     
                   
                            DOMINO RULES 
     
 
The following description of the "Draw Game" of dominoes incorporates a 
complete set of rules for the two-person game; there may be minor variations 
from other sets of rules, but the game described is a very common version. 
      
Everyone knows that a domino is a small tile, about 1 inch by 2 inches by 
one-quarter inch thick, with a plain back and a face divided into two halves, 
each marked with some number of dots from 0 to 6. (The two halves of the face 
are sometimes called "ends" of the domino.) A set of dominoes consists of 28 
such tiles, with each possible combination from 0-0 to 6-6 occurring exactly 
once. A domino is referred to as the 2-3, the 4-6, etc., according to the 
numbers of dots on the two halves of its face. A domino having the same number 
of dots on each end is called a "double". 
      
In the two person draw game, each player selects a "hand" of 11 (sometimes 9 
or 7); the usual process is to place all the dominoes face down on the table, 
shuffle them around a bit, and then draw the hands at random. The dominoes 
left over are placed to one side and are designated as the "boneyard", which 
may come into play later. Customarily, each player will set his dominoes 
upright on the table before him, with their faces visible to him but not to 
his opponent; this arrangement is not mandatory, but each player is entitled 
to know at any stage of the game exactly how many dominoes are left in his 
opponent's hand (and in the boneyard). 
      
Before play begins it must be decided which contestant plays first. This is 
done by lot, usually by each player drawing a single domino from the shuffled 
set, with the player drawing the largest total number of spots being the 
designated lead off man for the first hand. This player is said to "have the 
down". The dominoes are then reshuffled, and hands are drawn as described 
above. (In some versions of dominoes, the down is determined quite 
differently. See the discussion of the 'Highest Double Down' rule above.) 
     
At the beginning of play, the player having the down places any one of the 
dominoes from his hand face up on the table. If the sum of the spots on this 
domino is a multiple of 5 , the player is awarded that many points,or "count"; 
if the sum is not a multiple of 5, no score is given. Thus the 0-5, 1-4 and 
2-3 each score 5 points, while the 4-6 and 5-5 score 10 points. No other 
dominoes make any points on the the down. 
      
After the initial play, the next player places one of his dominoes on the 
table adjacent to the first one, in such a way that the numbers on the 
abutting ends match. For example, if the 3-4 is downed, then the 4-2 could be 
played, with the two 4's adjacent to each other, 3-4:4-2 . The exposed ends of 
the "board", the 3 from the 3-4 and the 2 from the 4-2, now total 5, and the 
second player is awarded 5 points. Only multiples of 5 count, so a play of the 
3-2, for example, would score nothing in this situation. 

Scoring after each play is similar - the sum of the exposed ends of the board 
is calculated and if this sum is a multiple of 5, the player receives that 
number of points, but otherwise he scores nothing. 

Doubles must be played crosswise, and if a double forms an exposed end of the 
board, both halves of the double count toward the sum used in scoring. For 
example, if the 3-4 is downed and the next player places the 3-3 (crosswise, 
since that is required) against the 3 of the 3-4 , then his score is 10, 
counting 6 for the double 3 on one end and 4 for the exposed 4 on the other 
end of the board. 
     
The FIRST double played is designated as the "spinner". After (but not before) 
both of the long sides of the spinner have been played on, the other two ends 
become available for play. For example, if the 3-3 is downed, followed by the 
3-4 and the 3-6, then (since both long sides of the spinner are now covered) 
the 3-5 could be played against either of the 3's of the spinner (for a count 
of 15). Subsequent plays could be made on the 5 or on the other end of the 
spinner, as well as on the 6 or the 4. Since the spinner is the only double 
that can be played on in this manner, the board will never have more than four 
ends. Note that the short ends of the spinner are not counted until they have 
"sprouted" (unless the spinner still has at least one long side uncovered, in 
which case both ends are included in the count). 
     
On his turn, a player is required to play a domino from his hand if he has any 
legal play. Otherwise, he must draw from the boneyard (repeatedly, if 
necessary) until either he obtains a domino that will play or the boneyard has 
been exhausted. 
    
A player who succeeds in playing all the dominoes from his hand is said to 
have "dominoed"; the hand is then over, and the one who dominoed scores (to 
the nearest multiple of 5) the sum of all the spots in his opponent's hand (in 
addition to any score made on the last play). 
      
If it should happen that neither player has a legal play and the boneyard is 
empty, the hand is "blocked". In this case, the players compare the sums of 
the spots in their respective hands, and the player with the lowest total 
receives (to the nearest multiple of 5) ALL the points in his opponent's hand. 

A game normally consists of 250 points. Several hands are required to complete 
a game, so the dominoes must be reshuffled and redrawn at the end of each 
hand. During a game, the Down alternates, so that if Player 1 downed the first 
hand, then Player 2 would down the second, Player 1 the third, and so on. 
(This process is greatly modified if the 'Highest Double Downs' option, 
described above, is used.) 
      
The rules of dominoes are simple enough that anyone can easily remember them 
after playing only a few hands. Learning to play well is another matter, 
though, and the game is surprisingly challenging. 


