This page is based on the Official Trench Rules by Rui Alípio Monteiro.
Concept
- Trench is a two-player abstract strategy game inspired by World War I trench warfare, notably on the Western Front.
- Each player commands an army of military units, navigating a diamond-shaped battlefield divided by a dangerous central trench line.
- The mission: outmanoeuvre the enemy and claim control of the field through tactical combat.
Goal of the game
- A player wins by strategically defeating their opponent’s army.
- Through careful movement and combat, the player will gain the upper hand by capturing enemy units and earning points.
The Board and Setup
- The board is 8x8 diamond-shaped*.
- The board is divided by a trench line, separating both armies.
- Each army starts in formation, mirroring each other across the trench.
*Note: for the digital version, there is also the option of orientating the board like a square, in order to use the maximum amount of space available on the screen.
The Units and Movement Directions
| Rank | Maximum
No. of Steps (No. of Points) |
No. of Units
(per player) |
Movement Directions
(Description) |
Movement Directions
Digital (Square) Orientation |
Movement Directions
Classic (Diamond) Orientation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soldier | 1 | 6 | Columns and Rows | 
|
|
| Sergeant | 2 | 4 | Columns and Rows
Diagonal forward |
|
|
| Captain | 3 | 3 | Columns and Rows
Diagonals forward and backwards |
|
|
| Colonel | 4 | 2 | Columns and Rows
All diagonals (except backwards!) |
|
|
| General | 5 | 1 | All directions | 
|
|
- Each player controls a total of 16 units.
- All units can move along the columns and rows (both ways). These are the only directions the soldiers can move.
- Units cannot jump over other units.
Movement Overlays per Unit
Caption: selected player unit (in blue); possible moves (in green)
| Rank | Movement Directions
Digital (Square) Orientation |
Movement Directions
Classic (Diamond) Orientation |
|---|---|---|
| Soldier | ||
| Sergeant | ||
| Captain | ||
| Colonel | ||
| General |
Player Turns
- Players take turns moving one unit at a time.
- Black plays first.
- Units move only in one direction per turn (ex.: a unit cannot zig-zag).
- Units may move, per turn, any number of squares, up to its maximum allowed (ex.: a captain can move 1, 2, or 3 squares).
- Note that the maximum number of steps a unit may move equals to the number of points you gain from capturing such unit.
- A player's turn ends after a move or a capture.
- A player cannot pass their turn.
Capturing Units
- A player captures an enemy unit by moving their unit onto the enemy unit's square.
- Only one capture per turn — unless you're exiting the trench (see The Trench Line).
- Captured units are removed from the board.
The Trench Line
Colonels and Generals can move along the trench (since those are the only units that can move sideways).
Advantages
- Units can capture multiple units when exiting the trench and moving forward, and can keep moving even after capturing.
- A unit in the trench is protected from frontal and trench attacks — an enemy unit cannot capture it by advancing from its own side, nor can it capture another unit if both are in the trench.
Disadvantages
- A unit in the trench can be captured from behind — if a player has a unit on the enemy's side, it can move backwards and capture an enemy unit that is inside the trench.
- A unit in the trench cannot move backward to capture a unit in its own friendly territory.
End of the game
- The first player to capture an opponent's pieces worth 25 points wins.
- If 50 consecutive moves are made without any capture (25 moves for each player), the final score determines the player winner.
