Do you love to gamble but aren't any good at it? Do you lose nearly every hand because you grin ear to ear every time you get a half decent hand? Then Poker Dice may be for you. Poker Dice combines the thrill of the possibility of winning your friends's money with the security of knowing it's all random! Statistics say you'll win eventually, so what are you waiting for?

A Poker Dice "hand" is comprised of five fair dice. I've only seen Five Card Stud and Five Card Draw played, but I'm sure other games are possible, too. The possible Poker Dice hands are:

  • High Die - no pairs; a 6 beats a 5, etc.
  • Pair - 2 of any number
  • 2 Pair - 2 pairs; the higher pair is the important one. My 5s and 1s beats your 4s and 3s.
  • 3 of a Kind - 3 of any number
  • Full House - 3 of a Kind and a Pair
  • 4 or a Kind - 4 of any number
  • 5 of a Kind - 5 of any number - 6s are unbeatable

I've never played with a set, but dice made specifically for this game exist and are, in a bold stroke of originality, called poker dice. Everything works exactly the same as when playing with standard dice. The only difference between poker dice and standard dice is that poker dice are ordered (ascending): 10, Jack, Queen, King, Ace instead of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.

Wagering, at least in my house, is extremely simple. Everybody throws in a quarter, and the winner gets the pot. Five Card Draw can feature an additional round of betting, which raises the stakes enough to get to younger kids away from the table. My family never plays very long, but if you're looking for an easy game and/or want to include younger children in your gambling (my family plays at major holidays), Poker Dice, with its easy rules and relatively low stakes, can make a good starter game when you tire of Left, Right, Center or Dominoes.