Five by Five

Five by Five Rulebook

Table of Contents

Object

Place and manipulate dice on the shared board to complete objectives and earn points. The person with the most points when the board fills up wins.

Setup

Place the board at the center of the table with the three special objectives (dark blue) above. Separate the dice into their colored groups near the board.

Shuffle the action cards and deal four to each player. Split the remaining into two decks and place them on the table, revealing the first card of each.

Shuffle the objective cards then deal out three to each player. Place the remaining objectives face down on the table.

Roll a die to see who goes first.

On Your Turn

You must play one action card from your hand.

At any time during your turn, you may play any or all your completed objective cards in your hand.

Once you have played an action and any fulfilled objectives, your turn is over. Choose a card from either action deck and turn the next card face up and then, if you played any objectives, replenish those by picking from the objective deck. You should have four action and three objective cards.

Discard

In lieu of playing an action card and any objectives, you may choose to forfeit your turn and discard either:

Action cards: You must discard all of the action cards in your hand, picking up four new cards.
Objective cards: You may choose to discard as many cards as you like, replenishing your stock of three.

Note: If you choose to discard, you are forfeiting your turn and may not play any objectives until next turn.

Action Cards

Color Cards (Red, Yellow, Blue, Green)

When playing a color card, pick up a die of the corresponding color and roll it. Place it on an unoccupied space on the board.

Reroll

Pick up a die already on the board and roll it again. Place it back onto the same square.

Remove

Pick up a die from the board and remove it. Roll another die of any color and place it in the same square on the board. You may replace the removed die with a die of the same color.

Swap

Switch the positions of two adjacent dice on the board. Swapping diagonally is not permitted.

+1 / -1

Increase or decrease the number of a die already on the board by one. Note: A die with a '1' cannot turn into a '6' and vice versa.

Paint

Replace a die that is already played with a die of a different color. The number will not change and the die will stay in the same square. You do not need a color card with this action.

Winning the Game

When the last square is filled, the game is over. Each person may play any unclaimed, completed objectives. The person with the highest score wins.

In case of a tie, the person who completed the highest number of objectives wins. Next tie breaker is higher scoring objective. Should there still be a tie, each person rolls 5 dice and the highest total wins.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Are diagonal lines permitted? A: No. Lines may only be horizontal or vertical.

Q: What if I only have special cards in my hand? A: You may forfeit a turn and swap your action cards.

Q: Can I play an objective, then an action, then another objective during my turn? A: Yes, objectives can be played at any time during your turn.

Q: What do we do if the objectives deck runs out? A: First shuffle any discarded objectives and use those. Once those are gone, there no new objectives.

Q: What happens if we run out of dice of a color? A: Any cards of that color are now wild and can be used for any other remaining color.

Objective Cards

Odd in the Middle (Red, Yellow, Blue, Green)

The die in the middle of the board is a 1, 3, or 5 of that color.

2x2 of Different Numbers

A small (2 block by 2 block) square anywhere on the board containing four different numbers.

2x2 of Different Colors

A small (2 block by 2 block) square anywhere on the board containing four different colors.

Three Touching with the Same Number

These three like-numbered dice can either be in a line or in a small elbow-like shape, connected.

Four Corners of Different Numbers

Each corner of the board contains a different number.

Four Corners of Different Colors

Each corner of the board contains a different color.

Small Straight Connected in a Line

A small straight is 1-2-3-4, 2-3-4-5, or 3-4-5-6, a run of four incrementing numbers. These must be touching in a line. They do not need to be in order. Ex: The line shows 1-3-6-2-4. This is NOT connected because the 6 is in the middle. 1-3-2-4-6 is a connected small straight.

Sum of Full Line Totals 11-15

Once a line is completed, the total must be 11-15.

Sum of Full Line Totals 20-24

Once a line is completed, the total must be 20-24.

2x2 of the Same Color

A small (2 block by 2 block) square anywhere on the board containing four dice of the same color.

All Even in a Full Line

A completed line must consist of only 2, 4, and/or 6.

All Odd in a Full Line

A completed line must consist of only 1, 3, and/or 5.

At Least 3 of Each Number

Each number must be represented on the board at least three times.

2x2 of the Same Number

A small postage stamp anywhere on the board containing four dice of the same number.

At Least 5 of Each Color

Each color must be represented on the board at least four times.

At Least 7 of the Same Number

At least one number must be represented on the board at least seven times.

Full House in a Line

A full house is a pair and three-of-a-kind. Note that five-of-a-kind is, technically, a full house.

Sum of Full Line Totals 10 or Fewer

Once a line is completed, the total must be 10 or lower.

Sum of Full Line Totals 25 or Greater

Once a line is completed, the total must be 25 or higher.

6 in the Middle (Red, Yellow, Blue, Green)

The die in the middle of the board is a 6 of that color.

Special Objectives

The following are special objectives. If you are the first player to complete the objective during the game, claim the card and the points.

Large Straight in a Line

A large straight is 1-2-3-4-5 or 2-3-4-5-6, a run of five incrementing numbers. They do not need to be in order. Ex: A line showing 1-3-5-2-4 is a large straight.

Full Line of the Same Color

A completed line must contain all of the same color.

Full Line of the Same Number

A completed line must contain all of the same number.

Notes

NOTE: Lines must be horizontal or vertical only. Diagonal lines are not permitted.