Dice a game of chance

Dice is purely a game of chance, which is why it appeals to the gambling instinct in most of us. There is no special skill or knowledge required to throw dice, and all the games on these pages can be enjoyed by people of any age from all walks of life. Try it, and you will find that you will soon become addicted to this fascinating game.

Poker dice, with six sides, are used for all the games. The spots that give the score are arranged in such a way that any combination of spots on opposite faces top and bottom adds up to the gambler's traditional lucky number — seven!

It's always better to shake dice in a container rather than your hands. A leather one here is best, but a mug or glass will do perfectly well otherwise.

Sultan
Any number of people can join in, using one dice. Take it in turns to throw the dice — one throws each. The first player to throw a six is the Sultan, and he now decides on a target number for everyone else to try and throw, while he sits back. Supposing he selects number 5 — from now on any player who doesn't throw a 5 has to give the Sultan the equivalent number of chips to the number he has thrown. However, when a player throws a 5, the Sultan has to give him the equivalent number of chips. The Sultan gives up his position to the first player to throw a 6, and so the game goes on.

Ten to one
Each player has 10 consecutive throws with one dice. His objective is to throw a 1. The loser is the person who either fails altogether to throw 1, or who takes the most throws to achieve it.

Cow's tail
Each player puts out six rows of coins in the shape of a triangle — first row contains six coins, second five, and so on until the last row contains only one. The object of the game is to be the first player to dismantle your triangle — or the cow's tail. Each player takes it in turn to throw the dice once — if he throws a number that corresponds with the number of coins in a row, he may remove that row. Otherwise, he has not scored. First player to remove all his coins now wins the coins of the other players that are still out on the table.

Little or nothing
Each player has ten consecutive throws with two dice, and ads up all the scores he has made. The player with the smallest total is the winner!

The Smith family
This game is played with three dice and any number of contestants. The idea is in three throws to try to assemble the Smith family in order. Mr. Smith equals 1, Mrs. Smith equals 2, the children can be any number (up to 6 of course). Each player has three throws in turn. He must throw Mr. Smith first, before Mrs. Smith, and last the children. On his first throw, he uses all three dice; if he throws Mr. Smith, he may put that dice on one side, and use only two dice for his next turn. If you are very lucky, you might throw Mr. and Mrs. Smith plus children in one throw — but it is not likely. The game continues until one player succeeds.

Five fingers
Using three dice each throw and a maximum of five throws on your turn, you must try to make a total of five only. On your second and subsequent throws, you can put advantageous dice on one side, and throw only one or two.

Pairs and three of a kind
A pair is when two dice match out of three. Have three throws each to see who can throw a pair. If more than one of you succeeds, the pair with the highest numerical value wins. However, if one of you throws three of a kind — he or she is the outright winner.

Charley
In this game, played with three dice, the 1 count for 100 points and the 6 counts for 60 points; all other points count at face value as shown on the dice. Have three consecutive throws each — the player with the highest number of points is the winner in this game.

Cocked dice
This is the term given to dice that come to rest at an angle against an object such as a beermat, notebook or glass. In most games, it is agreed that the thrower can pick up his dice and begin again when this situation arises. However, you can play a game where you are aiming to get "cocked" dice. Put out three beermats on the table. Each player now has five consecutive throws with the aim of getting his three dice to rest at an angle against the mats. Each throw is scored individually by taking the number of spots on the top surface of any dice that is "cocked," and the total for the five rounds is noted down. Highest scorer wins.

Debit and credit
You need two pairs of different colored dice for this game. Take it in turns to have one throw each until all the players have had a total of ten throws each. Everyone keeps his own score on each round. All four dice are thrown together, and you tot up the total scored by the pair of one color (pre-agreed as credit color) and the total scored by the other pair who are the debit side. Note down the scores separately. At the end of the game, each player tots up their credits and their debits and takes one from the other — the player who has scored the highest credit (after deducting his debit) is the winner.