how to play yacht dice
Yacht dice is a free five-dice scoring game you can play solo or against pip, a computer rival. Each turn you get up to three rolls and can hold any dice between them, then you write the result in one of thirteen boxes. Ones through sixes pay the total of that face, with a 35 point bonus once they reach 63. Below them: three and four of a kind, full house (25), small straight (30), large straight (40), yacht (50) and chance. Extra yachts pay 100 each. The score sheet shows what every open box would score before you pick.
- Press roll. Tap any dice you want to keep, then roll again. You get three rolls a turn.
- Pick an open box on the sheet to score the dice. Every open box shows what it would get, and the best one is highlighted. A box can take a zero, and then it is used.
- Ones through sixes count only that face. Get 63 or more across them for a 35 point bonus.
- After thirteen turns every box is full and the totals are added up. Against pip, the higher total wins.
Keyboard: R or Space rolls, keys 1 to 5 hold a die, Tab moves to a box on the sheet and Enter scores it. During pip's turn, Space skips. Esc goes back to the menu.
tips
- Three of each face in the upper boxes is exactly 63. Every extra die there is a cushion for a weak box later.
- Chance is your safety net. Save it for a turn that went wrong, not a turn that went fine.
- Going for a large straight? Keep four in a row and roll the fifth die twice.
- Scratch the yacht box or ones with a bad roll before you scratch a box that usually pays well.
- A second yacht pays 100 on top of whatever box it goes in, so keep the yacht box clean if you can.
faq
What is a small straight?
Any four faces in a row: 1-2-3-4, 2-3-4-5 or 3-4-5-6. The fifth die can be anything, so 1-2-3-4-6 and 2-3-4-5-6 both count. A large straight is all five in a row: 1-2-3-4-5 or 2-3-4-5-6.
Does five of a kind count as a full house?
Only as a joker. A full house is three of one face and two of another. Once your yacht box is filled, five of a kind becomes a joker and can score a full house, a straight or anything below at full value.
How does the joker rule work?
If you roll five of a kind and the yacht box already has a score (50 or 0), you must put it in the matching upper box if that is open. If it is filled, any open lower box scores full value: 25 for a full house, 30 and 40 for the straights, the dice total for the rest. If those are all filled too, it goes in an open upper box as a zero.
What is the yacht bonus?
Each extra yacht after a 50 in the yacht box pays 100 points. If you scored a zero in the yacht box, extra yachts pay no bonus but still follow the joker rule.
How does the upper bonus work?
If ones through sixes add up to 63 or more, you get 35 points once. Yacht bonuses do not count toward the 63.
Who is pip?
Pip is the computer player. It rolls its own dice after each of your turns and plays well with the odd lapse, scoring a little over 220 on average. Tap the tray to skip its turn, or switch to solo on the first turn.
Is there a daily?
No. Every game rolls fresh dice, and your best score is saved.