How to play Shalban Bouddha Bihar Ludu Game
- Choose 2, 3 or 4 explorers. Select a player, then click a picture to pick their character: Yazan the boy, one of four different girls (Parisha, Adrita, Anaya or Wasfia), a cat, a bear, a rabbit, a blue macaw or a jewel macaw. Give them names and decide which are played by the computer, then press Enter the tunnel.
- Take turns to press Roll dice. Your explorer walks forward that many chambers, climbing the staircases between floors.
- Land on the bottom of a ladder (green rooms) and your explorer climbs up to the room at the top. Land on the head of a snake (red rooms) and the serpent swallows you and carries you down to its tail.
- Roll a 6 and you get another turn. You need the exact number to land on Chamber 100, so a roll that is too high leaves you where you are.
- The first explorer to reach Chamber 100 walks through the glowing doorway and climbs back to the surface to win.
- Use Overview to see the whole tower at once, and the little map in the corner to see where every ladder and snake leads.
- Look at the walls as you play: every chamber has a framed, painted picture of an ancient or historic place, with its name in English and Bangla. The first six floors travel through Bangladesh, from Wari-Bateshwar to Paharpur and Old Dhaka, and the upper floors visit the wider subcontinent, from Mohenjo-daro to the Taj Mahal. Chamber 100 shows the Shalban Bouddha Bihar itself.
Controls
Mouse or touch: press the Roll dice button. Keyboard: Space or Enter to roll, O for the overview camera, M to mute sound effects, N to switch the background music on or off.
Playing tips
- Snakes and ladders is mostly luck, so enjoy the ride: a single roll can change the whole game.
- Watch the numbers on the floor. Each ladder room shows the room it climbs to, and each snake room shows where it drops you.
- Near the end, think about which numbers you need. Only an exact roll finishes the game, and Chamber 98 and 95 hold snakes.
- Playing with friends? Set the speed to Fast for quicker turns, or leave it on Relaxed to enjoy the animations.
- Add a computer player to make up the numbers whenever you only have two or three people.
About the setting
The game is inspired by the Shalban Bouddha Bihar (also spelled Shalban Vihara or Salban Vihara), a ruined Buddhist monastery at Mainamati near Cumilla, Bangladesh, more than a thousand years old. Its red brick cells around a central courtyard and its terracotta decoration inspired the look of the chambers.
The story, the hidden tunnel and everything below ground are entirely imaginary. If you ever get the chance, the real ruins above ground are well worth a visit.
The 100 places on the walls
Every chamber shows one ancient or historic place, ten to a floor. This is the full list in chamber order, from Chamber 1 to Chamber 100.
- Wari-Bateshwar (ওয়ারী-বটেশ্বর)
- Mahasthangarh (মহাস্থানগড়)
- Gokul Medh (গোকুল মেধ)
- Behula Basar Ghar (বেহুলার বাসরঘর)
- Bhasu Bihara (ভাসু বিহার)
- Vitargarh Fort (ভিতরগড়)
- Sitakot Vihara (সীতাকোট বিহার)
- Halud Vihara (হলুদ বিহার)
- Jagaddala Mahavihara (জগদ্দল মহাবিহার)
- Vikrampur (বিক্রমপুর)
- Paharpur Buddhist Vihara (পাহাড়পুর বৌদ্ধ বিহার)
- Kotila Mura (কোটিলা মুড়া)
- Charpatra Mura (চারপত্র মুড়া)
- Ananda Vihara (আনন্দ বিহার)
- Bhoja Vihara (ভোজ বিহার)
- Rupban Mura (রূপবান মুড়া)
- Itakhola Mura (ইটাখোলা মুড়া)
- Mainamati Museum (ময়নামতি জাদুঘর)
- Ramu Buddhist Temple (রামু বৌদ্ধ বিহার)
- Mahamuni Buddhist Temple (মহামুনি বৌদ্ধ মন্দির)
- Kantajew Temple (কান্তজিউ মন্দির)
- Puthia Temple Complex (পুঠিয়া মন্দির)
- Dhakeshwari Temple (ঢাকেশ্বরী মন্দির)
- Adinath Temple (আদিনাথ মন্দির)
- Chandranath Temple (চন্দ্রনাথ মন্দির)
- Natore Rajbari (নাটোর রাজবাড়ি)
- Tajhat Palace (তাজহাট জমিদার বাড়ি)
- Ahsan Manzil (আহসান মঞ্জিল)
- Shashi Lodge (শশী লজ)
- Muktagacha Zamindar Bari (মুক্তাগাছা জমিদার বাড়ি)
- Sixty Dome Mosque (ষাট গম্বুজ মসজিদ)
- Khan Jahan Ali Tomb (খান জাহান আলীর মাজার)
- Choto Sona Mosque (ছোট সোনা মসজিদ)
- Darasbari Mosque (দারাসবাড়ি মসজিদ)
- Kusumba Mosque (কুসুম্বা মসজিদ)
- Sat Gombuj Mosque (সাত গম্বুজ মসজিদ)
- Atia Mosque (আটিয়া মসজিদ)
- Star Mosque (তারা মসজিদ)
- Shah Jalal Dargah (শাহজালাল দরগাহ)
- Goaldi Mosque (গোয়ালদী মসজিদ)
- Lalbagh Fort (লালবাগ কেল্লা)
- Idrakpur Fort (ইদ্রাকপুর কেল্লা)
- Panam Nagar, Sonargaon (পানাম নগর, সোনারগাঁও)
- Bara Katra (বড় কাটরা)
- Choto Katra (ছোট কাটরা)
- Hosseini Dalan (হোসেনী দালান)
- Armenian Church (আর্মেনীয় গির্জা)
- Curzon Hall (কার্জন হল)
- Ali Amjad's Clock (আলী আমজাদের ঘড়ি)
- Sadarghat River Port (সদরঘাট নদীবন্দর)
- Sundarbans (সুন্দরবন)
- Sagardari, Madhusudan's Home (সাগরদাঁড়ি, মধুসূদনের বাড়ি)
- Shilaidaha Kuthibari (শিলাইদহ কুঠিবাড়ি)
- Mujibnagar Memorial (মুজিবনগর স্মৃতিসৌধ)
- Central Shaheed Minar (কেন্দ্রীয় শহীদ মিনার)
- National Martyrs' Memorial (জাতীয় স্মৃতিসৌধ)
- National Parliament House (জাতীয় সংসদ ভবন)
- Liberation War Museum (মুক্তিযুদ্ধ জাদুঘর)
- Bangabandhu Memorial Museum (বঙ্গবন্ধু স্মৃতি জাদুঘর)
- Varendra Research Museum (বরেন্দ্র জাদুঘর)
- Mohenjo-daro (মহেঞ্জোদারো)
- Harappa (হরপ্পা)
- Dholavira (ধোলাভিরা)
- Lothal (লোথাল)
- Rakhigarhi (রাখিগড়ি)
- Mehrgarh (মেহেরগড়)
- Taxila (তক্ষশীলা)
- Takht-i-Bahi (তখত-ই-বাহি)
- Pataliputra (পাটলিপুত্র)
- Rajgir (রাজগীর)
- Nalanda (নালন্দা)
- Vikramshila (বিক্রমশীলা)
- Mahabodhi Temple, Bodh Gaya (মহাবোধি মন্দির, বোধগয়া)
- Sanchi Stupa (সাঁচী স্তূপ)
- Sarnath (সারনাথ)
- Kushinagar (কুশীনগর)
- Lumbini (লুম্বিনী)
- Ajanta Caves (অজন্তা গুহা)
- Anuradhapura (অনুরাধাপুর)
- Polonnaruwa (পোলোন্নারুওয়া)
- Ellora Caves (ইলোরা গুহা)
- Elephanta Caves (এলিফ্যান্টা গুহা)
- Mahabalipuram (মহাবলীপুরম)
- Hampi (হাম্পি)
- Konark Sun Temple (কোনার্ক সূর্য মন্দির)
- Khajuraho (খাজুরাহো)
- Brihadisvara Temple (বৃহদীশ্বর মন্দির)
- Meenakshi Temple (মীনাক্ষী মন্দির)
- Sigiriya (সিগিরিয়া)
- Rani ki Vav, Patan (রানি-কি-বাভ, পাটান)
- Adina Mosque, Pandua (আদিনা মসজিদ, পান্ডুয়া)
- Gaur (গৌড়)
- Qutb Minar (কুতুব মিনার)
- Humayun's Tomb (হুমায়ুনের সমাধি)
- Lahore Fort (লাহোর দুর্গ)
- Badshahi Mosque (বাদশাহী মসজিদ)
- Fatehpur Sikri (ফতেহপুর সিক্রি)
- Red Fort, Delhi (লাল কেল্লা, দিল্লি)
- Taj Mahal (তাজমহল)
- Shalban Bouddha Bihar (শালবন বৌদ্ধ বিহার)
Frequently asked questions
How do you play snakes and ladders?
Players take turns rolling a dice and moving that many squares towards 100. Landing on the bottom of a ladder moves you up to its top, and landing on a snake's head sends you down to its tail. The first player to reach 100 wins.
Do I need an exact roll to win?
Yes. In this game you must roll the exact number needed to land on Chamber 100. If your roll is too high you stay where you are and try again on your next turn. Landing on the ladder that leads to 100 also wins.
How many people can play Shalban Bouddha Bihar Ludu Game?
Two to four players share one screen and take turns. Any player can be set to Computer, so you can play with a mix of friends and computer explorers.
Which characters can I play?
Pick from ten explorers: Yazan the boy, four different girls (Parisha, Adrita, Anaya and Wasfia), a cat, a bear, a rabbit, a blue macaw and a jewel macaw. Every player wears a scarf in their own colour, so you can even choose the same character twice.
Is the game free and does it work on a phone?
It is free, needs no download or signup, and runs in your browser with 3D graphics (WebGL). It works on most modern phones, tablets and computers; the controls are a single Roll button.
What are the pictures on the walls?
Each of the 100 chambers has a framed picture, painted in an oil-painting style, of an ancient or historic place. The lower floors show the heritage of Bangladesh, such as Wari-Bateshwar, Mahasthangarh, Paharpur, Sixty Dome Mosque and Lalbagh Fort, and the upper floors show famous sites of the wider subcontinent, such as Mohenjo-daro, Nalanda, Sanchi, Ajanta and the Taj Mahal. They are illustrations made for the game, not photographs, and the full list is on this page.
Is the Shalban Bouddha Bihar in the game a real place?
Yes. Shalban Vihara is a real historic monastery site at Mainamati near Cumilla in Bangladesh. The tunnel and chambers in this game are imaginary and were made up for the story.