Ludo (board game)

Ludo (; ) is a strategy board game for two to four players, in which the players race their four from start to finish according to the rolls of a single die. Like other cross and circle games, Ludo is derived from the Indian game Pachisi, but simpler. The game and its variations are popular in many countries and under various names.
History.
Pachisi was created in India in the 6th century. The earliest evidence of this game's evolution in India is the depiction of boards on the caves of Ellora. The original version is also described in Indian epic Mahabharata in which Shakuni uses the cursed dice to beat the Pandavas and at last after losing everything, Yudhisthira puts his wife Draupadi on stake and loses her too. However, Pandavas get all their belongings back after Draupadi vows to curse the whole Kuru lineage but stops at the intervention of Gandhari and seeing an opportunity to vent Draupadi's anger, Kuru king Dhritarashtra promises to give back the Pandavas, all that they had lost in the game. It was also known as Chaupar in ancient times. The contemporary version was played by the Mughal emperors of India; a notable example is Akbar.
Pachisi was modified to use a cubic die with dice cup and patented as "Ludo" in England in 1896. The Royal Navy took Ludo and converted it into the board game Uckers.
Ludo board.
Special areas of the Ludo board are typically coloured bright yellow, green, red, and blue. Each player is assigned a colour and has four tokens in their colour. The board is normally square with a cross-shaped , with each arm of the cross having three columns of squares, usually six per column. The middle columns usually have five squares coloured; these represent a player's "home column". A sixth coloured square not on the home column is a player's "starting square". At the centre of the board is a large "finishing square", often composed of coloured triangles atop the players' home columns (thus depicting "arrows" pointing to the finish).
Rules.
Overview.
Two, three, or four can play, without partnerships. At the beginning of the game, each player's four tokens are out of play and in the player's "yard" (one of the large corner areas of the board in the player's colour). When able to, the players will enter their tokens one per turn on their respective starting squares, and proceed to race them clockwise around the board along the "game track" (the path of squares not part of any player's home column). When reaching the square below his home column, a player continues by moving tokens up the column to the finishing square. The rolls of a single die control the swiftness of the tokens, and entry to the finishing square requires a precise roll from the player. The first to bring all their tokens to the finish wins the game. The others often continue to play to determine second-, third-, and fourth-place finishers.
Gameplay.
Each player rolls the die; the highest roller begins the game. Players alternate turns in a clockwise direction.
To enter a token into play from its yard to its starting square, a player must roll a "6". The player can draw a token from home every time he gets a "6" unless home is empty or move a piece 6 times. The start box has 2 own tokens (is doubled). If the player has no tokens yet in play and rolls other than a "6", the turn passes to the next player.
Players must always move a token according to the die value rolled. Once a player has one or more tokens in play, he selects a token and moves it forwards along the track the number of squares indicated by the die. If an opponent's token is blocking your pathway, you will need to land on the same space as the token to capture it. You cannot move past that token. are not allowed; if no move is possible, the turn moves to the next player.
If the player cannot draw a token from home, rolling a "6" earns the player an additional or "bonus" roll in that turn. If the bonus roll results in a "6" again, the player earns again an additional bonus roll. If the third roll is also a "6", the player may not move and the turn immediately passes to the next player.
If the advance of a token ends on a square occupied by an opponent's token, the opponent token is returned to its owner's yard. The returned token can be reentered into play only when the owner rolls a "6". If a piece lands on the same space as another piece of the same colour, the pieces are doubled and form a "block". If the advance of a block ends on an opponent’s block, the latter is captured and returned to its owner’s yard, collectively.
A player's home column squares are always safe since no opponent may enter them. In the home column, you cannot jump over your token. Roll the exact number needed to get each token onto the home triangle.
Variants.
list of international variants.
Ludo exists under different names, brands and various game derivations:
Mensch ärgere dich nicht.
Mensch ärgere dich nicht (Mate, Don't Get Angry), is a German game from 1914 and has equivalent names in Bulgarian, Croatian, Slovenian, Serbian, Macedonian, Albanian, Greek, Romanian, Turkish, Czech, and Slovak.
Hasbro.
Hasbro has multiple brand names for ludo-like games from its acquisitions including:
Differences.
African.
In some parts of Africa the following rules are reportedly played:
References.
Bibliography