10 Easy Dice Games to Play

These easy dice games start with the dice you already have. Some only need a piece of paper for the score. No board to set up.

10 easy dice games and what you need to play

Match the game to the dice already on the table. These are simple dice games: a die count, a short way to play, and a clear winner. Write the score on paper.

Pig

How to play

Pig needs one D6 and two or more players. On your turn, roll one die as many times as you want. Add each 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 to this turn. You can stop and keep those points, or roll again. If you roll a 1, you lose the points from that turn. Points you already kept stay. First to 100 wins. Pick this when two people have a single die.

Ship, Captain, Crew

How to play

Ship, Captain, and Crew needs five D6 and two or more players. You can roll up to three times, trying to roll a 6 for the ship, a 5 for the captain, and a 4 for the crew, in that order. Set those dice aside when they appear. You cannot set the captain before the ship, or the crew before the captain. After all three are set, add the other two dice. That sum is your cargo. Highest cargo wins. If you never get ship, captain, and crew, your score is 0. On a cargo tie, roll those two dice once more. Some tables let 6, 5, and 4 land in any order. Say which version you are using before the first throw.

Shut the Box

How to play

Write the numbers 1 through 9. Roll two dice and use the total to cover open numbers. You can split it. A 7 can be 7 alone, 6+1, 5+2, 4+3, or 4+2+1, as long as those numbers are still open. Keep rolling until you cannot make another move. Your score is the sum of the numbers still open. Lowest score wins. Covering every number is a shut box. When every open number is 6 or lower, roll one die instead of two. A 1-12 track is a different game. Do not mix the two tracks in one round.

Yahtzee

How to play

Yahtzee is a Hasbro game. This is a short home summary, not the card in the box. Yacht is the older name for this kind of five-dice card. You need five D6. Roll up to three times, keeping any dice you want between rolls. You fill 13 boxes, one per turn, even when the roll is a poor fit. The upper boxes are ones through sixes: add only the dice that show that number. The lower boxes are three of a kind, four of a kind, a full house, a small straight, a large straight, chance, and five of a kind. Record a score each turn until the card is complete. The highest total wins. If you own the game, use that card for the fixed scores. If you do not, agree those scores before you start.

Farkle

How to play

Farkle, also called 10,000, needs six D6 and two or more players. Roll six dice and set aside any dice that score. You can keep the points or roll the remaining dice again. If a roll has no scoring dice, you lose the points from that turn. Points you already kept stay. First player to 10,000 wins. Agree the card before the first roll. One common home card scores a single 1 as 100, a single 5 as 50, three 1s as 1000, and three of a kind from 2 through 6 as 100 times the face. Straights, three pairs, and a minimum to get on the board only count if your card lists them.

Left Center Right

How to play

Left Center Right needs three or more players and three chips each. On your turn, roll one die for each chip you still hold, up to three dice. Pass one chip left for each L, put one chip in the center for each C, and pass one chip right for each R. A dot does nothing. If you have no chips, skip the roll. You are still in the game. The last player holding chips wins and takes the center. Boxed dice show L, C, R, and a dot on the other three faces. On a normal D6, 1, 2, or 3 is a dot, 4 is L, 5 is C, and 6 is R. Two people cannot play this. The passes need a third seat.

Bunco

How to play

Bunco needs three D6. There are six rounds. In round 1 you want ones. In round 2 you want twos. Continue through round 6 and sixes. Roll three dice. Each die that matches the round number scores 1. If all three match the round number, that is a Bunco: score 21 and roll again. If none match, your turn ends. After everyone has rolled, start the next round number. A party often seats four, with partners across the table and a team total. A smaller group can keep one score each. Some tables also score three of a kind that is not the round number. Agree that before round 1, or leave it out. This is the loud living-room game. For five quiet minutes, play Pig.

Beetle

How to play

Beetle needs one D6, a pencil, and two or more players. Players take turns rolling one die and drawing the body part that matches the roll, if that part is allowed. You need a 6 for the body before any other part. A 5 is the head, and the head has to exist before eyes or antennae. A 4 is one wing (you need two). A 3 is one leg (you need six). A 2 is one antenna (you need two). A 1 is one eye (you need two). First person to finish the beetle wins. Beetle drive is the same chart at a party: several tables, and winners move. Some boxed sets use 1 for the body. If someone learned it that way, write the six lines down and use that chart for the whole round. The body still comes first, and the head still comes before eyes and antennae.

Tenzi

How to play

Tenzi is a published speed game. Each player needs 10 dice of one color, so a four-player game is 40 dice. Someone says go, and everyone rolls all ten at once. From that roll, pick one number, usually the one you rolled the most. Set those dice aside and keep rolling the rest. After the first roll you do not wait for the other players. The first player to get all ten dice on the same number wins. Skip this when the table has only one handful of dice.

Drop Dead

How to play

Drop Dead needs five D6 and two or more players. Roll five dice. If the roll shows no 2 and no 5, add every face to your score and roll all five again. If any die shows a 2 or a 5, that roll scores nothing. Set every 2 and every 5 aside. They are out for the rest of your turn. Keep rolling the dice you have left, with the same rule. You cannot stop early. Your turn ends when you have no dice left. The highest score wins. A first roll of only 2s and 5s scores 0.

Games to play with dice on one screen

Don't have enough physical dice? Put one phone where everyone can see it and roll dice for any row in the table. Keep the score on paper. For Ship, Captain, and Crew, Yahtzee, and Drop Dead, roll again only the dice still in play.

Not sure which dice game to choose?

• Two players, one die: Pig.

• Family, with paper: Shut the Box, or Beetle for a drawing round.

• A group: Bunco, or Left Center Right if you have three or more players and some chips.

• A longer scorecard: Yahtzee or Farkle.

• A classroom: Shut the Box for adding, Beetle for drawing. Tenzi only when each player has 10 dice.

• Five dice and a short round: Ship, Captain, and Crew, or Drop Dead.