Game Called 5 Dice

[scheherazade]

Showoff!!!

I'm just setting the bar a tad higher for you more experienced sorts.

[Captain Kremmen]

I haven't matched the high score I set before yet.

Tactics so far:
You have to be lucky with the initial start up, with at least three or four 5-of-the-sames to pick off within the first few moves. Then you need to continue to score well, while keeping the dice in one group.
Then, when you have about 30-40 left, you need to be considering what you will leave as your last couple of plays. Its no use taking 5 of a kind if that leaves you with just a pair on your last go.
Every play needs to be at least a full house to get a high score.

A top player would be planning their final plays from the off.
And I think they would be scoring 55,000+ 50% of the time.

Added later. Declaration of War.
I am now discarding unpromising initial setups, and abandoning ones that go wrong.


Added yet later. Mmhhh.................
Oddly enough, that doesn't seem to help a great deal.
Higher average scores, but nothing exceptional.
Maybe the ideal setup is not one that simply includes a lot of 5-of-a kinds, but something else.
I don't think that it is a particularly deep game, but I could be wrong.

[Fraggle Rocker]

To play it expertly, you would have to think many steps ahead, like a chess player. I wonder how highly such a person would score regularly?

How about us go players? Go is considerably more complex than chess: computers sill play like amateurs.

I'll let you know after I try it at home.

[KilljoyKlown]

How about us go players? Go is considerably more complex than chess: computers sill play like amateurs.

I'll let you know after I try it at home.

I used to play GO many years ago. The biggest problem with GO is not many people in the U.S. know how to play and when they ask how long it takes to play a game, they don't want to invest the time to learn either. Even playing with someone that knows what they are doing, it takes at least 2 to 3 hours to play a game. When I play 5 dice, it rarely takes more than 5 minutes per game and I don't have to worry about finding someone to play with.

[scheherazade]

Played five games as I was unwinding after work, two of them over 55,000, one being 56,930.

I looked at an additional five set-ups and discarded them, so I played 5 out of 10 that I looked at.

Of the five I played, none had more than two clusters of 5 apparent at the start.

I like to see a fairly even amount of each number because if there are too few of any, it gets harder to build various combinations. If the start up is too much like a shotgun blast, it can be fun to play but not with a high score in mind.

Got things to do now. Will play a few more games before I retire.

[Captain Kremmen]

Just scored 57,290

Wonder how long it will be before anyone gets 60K?
We've had two scores of 57,000 now, and one of 58,000.
It's only a matter of time.
All it would take is to have one 5-of-a-kind instead of a full house.

Most of my scoring was in 4 of a kinds, rather than fives.
There is more opportunity for manoeuvering other numbers by taking fours.

[KilljoyKlown]

Just scored 57,290

Wonder how long it will be before anyone gets 60K?
We've had two scores of 57,000 now, and one of 58,000.
It's only a matter of time.
All it would take is to have one 5-of-a-kind instead of a full house.

Most of my scoring was in 4 of a kinds, rather than fives.
There is more opportunity for manoeuvering other numbers by taking fours.

Give a guy or girl a chance to be sporting and they'll cheat every time. What can I say? But then again I didn't tell anyone not to did I?

[scheherazade]

Give a guy or girl a chance to be sporting and they'll cheat every time. What can I say? But then again I didn't tell anyone not to did I?

How is it cheating to decline to start an obviously bad pattern?

If I do get 60,000 I will be sure to take a shot with my snip tool and post it.

Probably take one with my camera of the laptop at the desk in my home.

Then again, probably someone would yelp 'photo-shopped'.

[scheherazade]

Just scored 57,290

Wonder how long it will be before anyone gets 60K?
We've had two scores of 57,000 now, and one of 58,000.
It's only a matter of time.
All it would take is to have one 5-of-a-kind instead of a full house.

Most of my scoring was in 4 of a kinds, rather than fives.
There is more opportunity for manoeuvering other numbers by taking fours.

I agree.

My high scores were more the result of getting clusters of four and using some of the obvious 'loners' as the fifth to clear them out of the way.

We are obviously both analyzing what tactics are producing the best results and observing similarities.

[KilljoyKlown]

How is it cheating to decline to start an obviously bad pattern?

If I do get 60,000 I will be sure to take a shot with my snip tool and post it.

Probably take one with my camera of the laptop at the desk in my home.

Then again, probably someone would yelp 'photo-shopped'.

Well if your really good at Photoshop, more power to you. When your good enough to put anyone's head on any body you want then give it some Facebook viewing. You can just about intimidate anyone you want.

[Captain Kremmen]

To lie would be pointless wouldn't it?
No need to post any picture Shehazerade.
I accept what you say.

Added later Best score now. 58,290

[scheherazade]

To lie would be pointless wouldn't it?
No need to post any picture Shehazerade.
I accept what you say.

Added later Best score now. 58,290

Thank you Captain. My credibility is my greatest asset.

You now hold the high score and I suspect that it is purely random chance to get a pattern that one can manipulate to it's full potential. Yes, it takes some skill and pattern recognition but you need a lucky draw also. It's rather a fun little puzzle.

Cute dancing pirate, lol...

[Captain Kremmen]

Very good game, and I think it has potential.
Looks ideal for a mobile phone app at a dollar a time.
I hope the inventor makes a few dollars, and that it doesn't get stolen off him.

Thanks for pointing it out, Killjoy.
It's quite addictive.
I've looked it up to see if it is well known, and it isn't
The references point back to the game source, and ourselves.

I think that if you got the tiles to make a very high score, say 64K, that it would be quite easy.
They would have to be sitting in groups, and the choices would be obvious.
I would like to get a score over 60K, but I wouldn't try for any higher.
It would be a matter of waiting for the ideal starting tiles. A matter of chance.

It's harder to make a good score out of bad tiles.

It would make a good competitive game if two players had the same starting tiles, say over 10 games, and see who got the best total.

A two handed game would be interesting, because you would have to watch the opponent's score as well.

It also looks like a game which a computer would be very good at. Perhaps the computer could be calculating the best score available,
while you are making your choices, and then give you your score as a percentage of the highest score available.

They've got other games on there as well.
I might try one or two, and if I find a good one I'll report back.

[Fraggle Rocker]

I used to play GO many years ago. The biggest problem with GO is not many people in the U.S. know how to play . . . .

I don't know how long ago this was but it's quite different now. There are lots of go players in the USA, especially in the big cities, and especially in university towns. But more importantly, it's all over the internet. You can get games with people in other countries, and you'll meet players of all ranks, from those who will give you a 9-stone handicap to those who would ask you for nine. But by all means drive over to your nearest university and ask a couple of students if there's a go club. And there's always Google!

Even more interestingly, go is one of the few games that works better with a screen and keyboard that with wood and glass. If you haven't been playing since you were eight, the stones can be somewhat clumsy to put down just right, and it's easy to kick the table and mess up the whole game. The go websites can always reconstruct your game from any position, even a month later. They also give you the teaching-game option of running it backwards from a disaster and trying a different move that wouldn't be such a disaster. And when it's over, the sensei can replay the game for the pupil and analyze every move while showing alternatives. Only dan-rated players can do that with a real board, but the websites' software makes us all teachers and allows us all to pore over our old games to figure out where it all went wrong.

. . . . and when they ask how long it takes to play a game, they don't want to invest the time to learn either. Even playing with someone that knows what they are doing, it takes at least 2 to 3 hours to play a game.

You're doing something wrong. A typical friendly go game takes about 45 minutes. Even club tournament games don't usually get three hours: you're expected to play three games in one evening!

When beginners play among themselves they often take too long because every move is a mystery. This does them no good because by their 50th move, when the see the game going against them, they can't remember their 20th move, which may have been the bad choice that made it start going wrong. It's better for beginners to play on a 13x13 board instead of 19x19. The game is over sooner and it's easier to understand how move 35 was the consequence of move 20.

Real beginners, who just know the rules but haven't played enough to have developed the pattern recognition that speeds up play by a factor of 10, should play on a 9x9 board.

When I play 5 dice, it rarely takes more than 5 minutes per game and I don't have to worry about finding someone to play with.

Single-player games are good for relaxing, but I find most of them don't trigger the same mental exercise as a non-trivial two-player game.

But I do play them. I've got a 12 year-old Windows 98 box that I won't decommission because it's got a Tri-Peaks game with a score above 200,000. I even have a Windows 95 box with Welltris, one of my favorite games ever. Like so many games, the new versions are significantly different in their play, being a little more about reaction time entertaining graphics and a little less about reasoning.

Oh yeah,I've played about ten games of 5-Dice and my scores are up in the mid-50K range. I can feel the go skills helping.

[scheherazade]

Guess what Captain?



We are presently tied!

(I know that you believe me, but I need the practice to improve my computer skills. Snip tool, upload photos, set viewing parameters etc.)

[KilljoyKlown]

Guess what Captain?

(I know that you believe me, but I need the practice to improve my computer skills. Snip tool, upload photos, set viewing parameters etc.)

What snip tool did you use?

[scheherazade]

I'm running Windows 7.

All programs.....Accesories....Snipping Tool

Hubby showed me how to use it to capture information on screen and then save the file.

It came in handy when another forum I attend was getting hit by Malware and engaging my Norton defenses. I took snips of the information I was getting from Norton in little pop-up screens and sent it to the forum administrator to assist with his countermeasures. He was able to quickly remedy the situation. Having Google and Chrome advertising that your site may harm their computer is not conducive to increasing participation.

Sometimes a screen shot can save a lengthy dialogue.

[KilljoyKlown]

I'm running Windows 7.

All programs.....Accesories....Snipping Tool

Hubby showed me how to use it to capture information on screen and then save the file.

It came in handy when another forum I attend was getting hit by Malware and engaging my Norton defenses. I took snips of the information I was getting from Norton in little pop-up screens and sent it to the forum administrator to assist with his countermeasures. He was able to quickly remedy the situation. Having Google and Chrome advertising that your site may harm their computer is not conducive to increasing participation.

Sometimes a screen shot can save a lengthy dialogue.

Thanks, I just took a look at it, and it looks like a very handy tool. I've had windows 7 for over a year now and haven't really explored all the new features yet. Just haven't had much need.

[Captain Kremmen]

Best score now 58540


Har Har ye landlubbers!

[scheherazade]

Best score now 58540


Har Har ye landlubbers!

LOL.....

Do you sleep much?

Do you work outside your home?

Are you in a relationship with a significant other?

Or are you just inordinately skilled and graced by good fortune?

Congrats on the new high score, by the way....