Dominoes (Auction Draw)

This game is for 2, 3, or 4 players.  Game uses a double six domino set, along with chips or coins.

Deal:

The size of the hand depends on the number of players:

    2 players get 7 tiles each
    3 players get 7 tiles each
    4 players get 6 tiles each

The remaining tiles stay in the boneyard.

Play:

All players put an equal stake into a pool (usually three chips) at the start of the round. Players draw for the lead and take turns placing tiles on either end of the train. Doubles are played across the line, but are not spinners.

If a player cannot make a play, he can pass or "buy" tiles from the boneyard. He can buy as many tiles as he wishes for one chip apiece. If the boneyard is reduced to two tiles, then nobody can buy any more.

Once the boneyard is down to two tiles, the player who follows the player who bought the tiles that reduced the boneyard to two tiles becomes the "auctioneer" and announces that the last two tiles are on auction.

Starting with the auctioneer, each player bids on the last two tiles. Bids go around the table twice, allowing each player to make two bids. The highest bid gets the last two tiles and has to place the amount of his bid into the pool. A bid can be for zero or more chips, but each bid must be larger than the bid before it.

If nobody bids on the last two tiles, the tiles remain in the boneyard and are not used in the round.

The hand stops when one player "dominoes" or when nobody can make a play. The lead passes to the next player in turn for the next round.

Scoring:

The player who dominoes wins the pool. If the game is blocked, then each player totals the number of pips in his hands. The player with the lowest total is the winner and collects the pool. If there is a tie, then the pool is divided equally among the winning players. Any remaining amount 9which cannot be equally split) is left in the pool for the next round.