Aces in the Pot

Play

The game can be played by any number of players, who sit in a circle.

Each player begins the game with two tokens. The goal of the game (although the players cannot influence the outcome) is to win the pot by being the last player with a token.

On each player’s turn they make one roll of both dice. For each thrown, they place one token in the pot. For each thrown, they pass a token to the next player on their left. Then they pass the dice to the next player.

Play continues around the circle. Any players left without tokens drop out of the game and do not participate further, unless they receive a token from the player on their right.

Once there is only one token that is not in the pot, its owner makes three rolls. If they make three rolls without rolling any , they win the game. Otherwise, they pass the dice and token to the next player, who proceeds with their attempt.

Fives to the Right

This version of the game is called Aces to the Center, Deuces to the Left, Fives to the Right, or simply Aces.^{D (p. 360)}

Instead of playing with tokens, each player starts with five dice. On a player’s turn they roll all their dice. Any dice showing are placed in the centre; any showing are passed to the left, and any showing are passed to the right. The player continues to roll until no dice show    or they run out of dice.

Play continues until all but one die have been placed in the centre. The game continues with this single die until it shows a and would be placed in the centre; the player who rolled this value is either the loser, who must pay the bill, or the winner, who takes the pot.

General References

See: Board and Table Games from Many Civilizations (vol. 1, p. 130).