How to set up in Stratego

You place all 40 pieces in the four rows nearest to you, one per square, in any arrangement. The middle two rows stay empty. Nothing is fixed: the Flag can go anywhere in your four rows. The rules are on the rules page.

The two lakes split the middle of the board into three lanes, each two squares wide: left, centre and right. Every attack has to come through one of them. Plan your setup lane by lane: each lane needs at least one strong piece behind it, and you should know which lane you plan to push.

• Most players put the Flag in the back row, where it can be attacked from fewer sides. A corner leaves only two open neighbours.
• Surround it with Bombs on the open sides. Two Bombs protect a corner Flag; three protect one in the middle of the back row.
• A predictable Flag is the biggest weakness. Change the spot from game to game.

The official Jumbo rulebook suggests surrounding your Flag with a few Bombs and placing other Bombs at some distance to mislead your opponent. A Bomb cluster with no Flag behind it wastes enemy Miners. Bombs in the front row can block a lane, but they also wall in your own pieces.

• Put several Scouts in the front row and at lane openings. They are cheap, and you have eight, so use them to find out what is facing you.
• Keep most Miners in the back two rows. The rulebook warns that you need Miners late in the game to clear the Bombs around the enemy Flag.

Place the Marshal and General in the second or third row, where they can reach the front quickly but are not revealed by the first Scout. Keep the Spy close to the General: when the enemy Marshal shows itself by taking your General's neighbours, the Spy is ready to strike.

1. All Bombs in a tight square around the Flag. It tells your opponent exactly where to dig.
2. High ranks in the front row, where an early Scout reveals them.
3. A lane with only weak pieces behind it.
4. Using the same setup every game.

Try a setup now in the game on the home page, then read strategy tips.