token and it goes back to their yard. On a star square or a start square, nobody can be captured.
Go up your home column
After one full lap, turn into the coloured column that leads to the centre. Only your own tokens can go there, so they are safe.
Get all four home
You need the exact number to reach the centre. The first player to bring all four tokens home wins.
The full rules
Setting up
Ludo is played on a square board shaped like a cross. Each corner has a big coloured square, the yard, where that colour’s four tokens wait at the start. The arms of the cross form a track of 52 squares that runs round the board. Down the middle of each arm runs a coloured home column leading to the triangle in the centre, which is home.
On GamesBento you always play Red, in the bottom-left corner. With one computer player, Ama plays Yellow across the board from you. With more, Ama, Tunde and Priya join on Green, Yellow and Blue. Each colour’s tokens also carry their own white mark (a circle, triangle, square or diamond), so you can tell them apart without relying on colour.
Taking a turn
Roll the die and move one token forward by the number shown. Tokens move clockwise round the track.
- To leave the yard you need a 6. The token goes onto your coloured start square, the one with the arrow.
- A 6 earns another roll once you have moved. If you roll a 6 and nothing can move, you still roll again.
- Three 6s in a row ends your turn straight away, without moving. This rule is on by default and can be switched off when you start a new game.
- If none of your tokens can move by the number rolled, your turn passes.
Capturing
If your token finishes its move on a square where another player’s token stands, that token is captured and goes back to its yard. Its owner will need another 6 to bring it out again. If two tokens of the same colour share the square, both go back.
You can never capture your own tokens, and tokens in a home column are out of everybody else’s reach.
Safe squares
The four start squares (with arrows) and the four star squares are safe. Tokens of different colours can share these squares and nobody is captured there. Some people play without safe squares; you can switch them off in the new game settings.
Getting home
When a token has gone nearly all the way round, it turns off the track into its own home column instead of starting another lap. To reach the centre it needs the exact number. If the number is too big, that token can’t move.
The first player to bring all four tokens home wins the game.
Tips
- Bring tokens out early. More tokens on the board means more choices for each roll.
- Capture when you can, especially a token that has travelled a long way.
- Look behind you. A token with an opponent one to six squares behind it can be captured on their next roll. Moving it on, or onto a star, keeps it safe.
- Hurry into your home column. Once a token is in the column, it can’t be caught.
- Use the Hint button if you’re unsure. It suggests a token and explains why.
Common questions
What happens if I roll a 6 but have no token that can move?
You still roll again. A 6 always earns another roll, even when it can't be used. On GamesBento this happens automatically.
Can two of my tokens share a square?
Yes. Your own tokens can stand together. Some families play that two tokens together form a block that nobody can pass or capture; that is a house rule and is not used here.
Do I have to move a token if I can?
Yes. If any of your tokens can move by the number rolled, you must move one of them, even if you would rather not.
Does capturing a token give an extra roll?
In many families and apps it does, and some also give an extra roll for bringing a token home. It isn't part of the classic rules, so on GamesBento it is an option you can switch on when you start a new game.
What if I roll more than I need to reach home?
That token can't move. You need the exact number, so move a different token if you can, or wait for the right roll.
Is Ludo all luck?
The die decides a lot, but your choices matter too: which token to move, when to capture, and when to hurry a token out of danger or onto a safe square.
Where it comes from
Ludo is a simplified version of the Indian cross-and-circle game Pachisi, which has been played in India for centuries. A version of the game was patented in England in the 1890s under the name Ludo, from the Latin for 'I play', and it became a family favourite across Britain and the Commonwealth. Today it is especially popular in India, Nigeria and much of Africa, and in the UK, where many people grew up playing it on a folding board. Many countries have their own names and house rules for it.
