How to play dominoes
For a long time our yards have not been filled with loud cries: “Fish! Double! There are no fierce disputes between two neighbors, playing already the sixth game, dominoes do not knock on a wooden table. Too bad it's sorely lacking. But such a picture remained in the days of the USSR. This does not mean at all that dominoes have gone out of fashion. In clubs of interest, on vacation, in the family circle, on the Internet, this game flourishes and does not slow down at all.
History of dominoes
The country that gave life to dominoes is China and it happened around the second century BC. Its prototype was a dice game, which was brought to China from India much earlier.
“Domino” is a French word that refers to the winter clothes of a priest. It was white on the inside and black on the outside. "Domino" is also a kind of masks that represent a dark and light motif.
The domino itself is a rectangle of absolutely regular geometric shape, in which one length is equal to the width multiplied by two. The rectangle itself is divided into two parts by a horizontal strip, and each half shows points 1,2,3…6. The usual set for the game consists of 28 tiles, and in certain games they take a set of 32 tiles.
Types of bones for dominoes
- In the originally conceived form, the domino game was made from ordinary bone or ivory, as well as from stone, but after millennia this game became more accessible to ordinary people and for this it was made from plastic, wood or various metals. Sometimes a deck of cards is used to play dominoes.
- Dots are not always depicted on modern dominoes. It happens that dominoes with animals, children's cartoon characters and other pictures are created for children. For example, in the days of the Soviet Union, a domino game with the image of berries was often sold, while playing it, young children not only learned to think logically and memorize, but also learned the name of berry crops.
How to play traditional dominoes
- 2-4 people play.
- For two people, 7 bones are distributed, for three or four - 5 each. The rest are put aside in the "bazaar", from where the players will get their bones during the game.
- The player who got the “double six” starts, or another double in descending order, if the six remained in the “bazaar” (if not a single double was caught during the distribution in the game, then they don’t go to the “bazaar”, but start with that the tile with the highest total score, e.g. 6-5).
- The rest of the players take turns placing dice with appropriate values (6-1 ; 6-2; ...). If none of the players has a suitable bone, then he needs to take one bone from the “bazaar” until the right one appears.
- The game will end in two cases, if one of the players lays out the last stone (in this case, the winner gets the points of all other players in total) or "fish". This means that there are still stones left in the hands, but there is nothing more to report to the current layout.
- The winner belongs to the one who has the fewest points left in his hand, the difference between the total points and his own is recorded to him. The game can be continued up to any predetermined amount, for example, 100 points.
Varieties of the game of dominoes
In eastern countries, there are more than fifty varieties of dominoes. They differ in the bones, and the number of players, and the method of scoring.
Goat
In Russia, the game under the popular name Goat has gained the greatest popularity. Basically, the rules of this game do not differ from the traditional ones (rules for the beginning of a turn, distribution by the number of players, distribution of tiles, etc.). Therefore, below we name the distinctive features of this particular game:
- the last bone remains in the “bazaar”, it is never taken away;
- a new round is started by the player who came out the winner in this one, or the one who made the “fish”;
- points begin to be recorded only when twenty-five or more are scored at a time;
- when several players have the same number of points after the “fish”, then these points, or “eggs”, will be added to the one who loses in the next round;
- the one who scored one hundred and twenty-five points or more loses, he is a “goat”.
sea goat
This game is the most popular in Russia, it is active and complex, compared to other varieties of dominoes. You can play two or four (then you can play a pair on a pair diagonally). So, below are the rules of the game in "Sea Goat":
- the points of all the losers are recorded by the only one, the first player who came out;
- if the player has come across doubles that can be substituted in one move to different ends of the placed bones, then according to the rules of this game, this is possible;
- the player who was the first to start recording his points, at any moment, if a double six came to him, can start the round first, and if he can win this round, he automatically wins the whole game, but if he loses with twenty-five points or more, then automatically loses the entire game;
- if one of the players was able to finish the round with a “0-0” double, then he is the winner, this is called the “bald goat”. If the last double put by the player is “6-6”, he is also considered the winner, but only if at least one of the losers left more than 25 points in his hands;
- when the player has only the "0-0" bone left, he totals twenty-five points, if only "6-6" - fifty points, if "0-0" and "6-6" - immediately seventy-five.
As you have noticed, the differences in the rules of the game for these varieties are very subtle, and you can choose the ways of playing dominoes yourself. There is also “Donkey”, FWW, “General”, “Sports Lotto” and many others. Each company can decide for itself how they want to play dominoes. Before the game, you can discuss the rules and write them down on paper.
Recently, domino games through a computer in the Internet space are gaining more and more popularity. You can play with a computer, or you can play with real people through the network. The choice is yours!
In any case, take the time and get acquainted with this wonderful game, because it develops attention, memory, logic. And it's just very nice to spend time playing with your friends. Good luck in the game!
