Five Dice Guide: Score Sheet Strategy

The score sheet

A second five of a kind, when the box already holds 50, earns a 100-point bonus and can be scored as a full house or a straight in those boxes. Each box can be used once; when nothing fits, you must still fill a box, with a zero if need be.

The upper bonus is the plan

Sixty-three in the upper section is exactly three of each number (3 × 1 + 3 × 2 + ... + 3 × 6 = 63). So the simple plan is: in each upper box, aim for at least three dice of that number. Four sixes (24) or four fives (20) put you ahead of the pace and let you accept two fours (8) later. Keep a running sense of whether you are ahead or behind 63 and play the upper boxes accordingly. The 35-point bonus is worth more than most lower boxes.

Which dice to keep

After the first roll:

• Three or more of a number: keep them and roll for more. High numbers (fours, fives, sixes) are worth more both in the upper section and in three/four of a kind.
• Four dice in sequence (1-2-3-4, 2-3-4-5, 3-4-5-6): keep them; you already have a small straight. Roll the fifth for the large one. An inner run (2-3-4-5) is completed by a 1 or a 6, two chances in six; an outer run (1-2-3-4 or 3-4-5-6) needs one specific number, one chance in six.
• A pair of high numbers and nothing else: keep the pair and roll three dice.
• A mess: keep the highest die or a single high pair and roll four.

After the second roll, the decision narrows: if you have three of a kind, roll the other two for four or five of a kind; if you have a full house and the box is open, take it; if you have an inner four-run, roll one die.

Taking a zero

Sooner or later a turn produces nothing useful. Put the zero where it hurts least: Ones (a zero costs at most a few points of upper total, though it makes the 63 harder), or a lower box you were unlikely to make (large straight late in the game, or four of a kind). Never zero Chance early; it is your safety net for a bad late roll. Never zero five of a kind while many rounds remain; the 50 and the possible 100 bonus are too valuable.

Order of play

A loose order that works: early rounds, go for the upper boxes and keep five of a kind open; middle rounds, fill straights and the full house when they come; late rounds, use Chance for a bad roll and accept small upper scores if the bonus is already safe or already lost. Count your remaining boxes each turn and roll toward the ones that are still worth most.

Playing the robots

Easy keeps dice simply; Normal plays for the bonus and the obvious boxes; Hard works out the odds of every way of keeping the dice and picks the best. Against Hard, a game is won by not wasting boxes: every zero and every big roll scored in Chance is a gift.

Common mistakes

1. Scoring a big roll in Chance. Chance is for bad rolls.
2. Ignoring the 63 bonus. Three of each number is the whole upper strategy.
3. Chasing a large straight from an outer run. 1-2-3-4 needs a 5; 2-3-4-5 can take a 1 or a 6.
4. Zeroing five of a kind early. Keep it open; the bonus is huge.
5. Keeping low pairs. A pair of ones is barely worth keeping; roll for something better.

Glossary

• Upper section: Ones to Sixes, with the 35-point bonus at 63.
• Lower section: the combination boxes from three of a kind to Chance.
• Inner and outer run: 2-3-4-5 (two ways to complete) against 1-2-3-4 or 3-4-5-6 (one way).
• Chance: the box that scores any five dice.