Snakes and Ladders

board game · ancient India · luck and strategy

Roll the dice. Players take turns rolling a die and move their game piece that many squares forward on a numbered board. Everyone starts at the bottom and tries to be first to reach the top.

Climb the ladders. When you land on a square with the bottom of a ladder, you get to climb up to a higher square and move ahead quickly. Ladders are your friends in this game.

Beware the snakes. If you land on a square where a snake's head is, oh no, you slide all the way down to its tail and lose all that progress. Snakes send you backwards.

Ancient India origin. The game started in ancient India long ago with a different name, Moksha Patam, and was brought to England in the 1890s where it became popular around the world.

First to finish wins. The first player to reach the final numbered square at the top of the board wins the game. It's all about rolling lucky numbers and avoiding those sneaky snakes.