Ludo
How to play Ludo
Ludo is a dice race game for two to four players in which each player moves four tokens from their yard round the board and home, sending back opponents they land on.
Play against one to three computer players; a six brings a token out of the yard.
The goal of Ludo
Ludo is a race game for two to four players, each with four tokens. You play against computer players and can choose two, three or four players in all. The first player to bring all four tokens home wins.
How to set up Ludo
All tokens start in their yard. With two players, the two colours sit across the board from each other; with three or four, each player takes one arm of the cross-shaped board.
Ludo rules
On your turn, roll the die and move one token that many squares. A token can leave the yard only on a six, which places it on its start square. A six also gives you another roll, but a third six in a row is void and ends your turn. If no token can move, the turn passes.
After almost a full lap of the 52-square track, a token turns into its own five-square home column and then reaches home. Getting home needs the exact number: a roll that would carry a token past home cannot be used for that token.
Landing on a square with opponent tokens sends all of them back to their yard, unless the square is safe. The safe squares are the four start squares and the four star squares. Your own tokens may share a square, and no square is ever blocked. Capturing and reaching home do not give an extra roll.
Ludo strategy tips
Bring tokens out of the yard when you can, so each roll gives you more choices.
A token with an opponent one to six squares behind it can be captured on the next roll. Move it on, or stop on a safe square.
When you can capture, prefer the opponent token that has travelled furthest: sending it back costs its owner the most.
A token that has turned into its home column can no longer be captured. When a token near the end is threatened, using the roll to move it into its column puts it out of reach.
Ludo questions and answers
Can you play Ludo online with friends?
Yes. Sign in, follow the Multiplayer link and open a table for two, three or four players, then share its code or list it in the lobby. With Fill empty seats with bots ticked, you can start once a second person sits down. At a table with other people, a player who takes more than 60 seconds has a bot play for them until they come back.
Do you need a six to get a token out in Ludo?
Yes, a token can leave the yard only on a roll of six, and it goes to its start square. The six also earns another roll, which you can use for the new token or any other. If all your tokens are in the yard and you roll anything else, the turn passes.
What happens if you roll three sixes in a row in Ludo?
The third six is void and your turn ends at once. The first two sixes are played as normal, each giving another roll, but the third cannot move any token. It is the only limit on extra rolls, and only a six earns one: capturing or bringing a token home does not.
Do you get an extra roll for capturing in Ludo?
No, here only a six gives another roll. A capture sends every opponent token on that square back to its yard, but it earns no bonus roll, and neither does bringing a token home. Captures cannot happen on the four start squares or the four star squares, which are safe.
Can two tokens form a block in Ludo?
No, there are no blocks: any token may land on or pass any square. Two of your own tokens may share a square, but an opponent who lands there captures both of them unless the square is one of the eight safe squares.
Is Ludo the same as Parchís or Parcheesi?
No, they are related race games with different rules. In all three, four tokens per player go round a cross-shaped board and home, and landing on an opponent sends it back. In Parchís and Parcheesi a token leaves home on a five, two tokens of one colour form a barrier no token can pass, and a capture or a token reaching home earns a bonus move of 20 or 10 squares. Here a token leaves the yard on a six, there are no barriers, and the only bonus is the extra roll after a six.
Is Ludo the same as Mensch ärgere dich nicht or Petits chevaux?
They are close relatives: pieces come out on a six, race round the board and home, and send back any opponent they land on. Neither Mensch ärgere dich nicht nor Petits chevaux has safe squares, while Ludo here has eight, the four start squares and the four stars. In Mensch ärgere dich nicht a piece may not land on one of your own, and in Petits chevaux a horse climbs its last steps one exact roll at a time. Here your own tokens may share a square, and a token moves up its home column by the whole roll, as long as it does not go past home.
Can you undo a move in Ludo?
Yes, in a game against the computer you can take back your last decision with the Undo button or Ctrl+Z. The computer players' moves follow from the board, so they are put back too, and an undo does not stop a win from counting. Online tables have no undo, restart or new game.