Farkle: Perfect Family Game That’s Low Maintenance

Farkle is an
ages-old dice game that has many other names, like Greed, 10,000, Hot Dice,
Squelch, Zilch, or Zonk. All you need to play is a set of 6 dice and some
paper for scoring. It’s easy to learn, easy to play, easy to score and can be
enjoyed by players of all ages. You need at least two players, but the game
can be played with as many players as you wish – the more players the more
fun.

How to
Play

Each player rolls one die to determine
who goes first. The player that rolls the highest die goes first. In case of
a tie, roll again until a winner is determined.

Farkle is
played in rounds. Each player takes turns rolling the dice. In the beginning
rounds, each player must score at least 1,000 points in a round before they
can start accumulating points. If no dice can score, the round is over and
the player has “farkled.”

After accumulating 1,000
points in a single round, points are scored by “setting aside” selected dice
and then rolling the remaining dice for additional points. The player does
not have to select all of the dice that are worth points. But he must select
something that is worth points before he can roll again. Play continues until
the player either gets no points on a roll (farkles), or the player ends his
turn voluntarily and takes the accumulated points for the round. If all of
the dice are scored, the player can pick them all up and roll all six dice
again or end his turn. If a player farkles on 3 consecutive turns, the player
is penalized 1000 points.

A game is finished after a player
reaches (or exceeds) 10,000 points AND the other players have taken one more
turn to see if they can score a total greater than the first player to reach
(or exceed) 10,000. After each player takes their turn, the player with the
higher score is the winner of the game.

Once one person
reaches (or exceeds) 10,000 points, the other players get one more turn.
After that turn, the person with the most points wins. If there is a tie,
each player that tied gets one more turn to accumulate the most
points.

In the event of a tie, the tying players will
continue with full rounds until one player has a higher score than the
other(s).

Scoring

There
are only two numbers that can be worth points on their
own:

• a 1 is worth 100
  points
• a 5 is worth 50
  points

For other numbers, combinations have to
be made. 1’s and 5’s can also have combinations. The possible point
combinationis are:

• Three of a kind is worth 100
  times the number. For example, Three 3’s are worth 300 points. Three 1’s are
  a special roll and are worth 1,000.
• Four of a kind is
  worth twice what 3 of a kind is worth – Four 3’s are worth 600
  points
• Five of a kind is worth twice what 4 of a kind is
  worth – Five 3’s are worth 1,200 points
• Six of a kind is
  worth twice what 5 of a kind is worth – Six 3’s are worth 2400
  points
• One of each number (1-2-3-4-5-6) is worth 1500
  points
• Three pairs is worth 500 points – For example,
  1-1-2-2-4-4

All scores above are based on a
single throw of the dice. You cannot earn combined points from different
rolls. For example, if the roller sets aside one die with a 1 and counts 100,
and then on the next roll comes up with two 1’s, the player cannot count 1000
for three of a kind (he may set aside the additional as two single 1 spots
for 200
points).

Strategy

It
is better to leave yourself with three or more dice for a throw than it is to
take single scoring dice. For instance, if you have set aside a 2 die
already, and then throw two single scoring dice (say, a 1 and a 5), then you
should only take the single 1.

If you are significantly
behind, it is better to play aggressively than to play conservatively.
Conversely, if you are significantly ahead, then it is better to play
conservatively than aggressively. Some players are always aggressive or
always conservative, but the adaptive player is the one most likely to
win.

Throwing all six dice will almost always lead to at
least one scoring die. Only the ultra-conservative player will stop rolling
with all six dice in their hand. An exception to this rule is the first
round, since scoring the first round is much more difficult than subsequent
rounds.