PAPHOS DOMINOES LEAGUE

                                         RULES

  

EQUIPMENT

 

The game uses a standard set of Western double-six dominoes-28 tiles in all.

The game can be played by two or four players (2 pairs).

A cribbage board is useful for scoring ,since scores are totalled as they are made and not at the end of the hand.

 

THE DEAL

 

The size of the hand varies with the number of players :-

 

2 players get 7 tiles each

4 players get 6 tiles each

 

The rest of the tiles form the boneyard.

 

THE PLAY

 

The first player in the first hand is determined by lot – eg. Before the deal each player draws a tile and the one with the greatest number of pips starts.

In the following hands ,the turn passes to the left. The lead can be any tile in the player’s hand.

 

Play is clockwise. Each player in turn must play a tile if possible, adding it to end of the layout, matching the inward end of the played tile with the outward end of the tile it touches in the usual way. Doubles are turned crosswise and count as the total of their pips for scoring purposes.

 

If a player cannot play a tile, he must knock, and it is the next player’s turn. It is illegal to knock when able to play a tile.

 

The play continues until one player dominoes or “Chips out” (Plays his last tile) or until all players are blocked. In the partnership game for four players play continues until both players of one team have chipped out – so a game can be blocked if only two players, one from each team, still have tiles.

 

 

SCORING

 

After a player has added a tile to the layout, the two open ends are totalled. If this total is a multiple of five, three or both, the player immediately scores the number of fives and/or threes in the total. The possible scoring totals are :-

 

3 – 1 point 

5 – 1 point 

6 – 2 points (Two threes) 

9 – 3 points  (Three threes) 

10 – 2 points (Two fives) 

12 – 4 points  (Four threes) 

15 – 8 points (Three fives and five threes)

18 – 6 points (Six threes)

20 – 4 points (Four fives)

 

Note the doubles score the total of their pips only if they are at the open end of the layout. So 15 is made by having the (5-5) at one end and a five at the other or (6-6) at one end and a three at the other. For 20 you need (6-6) and (4-4) at the two ends.

 

A player who chips out, in the individual game, or a team which both members chip out scores one point for this. If the game is blocked, no one scores this point.

 

The score is kept on a cribbage board, the first player of each team to reach exactly 61 wins. A score that would take the player’s or team total over 61 is disregarded. For example if a player scores 4 points when his score is 58, then his score remains at 58.

 

If a player plays their last tile and this creates a scoring total, then for the purposes of ending the game, the point for chipping out is scored at the same time as the normal score in play, and if this takes you over 61, the score is disregarded. So for example if a player has 59 on the board and plays their last tile to create a total of six on the ends of he layout, the player will have scored 3 points- Two points for the total of six plus one for playing the last tile and this is too many and the score remains at 59.