Objective
You win by reaching any square of the enemy homeland row or by eliminating every opposing piece.
Opening
Each side places 3 Level 1 pieces on its homeland row during setup. Strong spacing matters because it leaves room to upgrade safely and to build out a defensive shell later.
Turns And Busy Pieces
You get 1 action per turn. A piece that starts an upgrade or spawn becomes busy and cannot move or switch tasks until it completes, though it can still be captured. You may ignore one busy piece and act with a different ready piece.
Piece Levels
Level 1 captures forward or sideways, and upgrades toward Level 2. Level 2 moves and captures forward or sideways, and upgrades toward Level 3. Level 3 moves orthogonally in all four directions and can spawn once; after it has spawned, it may upgrade to Level 4. Level 4 moves and captures in all eight directions.
Spawning
Each Level 3 may complete up to 3 spawns total. Each side may spawn at most 9 pieces during the entire game, and pending spawns also count against that cap. A completed spawn creates a new Level 1 on an orthogonally adjacent square, including legal spawn-captures except backward captures.
Strategy
Pure sprinting is usually weak. Homeland rewards methodical defense, careful timing, and forcing the opponent to overcommit before you counterattack.