How do you get a token out of base in Ludo?

Roll a six. Most rules let you bring a token out only on a six, and some give an extra turn for it.

What happens when you land on an opponent's token?

It goes back to its base. Most rules leave a safe square where tokens cannot be captured.

How many players can play Ludo?

Two to four, each with four tokens in a coloured base.

What is a safe square?

A square where tokens cannot be captured. It is usually marked with a star or a coloured symbol.

Commonly the player who rolls the highest number. Turns then pass clockwise.

Move all four tokens into the home column and onto the centre. The first player to finish wins.

Ludo rules: how to get your tokens home, and why a six matters

Ludo is a race game, and most of its tension comes from one number, the six. It is simple enough for young children and social enough to keep adults at the table. The modern board game grew out of Pachisi, an older game from India played with cowrie shells or dice on a cross-shaped board.

Setup

The board has a cross-shaped track of squares, with a coloured home area at each arm. Each player takes one colour and four tokens, and places the tokens in their base corner. Two to four can play. With two, players sit opposite each other, and the tokens are arranged in the same way.

The Ludo board. Tokens start in their colour's base, and a six brings them onto the track.

A turn

Roll the die. Then:

If you rolled a six, you may take a token out of base onto the start square of your colour. Most rules allow a second roll after a six.
Otherwise, move one token forward by the number you rolled, clockwise round the track.
If you cannot move any token, your turn ends.

A token that lands on an opponent's token sends it back to base. A token that lands on a square already holding one of its own colour may share it, depending on the house rules.

Getting home

Each colour has a home column that leads from the track into the centre. A token must travel the whole track, then enter its home column. A token must land exactly on the centre square to finish, so the last few squares can take several turns. The first player to bring all four tokens home wins.

Safe squares

Most versions mark some squares as safe. A token on a safe square cannot be captured. Safe squares are the most useful place to wait when an opponent is close behind you, and they often decide who finishes first.

Common house rules

Three sixes. Some families lose a turn, or send the token back, after three sixes in a row.
Stacking. Whether two of your own tokens can share a square, and whether they then form a block that opponents cannot pass.
Exact finish. Whether a token must land on the centre exactly, or may pass it and wait.

Agree on these before the first roll. Ludo is much less frustrating when everyone knows the rules.

Teaching young children

Use a single die and let children choose which token to move. Count the squares aloud as tokens move. Children who count well enjoy the race, and children who count slowly learn the numbers quickly. Expect the game to take twenty minutes or more, which is short enough for most families.