How to Play Ludo: Rules and Winning Tips
In Ludo, 2 to 4 players race four tokens each once around the board and up their own coloured lane to the centre. You need a 6 to bring a token out, a 6 gives you another roll (but three 6s in a row lose your turn), landing on a rival sends it back to its base unless it's on a star or start square, and you need the exact roll to get home. The first player with all four tokens home wins.
The board and the goal
The board is a cross-shaped track of 52 squares that runs around four coloured bases (on GameLake, four ponds). Each player has four tokens waiting in their base. Next to each base is that colour's start square, and from the edge of the board a home lane of five squares in your colour leads to the triangle in the middle.
Every token makes the same trip: out onto its start square, once around the track clockwise, then up its own home lane and into the centre. Counting the start square, that's 51 squares on the shared track, 5 in the home lane and the final step home.
Ludo rules, step by step
- Getting out. Roll the die on your turn. You need a 6 to move a token out of your base onto your start square.
- Moving. Move one token forward by the number you rolled. You can't split a roll between two tokens. If no token can move, your turn passes.
- Rolling a 6. A 6 gives you another roll after you move. But if you roll three 6s in a row, your turn ends at once and the third 6 isn't played.
- Capturing. If your token ends its move on a square with a rival's token, the rival goes back to its base and has to roll a 6 to come out again. Landing on two rival tokens of the same colour sends both back.
- Safe squares. Tokens on a star or on any start square can't be captured. Different colours can share these squares.
- Going home. After a lap, turn up your home lane. Nobody else can enter it, so tokens there are safe. You need the exact number to reach the centre: if the roll is too big, move another token instead.
- Winning. The first player to get all four tokens home wins.
How Ludo works on GameLake
GameLake plays the rules above with no blockades: two of your tokens on the same square don't stop anyone passing, and a rival landing there (off a safe square) sends both home. Capturing or reaching home doesn't earn an extra roll; only a 6 does.
Pick Easy, Medium or Hard to play against one to three bots (Hop the frog, Pip the duck and Shelly the turtle), or Friends to pass one device around for two to four players. Tap the die to roll and tap a glowing token to move it; if only one move is possible, it happens by itself. Switch on Teach me and Hop points at a good move each turn and says why, for example that it reaches home, captures, or gets a token out of danger.
Winning tips
1. Get tokens out early
When you roll a 6, bringing out a new token is often the best use of it, especially early on. More tokens on the track means more choices for every later roll, so you're less likely to be forced into a bad move.
2. Stay out of the danger zone
A rival can only hit you if it lands exactly on your square, so the dangerous squares are the six in front of each rival token. Before you move, look behind the square you're landing on. If a rival sits one to six squares back, it has a real chance of rolling the number it needs.
3. Use safe squares as stepping stones
Stars and start squares are free shelter. If a roll lets a token land on one, that's often better than a bigger step that leaves it exposed. Be careful just past a rival's start square while it still has tokens in its base: a single 6 brings one out right behind you.
4. Capture the token that has gone furthest
If you can choose between captures, hit the rival token that's nearest its home lane. Sending it back costs its owner a whole lap and a new 6 to get out. Capturing a token that has just left its base hurts much less.
5. Spread your risk, then hurry the stragglers
Tokens in your home lane are completely safe, so there's no rush to finish them. Use your rolls on tokens that are still out on the track, especially ones with rivals behind them, and let the safe ones wait for the exact number.
Common Ludo variations
Ludo comes from the Indian game Pachisi and was sold in England as Ludo from the 1890s, so house rules vary a lot. If you play at home, agree on these before you start:
- Bonus rolls for capturing a token or getting one home.
- Blockades: two tokens of the same colour on one square can't be passed or captured.
- Getting out with a 1 or a 6, or entering with a 6 and moving a few squares at once.
- Playing on after the first winner to decide second and third place.
None of these are used on GameLake, which keeps to the simple rules described above.
Frequently asked questions
How do you get a token out in Ludo?
You need to roll a 6. The token moves from your base onto your start square, and because you rolled a 6 you get another roll.
What happens if you roll three 6s in a row?
Your turn ends straight away and the third 6 is not played. The moves you made with the first two 6s still count.
Can you be captured on a star in Ludo?
No. Stars and the four coloured start squares are safe: tokens there can't be sent back, and tokens of different colours can share them.
Do you need an exact roll to get home in Ludo?
Yes. A token only moves into the centre with the exact number. If the roll is too big, you move another token, or pass if none can move.
Do you get an extra turn for capturing in Ludo?
In some house rules you do, but not on GameLake. Here only a 6 gives you another roll.
How many players can play Ludo?
Two to four. On GameLake you can play against one, two or three bots, or pass one device around for two to four friends.