Dang It Dice

Dang It Dice are a simple variation on standard six sided dice - the only difference is that two of their sides have their pips in a different colour. There are three types of Dang It - the first has the numbers 1 & 6 coloured differently, the second has the 2 & 5 and the third has 3 & 4 in a different colour.

With them you can play the game 'Dang'. 'Dang' is a push your luck game played over 10 rounds. At the start of each round, a card is drawn at random, showing a value of between 9 & 22. On a player's turn, they roll 4 dice, trying to maximise the sum of the white pips before the sum of the black pips exceeds the number on the card. Dice with white pips can be rerolled but those with black must be kept. After each throw, the player chooses to either continue rolling or bank their total, so ending their turn. But if the sum of the black pips exceeds the number on the card, they have bust and score nothing for this round. It's a game that can be taught in minutes and takes no more than 30 minutes to play.

But what Dang It Dice also allow you to do is play existing games with them, so creating an interesting slant on the original. For example we've played Yahtzee with them, changing the rules so that dice with black faces count for 2 of that number. Similarly you could play Snakes and Ladders with a single Dang It, moving backwards if the black face falls uppermost. We've also found that they encourage players to invent their own games with them. Thus Dang It Dice are more than just the 15 dice - they are [to coin a well used cliche] a toolkit for your imagination.