Leifeng Pagoda Sugoroku: Rules and How to Play
A race game on a real Qing-dynasty Chinese print: spiral through the Legend of the White Snake, hop between twin pictures and reach the Leifeng Pagoda. 2–6 players, about 15 min, free.
Setup
- The board is a real print, the Leifeng Pagoda Board Game, made in China in the Qianlong period (1736–95). The Cleveland Museum of Art, CC0.
- 2–6 players. Playing alone, you face 3 CPUs.
- Everyone places a piece on Setting Out (起馬), the gourd shape at the left edge. Each piece has its own shape, so you can tell them apart even on a shared square. Pieces never block or capture each other.
How to play
- Take turns rolling one die and move that many squares. From Setting Out the route runs down to the bottom left, then spirals anticlockwise three times to the Leifeng Pagoda in the centre. The squares are not numbered on the print, so BGJ numbers them 1 to 40.
- The 40 squares show 20 characters and scenes from the Legend of the White Snake, each exactly twice. The labels are printed at an angle, facing the centre; BGJ spells out the current square's number, name and reading in the label box under the board.
- Each picture has a twin somewhere on the board. When you stop on a picture, you move to its twin — forward if it lies ahead, back if it lies behind. You do not move again from the twin.
- Neither the print nor the museum gives any rules. The twin-picture design matches the Chinese spiral game hulu wen (gourd game), so we follow its way of playing: this is our reconstruction.
Winning and scoring
- The first to reach the Leifeng Pagoda in the centre wins. Extra pips do not matter.
- A house rule makes you land exactly: extra pips move you back from the pagoda by that many squares.
- By default the game ends when the first player finishes; the others are ranked by how far they got. A house rule lets you play on until everyone is ranked.
Defaults on this site
| Item | Default on this site |
|---|---|
| Players | 2–6 players (set automatically by the party size) |
| Turn time limit | None by default (the host can set 30 or 60 seconds) |
| If someone drops mid-game | Reopening on the same device returns you to your seat. If you do not return, the CPU plays in your place. |
| Draws | In ranked play, a draw counts as halfway between a win and a loss for your rating. |
| Source of the rules | Based on the standard reference rules |
Rules supervised by Qdan, Inc. (based on the standard reference rules)
House rules
Defaults follow the standard reference rules. The party can change these.
| Name | Description | Default | Changeable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finishing | "Over is fine", the default, lets any roll that reaches the Leifeng Pagoda win. "Exact roll" needs the exact number; extra pips move you back from the pagoda by that many squares. | Over is fine | Can be changed |
| Rank everyone | When on, play continues after the first player gets home until only one is left. Off by default (the game ends when one player gets home). | Off | Can be changed |
| Rotate first player on Again | Pressing Again passes the first turn of the next game to the next player. | On | Can be changed |
Terms
- Setting Out (起馬)
- The start: the gourd shape at the left edge, printed with 起馬.
- Leifeng Pagoda
- The goal: the ring in the centre, with the pagoda and figures.
- Twin picture
- The two squares showing the same character or scene. Stop on one and you move to the other.
- Hulu wen
- The Chinese spiral 'gourd game'. It shares this board's twin-picture design, so we follow its rules.
FAQ
What if I stop on the later picture of a pair?
Its twin lies behind you, so you go back to it. For example, stopping on the Vajra Guardian at square 10 sends you back to the Vajra Guardian at square 1.
Do I move again from the twin?
No. You only move once, from the square your roll stopped on.
What if I roll too high at the end?
By default, reaching the pagoda is enough. With the "Exact roll" house rule, extra pips move you back from the pagoda by that many squares.
Do I swap places with a piece on the twin?
Not on BGJ. Hulu wen is also played with a swap rule, but we have not added it here.
Can I read the slanted labels?
The print was made to be played from all sides, so the labels face the centre at an angle. BGJ spells out the current square's number, name and reading in the label box under the board.
Play now with these rules
Last updated 2026-09-25 · Run by Qdan, Inc.