RISK Game Rules
All players are expected to know and follow the basic rules of RISK® as can be found at CentralConnector.com in addition to agreeing to abide by the listed Annual RISK Classic Rules as posted on this website.
First time tournament attendees are strongly encouraged to attend the Rule Review session before the tournament begins.
Initial Card Deal at Start of Game
Table Captain may either assign one player at the table to be the ‘dealer’ or will be the dealer before each game.
The dealer will make sure all cards are accounted for and will make certain that cards are in good condition before the start of game. If there are no problems with the cards they will be properly shuffled.
The dealer will ask a player to cut deck and will then proceed to deal cards clockwise for initial territories. If there are extra cards, all players will roll for them. The highest roll of the dice will win the extra card. The player with the highest roll may select his/her face-up choice of the available cards. The next highest roller will proceed with the next choice… etc.
Roll for Placement
All players will roll for the start of the game and initial troop placement. The player with the highest roll of the dice will start deployment of troops as well as become the first player to start the game. Play will proceed clockwise once the starting game player has been determined. The Table Captain will record each player’s name and the order in which they will play for game tracking purposes.
If a tie for the highest roll exists, for example, all six players roll and three of them tie, those three players will roll again. If then two players tie, then those two will roll until the starting player is determined.
Placing armies out of turn is not permitted.
After all pieces are deployed, players will count the armies of the person on their right to double-check that deployments are accurate.
Number of armies required to deploy depends on the number of players at the table. They are:
- 6 players = 20 armies
- 5 players = 25 armies
- 4 players = 30 armies
- 3 players = 35 armies
Please note: if there are extra cards at the deal, then number of countries per player will differ.
Game Play
Once you roll the dice, your turn has begun. If you forgot to deploy armies at the beginning of your turn, you may not deploy during the remainder of the turn. Number of armies to deploy each turn is determined by a combination of the following:
- Which continents a player has effectively conquered
- If the player will be choosing to trade in a set of cards
- How many countries a player occupies, divisible by 3
If a player occupies nine or less countries, then a minimum of 3 armies may be deployed.
Players will always roll the maximum number of dice unless specifically stated in advance by an attacker or defender.
If an attacker or defender throws more dice than allowed, the offending player will automatically lose one army and it will be considered a completed roll (not to be confused with end-of-turn).
RISK Card Rules
A player earns the right to take a RISK Card if he/she has, as an attacker, conquered an adjacent country of an opponent. A turn is ended when the attacker decides to stop his/her quest for takeover of another player’s territory.
When a player is ending his/her turn, he or she should:
- State the intent to end the turn
- Decide to execute or not to execute the allowed end of turn troop movement
- Take the RISK Card (if earned)
- Pass the dice to the next player due to take a turn
If a player has conquered another country, it is not optional, that player must receive his/her RISK Card, in turn, before the next player has earned his/her RISK Card. If a players disrupts the natural play progression by taking his/her RISK Card out of sequence, then that player will incur a game penalty as determined by the tournament officials. A player will also warrant a penalty if the player tries to take more than one earned RISK Card during the scope of a turn, thus drawing two RISK Cards from the pile is not allowed.
If a player has not conquered a country during the course of his/her turn, then that person is not entitled to receive a RISK Card. If the non-conquering attacker chooses to end his/her turn without overtaking another territory, then he or she should:
- State the intent to end the turn
- Decide to execute or not to execute the allowed end of turn troop movement
- Pass the dice to the next player due to take a turn
Once the dice have been passed, the turn is officially over and cannot be given back.
Players who have earned RISK Cards need to display all RISK Cards earned, facedown, so all other opposing players are able to count the number of RISK Cards that are in your possession.
Taking Your Turn
A turn consists of the following actions:
- If a RISK Card trade-in is warranted, players normally begin with obtaining the trade-in armies alongside the count of armies that a player receives to deploy during the normal course of game play.
- Armies are deployed.
- You, as the attacker, clearly express the country of origin for an attack as well as the country which will be defending against the attack. If a preference exists to roll less die than the maximum, this is the time when that should be declared. If you as the attacker should choose not to initiate attack, state that intent.
- Attack begins and evaluation of army loss for both sides is determined via the roll of dice. Attacker then decides to continue with the attack cycle until all desired goals of the attacker have been met. The attacker chooses when to stop the attack cycle. The attacker should state that his turn is ending when attacks for his/her turn are finished.
- Please note: If you forgot to execute your trade-in before your initial attack you will not be able to trade-in, unless during the course of your turn you fully eliminate a player from game player and are in receipt of your opponent’s cards.
- When attacks have been completed, the attacker has the option to execute a troop movement to fortify his/her position. Rules for troop movement are as follows:
- Troops can move anywhere on the board with a continuous chain of his or her occupied territories
- Only troop movements from one country to another will be allowed.
- Players are not allowed to drop off troops along the way!
- Example: To move troops from Indonesia to Egypt, a player must occupy Siam, India, Middle East, and of course Egypt (any path works as long as you occupy all countries along your particular route of fortification).
- Remember only one country to another. A minimum of one troop must remain on a country at all times to show who is in possession of that territory.
- You may opt not to execute a troop movement.
- If earned, a player will take his/her RISK Card and then pass the dice to the next player in turn. If the RISK Card has not been earned and troop movement has been completed, then pass the dice to the next player due a turn. Upon the passing of the dice, you may not go back and perform any of the tasks associated with the taking of your turn.
RISK Card Trade-In Rules
- Card trade in value are normal (4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 15, 20, 25, 30, etc).
- Players cannot begin their turn with more than 5 cards in their possession.
- During game play if you defeat an opponent by taking all of that opponent’s territories, and you have received his/her RISK cards, at that juncture you must trade-in until you have reached the point of having 4 or less RISK cards in your possession. If your total of RISK cards is 4 or less after defeating an opponent from game play you are not required to trade-in unless you desire to and have met the appropriate trade-in requirements. Please note this is a classic variation from the current rule set, where if an opponent is defeated, you must have a minimum of 5 cards to trade in right away.
- Any of the following combinations can be defined as a valid trade-in:
- 3 Foot Soldiers
- 3 Horsemen
- 3 Cannons
- 1 Foot Soldier, 1 Horseman, and 1 Cannon
- A wild card with any two cards, including another wild card.
Two Extra Armies Due to Trade-In
Table Captains will record the value of the army trade-in per person. If a player owns any of the territories that he/she is trading in, then that player may select ONE of those territories, which he/she must possess, in which to place two extra armies. Extra armies may only be placed once per turn and will also be recorded by the Table Captain.
Thus if a player did not place armies during a trade-in, and he/she receives more RISK cards as a result of eliminating an opponent, and if the player chooses to trade-in at the time of receipt, the player may then select to place the extra armies in a territory that he/she possesses, so long as a match can be made to the territory of trade-in.
Dice Rolling Rules
- Players may not roll dice on or towards the game board at any time.
- No dice banging at the tables is allowed.
- Dice must be “rolled”, not dropped, jumped, thumped, pelted, or skirted.
- Only official tournament dice will be used.
If you are the attacker, the attacking country must contain enough troops to cover your attack roll + 1. The +1 represents the one army that must be left behind in order to show your possession of that country.
If you are the defender, and your country only contains one troop you can only roll one dice. If your country contains two or more troops you may opt to roll a maximum of two dice.
If an attacker or defender throws more dice than allowed, the offending player will automatically lose one army and it will be considered a completed roll.
Reporting Rules Violations During Gameplay
If you have a dispute, or suspect that someone has broken one of the above listed rules, politely stop the game in progress or have your Table Captain stop the game and call for a tournament official to come to the table. The official will listen to your concern and will determine what is necessary to achieve appropriate resolution. Officials will investigate the identified situation and if necessary, officials are authorized to levy and enforce appropriate penalties.
Please note, there is no penalty for voicing your concern. If you do not voice your concern, you may be enabling someone to play in an unfair manner, and thus cheat you of the opportunity you have paid to play for.
End of the Game
When a player has successfully taken control of all 42 countries on the board and his/her game color is showing the full extent of his/her global domination, and no other player remains in the game – Congratulations! You have reached the end of the game.