Farkle rules and scoring: the complete chart

The object of the game

Farkle is played with six dice and any number of players, usually two to six. On your turn you roll, set aside at least one scoring die, and then choose: bank the points you have built up this turn and pass the dice, or roll on with the dice you have not set aside to build the total higher. If a roll produces nothing that scores, you have farkled: your turn ends and every unbanked point from it is lost. The first player to reach the target, traditionally 10,000, triggers a final round, and the highest total at the end of it wins.

The rules take a minute to learn. The judgement — how far to push a turn — is the game, and the strategy guide covers it.

What you need

Six ordinary dice, something to write scores on, and a cup if you want to keep the rolling honest. There is no board and no special equipment. Farkle also travels under the names 10,000, Zilch, Dix Mille and Greed; the core rules are the same under all of them, though the scoring chart differs from house to house.

How a turn works

1. Roll all six dice.
2. Set aside at least one scoring die or scoring combination from that roll. You may set aside more than the minimum if more scored.
3. Decide: bank the turn’s running total and end your turn, or roll the remaining dice again.
4. If you roll again, repeat from step 2 with the dice left. If a roll scores nothing, you farkle and lose the turn’s total.
5. If every die you have ends up set aside, you have hot dice: pick all six up and keep rolling with the same running total.

Farkle scoring chart

Scoring varies by house more than in any other popular dice game, so the chart below gives the most common conventions and the usual alternatives. Agree the chart before the first roll.

Two things to notice. First, 1s and 5s are the only dice that score on their own; a lone 2, 3, 4 or 6 is worthless. Second, a die that is part of a triple does not also score as a single: three 5s is 500, not 500 plus 150.

What are hot dice in Farkle?

If all six dice have been set aside as scoring — whether in one throw, such as a straight, or across several throws in the same turn — you have hot dice. You must pick up all six and roll again; in most rule sets you are not allowed to bank at that moment, though some houses let you. The running total carries on building. Hot dice is the best thing that can happen in a turn and also the moment people get greedy, because six fresh dice are unlikely to farkle but the total behind them is now large.

What is farkling?

A farkle is any roll in which nothing scores. Your turn ends immediately and the points accumulated in that turn are gone; points banked in earlier turns are safe. Some houses add a penalty of 500 or 1,000 points for three farkles in a row, which stops a player who is far ahead from rolling recklessly with nothing to lose.

Getting on the board, and winning

Many groups use an opening threshold: until you have banked once, you may not bank a turn of fewer than 500 points (some use 350 or 1,000). It makes the first few turns tense and stops the game opening with a string of 50-point banks.

The traditional target is 10,000. The first player to bank a total of 10,000 or more does not win outright; instead every other player gets one more turn to beat that total. This final round is what keeps the game alive to the last throw — a player 2,000 behind will roll far more aggressively than usual, because banking a small score loses anyway. The highest total after the final round wins.

House rules that vary

• Whether three pairs, two triplets and a four-of-a-kind-plus-a-pair score at all, and for how much.
• Whether three 1s are 1,000 or 300.
• Whether four, five and six of a kind double up or take flat values.
• The opening threshold, the target, and whether a final round is played.
• Whether you may bank on hot dice or must roll them.
• The three-farkle penalty.

How does Piece of Cake play it?

The turn structure in Piece of Cake is the traditional one: roll all six dice, set aside at least one scoring die, then bank your subtotal or roll the remaining dice again. Single 1s and 5s score on their own, three of a kind scores big, and every extra matching die doubles it, so the app follows the doubling convention rather than flat values for four, five and six of a kind. Straights score bigger still. Hot dice work as described above: if all six dice score, pick them all up and roll again with the subtotal still building. A roll that scores nothing is a Farkle, and the unbanked subtotal is gone.

The target is where the app differs from tradition: the table target is 4,000 by default, not 10,000, and it is adjustable per table. The other house rules are also settable per table when you create it: the target score, an opening threshold, a final round for last chances, whether three pairs and two triplets score, and a penalty for three Farkles in a row. Tables seat two to six players. The precise point values live in the in-app scoring chart under Profile, then Rules, then Farkle, and the dice are rolled server-side, so no thumb is involved.

The guides that sit next to this one are Gin Rummy rules and Switch rules.

Frequently asked questions

What scores in Farkle?

A single 1 scores 100 and a single 5 scores 50. Three of a kind scores 100 times the face value (three 4s is 400), except three 1s, which is usually 1,000. Four, five and six of a kind, a straight, three pairs and two triplets score more, but the exact values vary by house, so agree a chart before you play.

What does it mean to farkle?

A farkle is a roll in which none of the dice score. Your turn ends and every point you had built up that turn is lost. Points you banked in earlier turns are safe.

What are hot dice in Farkle?

Hot dice is when all six dice have been set aside as scoring in one turn. You pick all six up and roll again, keeping the turn’s running total. Most rule sets require you to roll rather than bank at that point.

How many points do you need to win Farkle?

Traditionally 10,000, followed by a final round in which every other player gets one more turn to overtake. In Piece of Cake the default table target is 4,000, and it can be changed per table along with the final-round setting.

Can you bank a pair in Farkle?

No. A pair on its own scores nothing under standard rules, and you cannot hold a pair back to complete a triple on a later throw. Only dice that score from a single roll may be set aside.

Independent guide: the rules described here are the traditional versions of each game; where Piece of Cake plays a variant, the guide says so explicitly. TritonApps is not affiliated with any games publisher.