Double Six Domino Games
Viola Mathenia
Welcome to a wildly fast and fun new approach to dominoes. Score points by matching dominoes on top of key spaces on the board or better yet, play a Double Double Domino and double your score! Be careful what you choose, because the domino you play may actually score points for others! Get ready to outrun your opponents in this simply addicting spin on a classic game.
There are countless different domino games and within each game, there are many variations of play available. The purpose of this set of rules is to get you started with a few simple and popular games. Later, we'll give you reference information for finding many other games you would enjoy.
One of the wonderful things about dominoes is that anyone can learn the basics very quickly, but as you play and progress, you will find many additional levels of the game and as your experience and skills develop, you will become a more and more formidable player. Get started with these simple games and you will find yourself getting smarter every time you play. Dominoes is a good game for your brain.
There are variations, but here is a starting point: Turn the dominoes upside down on the table and mix them around. Then have each player draw one domino. The player who draws the highest domino (based on total number of dots) will draw first and also make the first play of the game.
Now return those dominoes to the table and mix them again. Now draw the dominoes for the playing of the hand. The person who won the right to play first draws first. Each player may draw all the dominoes for the hand or you can go around the table with each player drawing one domino until all have the dominoes needed to start play.
Each player in turn lays down a single domino according to the rules of the game being played. Play proceeds clockwise around the table. If a player has a playable domino, he must play it when his turn comes. You cannot hold back a playable domino for strategic reasons.
The Set-Up:
After the shuffle, with two players, each player draws seven dominoes. With three or four players, each player draws 5 dominoes. The remaining dominoes stay face down on the table and are available to be drawn by each player during play. (These remaining dominoes are called the boneyard.)
The Play:
Players take turns going first in each game. When a player is first, he may place any of his dominoes face up on the table to start play. The first domino played is called the "set".
After the set, each domino must be placed next to a matching domino. Singles must be played end-to-end. Doubles must cross singles. Plays can be made on either end of a single domino and on both sides of a double domino, but not on the ends of a double.
Ending the Game, Scoring:
...one player places his last domino. At that time, he calls "domino." The other players turn up all the dominoes remaining in their hands and count the dots. The total of the dots on the unplayed dominoes of the other players is the score of the winning player for that hand.
Winning the Game:
With each hand, you accumulate points. Before you start, and depending on how long you want to play, set a number (say 100 or 200) and the first player to reach that total score wins the game.
This is a little more sophisticated version of "Block." Everything is the same except when a player cannot place a domino, he must draw dominoes from the boneyard until he gets one that he can play. All the rest of the game remains the same. The limitation here is that in a 2-player game, the last two dominoes in the boneyard may not be drawn and in a 4-player game, the very last domino in the boneyard may not be drawn.
Some simple strategy notes for Block and Draw:
Look at the dominoes you hold and try to play them in such a way as to set yourself up for plays on your next turn. If you have lots of 2s, try to play a 2 so you will be able to match it the next time around (if someone else doesn't get to it first).
The Play:
As in the "Block" game above, dominoes must be played so their ends match. Dominoes are laid end to end except doubles which are laid across the line of play. As in "block", you cannot play on the ends of a double once it is placed. Play proceeds clockwise around the table.
How to score:
In Muggins, you can score each time a domino is placed as well as at the end of the game. The object is for the open ends of the dominoes to be a multiple of 5. For each multiple of 5, you score one point.
Count both ends of the double 6. Open ends are 6, 6 and 3, count is 15, score is 3 points. (Also note above that the open ends of the double 5 are not counted. A double is only counted when it is on the end of the line of play.)
Counting the score after each play:
When a player makes a score after placing a domino, a scorekeeper notes the score at that time. The running score can also be kept on a counter or cribbage board.
Drawing from the boneyard:
If a player cannot place a domino, he draws from the boneyard until he can make a play. In a two-person game, all but two of the dominoes in the boneyard may be drawn In a three or four-person game, all but one of the dominoes in the boneyard may be drawn.
Ending the hand:
The first player to use all his tiles calls "domino" and this ends the hand. If no player can play his last domino and the boneyard has been depleted down to one or two dominoes (see "drawing from the boneyard" above), the hand is over.
Scoring:
At the end of the hand When the hand is over, the player (or team) with the lowest number of dots on their remaining dominoes receives additional points based on the number of dots in the opponents hands.
For every multiple of 5 dots in the opponents hands, the winner receives one point. For a count of 1 or 2 above a multiple of 5, there is no additional score. For a count of 3 or 4 above a multiple of 5, round up to the nearest 5.
Ending the game, winning:
Keep playing the hands until one player or team has 61 points. That ends the game. Want to play longer? You can set the game ending score at 100 or 200 or whatever you would like.
Variation #1
In the basic game, you cannot make plays off the ends of doubles, but only off the sides. In this variation, you are allowed to play off the ends of the first double that is played.
Variation #2
If a player places a domino that would result in a score (a multiple of 5 on the ends of the dominoes played), but does not realize it, then another player can call "Muggins" and will receive that score.
Ending the Game, Winning:
The game ends when any player places his last domino. At that point, that player (or team) adds to its score based on the number of dots on the dominoes in the opponents' hands. (when playing in teams, you do not add the number of dots remaining in your teammate's hand) Here are the rules for this process. For every multiple of 5 dots in the opponents hands, the winner receives one point. For a count of 1 or 2 above a multiple of 5, there is no additional score. For a count of 3 or 4 above a multiple of 5, round up to the nearest 5.
If the game is blocked (all players still have dominoes, but nobody can make a play), the game ends and the player (or team) with the lowest number of dots on the dominoes held collects points (based on the formula above) based on the dominoes in the opponents hands.
The very best writer on dominoes and domino strategy we have ever known is Dominic C. Armanino. Unfortunately, all the books he wrote are out of print, but you can still obtain some of them through Amazon. His classic is called "Dominoes...Five-Up and Other Games Including Official Rules and Odds." This book explains the Five-Up game beautifully and in detail and then walks you through many strategic considerations that will help you to be a better player. It was published in paperback under the Tartan Imprint and by David McKay Company. If you are into this game, you'll enjoy these books. Another good title from him is "Popular Domino Games" published by Van Rees.While not as extensive, it does give clear instructions for a number of good domino games.
The most extensive book containing the rules of many domino games is called "The Great Book of Domino Games" by Jennifer A. Kelley. The good thing about this book is that it is in print and you can get it on Amazon. If you want to expand the range of games you know how to play, this book is a good choice. It will give you the basics of many games.
These rules were put together as best we could from the information we could find. We may have missed something, and if we did, we hope you'll tell us about it. For corrections or useful additions, send us a letter or use our contact page and we'll keep making these instructions better based on your thoughts.
Dominoes is a family of tile-based games played with gaming pieces. Each domino is a rectangular tile, usually with a line dividing its face into two square ends. Each end is marked with a number of spots (also called pips or dots) or is blank. The backs of the tiles in a set are indistinguishable, either blank or having some common design. The gaming pieces make up a domino set, sometimes called a deck or pack. The traditional European domino set consists of 28 tiles, also known as pieces, bones, rocks, stones, men, cards or just dominoes, featuring all combinations of spot counts between zero and six. A domino set is a generic gaming device, similar to playing cards or dice, in that a variety of games can be played with a set. Another form of entertainment using domino pieces is the practice of domino toppling.
European-style dominoes are traditionally made of bone, silver lip ocean pearl oyster shell (mother of pearl), ivory, or a dark hardwood such as ebony, with contrasting black or white pips (inlaid or painted). Some sets feature the top half thickness in MOP, ivory, or bone, with the lower half in ebony. Alternatively, domino sets have been made from many different natural materials: stone (e.g., marble, granite or soapstone); other woods (e.g., ash, oak, redwood, and cedar); metals (e.g., brass or pewter); ceramic clay, or even frosted glass or crystal. These sets have a more novel look, and the often heavier weight makes them feel more substantial; also, such materials and the resulting products are usually much more expensive than polymer materials.
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