Ludo

About Ludo

Ludo against the computer: you play red against up to three computer players, at Easy or Normal. Change who plays each colour with the Players button.

Ludo is the classic race game for two to four players. Each colour has four pawns waiting in its yard. Roll a six to bring one out, race it once around the cross-shaped board, and walk it up your own coloured home column into the middle. Land on a rival to send it back to its yard. The first player with all four pawns home wins.

Also called: ludo game, parcheesi style, pachisi.

How to play Ludo

1. Press Roll (or tap the die). You need a 6 to bring a pawn out of your yard onto your coloured start square.
2. After a roll, the pawns that can move bounce. Tap one to move it that many squares, clockwise around the board. When only one move is possible, or every choice is the same, it plays by itself.
3. Rolling a 6 gives you another roll. But three 6s in a row forfeit your turn: the third 6 is not played.
4. Land on a square holding a rival’s pawn and it is captured: it goes back to its yard and needs another 6 to come out.
5. After almost a full lap, your pawn turns into your own home column and walks to the triangle in the middle. Get all four pawns home to win.
6. Pick Players to choose who plays each colour: a person at this screen, the computer, or nobody. Two to four colours can play.

Rules

• A pawn leaves the yard only on a 6, onto its start square (the coloured square with an arrow).
• Pawns move clockwise by the exact number rolled. You must move if any pawn can; if none can, the turn passes.
• A 6 earns an extra roll, even if it can’t be used. Three 6s in a row end your turn at once, and the third 6 isn’t moved.
• Landing on a square with rival pawns sends every one of them back to their yard. Your own pawns can share a square.
• Starred squares and the four start squares are safe: nobody can be captured there, and pawns of different colours can share them.
• Pawns in a home column are safe. Reaching the centre needs an exact roll; a roll that would overshoot can’t be played with that pawn.
• The first player to bring all four pawns home wins the game.

Ludo tips and strategy

• Get pawns out early. A single pawn on the board leaves you stuck when it is blocked or captured; two or three give every roll a use.
• A rival pawn one to six squares behind you can hit you next turn. Move out of range, or onto a star, when you can.
• Capturing a pawn that has nearly finished its lap costs its owner the most, so look for those shots first.
• Parking a pawn just past a rival’s start square is risky: new pawns coming out on a 6 land right behind you.
• Near the end, spread your pawns across the home column so more rolls can be used exactly.