Components
- 1 Yahtzee Dice cup
- 5 Dice
- 10 Bonus Chips
- 80 Score Cards.
Setup
Roll a die to see who starts. Play continues clockwise.
Write each player's name on the score card, in the order of play (pen not included).
Object of the Game
Roll dice to get the highest score after all 13 rounds.
Game Play
In Short:
- Roll up to 3 times each turn to rack up the best possible score.
- Decide which dice combo you're going for.
- After each turn, write your score in one empty box on the score card.
Each player in turn places all 5 dice in the cup, shakes the cup and rolls out the dice. Each turn consists of a maximum of three rolls.
The first roll must be made with all five dice. If the player chooses to roll a second and, if desired, a third time, he may pick up any or all the dice and roll again.
It is the skillful use of these two optional rolls of the dice that can turn an unlucky first or second roll into a high-scoring turn. A score must be entered after the last roll in the appropriate box or a zero entered in a box of the player's choice.
Each player keeps his own score on a YAHTZEE score card to be marked with the player's name.
To determine who goes first, each player places all five dice in the dice cup and rolls out all the dice; the player with the highest total starts the game. The play then continues clockwise.
Tutorial Video
Game Turn
Fill in one empty box in the column under your name each turn.
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Your first roll:
Roll all 5 dice.
If you get the exact combo you want, mark your score card right away. Otherwise, continue with your 2nd roll.
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Your second roll:
Set aside any keepers' and re-roll the rest.
Hate them all? Re-roll them all.
If you get the exact combo you need, mark your score card. Otherwise, continue with your 3rd roll.
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Your third and final roll:
If you still haven't nailed a combo, or just want to maximize your score:
Roll some or all of your dice (as above), even any keepers you might have set aside.
You must enter a score at the end of this roll, whether or not you like your dice.
If your roll doesn't suit any of your empty boxes, you have to enter a zero somewhere. BUT scoring even a single die value is better than a zero.
Scoring
There are 13 scoring boxes. On each completed turn, the player must score in one of the 13 boxes. The boxes may be filled in any order, according to the player's best judgment.
The score card has an upper section and a lower section:
Upper Section
The upper section contains six boxes labelled 1 to 6 ( "Aces", "Twos", "Threes", "Fours", "Fives" and "Sixes").
When a player chooses to score in the Upper Section, he counts and adds only the dice with the same number and enters the total of these dice in the appropriate box.
If a player, on his turn, rolls and elects to take his score in the Upper Section, he would enter 9 in the "Threes" box.
But he is also allowed to score a 2 in the "Twos" Box or a 4 in the "Fours" box. The players can also score a zero in the Aces box.
Lower Section
In the lower section, you score for various combinations and they are played exactly as indicated:
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3 of a kind
The "3 of a kind" box may be filled in only if the dice show at least 3 of the same number. For example:
This would score 18 (total of all dice).
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4 of a kind
Score the total of all dice provided they include 4 dice of the same number. For example:
This would score 14 (total of all dice) in the "4 of a kind" box.
(You may also score in "3 of a kind" or in the upper section).
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Full House
You need to roll both a "3 of a kind" and a pair. A "Full House" scores 25 points.
(You may also score in "3 of a kind" or in the upper section).
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Small Straight
This is any sequence of four numbers, such as:
The 5th die can be any number. Any "Small Straight" is valued at 30 points.
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Large Straight
This is a sequence of five numbers, either:
A "Large Straight" is valued at 40 points.
(You may also score a Large Straight in the Small Straight box).
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Chance
This offers a player the opportunity to score on any turn where he does not choose to score in any of the other open boxes. Mark score by totalling number of points on all dice.
This combination scores 24 points.
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Yahtzee
This is any "five of a kind". Score 50 points in the "Yahtzee" box.
Bonus
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You get a bonus of 35 points if the total number of points you scored in the upper section is 63 or higher.
(For quick calculation, 63 may be reached by scoring 3 "Aces", "Twos", and so on through "Sixes"). A bonus can be obtained by having a total of 63 points or more scored in any manner in the Upper Section
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If you roll multiple Yahtzee, you can rack up a seriously high score.
If you roll a Yahtzee and you already filled in the Yahtzee box with a 50 , you get a 100-point bonus!
Take one bonus chip, then place a checkmark in the Yahtzee bonus box . Then fill in one of the 13 boxes on your score card according to the Joker Rules (see below).
Joker Rules
Score the total of all 5 dice in the appropriate Upper Section box.
If this box has already been filled in, score a follows in any open Lower Section Box:
- 3 of a Kind: total of all 5 dice
- 4 of a Kind: total of all 5 dice
- Full House: 25 points
- Small Straight: 30points
- Large Straight: 40 points
- Chance: total of all 5 dice
If the appropriate Upper Section box and all Lower Section boxes are filled in, you must enter a zero in any open Upper Section box.
Play Online
Do you want to play this great game online now? We offer a free online game on this website.
Click here to play and to enjoy. Good luck.
Probabilities
- Two of a Kind: 60.19%
- Three of a Kind: 15.43%
- Four of a Kind: 1.93%
- Full House: 3.86%
- Small Straight: 12.35%
- Large Straight: 3.09%
- Yahtzee: 0.08%
End of the Game
The player with the highest grand total at the end of all 13 rounds is the winner.
Turn Example
First Roll
You could roll again for Fours, "3 of a Kind" or Large Straight.
You've already a Small Straight, so, it's risky, but the 2/3/4/5 gives you a good chance of rolling either an Ace or a Six in the next two rolls. You decide to set aside the Small Straight and reroll one die.
Second Roll
You roll a Two. You could reroll the die again for your Large Straight, or set aside the two Twos for a "3 of a Kind". You decide to set aside the twos and reroll the remaining 3 dice.
Third and Final Roll
You roll 1 Two and 2 Threes. You could score 6 points for Twos, 12 points for "3 of a Kind", or 25 points for "Full House".
You decide on the Full House because this combination can be tough to roll later in the game. Also, you are ahead in the Upper Section, so you may not need 3 Twos for your 35-point Bonus.
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