How to Play Risk: A Game of Global Domination

Setting up

• 1

  Open and set up the game board.

• 2

  Shuffle territory cards and place them face down near the game board

• 3

  Each player must choose a color

• 4

  Each player takes all the game pieces of their chosen color

• 5

  Each player counts out their starting units. This is 35 starting units each for three players, 30 each for four players, 25 for five and 20 for six. Note that these counts refer to units (numbers of men) and not game pieces; there are different game pieces that symbolize different numbers of men. Some versions of Risk have game pieces in the shapes of Roman numerals, and other versions have game pieces in the shapes of infantrymen, which represent one unit; cavalry, which represent five units and artillery, which represent ten units.

• 6

  Each player rolls a die to see who gets to claim a territory first. The highest roll goes first, and set up proceeds clockwise.

• 7

  The first player also claims the first territory (country) by placing one starting unit into any empty territory. The next player then places one unit into a territory of their choice. This continues until all territories are claimed. Players may not claim a territory that is already occupied by another unit, including their own unit.

• 8

  Players reinforce their territories by taking turns placing a starting unit into a territory they already control. Reinforcement continues until all starting units have been placed. There is no limit to the number of units that may occupy any one territory; units do not have to be spread evenly during reinforcement.

• 9

  Players roll a die again to determine who plays first.

Taking your turn

• 10

  Each player receives additional reinforcements at the start of every turn. Players who control 1-11 territories get three reinforcements, players with 12-14 territories receive three reinforcements, players with 15-17 territories receive five reinforcements, and so on. To determine how many reinforcements you receive, divide your territories by three and round down. Players who control an entire continent receive additional reinforcements: two for South America or Australia, three for Africa, five for North America, five for Europe and seven for Asia. Players also get reinforcements for Territory cards; if a player has a set of three Territory cards with all matching or all different images at the top, he may turn them in for additional reinforcements -- four for the first time a card set is turned in by any player, six for the second time, eight for the third time, and 10 for the fourth time. After that, you can count up by fives to determine the number of additional reinforcements.

• 11

  Place all of your reinforcements into your territories.

• 12

  Attack if you wish. Attacking is always optional. In order to attack, you must have at least two units in a territory. One unit must always stay behind during the attacking phase. You can send one, two or three men at a time into an adjacent country to attack, even if you have more units in the territory.

• 13

  The defending player then chooses how many units to defend with, which can only be one or two at a time, even if there are more units in the territory.

• 14

  You (the attacker) control the red dice and the defender controls the white dice. Each side rolls one die for each unit attacking or defending. If an attacker is attacking with three units, they roll all three red dice. If a defender is defending with one unit, he rolls only one white die. All dice are rolled simultaneously.

• 15

  Both you and the defender place your dice in order from highest to lowest, matching them up against each other. Compare the highest dice first -- the lower roll removes a defending or attacking unit from the board game. Compare your next-highest rolls. Again, the lower roll removes a piece. If there is a tie, the defender always wins, and the attacker must remove an attacking unit from the board.

• 16

  All surviving units retreat into their own territories. If you conquered the territory by defeating all the men who previously occupied it, then you must move all the units you used to win the battle into the new territory. You can also move any other units from the attacking country in with them, as long as at least one unit remains in the original country.

• 17

  If you have completely eliminated another player by removing their last unit from the game board, that player is out of the game and you receive all of their territory cards.

• 18

  You can attack as many times as you like during your turn.

• 19

  When you're finished with all attacks, you may fortify once. This means you can take as many units as you want from one of your territories, leaving one unit behind, and move them into a connected territory.

• 20

  At the end of your turn, if you conquered a territory, you may take a territory card. You can only collect one card per turn, even if you conquered more than one territory during that turn.

• 21

  Now it is the next player's turn, and game play proceeds from step one.

• 22

  A player wins the game when they control all 42 territories.