Fives dominoes the way it's actually played: the rules, the count, the slang, the strategy, and some numbers nobody's had before. Written from the table and checked against the same engine the app runs.
New here? Start with How to Play Fives.
Rules
The whole game in one page: the deal, who opens, the count, the spinner, drawing, going out, blocked hands. First to 150.
Read →Rules
The first double, when its top and bottom open, and why it counts both halves until it doesn't.
Read →Rules
Both players pass, the hands come up, the lighter hand wins the difference. When to force it and when not to.
Read →Rules
Every table argues. Here's the comparison, our house, and the six questions to ask before the wash.
Read →Scoring
What counts, what doesn't, the spinner's four phases, the doubles rule, and a trick for counting fast.
Read →Scoring
Every line is 5, a finished house is 50, three houses is game. Plus what to do when the table argues.
Read →Culture
Bones, boneyard, nick, dime, trees, big six, the house, domino! What all of it means and when you'll hear it.
Read →Our Story
How dominoes traveled from 13th-century China through the Caribbean to the Black American cookout.
Read →Strategy
Ranked by impact, from counting before you play to knowing when to lock the board.
Read →Strategy
Seven of every suit. Reading draws, killing a suit, and naming their last bone before they play it.
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