Chapter 03 · Formats
Classic ludo: the four-player, all-tokens-home rule card.
Classic is the format rule card most Indian apps publish first. Four players, four tokens each, fifteen to thirty minutes, and a hard rule: no capture on the last five home-column squares.
Updated 12 August 2026 · Editorial desk, Ludotoday
01 · Lede
What the rule card says
02 · Reading the chapter
Why Classic is the reference format
The four-player geometry
Classic keeps the full cross-shaped board in play. Each colour owns one quadrant of the yard, one quarter of the shared path, and one home column. You will see all four colours move every turn.
This makes capture pressure highest in Classic. With four tokens on the shared path, the chance of being one square behind an opponent on any turn is meaningful. Plan for it.
The all-tokens-home finish
Classic ends only when one colour has all four tokens in the centre. The last five squares of the home column are off-limits to captures, so a leading token can climb in peace.
The race becomes a sprint once you cross the threshold of three tokens home. With one token left, the finish line is your opponent's problem.
03 · Sourcing
Where this comes from
Match lengths and rake ranges were drawn from the public rule cards on three Indian apps as of August 2026, plus the time logs from twenty observed matches on each platform. Home-column safety and the three-sixes penalty are present on most rule cards; the exact wording varies. Read the card before you stake.
04 · Next read
Compare formats
If you or someone close to you needs support, the helpline on the responsible-play desk is free in India and operates 24x7.
Sourcing
Figures and rules on this page come from arithmetic on a fair six-faced die, public platform rule cards, and MeitY / PROG Act 2025 notifications. Where house rules differ, the platform's published rule card supersedes this page.