Farkle Rules and How to play

Farkle is a dice game, similar to Yatzy. You’ll need six standard dice with dots numbering from one to six. Additionally, make sure to have a scoring sheet or pad, along with a pen or pencil for each player.

Farkle dice game

Farkle is a simple game that requires little equipment and basic math skills. Once you have everything in place, the setup process is straightforward.

First, designate a flat, comfortable playing surface where everyone can sit. Distribute the dice, scoring sheets, and writing tools to each player. Farkle can be played with 2 to 8 players, and as with many other games, the more the merrier is valid here too.

The objective of Farkle is to accumulate 10 000 points, by rolling a set of six dice and strategically choosing which dice to keep for scoring. There are many combinations, which we will cover as you keep reading. The game continues until one player reaches or surpasses 10 000 points.

How to Play Farkle

Now that you have the people, the equipment, and the objective of the dice game, it’s time to sit around a table and play.

Designate the scorekeeper

The scorekeeper is responsible for recording and calculating the scores of all players throughout the game. To ensure a smooth process, it’s crucial that everyone is well-acquainted with the scoring rules.

Choose who’s first

To determine the starting player, everyone could roll a die, with the highest roll earning the honor of going first. With the player order established, you’re ready to commence the dice-rolling adventure.

Roll 500 points in one turn to enter the game

It’s essential to attain a minimum of 500 points to enter the game. When it’s your moment to roll, engage all six dice simultaneously. Extract at least one die that carries point value, referred to as a “point die,” and proceed to re-roll the remaining dice. If your re-roll doesn’t yield any point dice, your turn concludes, resulting in a Farkle.

In the case of Farkle

Should a farkle occur before reaching the 500-point threshold, your score remains at zero, and you can try again in the following round. It’s not mandatory to immediately set aside all the point dice you obtain. In certain instances, a more strategic approach involves re-rolling select point dice to pursue a higher score.

Keep rolling if you throw “hot dice”

Hot dice is a situation when every one of the six dice makes a point die, and you’re required to roll the entire set of dice once more. There’s no upper boundary to the number of consecutive hot dice rolls you can achieve.

Keep rolling until you decide to stop or Farkle

Here’s where the excitement truly intensifies. You find yourself at a crossroads – you can opt for a cautious approach, halting your turn once you’ve accumulated a handful of points, or you can choose to embrace a daring gamble by persisting with your throws. It’s crucial to bear in mind that the consequence of a Farkle is a complete forfeiture of the points garnered during that particular turn, and the game seamlessly transitions to the next player. In this pivotal moment, it’s wise to deliberate your strategy meticulously, weighing the risks and rewards, before deciding whether to roll the dice once more or to bring your turn to an end.

Track of everyone’s scores

At the end of each player’s turn, it’s essential to record the points they’ve accumulated during that round. Subsequently, tally up the scores from each player’s individual turns and combine them to derive their overall total score.

Play until someone reaches 10,000 points

The game ends when someone surpasses the 10,000-point threshold. After this, all other participants are granted one additional turn to outdo the score achieved by the winner. If no one manages, the winner is set.

Scoring

If you’re using a typical Farkle set, you would have the standard dice combinations and their scores written on your board. The following are:

• Single 1 = 100 points
• Single 5 = 50 points
• Three 1s = 300 points
• Three 2s = 200 points
• Three 3s = 300 points
• Three 4s = 400 points
• Three 5s = 500 points
• Three 6s = 600 points

There are also a few special combinations, such as:

• Four of any number = 1,000 points
• Five of any number = 2,000 points
• Six of any number = 3,000 points
• 1-6 straight = 1,500 points
• Three pairs = 1,500 points
• Four of any number with a pair = 1,500 points
• Two triplets = 2,500 points

Farkle score sheet

Download our printable Farkle score sheet and elevate your gaming experience! With our handy score sheet, you can effortlessly keep track of your points and strategize your moves. Click on the image below and roll the dice with confidence!

Glossary of notable combinations

• Hot Dice Roll. A player who scores on all six dice must roll them all again at least once.
• Three Farkles. A player who rolls three Farkles in a row loses 1000 points.
• Toxic Twos. Four or more 2’s thrown in a single roll cancels the player’s entire score for that turn and ends their turn.
• Greed. At the start of their turn, a player can roll the dice that were left from the previous player’s turn. Should the player achieve a scoring outcome on the initial roll, they will not only accumulate any other points they earn but also be rewarded with an additional 1000 points.
• Welfare. A player must score exactly 10,000 points to win the game. If a player scores more than 10,000 points, all points scored that turn is given to the player with the lowest score.
• Five Dice Farkle. A variation where five dice are used instead of six.
• Team Farkle. This one is a variation of the game played in teams. Teammates sit opposite each other at the table and combine their scores. The game is typically played to 20,000 points.