Complete Block Dominoes Rules Reference | PlayBlockDominoes.com

1. Tile Distribution

• 2 Players: Each draws 7 tiles, 14 are set aside
• 3 Players: Each draws 7 tiles, 7 are set aside
• 4 Players: Each draws 7 tiles, none are set aside

Tiles that are set aside stay out of play for the whole hand. Block Dominoes has no drawing, so they are never available to anyone.

2. Determining First Player

The player holding the highest double tile starts the game:

• If someone has 6-6, they start
• If no 6-6, then 5-5 starts, and so on
• If no doubles are held, the player with the heaviest tile (highest pip count) starts

3. Opening Play

The starting player places their chosen tile in the center of the playing area. This establishes the "layout" or "line of play" that all subsequent tiles must connect to. The opening tile can be placed in any orientation.

Turn Sequence & Tile Placement

• Play proceeds clockwise from the starting player
• Players must play a tile that matches one of the open ends of the layout
• New tiles must be placed end-to-end, with matching numbers touching
• Tiles can only be added to the two open ends of the line
• Doubles are traditionally placed crosswise to the line of play

Passing

When a player cannot make a legal play:

• The player passes immediately — there is no drawing in Block Dominoes
• Player announces "Pass" clearly to the other players
• Play continues to the next player
• If every player passes in succession, the hand is blocked and scoring begins

This is the rule that separates Block Dominoes from Draw Dominoes, where a stuck player must instead draw from the set-aside tiles until they find a playable one.

Game Continuation

Players continue taking turns, adding tiles to either end of the layout. The game develops into a single line of connected dominoes, with occasional branches from doubles creating a more complex pattern.

Ways to Win a Hand

Scoring System

• Winner's Score: Sum of all pips in losing players' hands
• Game Target: Agreed before play; 100 points or more is usual. Our game keeps the running total across hands until you start a new game
• Other Scoring: Some tables score a fixed number of hands instead of playing to a target
• Tie in Blocked Game: Agree this before play; common choices are to void the hand or to let each tied player score the untied hands. Our game gives the hand to the tied player who comes first in turn order

Table Etiquette

• Tiles must be shuffled face-down before each hand
• Players should not look at their tiles until everyone has taken their seven
• Agree before play whether there is a time limit per turn; there is none in our game
• Once a tile is placed it stays; there is no undo in our game either
• A pass is announced out loud, because every other player is entitled to know about it

Common Variations

• Spinner Rules: Some games allow tiles to be played on all four sides of the initial double
• Matador: Special rules where certain tiles can be played against any number
• Partnership Play: Four players in two teams with special communication rules
• All-Fives: Points scored during play when line ends total multiples of five

Strategy Considerations

The deal is luck; the rest is not. Each number sits on seven of the 28 tiles, so the tiles still unseen can always be counted, and because nobody draws, a pass proves permanently that the passer holds neither open-end number. Our strategy articles work through both ideas with the tiles shown.