Dominoes are a game in which players must make a tile go from one end of the chain to the other. It is played in various variations, but its basic concept is the same. This game originated in China in the 12th or 13th century and spread to Europe and England in the 18th century. Today, dominoes are widely used for various games. The most popular domino games are layout games and blocking games. However, there are also scoring games.
In a standard domino game, a player begins with a set of nine tiles and continues to add tiles to the hand until he or she reaches a certain point limit. Point limits are usually a minimum of 150 or 200 points. When a player reaches this goal, he or she wins the game. If a player cannot reach this goal, he or she must draw a sleeping domino and try to play it in the next round.
Normally, the first player chooses the heaviest hand. He or she then draws seven tiles from a double-six set. Players are allowed to block the other player’s moves, but the main object is to empty the opponent’s hand.
Each round of dominoes will end when the player chips out. If the player does not chip out, he or she may be awarded 5 points for every tile left in the opponent’s hand. Once the player reaches the target score, he or she wins the game.
Dominoes are typically played with a double-nine set, but there are other sets with different numbers of pips. For instance, a set with a number of pips on each half of its face is called a “double.” A set with a double-blank may be counted as a 0 or 14. Larger numbered dominoes are generally played quickly.
The dominos are typically made of ivory or bone. European dominoes are traditionally made of dark hardwood such as ebony. They are also sometimes made of silver lip ocean pearl oyster shell. Various other materials can be used, however.
Originally, dominoes were meant to represent a masquerade mask. In the 18th century, they were introduced in England and France. Their first written mention was in a French dictionary in 1771. Although their exact origin is unclear, they were popular in France around the mid-18th century.
The first tile that is laid on the table is typically a double-six. After that, a player can either continue building off the tiles in his or her hand or lay another tile to match the open end of a previously played piece.
The second tile is normally a six. To the right of the six is a five, and to the left of it is a four. Other tiles are played according to the rules of the particular game.
Players must take turns choosing a domino from the stock. Each round of play is similar to the previous one, except that the person who drew first will have to pick a sleeping domino before the other players can begin the next round.
