The Goal
Ludus is a chess-like duel. Each commander leads 22 pieces.
Capture your opponent's First Lord (★) and you win instantly. Guard your own —
if it falls, the game is over. As in the novels: discipline over ferocity, and pieces
that support one another are stronger than pieces fighting alone.
The Two Boards
You fight on a ground board of 11×11 squares. Floating above its centre is a
smaller sky board of 5×5 squares — the skies above the battlefield. Each sky
square sits directly over the shaded centre square it shadows. Only aerial pieces
(ringed in cyan) can fly up to the sky board; from there they can drop back down onto
the ground square beneath them.
Taking a Turn
- One action per turn. White moves first, then players alternate.
- Click one of your pieces to select it — its legal destinations light up
(green = move, red = capture).
- A piece either moves (landing on an enemy captures it) or, for the
Knights and High Lords, fires a furycraft attack that removes a target without moving.
- Flying up to or down from the sky board uses your whole turn.
The Pieces
LLegionnaire
Moves 1 forward/left/right (2 forward on its first move). Captures only forward-diagonally. Reaches the far rank → becomes a Veteran.
VVeteran
A promoted Legionnaire. Moves and captures 1 square in any of the 8 directions.
FKnight Flora
Slides up to 2 squares diagonally. Woodcraft: instead attack an enemy up to 2 diagonal squares away.
TKnight Terra
Leaps in an L-shape like a chess knight. Terracraft: strike an adjacent enemy — and any enemy directly behind it.
IKnight Ignis
Moves up to 2 squares straight (no diagonals). Firecraft: instead burn an enemy up to 2 squares away in a straight line.
AKnight Aeris air
Moves 2 squares any direction. Can fly to the sky board (from the centre) and strike down onto the ground.
HHigh Lord air
The most powerful piece short of the First Lord. Moves 2 any direction, flies, and steps across the sky. Wields furycraft: an orthogonal strike to range 2 that pierces the enemy directly behind its target.
★First Lord air
Your king. Moves 2 any direction and may fly. If captured, you lose — protect it above all.
Opponents & Modes
- Vs a character — each foe from the Realm plays at a set difficulty (Easy/Medium/Hard); change it any time in Settings.
- Pass & Play — two players share one screen (use Flip Board to turn it around).
- Online — Create a room, share the 5-letter code, and your opponent joins to play live.
Note: only the canonical board sizes, the First
Lord, and the support theme come from Jim Butcher's novels — the piece moves and furycraft are
a balanced design for play. Full notes in LUDUS.md.