Ludo
Roll, bring your four horses out, kick the others back to their stable, and climb your home column first.
2-4 players20-40 min
Best with a TV
Ludo is the classic race of four colours, called cờ cá ngựa in Vietnam. Roll the die, bring your horses out, kick the others back to their stable and climb your home column first. GatherPlay plays by Vietnamese house rules: a 1 or a 6 brings a horse out, horses can't pass each other, and the home column is climbed one exact roll at a time. The host can switch to international rules.
How to play Ludo
Goal
- Be the first to get your four horses home, on steps 3, 4, 5 and 6 of your home column.
How it works
- On your turn, tap Roll. If you can move, pick a horse; if only one horse can move, it goes by itself.
- Horses start in the stable. A 1 or a 6 brings one out onto your start cell.
- Horses run clockwise around the board, as many cells as the die shows.
- A horse can't pass another horse, and can't land on one of your own.
- Land exactly on another colour's horse to kick it back to its stable.
- A 6 gives you another roll.
Getting home
- A horse goes once around and stops at the cell before your home column. It can't go past it.
- From there, a roll of 3 puts it on step 3. Then it climbs one step at a time with the exact next number: a 4 to go from 3 to 4.
- Fill steps 3, 4, 5 and 6 with your four horses to win.
House rules
- The host can make only a 6 bring a horse out, as in international Ludo.
- The host can let horses pass over others. Landing on a horse still kicks it.
- With a turn timer, the game rolls or moves for a player who runs out of time.
- The next roll waits until the die has landed and the horse has stopped. In Frantic, nobody waits.
Learn to play: How to play Ludo (Cá Ngựa): rules, kicks and getting home
Questions and answers
How many people can play?
2 to 4, one colour each. With two players, you sit on opposite sides of the board.
Which rules do you use?
Vietnamese house rules: a 1 or a 6 brings a horse out, a 6 rolls again, no passing, and the home column needs exact rolls. The host can make only a 6 bring a horse out and allow passing.
Who rolls the die?
You tap Roll on your phone, and the server rolls. Nobody can see or change the next roll.
Do we need the shared screen?
No. Every phone shows the whole board. A shared screen makes it big for the room, and phones can then show just your moves.