About Dominoes

What are Dominoes?

Dominoes are tile-based games where each domino is rectangular with a line dividing the face into two square ends. Each end is marked with a number of dots (aka pips or spots) representing a number, or is blank representing zero. Alike a deck of cards, the banks of the tiles are indistinguishable from each other, and are normally blank but can also have a design.

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All of the tiles together make up a domino set. Sets feature all combinations of dot counts between zero and a number. The most common are 6 Set (28 pieces), 9 Set (55 pieces), 12 Set (91 pieces), 15 Set (136 pieces), 18 Set (190 pieces). The number of pieces can be known as tiles, bones, rocks, stones, men, cards, or just named dominoes.

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Alike a deck of playing cards or dice, a domino set is a generic gaming device that can be used in a variety of games (see 'Domino Games' below). They can also be stacked and built up being used like blocks, or set side by side to be then pushed on top of one another like a Rube Goldberg machine.

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Domino Characteristics

Dominoes are normally twice as long as they are wide which makes them easy to handle and read quickly. Each domino will typically feature a line down the middle separating the two ends which each have a value with a number of dots (or blank). The sum of the two end values are the rank or weight of the domino.

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Each are named for their two values. like a 2-3 domino or a 6-0 domino. Each number also has a double domino, called a double-0 or double-6.

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The number of dots can be typically read following the pattern they are in, or in larger set typically by different colors. This prevents people from having to count every dot on every domino each time they play.

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