DOMINO

The History of Dominoes Dominoes, like playing cards and dice, are something of a generic gaming device. They are simple building blocks that can be assembled in innumerable ways to create a large variety of games, ranging from the simple to the complex, from games in which the game play is almost mechanical, to games that require great skill and strategy. Dominoes evolved from dice. In fact, the numbers in a standard double-six domino set represent all the rolls of two six-sided dice. A set of Chinese Dominoes contains all the possible combinations (including duplicates). European dominoes use only the unique rolls (and add in the blanks). Dominoes are believed to have originated in China the 12th century, though Egyptian or Arabian origins are also theorized. Dominoes appeared in Italy in the early eighteenth century, and spread to the rest of Europe throughout the remainder of the 1700's, becoming one of the most popular games in both family parlors and pubs alike. The following is a quote from The Dictionary of Daily Wants (1859), describing English dominoes: DOMINOES This game is played by two or four persons, with twenty-eight pieces of oblong ivory, plain at the back, but on the face divided by a black line in the middle, and indented with spots, from one to a double six, which pieces are a double-blank, ace-blank, double-ace, deuceblank, deuce-ace, double-deuce, trois-blank, trois-ace, trois-deuce, double-trois, four-blank, fourace, four-deuce, four-trois, double-four, five-blank, five-ace, five-deuce, five-trois, five-four, double-five, six-blank, six-ace, six-deuce, six-trois, six-four, six-five, and double-six. Sometimes a double set is played with, of which double twelve is the highest. At the commencement of the game, the dominoes are well mixed, with their faces downwards. Each person draws one, and if four play, those who choose the two highest are partners, against those who draw the two lowest; drawing the latter also serves to determine who is to lay down the first piece, which is reckoned a great advantage. Afterwards each player takes seven pieces at random. The eldest hand having laid down one, the next must pair him at either end of the piece he may choose, according to the number of pips or the blank in the compartment of the piece; but whenever any party cannot match the part, either of the domino last put down, or of that unpaired at the other end of the row, then he says go, and the next is at liberty to play. Thus they play alternately, either until one party has played all his pieces, and thereby won the game, or till the game be blocked; that is, when neither party can play by matching the pieces when unpaired at either end, then that party wins who possesses the smallest number of pips on the pieces remaining. In playing this game it is to the advantage of the player to dispossess himself as early as possible of the heavy pieces, such as a double-six, five, four, &c. Sometimes when two persons play, they take each only seven pieces, and agree to play or draw, that is when one cannot come in or pair the pieces on the board at the end unmatched, he then is to draw from the fourteen pieces in stock till he find one to suit.

The work "domino" appears to have derived from the traditional appearance of the tiles - black dots on a white background - which is reminiscent of a "domino" (a kind of hood) worn by Christian priests. Today, dominoes are played all over the world. It is particularly popular in Latin America, where dominoes is considered the national game of many Caribbean countries. There are domino tournaments held annually in many countries, and there are numerous local domino clubs in many cities around the globe. The name "domino" comes from the pieces' resemblance to Venetian Carnival masks known as domini, which were white with black spots. These masks were named because they resembled French priests winter hoods, being black on the outside and white on the inside. The name ultimately derives from the Latin dominus, meaning "lord" or "master." Many different domino sets have been used for centuries in various parts of world to play a variety of domino games. Each domino originally represented one of the 21 results of throwing two dice. One half of each domino is set with the pips from one die and the other half contains the pips from the second die. Chinese sets also introduce duplicates of some throws and divide the dominoes into two classes: military and civil. Chinese dominoes are also longer than typical European dominoes. Over time Chinese dominoes also evolved into the tile set used to play Mah Jong, a game which swept across the United States in the early to mid 1920s and has enjoyed moderate popularity, especially in its "solitaire" form, since that time. It is played a lot in the Caribbean, especially in Barbados and Jamaica. The early 18th century witnessed dominoes making their way to Europe, making their first appearance in Italy. The game changed somewhat in the translation from Chinese to the European culture. European domino sets contain neither class distinctions nor the duplicates that went with them. Instead, European sets contain seven additional dominoes, with six of these representing the values that result from throwing a single die with the other half of the tile left blank, and the seventh domino representing the blank-blank (00) combination. Ivory Dominoes were routinely used in 19th century rural England in the settling of disputes over traditional grazing boundaries, and were commonly referred to as "bonesticks" (see Hartley, Land Law in West Lancashire in the mid- 19th Century, Farm Gazette, March 1984). Tile games have been found in China as early as 1120 CE. Some historical accounts have traced evidence of the existence of the pieces, way back to a soldier-hero named Hung Ming (181-234 CE). Other historians believe that Keung T'ai Kung, in the twelfth century BCE had created them. The Chu sz yam (Investigations on the Traditions of All Things) stated that dominoes were invented by a statesman in 1120 CE. This person is said to have presented them to the Emperor Hui Tsung, and that they were circulated abroad by imperial order during the reign of Hui's son, Kao-Tsung (1127-1163 CE). Other interpreters say that this document refers to the standardization and not the invention of the game itself.

Michael Dummett wrote a short piece in the history section of his "Game of Tarot" (page 35) dating the introduction of dominos in Europe to Italy, possibly in Venice and Naples, in the 18-th Century . Although domino tiles are clearly of Chinese inheritance, there is a debate over whether the European tile set came from China to Europe in the fourteenth century or was invented independently. A single domino was found with the Mary Rose wreckage (early 16-th century), but it seems likely to have found its way there much later. On the whole, there is so much evidence for games in the 16-th century and 17-th century that if dominoes existed they woudl not have escaped the record. European dominoes are rectangles that are twice as long as they are wide. There is a single tile for each combination of the faces of a pair of dice; the blank suit is the throws of a single die, for a total of twenty-eight tiles in the standard Double six set. Other sets with larger numbers of tiles were invented later, with the double nine and Double twelve sets being the most common extensions. The word "domino" is most likely to be derived from the Latin, dominus (ie. the master of the house). The vocative, domine, became the Scottish and English dominie (ie. schoolmaster). The dative or ablative, domino, became the French and then the English domino. This word first referred to a type of monastic hood, then to a hooded masquerade costume with a small mask, then to the mask itself, and finally to one of the pieces in the domino set, namely the [1-1] tile. The game moved from Italy to France in the early 18th Century and became a fad. By the late 18th century, France was also producing domino puzzles. The puzzle were of two types. In the first, you were given a pattern and asked to place tiles on it in such a way that the ends matched. In the second type, you were given a pattern and asked to place tiles based on arithmetic properties of the pips, usually totals of lines of tiles and tile halves. The book CREATIVE PUZZLES OF THE WORLD by van Delft and Botermans (Abrams, New York;ISBN 0-8109-0765-8 (hardcover) or ISBN 0-8109-2152-9 (softcover); 1978) has reproduction of an antique French picture puzzle which is assembled by matching domino tiles on the bottoms of the picture squares from this period. The game arrived in Britain in the late 18th Century from France (possibly via French prisoners of war) and quickly seems to have become popular in inns and taverns at the time. The word "Domino" is French for a black and white hood worn by Christian priests in winter which is probably where the name of the game derives from. Domino games are played all over the world, but they are most popular in Latin America. Inuits (Eskimos, to use an old and incorrect term, for these North American natives) play a game using tiles made from bones that are very similar to Western Dominoes. This game was probably an imitation of Western games rather than a native invention. Many of the games we associate with dominoes are quite modern. The block games seem to be the oldest of the European games. But Muggins dates from the early 20th century. Many of the games described on these web pages were invented in the last few decades.

Construction and Composition of Domino Sets European-style dominoes are traditionally made of ivory/bone, or a dark hardwood such as ebony, with contrasting black or white pips (inlaid or painted). Alternatively, domino sets have been made from many different natural materials: stone (e.g., marble, granite or soapstone); other hardwoods (e.g., ash, oak, redwood and cedar); metals (e.g., brass or pewter); ceramic clay, or even frosted glass orcrystal. These sets have a more novel look, and the often heavier weight makes them feel more substantial, but such materials and the resulting products are usually much more expensive than polymer materials. Modern commercial domino sets are usually made of synthetic materials, such as ABS or polystyrene plastics, or Bakelite and other phenolic resins; many sets approximate the look and feel of ivory while others use colored or even translucent plastics to achieve a more contemporary look. Modern sets also commonly use a different color for the dots of each different end value (one-spots might have black pips while two-spots might be green, three red, etc.) to facilitate finding matching ends. Occasionally, one may find a domino set made of card stock like that for playing cards. Such sets are lightweight, compact and inexpensive, but like cards are more susceptible to minor disturbances such as a sudden breeze. The traditional set of dominoes contains one unique piece for each possible combination of two ends with zero to six spots, and is known as a double-six set because the highest-value piece has six pips on each end (the "double six"). The spots from one to six are generally arranged as they are on sixsided dice, but because there are also blank ends having no spots there are seven possible faces, allowing 28 unique pieces in a double-six set. However, this is a relatively small number especially when playing with more than four people, so many domino sets are "extended" by introducing ends with greater numbers of spots, which increases the number of unique combinations of ends and thus of pieces. Each progressively larger set increases the maximum number of pips on an end by three, so the common extended sets are double-nine, doubletwelve, double-fifteen and double-eighteen. Larger sets such as double-twenty-one can theoretically exist but are rarely seen in retail stores, as identifying the number of pips on each domino becomes difficult, and a double-twenty-one set would have 253 pieces, far more than is normally necessary for most domino games even with eight players.

Tiles and Suits Domino tiles, also known as bones, are twice as long as they are wide and usually have a line in the middle dividing them into two squares. The value of either side is the number of spots or pips. In the

most common variant (Double Six) the values range from blank or 0 (no pips) to 6. The sum of the two values, i.e. the total number of pips, may be referred to as the rank or weight of a tile, and a tile with more pips may be called heavier than a lighter tile with fewer pips. Tiles are generally named after their two values; e.g. 25 or 52 are alternative ways of describing the tile with the values 2 and 5. Tiles that have the same value on both ends are called doubles, and are typically referred to as double-zero, double-one etc. Tiles with two different values are called singles. Every tile belongs to the two suits of its two values, e.g. 03 belongs both to the blank suit (or 0 suit) and to the 3 suit. Naturally the doubles form an exception in that each double belongs to only one suit. In 42, the doubles are treated as an additional suit of doubles, so that, e.g., the double-six 66belongs both to the 6 suit and the suit of doubles.

Domino sets The five most common domino sets commercially available are: Set Tiles Pips Double-6 28 168 Double-9 55 495 Double-12 91 1092 Double-15 136 2040 Double-18 190 3420

List of Domino Games (Layout Games)

This is a partial list of games played with domino tiles or similar equipment. The most typical domino games are layout games, i.e. games in which the players add matching tiles from their hand to a layout in the middle of the table. These can be either blocking games, in which the object is to empty one's hand, or scoring games, in which the players can score during the game by creating certain configurations. Other games using domino sets are often adaptations of card games. On the other hand, there are also domino-like card games, e.g. Sevens and the once very popular card game Pope Joan.

 Basic Trains The games of the Trains family, of which this is the most basic representative, are typically played with at least double-nine or double-twelve sets. The number of tiles that each player draws initially depends on the number of players and the size of the set. If one player does not have a double, the tiles are shuffled again. In the first round each player plays a double to start a private line of play, known as a train. In subsequent rounds, players first add a tile to their own train or pass if they cannot do this. A player who did not pass can also add at most one tile each to each of the other players' trains. A player who empties their hand wins the game and scores 120 points plus 5 points for each tile that remains in an opposing players' hands.

Bendomino This minor variation of the standard Draw game is due to Thierry Denoual. It is played with a double-six domino set which is standard except that every tile is bent into a 120-degree curve, so that three tiles can be assembled into a circle. This allows either end of the line of play to be blocked or both ends to connect. Bendomino is played in rounds. At the beginning of each round, place the 28 Bendominoes face down and mix them. Players draw their hand, the remaining pieces represent the stock.

2 players: each player takes 7 Bendominoes. 3 players: each player takes 6 Bendominoes. 4 players: each player takes 5 Bendominoes.

The player with the highest Bendomino double starts the game by placing the piece on the center of the table. If no double was drawn, the highest Bendomino number should be played. (Example: 6/5) Taking turns in a clockwise direction, each player tries to match a Bendomino by number to either end of the Bendomino chain. To be accepted the new piece needs to match but also has to fit. Connecting pieces Each Bendomino must be connected evenly with other pieces to ensure accuracy of the game. Draw If players do not have a Bendomino that can be played, they must draw one piece from the stock. If the piece they draw can be played, they can immediately play it. Note on play Players can decide to draw a Bendomino and pass their turn even if they have playable pieces.

Blocked positions Either end of the Bendomino game can be blocked when:

No matching numbers are available No matching pieces can fit One end of the game is trapped in a dead end Both ends connect (very rare)

If both ends of the Bendomino chain are blocked, each player draws a Bendomino until the stock is empty. End of a round A round ends when:

A player has no Bendominoes left to play. The stock is empty and players cannot play any pieces.

You win a round when:

You play all your pieces. No pieces can be played by any player and you have the lowest point total. (The point total is the total number of dots on your remaining Bendominoes).

The winner of a round scores the dot points from all opponents remaining Bendominoes. Winning the game The first player to score 100 points wins the game. Variations Wild Draw For a more aggressive game, when players do not have a playable piece they must continue to draw until they get a playable piece or until the stock is empty. No Draw When players do not have a matching piece, they pass their turn instead of drawing. No Draw 2 Teams of 2 players In this version, each player draws 7 pieces at the start of the game, so there is no stock. Players take turns and only use their individual pieces. A team wins a round when one team member is declared the winner (see basic rules). The winning team scores the dot points from the remaining Bendominoes of the losing team.

 Block The Block game for two players is the simplest basic domino variant. It requires a double-six set, from which each player draws seven tiles; the remainder is not used. The first player places a tile on the table which starts the line of play. The players alternately extend it with one matching tile at one of its two ends. A player who cannot do this passes. The game ends when one player wins by playing their last tile, or when the game is blocked because neither player can play. The winner's score is the total remaining pip count of the loser's hand. The winner of a blocked game is the player who has a lower pip count, and the score of the game is the difference of the pip counts. There are also variants for four players.

Chicken Foot Chicken Foot is a modern game related to the Cyprus family. The dominoes are first turned face down and shuffled. Then, each player picks seven dominoes to form their hand. With more than four players, the game requires an extended set. The number of dominoes drawn can be increased when fewer players are using a larger set (for instance, four players using a double-twelve set can draw 15 dominoes). Any remaining dominoes are placed to the side, forming the boneyard. The round begins with the highest double being placed in the center of the layout to start the game (using a double-six set, this would be the double 6). (In each proceeding round, the next lowest double is found and placed as the starting point: 6, 5, 4, etc. until the last round using the double blank.) In the first round only, everyone draws a single domino from the boneyard. The player drawing the highest value begins the round and everyone returns their drawn domino to the boneyard. The starting player must play a matching domino (one with an end of the same value as the double) from their hand on one of the four sides of the double, with the matching end against the double. The next player plays another matching domino on a remaining side, and this continues until all four sides are filled. If a player cannot play because they do not have a matching domino, then the player must draw one domino from the bone yard. If that domino does not match, their turn passes to the next player. No other plays can be made until all four sides of the double are filled. Once all four sides are filled, the player to the left of the last person to fill the 6 can play any domino in their hand that matches an exposed end of a played domino. If a player is unable to match any exposed dominoes, they must draw one domino from the bone pile and either play it if possible or pass. If the boneyard has been emptied, any player who cannot play simply passes. If no player can play or draw, the round ends.

An example of a Chicken Foot, played with fours. A double is played with its long side against the endpoint, and no other play can be made until three matching dominoes have been played on the other side

Cyprus Cyprus is a variant of Sebastopol, but played by 410 players with a double-nine set. It is best described as a variant of the Draw game. Most, in some variants all, tiles are drawn by the players. The layout starts with a double, and the next eight tiles played must be attached to it, so that the layout is a star with eight open ends. The game proceeds like the Draw game, except that a player who cannot play need not draw more than once.

Draw The Draw game is the game most often referred to as just Dominoes. It can be regarded as a variant of the Block game. Initially each player draws seven tiles from a double-six set. The first player places a tile on the table which starts the line of play. The players alternately extend it with one matching tile at one of its two ends. The main difference to the Block game is that players who cannot play must draw tiles until they find one which can be played or the stock consists of exactly two tiles. The pip count of the remaining stock (at least two tiles) is added to the losing player's remaining pip count to form the score of the game. Maltese cross Maltese cross is a variant of Sebastopol for 24 players. Like Sebastopol, it uses a double-six set. Each player draws 5 tiles (7 tiles in the case of two players). As in Cyprus, a player who cannot play must draw one tile and may play it if possible. Once the central spinner and the four adjacent tiles have been played, the next four tiles to be played must be doubles, which are turned crosswise to form the likeness of a Maltese cross, but do not act as spinners. Muggins Muggins (also known as All Fives, Five Up, or Doer Di) is a domino game played with any of the commonly available sets. The object of the game is for each player to rid their hand of dominoes, and

additionally to score points by playing a domino (or bone) that makes the total number of pips on all endpoints of the board equal to a multiple of five. According to John McLeod of Pagat.com, the name of the game differs according to how many "spinners" are in play. These are doubles that can be built from in all four directions. Muggins is the name of the game played without a spinner, All Fives has a single spinner, and in Five Up, all doubles are spinners.[1] Scoring Points are earned when a player plays a domino with the result that the count (the sum of all open ends) is a multiple of five. The points earned are equal to the sum of the ends.[2] Therefore, if in the course of play a player plays a bone that makes the sum of the ends 5, 10, 15 or 20, the player scores that number. All pips on a crosswise double are included in the count. Game Play Each player takes five dominoes, when playing with four players or more, or seven when playing with two or three. The remaining dominoes are placed to one side forming the "boneyard". The starting play is determined either by who holds the highest double or the highest-value domino; in either case, that domino is played first. If that domino is a 6-4, 5-5, 5-0, 4-1, or 3-2, the initial count is evenly divisible by five and so the player scores. Players in turn then lay a matching domino on one of the endpoints (if the initial tile is a double, players can also play matching dominoes on the double's long side forming four initial endpoints). Each player must play if holding a domino matching an end. A player who cannot match must draw until obtaining a playable domino. Scores for endpoints are called and taken as the play is made. Doubles: When a double is played, it is laid with its long side against the end of the endpoint domino. Both halves of the double are counted when adding up the sum of the endpoints for scoring purposes. A matching bone can then be played on the double's other long side (the double then is no longer an endpoint), and then on each of the double's ends when that domino is a spinner. When this happens, one or more new endpoints are created and figure into the endpoint total. This generally results in higher scores (with two endpoints, the maximum score on a turn is 20; with four endpoints it becomes 35; with five endpoints, 40). The player who goes out wins additional points based on the value of dominoes still in other players' hands, which is figured by counting all pips on those dominoes. Each opponent's hand is rounded to the nearest multiple of five; for example, the winner scores 25 for 27 pips in an opponent's hand and 30 for 28 points. These points are summed and awarded to the winner. If all players are blocked, the lightest hand

wins, still earning points based on the pips in opponents' hands (often after subtracting the winner's pip count from each hand or from the total). Variants of Muggins differ on the number of tiles taken initially, the use of double-six, -nine, -twelve or fifteen sets, whether the initial tile must be a double, whether all four endpoints of the initial double must be played on before further play can commence, and whether tiles can be played off the four corners of the initial double only or off of all subsequent doubles as well. A common variation is knocking; when a player cannot lay a tile, they have the option to "knock"; this conditionally skips the next player. If the player after the skipped player can score, he must do so, and play then continues as normal. If he cannot, even if he can play, that player knocks and play reverts to the player who knocked first, who must draw until he can find a playable domino, and then the player who would have been skipped is allowed to play. This is common in a partnership form of the game played with four players; a knocking player thus defers to his/her partner who might be able to score. It is considered cheating for one partner to signal the other that he/she should knock.

Domino Basics
Getting Started With Dominoes

Most domino games are blocking games, i.e. the objective is to empty one's hand while blocking the opponents. In the end, a score may be determined by counting the pips in the losing players' hands. In scoring games the scoring is different and happens mostly during gameplay, making it the principal objective. A domino is a small tile that represents the roll of two dice. The tile, commonly called a bone, is rectangular with a line down the center. Each end of the tile contains a number. In the most popular domino set, the double-six, the numbers vary from 0 (or blank) to 6. This produces 28 unique tiles, as shown in the diagram on the right.

A common domino size is about 2 inches long, 1 inch wide, and 3/8 inch thick - small enough to be held comfortably in the hand, but large enough to be easily manipulated, and thick enough to be able to be stood on edge. Dominoes are referred to by the number of dots (or pips) on each end, with the lower number usually listed first. Thus, a tile with a 2 on one end and a 5 on the other is referred to as a "2-5". A tile with the same number on both ends is called a "double" (or doublet), so a "6-6" is referred to as "double-six". A double-six is the "heaviest" domino; a double-blank is the "lightest" domino value. Tiles which have ends with the same number of dots are members of the same "suit". In a double-six set, there are seven suits (blank, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6), each with seven members (0-5, 1-5, 2-5, 3-5, 4-5, 5-5, & 5-6) make up the "fives" suit, for instance. Except for the doubles, each tile belongs to two suits. In addition to the standard double-six domino set, larger-sized sets are also available. Popular sizes include the double-nine (55 tiles), double-twelve (91 tiles), double-fifteen (136 tiles), and double-eighteen (190 tiles). The larger sets are used in some of the more complicated games. They can also be used to add variety to the simpler games, or to allow more people to play them. For further information on the development and evolution of dominoes, check out our History of Dominoes. For help with domino terminology, our Dominoes Glossary has information on common domino terms and expressions. General Domino Rules Shuffling The Dominoes Before a game or hand begins, the dominoes must be shuffled, so that no one knows the location of any given tile. Typically, the tiles are shuffled by turning them all face-down on the table, then moving them around in a random motion, being careful not to flip over any of the pieces. The collection of shuffled tiles is called the boneyard. Beginning A Game Before a game begins, the players have to determine who has the first move. This happens in one of two ways: either each of the players choose a domino at random, with first move going to the player holding the "heavier" domino (these dominoes are returned to the boneyard and reshuffled), or the players draw their allotted number of tiles (which varies according to the game being played), and the holder of the "heaviest" domino goes first. Drawing Tiles Once the players begin drawing tiles, they are typically placed on-edge before the players, so that each player can see his own tiles, but none can see the value of other players tiles. Every player can thus see how many tiles remain in the other players hands at all times during gameplay. Placing The First Tile

Once all the players have drawn their dominoes, the first player (determined either by the drawing of lots, or by who holds the heaviest hand) places the first tile on the table. Typically, this is the double-six. If no one holds the double-six, then the double-five is played, and so on. Playing Subsequent Tiles In most domino games, only the "open" ends of a layout are open for play. An end is open when it has no other tile connected to it. Often, a double is placed cross-ways in the layout, straddling the end of the tile that it is connected to. Usually, additional tiles can only be placed agains the long side of a double. However, the rules of some games consider all four sides of a double to be open, allowing dominoes to be connected in all four directions. For example, in the diagram on the right, the first tile played was the 6-6. At this point, a domino can either be played to the right or left of the 6-6. The second tile placed was a 6-5, to the right of the 6-6. At this point, the open ends are 5 and 6. The third tile played was a 4-6, to the left of the initial tile, producing open ends of 4 and 5. The fourth tile was the 5-5, placed vertically. Again, the open ends are 4 and 5. At any time, due to space constraints or mere whim, a tile may be connected at a right-angle, creating an "L" in the layout. Drawing Tiles As the turn passes from player to player, if someone cannot make a move, they're going to do one of two things, based on the game being played. In "block" games (or if there are no tiles left inthe boneyard), a player must "pass" if he cannot make a move. In a "draw" game, a player can draw a tile from the boneyard. Depending on the game, he can then either play it (if it fits, and if the rules allow), pass (if he cannot play the drawn tile), or continue drawing until he can make a move or the boneyard is empty. Currently, most rules allow the boneyard to be emptied completely. However, some rules do not allow the last tow tiles in the boneyard to be removed, and at the end of a game, the winner receives the value of the tiles in the boneyard. Ending A Game A game ends either when a player plays all his tiles, or when a game is blocked. When a player plays his last time, tradition requires him to say "domino" (when this happens, the other players are said to have been dominoed. A game is blocked when no player is able to add another tile to the layout. When playing a multi-round game, domino games are typically scored by awarding the number of pips on opposing player's tiles to the winner. Doubles may be counted as one or two (if one, a 6-6 counts as 6; if two, a 6-6 counts as 12), and double-blank may either count as 0 or 14. (These rule variations must be agreed upon before the game begins!) The player who reaches the target score (100, 200, or whatever is agreed on among the players), or the player who amasses the most points is a given number of rounds wins the game.

Line of play The line of play is the configuration of played tiles on the table. Typically it starts with a single tile, from which it grows in two opposite directions when the players add matching tiles. (In practice the players often play tiles at right angles when the line of play gets too close to the edge of the table.) The rules for the line of play often differ from one variant to another. In many rules the doubles serve as spinners, i.e. they can be played on all four sides, causing the line of play to branch. Sometimes the first tile is required to be a double, and serves as the only spinner. In some games such as Chicken Foot, all sides of a spinner must be occupied before anybody is allowed to play elsewhere. Matador has unusual rules for matching. Bendomino uses curved tiles, so that one side of the line of play (or both) may be blocked for geometrical reasons. In Mexican Train and other Trains games, the game starts with a spinner from which various trains branch off. Most trains are owned by a player, and in most situations players are only allowed to extend their own train. Scoring In blocking games the scoring happens at the end of the game. After a player has emptied their hand, thereby winning the game for their team, the score consists of the total pip count of the losing teams' hands. In some rules the pip count of the remaining stock is added. If a game is blocked because no player can move, the winner can often be determined by counting the pips in all players' hands.[2] In scoring games each individual move potentially adds to the score. E.g. in Bergen, players score 2 points whenever they cause a configuration in which both open ends have the same value and 3 points if additionally one open end is formed by a double. In Muggins, players score by ensuring that the total pip count of the open ends is a multiple of a certain number. In variants of Muggins the line of play may branch due to spinners. In British public houses and social clubs the scoring version of "fives and threes" is used. Score is kept on a cribbage board and the objective is to score 61 points. The points are scored by making totals at the ends of the lines that are divisible by five and three, thus a score of 15 (say double five at one end and a single five at the other) scores a total of eight points (five threes and three fives). If at the end game your score is more than the points remaining you cannot peg out and must wait to score lower (for example if you have 54 and you score 8 points you cannot peg that, so you must wait for the opportunity to score fewer points). This is played in a number of competitive leagues in the British Isles. Scoring takes place at the end of each move so it's important for you to keep track of the bones you place in order to reach 5 or a multiple of 5 in every turn. Remember that the goal of the game is to accumulate as many points as possible.