How to play Stratego

Learn the rules to the board game Stratego quickly and concisely - This visually rich video has no distractions, just the rules.

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RULES:

The object of the game is to capture your opponent’s flag. Setup: Layout the board between the players so the name stratego faces each of you. Each player picks a color and sets up their pieces on closest 4 rows of their side of the board so that the labeled sides face you and away from your opponent. You may use the dividing screen to help mask your setup from your opponent. Only 1 piece can occupy a square at a time. Once both players are ready, remove the dividing screen if used and play begins.

The red player moves first then play alternates. On your turn you must move 1 piece to an adjacent square or attack an opponents piece on an adjacent square. If you cannot do either, then you immediately lose and your opponent wins the game.

Pieces move 1 square at a time forward, backwards, left, or right. They cannot move diagonally, jump over or move through another piece. They cannot move onto the same space as another piece unless they are attacking. A piece may not move back and forth between two squares for 3 consecutive turns. Only 1 piece can be moved per turn.

The flag and Bombs may not move or attack. The number rank 2 scout is the only piece that may move any number of open spaces forward, back, right or left. When moved, the scout may only move in one constant direction until the next time they’re moved.

You may only attack opponent’s pieces. To attack an opponent’s piece, move your piece above it and tab it, saying your pieces number rank. The opponent says the number rank for their piece and the lower number is captured and removed from the board and put back in the display tray. If the attacking piece won, it now occupies the space the defending piece held. If the winning piece was the defending piece, it stays on the same space it was on when it was attacked. When pieces of the same rank battle, both pieces are removed from the game. Attacking is always optional.

The number rank 2 Scouts pieces may move multiple spaces in a straight line and attack a piece at great distance. Whenever a piece attacks a bomb the attacking piece is lost and removed from the board, except if it is a number rank 3 Miner, then the bomb is defused and removed from the board.

The letter rank “S” spy piece is ranked below all other pieces except the number rank 10 marshal. The Spy is the only piece that can beat the marshal. If any piece attacks the Spy or if the spy attacks a piece that isn’t the marshal, then spy loses and is removed from play.

The first player to attack the opponent’s flag captures it and wins the game. If all your movable pieces have removed or you cannot move or attack on a turn you lose.

There are three Tournament rule variations you can play with.
Aggressor Advantage: When pieces of the same rank battle, the attacking piece wins.

Silent Defense: Only the attacking player declares what his piece’s rank is and the defender removes the losing piece from the board. However, if the attacker is a scout, then the defender declares what piece it is. All removed pieces are kept hidden.

Rescue: when you move a non-scout piece to your opponent’s back row you have the option of returning any 1 piece of yours to any available space on your half of the game board and end your turn. However, you may not rescue a bomb, you may only rescue 2 pieces a game, and the same playing piece cannot make both rescues.

[billballard]

When I was younger I played this version of stratego often..Me and the person whom I usually played modified the game.In our version one scout was turned into a man who could go across the lakes and one number 5 was turned into a liar.It could attack saying it was anything except a number 1 but retained the value of five.If it attacked a lower number it had to "fess up" and was removed.

[CJ-just-CJ]

If possible, can you do The Game of Life?

I mean, I know how to play the game already, but it seems that most don't. And there seems to be only a few people who makes videos on how teach the people how to play the game.

You might as well be the only person who makes good tutorials, so I hope you make one for The Game Of Life. I'll count on you cause you're the best game tutor out there.

Also, please continue on to make more of these. I know that in the future, you'll become a more well known person out there.

Keep up the good work!

[jacobscott]

That was a great cut and dry explanation, and exactly what i was looking for. Thank you very much for this video!

[aarontrujillo]

Thank you so much. I just bought the game and my friend and I are going to play tonight.

[JoeyBagOdonuts.]

2020 here. Ha. Had to do it.. 😷
I picked up this game a few days
Ago @ Goodwill. I played this in the 80s. But the box says 1999.
Didn't realize all the rules. Lol

[rebelfriend]

I feel like everyone watching already knows how to play Stratego
Edit: I stand corrected

[sirfredrin]

Whenever I played stratego, we had a rule where a scout could move in water but only one space at a time and that the spy can kill any piece as long as it is the one attacking... except a bomb

[zennvirus]

My father, brother and I added a few variation rules called "diagonal", "rocket" and "diagonal rocket".
Diagonal - Pieces can now move in diagonal directions. Everything else stays the same.
Rocket - You can now "fire" the bomb pieces. They travel in a straight line, as many squares as needed to reach their target. Bombs "fired" can cross over the two "lakes". Bombs used in this fashion are sacrificed (cannot be rescued). If the bomb hits a Miner (8), the bomb is destroyed, but the miner survives. If the bomb is not "fired", the old rules apply.
Diagonal Rocket - Same as above, but now you can "fire" bombs in diagonal.
Extra rules are decided before the match begins.
These new rules make the game even wilder and unpredictable, especially the DR version. 😈

[dwho]

Loved this game as a kid.
Not as difficult as chess and if you know how to protect your flag with your bombs and men, you win. Play offensively and go after your opponents flag more importantly

[gaiuscaligula]

"you may only attack your opponent's pieces" - what the fuck else are you mean't to attack?

[jk]

Wow this is way different then the older version of Stratego that I have and play where the 2s move anywhere, 3s defuse bombs and the 10 is the only one that can kill the spy. Anyone else know or play this way?

[m.r.newton]

Here’s a few suggestions:

Dos

Trouble(While it is very simple, it’s a popular game and some rules may need to be talked about)

The Game of Life

[Dusk_Daze]

Informative. Is this game actually fun?

[varalakshmipenugonda]

Can you please make a video for playing for Stratego original

[FreakoNek]

i love how his head looks like it moves on 4 motors at the same time

[Trigundel]

Hi, please clear me a doubt: if a pawn moves and ends up next to an opponent's pawn, can it attack in the same turn? then in the same turn move to a new square and attack? Thank you

[chloetv]

I dont like these pieces. When I was in school in the 1990s, we have them shaped like castles where when you land on the opponent, you would lift it up, look at it rather than the opponent telling you the number or rank.

[j.h.]

Imagine if a new Stratego video game was made - just like Chess Ultra from 2017.

[becomeanolive]

Does anyone play that the bomb is removed from the board if any piece hits it?

[spooky_boi]

Really all the new version adds is a piece lower than the scout the can essentially screw your piece before they fight if they can guess what kind of piece it is