About Yacht Dice
Yacht Dice is a solo game of rolling five dice and scoring poker-style combinations. Over 13 turns you fill in each scoring category once, so the skill lies in deciding what to keep, when to reroll and where each result does the least damage.
How to play
- The game lasts 13 turns, one for each scoring category. On each turn you may roll up to three times. After the first roll you can hold any dice and reroll the rest.
- After at least one roll, you must choose an unused category and record the score the dice give for it, even if that score is 0.
- Upper section: Ones, Twos, Threes, Fours, Fives and Sixes each score the total of the dice showing that number. If the six upper categories add up to 63 or more, you get a 35-point bonus.
- Three of a kind and Four of a kind score the total of all five dice if at least that many dice match. Chance scores the total of all five dice with no conditions.
- Full house (exactly three of one number and two of another) scores 25, Small straight (four in a row) scores 30, Large straight (five in a row) scores 40, and Yacht (five of a kind) scores 50.
- There are no extra bonuses for a second Yacht. Your final score is the total of all categories plus the upper bonus, and your Best is your highest final score.
Controls
- Press Roll to start a turn and Roll again for your second and third rolls.
- Click or tap a die to hold it; held dice lift up and are outlined in yellow. Tap again to release it.
- After rolling, the scorecard previews what each open category would score. Click a category to record it and end the turn.
Tips and strategy
- The upper bonus needs an average of three of each number, for example three Fours for 12. Treat three of a kind in the upper section as par.
- Keep Chance for a bad turn. It is the safest place to dump a roll that fits nothing else.
- If you have to take a zero, put it somewhere cheap like Ones or a Yacht you are unlikely to get, not in a category worth 30 or 40.
- Chase straights from four connected values, such as 2-3-4-5, which can be completed at either end. A gapped run like 1-2-4-5 has half the chance.
- Note that five of a kind does not count as a Full house here; the scoring requires exactly three plus two.
Background
Dice games in which five dice are rolled up to three times and scored in fixed categories go back at least to the early twentieth century, and Yacht is one of the traditional names for the game. The best-known commercial version, Yahtzee, was marketed by Edwin S. Lowe from 1956. The categories and values used here, including the 35-point upper bonus and the 25, 30, 40 and 50 point combinations, follow that popular modern scoring rather than the older Yacht rules.
Questions
- Is there an opponent?
- No. Yacht Dice here is a solo game; you are trying to beat your own best score.
- Can I hold dice before my first roll?
- No. Every turn starts with all five dice rolled. Holding is only possible on the second and third rolls.
- What counts as a small straight?
- Any four consecutive values among the five dice: 1-2-3-4, 2-3-4-5 or 3-4-5-6. A large straight needs all five in a row.