Farkle rules: scoring, Hot Dice and banking
Farkle is a dice game for two or more players, played with six dice, in which you set aside dice that score and decide after every roll whether to bank your points or roll on. A roll with nothing to score is a Farkle, and the points from that turn are lost. This page gives a full scoring table, the rules for Hot Dice and banking, how the game ends and the most common variations.
What you need
- Six dice
- Paper and a pen to keep score
- Two or more players. Farkle can also be played alone, for example by trying to reach 10,000 in as few turns as possible
The goal
Reach 10,000 banked points, and have the highest score when the final round is over.
How a turn works
- 1.You start the turn with six dice and 0 turn points.
- 2.Roll all the dice you have in your hand.
- 3.If nothing in the roll scores, it is a Farkle: your turn points are lost and your turn ends.
- 4.Otherwise, set aside at least one scoring die or group. You may set aside more, but every die you set aside must score.
- 5.Now choose. Roll on: the points you set aside join your turn points, and you roll the dice that are left. Or bank: your turn points are added to your score, and the turn passes on.
- 6.If all six dice have scored, you have Hot Dice: you pick up all six and roll again, with your turn points still at stake.
Turn points can still be lost. Banked points can never be lost.
Scoring
Farkle has no single official rulebook, and scoring varies a lot from table to table. The table below is a widely used set, and it is the one Farkle Challenge uses.
| Dice | Points |
|---|---|
| Single 1 | 100 |
| Single 5 | 50 |
| Three 1s | 1,000 |
| Three 2s | 200 |
| Three 3s | 300 |
| Three 4s | 400 |
| Three 5s | 500 |
| Three 6s | 600 |
| Four of a kind | 1,000 |
| Five of a kind | 2,000 |
| Six of a kind | 3,000 |
| Straight 1-2-3-4-5-6 | 1,500 |
| Three pairs | 1,500 |
| Two triplets | 2,500 |
A few rulings settle most arguments:
- 2s, 3s, 4s and 6s score only as part of a group. A single 2 is worth nothing.
- Only dice from the same roll combine. Two 4s from this roll and a 4 you set aside earlier are not three of a kind.
- Split the dice to score the most. Four 1s are worth 1,100 as three 1s plus a single 1, which is more than 1,000 for four of a kind.
- Three pairs must be three different numbers. Four 2s and two 3s are not three pairs; the four 2s score 1,000, and the 3s score nothing.
- Two triplets must be two different numbers, such as 3-3-3-5-5-5. Six alike are six of a kind, worth 3,000.
Hot Dice
When all six dice have scored in one turn, in one roll or over several, you may roll all six again. Your turn points come with you, and a Farkle on the new roll still loses them. You may also bank at once instead.
How often you Farkle
The fewer dice you roll, the higher the risk. With the scoring table above, the chance that a roll scores nothing is:
| Dice rolled | Chance of a Farkle |
|---|---|
| 6 | 2.3% |
| 5 | 7.7% |
| 4 | 15.7% |
| 3 | 27.8% |
| 2 | 44.4% |
| 1 | 66.7% |
These figures are exact for this table, counted over every possible roll. With six dice, the straight and three pairs are part of what keeps the risk so low; with a table that leaves them out, it is higher.
Ending the game
When a player banks to 10,000 or more, every other player gets exactly one last turn, in the usual order. The player who reached the target does not get another turn. Then the highest score wins. Many tables let equal highest scores share the win.
Common variations
- Opening score: many tables say a player must score at least 500 in a single turn before their first bank. Some use 350 or 1,000.
- Three Farkles in a row: a penalty, usually 1,000 points, sometimes 500.
- More of a kind: instead of 1,000, 2,000 and 3,000, some tables double the three of a kind for each extra die, so four 3s are 600, five 3s 1,200 and six 3s 2,400.
- Four of a kind with a pair: some tables score all six dice together as 1,500.
- Three 1s: some tables count them as 300 instead of 1,000.
- Straights and pairs: the straight is sometimes 2,500 or 3,000, and three pairs sometimes 750. Some tables also score a partial straight of five dice.
- Target: 10,000 is the most common, which is why the game is also called 10,000. Shorter games to 5,000 are played too.
Tips
- Keep fewer dice so you can roll more. From 1-5-2-2-3-6, taking only the 1 (100) leaves five dice with a 7.7% Farkle risk. Taking the 1 and the 5 (150) leaves four dice with 15.7%.
- Respect the last dice. With two dice left you lose the turn 44% of the time, and with one die two times in three. Roll them mainly when your turn points are small or when you need to catch up.
- One die can still give Hot Dice. A single die scores one time in three, and if it does, you have six fresh dice. That can make a small turn with one die left worth rolling.
- Play the score at the end. If an opponent has reached 10,000 and this is your last turn, banking short of their score is a loss, so keep rolling until you pass them.
Playing in Farkle Challenge
- Farkle Challenge uses the scoring table on this page exactly, with a target of 10,000. It splits your dice for the highest score by itself.
- By default there is no opening score and no Farkle penalty. Two house rules can be switched on in Settings for your own games: a first bank of at least 500, and 1,000 points off for three Farkles in a row, never below 0. Daily Farkle and Friend Farkle are always played without them.
- Solo: ten turns for the highest score, or reach 10,000 in as few turns as you can.
- Against the computer: first to 10,000 against Easy, Medium or Hard. The computer follows the same rules as you, sees only what you see and never knows a roll in advance.
- Play together: two to four players pass one phone between turns.
- Daily Farkle: ten turns with the same dice for everyone. The day changes at 00:00 UTC, and your first attempt is the official one.
- Friend Farkle: a challenge sent as a link or a short code, where everyone plays ten turns from the same start.
- Training: learn the scoring and practise bank-or-roll decisions. Nothing in training counts in statistics or records.
Questions about the rules
- What is Hot Dice in Farkle?
- Hot Dice is when all six dice have scored in one turn. You pick up all six and roll again, keeping your turn points, which you can still lose on a Farkle. You may also bank instead.
- Can you bank your points after a Farkle?
- No. A roll with nothing to score ends the turn at once, and all the points from that turn are lost. Points you banked in earlier turns are safe.
- What happens when a player reaches 10,000?
- The game does not stop at once. Every other player gets one last turn to beat that score, and then the highest score wins.
- Do you need 500 points to get on the board?
- Only if your table plays with an opening score. Many do, usually 500 in a single turn before your first bank, but it is a house rule and not part of every rule set.
- Are four of a kind and a pair three pairs?
- Not in the usual scoring, because three pairs need three different numbers. The four of a kind scores on its own. Some tables have a separate 1,500 for four of a kind with a pair.
- What are single 2s, 3s, 4s and 6s worth?
- Nothing on their own. They score only as three or more alike, or as part of a straight, three pairs or two triplets. Only 1s and 5s score as single dice.
