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Players

This game should work well for seven to nine players, but is also suitable for three or more as there is more action in betting than draw poker.

Cards and Dice

A standard deck of 52 cards is used with each suit ranking A (High), K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2. There is no rank of suits. Generally wild cards, jokers, and bugs are not used due to the nature of the dice suit.

Three dice are also used as a fifth suit. The dice suit is ranked as the standard four suits, except that the lowest rank is 1. In play, any two or three dice can be combined to form higher ranking cards. Jacks require 11 points, Queens require 12, Kings require 13 points and Aces cost 14. Note: a player is not required to combine dice to form higher ranking cards.
For example, a player rolling 6,5,3 may choose to combine the three dice into an Ace. He may also choose to combine the 6 and 5 into a Jack. This would leave him with a J and 3 of dice. The player may also opt to leave the dice as is, he is under no compulsion to combine at all.

Rank of Hands

There are no flushes in Dice Poker, however, the nature of the dice suit allows for several combinations. From lowest to highest, the rank of hands are:

• High card – three different cards and dice where no combination of dice and cards permit any higher hand.
• One pair – Same as traditional poker. The pair can be a dice pair or a card pair or combination of the two. For example, the three of hearts and three of dice form a pair.
• Bobtail – Four Card Straight that does not start with a one or an Ace. There are no wrap-around straights allowed. For example, a Bobtail could be six of dice, seven of hearts, eight of clubs, and nine of diamonds.
• Two Pair – Same as traditional poker.
• Three of a Kind (Barrel) – Same as traditional poker. This can be three cards, three dice, or a combination of the two. For example, the seven of hearts, seven of spades, and a dice combination of 5 and 2 will produce a three of kind with sevens.
• Three Pair – Just what it sounds like. This can only occur when dice are not combined. For example, a hand of 2 of clubs, 2 of diamonds, 6 of spades, and 6,1,1 of dice produce three pair. (1s, 2s, 6s)
• Odds or Evens – five or six cards in alternate sequence like A, Q, 10, 8, 6 or J, 9, 7, 5, 3, 1
• Full house – Same as traditional poker.
• Straight – Five card straight, same as traditional poker. No wrap-around straights are allowed, but a straight may start with an Ace or a one of dice.
• Four of a Kind – Same as in normal poker
• Longtom – A ‘Four of a Kind’ plus a ‘Pair’. For example, a hand of Ace of diamonds, Ace of Clubs, five of diamonds and dice of 5,5,5 produce a Longtom.
• Double Barrel – Two barrels (two sets of ‘Three of a Kind’)
• Five of a Kind – same as traditional poker.
• Major Straight – Three cards and three dice that form a sequence of ranks for all six cards. A hand of 7 of clubs, 8 of diamonds, 9 of spades, and dice of 4,5,6 produce a major straight.
• Six of a Kind – Three cards and three dice of the same rank.

Dealing

The dealer deals two face-down cards to each player and temporarily lays the deck aside. Each player rolls a die. Betting begins with the person with the higher die roll closest to the dealer. In the case of a tie, the person with the highest roll to the left of the dealer is chosen.

After the first round of betting, the dealer gives one more face-down card to each player. The deck is laid aside for the remainder of the hand. Each player rolls a second die – the person with the highest total of the two dice closest to the dealer bets first. In the case of a tie, the person with the highest total to the left of the dealer is chosen. This means that if some has rolled two 2s and another player rolls 4,6. The person with the 4,6 will bet first, despite the fact that the first person has ‘a pair’.

After the second round of betting, each player rolls their last die. Betting begins with the person with the highest total of the three dice closest to the dealer bets first. In the case of a tie, the person with the highest total to the left of the dealer is chosen. Again, it is determined by dice total, not the best poker hand or combination of dice into higher cards.

Variants

Like any game of poker, it is not necessary to bet at all.

You can also use different dice than the standard. Eight-sided dice allow for a greater chance to get an Ace and allow for more possible straights. Ideally, a seven-sided dice would be perfect. You can purchase one here.

A group of people known as the Mavinian Traders use these cards for amusement as well as communication in their own language. Each deck is hand-crafted, usually by the person using a given deck. Many are crudely made with whatever material is at hand, but a few are ornately made with the Merchant and Servants cards drawn with faces.

On the downloads page you can download pdfs and an all-in-one zip file. Individual OpenOffice Draw files will be posted soon. These example files do not represent an ornate deck. Instead they will serve as a prototype deck for playtesting.

These cards are very close to Las Vegas poker card standards – 2.35″ wide and 3.25″ long. The corners are rounded with a 1/4″ radius.

Each player rolls the dice at the beginning of hand and leaves them visible to all players. A round of betting begins.
Then each player is dealt three cards and another round of betting continues. This can be done one time after all three cards are dealt or one at a time after each card is dealt.

The dice are used either as face value for extra cards (sixes, fives, fours, threes, twos, ones). A player may also combine two or three dice to generate a higher value card. Face card values are: 14 = Ace, 13 = King, 12 = Queen, 11 = Jack.

For example, if a player rolls three sixes, he may opt to use them as three cards (three sixes) or two cards (a King and a six). If a character rolls 6,5,3, he may opt to use them as three cards (a six, a five, a three), two cards (Queen and three, eight and six, nine and five) or as one card (Ace).

Note: Ones as lower than twos and ones are not Aces. It is therefore possible to have a pair of ones.

This, of course, makes six of a kind sixes the highest hand.
The hand rankings are as follows: (lowest to highest)

• High card – six different cards – no combination of dice and cards permit any higher hand.
• One pair – same as traditional poker.
• Bobtail – Four Card Straight that does not start with a one or an Ace. There are no wrap-around straights allowed.
• Two Pair – same as traditional poker.
• Three of a Kind (Barrel) – same as traditional poker.
• Three Pair – Just what it sounds like
• Odds or Evens – five or six cards in alternate sequence like A, Q, 10, 8, 6 or J, 9, 7, 5, 3, 1
• Full house – same as traditional poker.
• Straight – Five card straight, same as traditional poker. No wrap-around straights are allowed.
• Four of a Kind – Same as in normal poker
• Longtom – A ‘Four of a Kind’ plus a ‘Pair’
• Double Barrel – Two barrels (two sets of ‘Three of a Kind’)
• Five of a Kind – same as traditional poker.
• Major Straight – six card straight
• Six of a Kind – just what it says

There are no flushes in Dice Poker, the dice are not wild, they are their own suit called by various names (half-suit, monkey suit, crazy suit, etc) but usually referred to as Dice. Referring to values used to create hands, you would say that you have an Ace of Dice or a two of dice.

Needed: One standard deck of 52 cards (No Jokers)

Rules of Play:

• Deal 26 cards to each player, face down. This will form the draw pile.

• Each player takes five cards from the draw pile and places them face up in a row. This is called the skirmish line.
  Each player then takes four more cards from the draw pile. Three are placed face down in a separate stack called a skirmish pile. The fourth card is placed face up on top of that pile. Whichever player has the highest face up card on the skirmish pile, takes the other player’s skirmish pile.

• Both skirmish piles are placed facedown in the winner’s discard pile.

• Starting with the winner of the skirmish pile, the player chooses one of his face up cards in his skirmish line and takes a card of lower rank from his opponent’s skirmish line and places both facedown in his discard pile.

• The other player then takes one of his face up cards in his skirmish line and repeats the same action.

• Play continues by alternating turns until the skirmish line is empty or neither player can take another player’s card. If cards remain on the skirmish line, they are put in the discard pile.

• When the draw pile is empty, a player must shuffle their discard pile and use it for the new draw pile.

• Play ends when a player concedes defeat, or one player has four or fewer cards.

Other rules:

1. Any time a player needs to add cards to his skirmish line or skirmish pile, he must shuffle his discard pile and use it for a new draw pile.
2. If a player has fewer then 9 cards total. In other words, the total number of cards from the draw pile and discard pile is less than nine, the player places as many cards as he can on the skirmish line, saving four for the skirnish pile. For example, if a player has seven cards left, he places three on the skirmish line and uses the last four to create the skirmish pile.