Overview

L’Attaque is a two-player military strategy board game first published in 1909 by Hermance Edan. It is the predecessor to Stratego. Players each deploy 36 ranked military pieces with hidden identities on their side of the board, then take turns moving pieces and challenging opponent pieces. The goal is to capture the opponent’s Flag or eliminate all their moveable pieces.

Components

• 1 game board (10x10 grid with two impassable lake areas in the center)
• 36 red standing rectangular pieces (one player’s army)
• 36 blue standing rectangular pieces (other player’s army)
• Each piece displays a military rank with soldiers in contemporary (circa 1900) uniforms

Setup

1. Each player takes all 36 pieces of their color.
2. Players set up their pieces facing them in the first 4 rows on their side of the board, arranged however they wish.
3. Neither player can see the rank of their opponent’s pieces.
4. The Flag must be placed somewhere in the setup — it cannot move and must be protected.
5. Bombs are placed to defend key positions — they also cannot move.

Turn Structure

Players alternate turns. On each turn, a player moves one piece one square vertically or horizontally (not diagonally).

• Pieces cannot move into squares containing lakes or friendly pieces.
• If a piece moves into a square occupied by an enemy piece, a challenge occurs.

Actions

Movement

• Move one piece one square orthogonally (up, down, left, right).
• Most pieces move one square per turn.
• The Scout (lowest-ranked mobile piece) can move any number of squares in a straight line (like a rook in chess), but must stop when reaching an occupied square.

Challenges (Attacks)

• When your piece enters a square with an enemy piece, both players reveal the ranks of the two pieces.
• The higher-ranked piece wins — the losing piece is removed from the board.
• If both pieces are the same rank, both are removed.
• Special cases override normal rank:
  • Spy defeats the highest-ranked piece (Marshal/General) when attacking, but loses to all other pieces.
  • Miner defeats Bombs (all other pieces that attack a Bomb are destroyed).
  • Bombs destroy any attacking piece (except Miners) but cannot move.
  • Flag has no combat value — capturing it wins the game.

Piece Hierarchy (highest to lowest)

1. Marshal/General (highest rank)
2. Colonel
3. Major
4. Captain
5. Lieutenant
6. Sergeant
7. Miner (defuses Bombs)
8. Scout (moves multiple squares)
9. Spy (defeats Marshal when attacking)
10. Bomb (immovable, destroys attackers except Miners)
11. Flag (immovable, capture = victory)

Scoring / Victory Conditions

A player wins by:

• Capturing the opponent’s Flag, OR
• Eliminating all moveable enemy pieces so the opponent cannot make any moves.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Hidden information: Pieces remain hidden until involved in a challenge. After a challenge, the surviving piece returns to its hidden state.
• Bombs and Flag cannot move: They remain in their setup positions for the entire game.
• Scout movement: The Scout may move multiple squares in a straight line but cannot jump over other pieces.
• Spy vulnerability: The Spy defeats only the highest-ranked piece, and only when the Spy initiates the attack. If attacked by the Marshal, the Spy loses.
• Identical ranks: When two pieces of the same rank meet, both are removed from the game.
• No backward movement for some versions: In some L’Attaque editions, certain pieces have movement restrictions (check specific edition rules).
• Lakes are impassable: The two lake areas in the center of the board cannot be entered by any piece.

Player Reference

Turn: Move one piece one square orthogonally (Scout may move multiple squares in a line)

Challenge: Higher rank wins. Same rank = both removed. Spy beats Marshal (on attack only). Miner beats Bomb.

Win: Capture the enemy Flag OR immobilize all enemy pieces.

Key pieces: Scout (long range), Spy (kills Marshal), Miner (defuses Bombs), Bomb (kills all except Miner)