Yahtzee Rules and Regulations

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 Yahtzee Instructions

Game Overview

Yahtzee is a game of luck and skill where players earn points by rolling five dice in different scoring combinations. A game consists of thirteen turns per player, one for each of the thirteen scoring categories. The objective is to achieve the highest possible total score.

In each round, a player gets three rolls of the dice, although they can choose to end their turn after one or two rolls. After each roll the player can save any dice they want and re-roll the other dice. The player has complete control as to which dice to roll. They can for example re-roll a die on the third roll that was not rolled on the second roll.

Equipment

A standard Yahtzee game consists of the following equipment:

5 Dice
1 Dice cup or shaker
1 Score pad
Pencils
Yahtzee Bonus chips

How to Play Yahtzee

1. Roll a die to see who starts. If continuing a series of games, the previous game’s winner goes first. Play continues clockwise.
2. Roll up to three times each turn. You may end your turn and record a score after your first, second, or third roll.
3. Fill in one empty box for the corresponding scoring category each turn.

First Roll

Roll all five dice. If you get the exact combo you want, mark your score card right away and end your turn. Otherwise, set aside any “keepers” and continue with your second roll.

Second Roll

Re-roll any or all dice you want, even “keepers” from the previous roll. You don’t need to declare which combination you’re rolling for; you may change your mind at any time. If you get the exact combo you need, mark your score card and end your turn. Otherwise, set aside any “keepers” and continue with your third roll.

Third and Final Roll

Re-roll any or all dice you want, even “keepers” from the previous roll. You must enter a score at the end of this roll, whether or not you like your dice. If your roll doesn’t suit any of your empty boxes, you have to enter a zero somewhere.

The Scorecard

The scorecard is split into two sections: the Upper Section for dice face values and Lower Section for the set combinations.

The Upper Section

To score in the Upper Section, add only the dice with the same number and enter the total in the corresponding box. The following roll, for example, could be scored as 12 for Fours, 3 for Threes, or 1 for Ones.

Your goal in the Upper Section is to score a total of at least 63 points - the minimum required to earn a 35-point bonus. The bonus points are based on scoring an average of three of each number: three for Ones, six for Twos, nine for Threes, 12 for Fours, 15 for Fives, and 18 for Sixes. However you may earn the bonus with any combination of scores that total at least 63 points.

The Lower Section

The Lower Section scores the following dice combinations:

Category	Description	Score
Three of a Kind	At least three dice showing the same face	Sum of all dice
Four of a Kind	At least four dice showing the same face	Sum of all dice
Full House	A Three of a Kind and a pair	25 points
Small Straight	Four sequential dice (1-2-3-4, 2-3-4-5, or 3-4-5-6)	30 points
Large Straight	Five sequential dice (1-2-3-4-5 or 2-3-4-5-6)	40 points
Yahtzee	All five dice showing the same face	50 points (first Yahtzee only)
Chance	Any combination of dice faces	Sum of all dice

Yahtzee Bonus Rules

A Yahtzee Bonus is awarded if you roll more than one Yahtzees. If you roll a second Yahtzee and have already recorded 50 in the Yahtzee box, you receive 100 bonus points. An additional 100-point bonus applies to any subsequent Yahtzees you roll. Put an “X” or check-mark in the Yahtzee Bonus box to indicate this bonus. To finish the turn, you then must enter a score in a regular scoring category according to the Joker Rules (see below). If you’ve already scored a zero in your Yahtzee box, you done messed up and do not receive a Yahtzee Bonus.

Joker Rules

After recording a Yahtzee Bonus, you must score the the total of the five dice in the appropriate Upper Section box. If this box has already been filled, then you score as follows in any open Lower Section box:

3 of a Kind: Total of all 5 dice
4 of a Kind: Total of all 5 dice
Full House: 25 points
Small Straight: 30 points
Large Straight: 40 points
Chance: Total of all 5 dice

If the appropriate Upper Section box and all Lower Section boxes are already filled in, you must enter a zero in any open Upper Section box. That’s right, it is possible to roll a valid Yahtzee, collect your bonus, and still have to take a zero. At least you’ll have an extra one-hundred points to console you.

Ending a Game

Once each player has filled in all 13 category boxes, the game ends. Each player then adds up their score as follows:

Upper Section: Add up the Upper Section scores and enter the total in the Total Score box. Enter the 35-point bonus in the Bonus box if you scored 63 points or more. Then enter the total in the Total box.

Lower Section: Add up the Lower Section scores, and enter the total in the Total of Lower Section box. Add 100 points for each check mark in the Yahtzee Bonus area.

How to Win

After each player has tabulated their Grand Total, the player with the highest score wins!

Additional Notes

1. It is possible that a certain combination can be scored in more than one category; for example, a Full House can be scored in the Full House, Three-of-a-Kind, or Chance categories. A player's individual strategy will help them to decide how to score it. Note that a five-of-a-kind cannot be scored as a Full House.

2. The original Yahtzee rules released in 1956 contain a misprint in the Joker Rules. The booklet stated that additional Yahtzees must be used as Jokers in the Lower Section and does not allow for their use in the Upper Section. This problem was corrected when the game was re-copyrighted in 1961.

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 More Yahtzee Rules

From time to time, a serious Yahtzee player is likely to encounter a situation that isn't covered in the Yahtzee instruction booklet. There are a multitude of unwritten rules, anachronistic regulations, and points of etiquette that frequently come into play during a Yahtzee game. Take your understanding of the game to the next level and learn more about Yahtzee online:

Yahtzee House Rules - Experimentation with the official Yahtzee instruction booklet can lead to new and exotic regulations to enact at your home table. House Rules are a great way to provide your gaming guests with a personalized approach to the game.

How to Cheat at Yahtzee - Game designers have put a lot of thought and effort into creating the perfectly balanced masterpiece that is Yahtzee. But some players choose to spit the face of fair play and use dirty tricks to succeed. Is your opponent willing to break the rules? Come to the table prepared. Learn the most common ways to cheat at Yahtzee and how you can protect the integrity of your own games.

Yahtzee Strategy: The Joker's Gambit- The Yahtzee scoring category is the game's namesake and the only path to sky-high scores. The 100-point Yahtzee Bonus and potential Jokers are jet fuel for your grand totals. But does it ever make sense to roll a Yahtzee and pass it up? Sacrifice the Yahtzee with the Joker's Gambit to increase your score.

The Yahtzee Playing Surface - From dining room table to a sandy beach campfire, you can play Yahtzee almost anywhere. Changing the type of playing surface will cause it to interact with the dice in different ways.

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 Yahtzee FAQ

What happens when you roll more than one Yahtzee?

This is the most-asked question in Yahtzee. Ever since a typo in the original 1956 Yahtzee set omitted all mention of the situation, rolling more than one Yahtzee has confounded rollers for decades.

Rolling multiple Yahtzees invokes what is known as the Bonus Yahtzee Rule and grants the player a 100 point reward for each extra one. The player then records a score according to the Joker Rules, which mandates taking it in the Upper Section if the given number remains unscored. Otherwise the player may use the dice as a wild card in the Lower Section.

This often leads to the second most-asked question:

Is it really possible to take a zero after rolling a Bonus Yahtzee?

It’s a major bummer but entirely possible to score a zero after rolling a second Yahtzee. When it is late in the game and there aren’t many open scoring categories left, a player can easily be forced into this bittersweet result. If all of the Lower Section boxes are already filled, for example, the player is required to take it Upstairs. If the number in which the Yahtzee was rolled has been scored there, the result is a zero. The 100 Bonus Points, however, are always awarded so a player in this situation will certainly not leave empty-handed.

Is there any strategy in Yahtzee?

Yahtzee relies on the concept of randomness. Dice, after all, are the world’s original random number generator. So luck will always form one of the game’s foundational pillars. But the important role that chance plays in Yahtzee can sometimes obscure its many other facets. Skill, karma, organization, and strategy are all equally-important fundamental Yahtzee concepts.

The PROVEN Yahtzee strategy is one the most successful systems for maximizing a player’s potential. Developed by legends of the Yahtzee Pro Circuit, Park Hee-Soo and Claude Jenkins, PROVEN is a set of principles that can help guide your game to another level:

Prioritize the Upper Section Bonus - The Upper Section’s 35-point bonus is the second most important objective in a game of Yahtzee, behind only the five-of-a-kind itself.

Remain Adaptive – Achieve success by remaining open to new possibilities.

Organize - A well-managed approach to Yahtzee will benefit players of all levels. Choose a strategy early and keep your head in the game at all times.

Value the Yahtzee – It’s the name of the game. Keep it open on your scorecard for as long as possible.

Embrace Eventualities - Ones and Chance are the safe havens of the Yahtzee scorecard. Use them wisely to keep your head above water.

Never Back Down - Take control of the dice and stand up for your Yahtzee rights.

Can you tie a Yahtzee game?

An encounter with a Yahtzee tie game is inevitable for a long-term player. The official rules don’t address the subject so it remains the responsibility of the game host to develop a plan for dealing with ties. It will depend on each unique situation, but in most cases a tied game poses no problems. Particularly in series play where the sum total of several games determines the outcome, a tie in a single match doesn’t matter and will stand as it was rolled. In a sudden-death tournament match, however, a tie would need to be broken.

You can break a tie in Yahtzee in a number of ways. The simplest method is for each player to roll a single die where the highest number wins. Or roll all five dice and use the highest Chance-Chance score to settle it. The most used tie-breaker in tournament play involves rolling up to three times in a single turn and using the best result as the determinant.

What is the highest possible Yahtzee score? The lowest score?

Under standard rules, the highest possible Yahtzee score is 1575 points. The player needs to roll 13 consecutive Yahtzees, many of which must be in a given number, earning hundreds of bonus points in the process. The Upper Section would be maxed out with five Yahtzees for 105 points before bonuses.

The lowest possible score is five points. In this scenario, the player would roll a zero in every category except for Chance where she scores five Ones. The odds of rolling either the maximum or minimum grand totals are exceedingly small.

Can Five-of-a-Kind be used as a Full House?

To score a legal Full House, the player must roll three dice of one number and two dice of a different number. Five-of-a-Kind is a Yahtzee, not a Full House.

What is considered a good Yahtzee score?

That depends on what your definition of good is. The centered player will find joy in even the lowest score. But statistically speaking, a capable player will score 250 points in roughly half of all games. High rollers who don’t have to score a zero for any category can land comfortably above 300. True high score aspirants can dream of rolling 500 points or more – it happens in less than 1% of all games.

Why is the game called Yahtzee?

Yahtzee’s inventor, E.S. Lowe, claimed that he got the idea for the game in the early 1950’s from a wealthy Canadian couple who played dice while sailing around the world on a yacht. So the name is a play on the type of boat upon which the game was created. But the couple have never been publicly identified and their absence remains a mystery to this day. This leads many to suspect that Lowe’s story was nothing more than a marketing gimmick, seeking to lure in customers with fantastic tales of board games from exotic locales like Canada.

Some experts doubt that Yahtzee was created either by Lowe or a random Canadian couple, but that it shares a common origin with the ancient dice game “Ya-Tsee”. This suggests a much more distant origin and gives rise to the possibility that 20th century gaming executives appropriated a sacred ancient ritual to amuse the middle class. Like the game itself, the etymology of Yahtzee is multilayered and aloof. Research into the matter is ongoing but we may never uncover the whole story.

Did someone really write a book about Yahtzee?

There have numerous works of literature about Yahtzee, going back hundreds of years. Some researchers believe that passages in the I-Ching reference an early version of the game. Yahtzee has been featured in novels, instructional guides, strategy books, technical manuals, poems, comic books, and other forms of print media. Here’s one of our favorite haikus:

dice cacophony
anticipation rattles
sowing a yahtzee

But you’re probably thinking about Yahtzee experts Rick McCallister and Louise Proctor. In collaboration with the World Yahtzee Institute Press, the duo published The Yahtzee Manifesto in 2011 to raise Yahtzee awareness in a changing 21st century world. The book covers the Yahtzee basics, including strategy, tips, and higher concepts. Rick, Louise, and the entire team at the WYI remain committed to providing you with only the finest Yahtzee propaganda.