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- APPENDIX
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- 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"
- consisting of 11 dominoes (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.
-
- 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.
-
- 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 4-3 is
- downed, then the 2-4 could be played, with the two 4's adjacent to
- each other, 2-4:4-3 . The exposed ends of the "board", the 2 from
- the 2-4 and the 3 from the 4-3, 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.
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- 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 6-3, 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. In the latter
- case, he must pass.
-
- 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, although this may be
- changed by agreement. 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.
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- One final rule: Since it is generally difficult to play a hand
- containing a large number of doubles, either player may, if he
- chooses, demand a redeal in case his initial hand contains five or
- more doubles (four if the initial draw is 7 or 9). The request must,
- of course, be made before the player has made any play.
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- 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.
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