Georgian Domino Rules for Two Players

This is domino played with tiles — the game Georgians play in courtyards, at the dacha and around the kitchen table. Georgian domino differs from the international variants in a few rules: there is only one stavka per hand, points are scored in multiples of five, the last two tiles of the boneyard can never be drawn, and a riba (a blocked board) has its own count. Every rule below is described exactly as the game on this site plays it: two players, one against one.

The set, the deal and who starts

• The set has 28 tiles, from 0-0 to 6-6. Every combination appears exactly once, and the pips across the whole set add up to 168.
• Seven tiles are doubles, with the same number on both halves: 0-0, 1-1, 2-2, 3-3, 4-4, 5-5 and 6-6.
• Every number from zero to six appears on exactly seven tiles. The three, for example, is on 0-3, 1-3, 2-3, 3-3, 3-4, 3-5 and 3-6.
• Before each hand the tiles are shuffled and each player receives 7. The remaining 14 stay face down: this is the bazari (the boneyard).
• The first hand of a match is opened by whoever holds the highest double, and it must be opened with that double: 6-6 first; if nobody has it, 5-5; and so on down to 0-0. Opening with any other tile is not allowed at that point.
• If in the first hand neither player was dealt a single double, the tiles are reshuffled and dealt again.
• Each following hand is opened by the winner of the previous hand, who may open with any tile. After a riba, the hand is opened by whoever blocked the board — more on that below.

Playing a tile, and the stavka

A tile is placed where one of its halves matches the number on an open end: if an end asks for a five, you can play 5-0, 5-1, 5-2, 5-3, 5-4, 5-5 or 5-6. You never need to turn a tile by hand — the game turns it the right way round for you. If a tile fits more than one end, every possible spot is highlighted and you choose; that choice often decides the score. The stavka is the first double placed in a hand. If the hand was opened with a double, that double is the stavka from the first move; if not, the stavka is the first double played later on. Despite how it may sound, the word has nothing to do with money — it is simply what this tile is called in domino.

• There is only one stavka in the whole hand.
• At first the stavka has two sides, along the ordinary line of play.
• Once tiles have been played on both of those sides, a third and a fourth side open up, and both ask for the stavka’s number.
• Every later double is an ordinary tile: it is placed crosswise, but it never opens a new direction.

The bazari: when you draw, and how many

1. If you hold a tile that can be played, you must play it. You may not go to the boneyard to look for something better.
2. If you have no move, you go to the bazari and draw one tile at a time until you find one you can play.
3. If the tile you drew can be played, you must play it straight away.
4. The last two tiles of the bazari are protected: nobody can draw them, and they take no further part in the hand.
5. If only those two tiles are left in the bazari and you have no move, your turn passes to your opponent automatically — there is no button to press.

Scoring: the open ends must add up to a multiple of five

After every tile is played, the open ends are added up. If the total is 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 or 35, the player who placed the tile scores exactly that many points at once. Any other total — 7, 12, 22 — scores nothing. The most a single move can score is 35. There is one exception, for the first tile of a hand: only 5-5 scores as an opening tile, for 10 points. Any other opening tile, including 6-4, 2-3 or 0-5, scores nothing even though its total is divisible by five. Normal counting starts with the second tile.

• An ordinary tile at an end counts its outer half.
• An ordinary double at an end counts both halves: a 4-4 at an end counts as 8.
• The stavka counts both halves for as long as at least one of its two main sides is still free.
• Once tiles have been played on both main sides of the stavka, it no longer counts — for the rest of the hand.
• The third and fourth sides of the stavka do not count until a tile is played on them; after that, the outer half of the last tile on each counts.
• Below is the start of a match’s first hand, move by move.

1. A holds 6-6 and opens with it. It is the stavka. The opening scores nothing.
2. B plays 6-4 on one side. Ends: the stavka 12 (its other side is still free) + 4 = 16 — no score.
3. A plays 6-5 on the other side. The stavka is now closed and no longer counts; the ends are 4 + 5 = 9 — no score. But the stavka’s third and fourth sides have opened, and both ask for a six.
4. B plays 6-1 on the third side: 4 + 5 + 1 = 10 — B scores 10.
5. A plays 5-5 on the five end. It is an ordinary double and counts both halves: 4 + 10 + 1 = 15 — A scores 15.
6. B plays 6-0 on the fourth side: 4 + 10 + 1 + 0 = 15 — B scores 15.

The end of a hand, and the riba

• “Domino”: the hand is won by whoever plays their last tile. They score the pips left in the opponent’s hand, rounded up to the nearest multiple of five: 1 to 5 scores 5, 6 scores 10, 11 scores 15, 16 scores 20.
• A special Georgian rule: if the opponent’s only remaining tile is 0-0, the winner scores 10, even though the tile shows zero.
• A riba means the line is dead: every open end asks for a number of which not a single tile is still available — not in either hand, and not in the part of the bazari that can still be drawn. The two protected boneyard tiles do not count. The riba is declared on the move that blocked the board.
• If the board is blocked on a number v and the v-v double is in someone’s hand, it must be played first — the riba is declared only after that.
• In a riba, the player with the smaller total left in hand wins and scores the loser’s total, rounded up to a multiple of five. For example, A has 1-1 and 5-6 left (13), B has 4-2 and 4-6 (16): A wins and scores 20 — not 13, and not 15.
• If both totals are equal, it is a draw: nobody scores and the match continues with the next hand.
• After a riba, the new hand is opened by whoever played the last ordinary tile. A double played here is a forced move and does not earn the right to open.

The match: to 75, 175, 255 or 355 points

Whoever creates the table chooses the target: 75, 175, 255 or 355. Points are added during the hand as well, but the match only ends at the end of a hand — if someone passes the target mid-hand, the hand is still played to the finish. If both players are past the target at the end of a hand, the one with more points wins; if the scores are level, another hand is played, until someone is ahead.

Frequently asked questions

How many tiles does each player get?

Seven. Fourteen of the 28 tiles are dealt between the two players; the other 14 stay in the bazari (the boneyard).

Does every double open up four ways?

No. Only the stavka — the first double of the hand — opens four ways. Other doubles are ordinary tiles, although at an end they count both halves.

Why didn’t I score when I opened with 6-4?

Because in Georgian domino only 5-5 scores as an opening tile (10 points). Normal counting starts with the second tile.

Can every tile in the boneyard be drawn?

No. The last two tiles always stay in the bazari and take no part in the hand.

What happens if the totals are equal in a riba?

It is a draw: nobody scores and the match continues with the next hand.

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Domino on tamashebi.cc is free to play. Coin tables use only Domino Coin, a virtual in-game coin: it is never money, cannot be bought or cashed out, and means nothing outside the site. There is no real-money play, no top-up and no payment of any kind. The site is available in Georgian, English, Russian and Turkish.