21 Dash

21 Dash is a 2-player racing poker dice game. The goal is to roll and re-roll dice to form poker hands to score 21 points in total without going over, in fewer turns than your opponent.

This game is a Junior original, created by Louie Mantia. Taking elements from both Poker and Blackjack, this game is unique to poker dice.

Dice

Poker dice § Dice

This game uses five six-sided poker dice.

9	10	J	Q	K	A

Setup

Track progress with a 21 Dash scorecard, this interactive scoreboard, or scratch paper.

Choose a player to begin.

Gameplay

Goal

The goal of 21 Dash is to accumulate 21 points without going over before your opponent.

Your Turn

When your turn begins, roll all five dice. After rolling, you can choose to re-roll once or twice more, with any or all dice.

Next, tally the highest available score or score 0 points if there is no match.

If your score ever totals above 21 points, you bust and start over from 0 points.

If during any turn you roll Blackjack (three Aces and two Nines), you score exactly 21 points, and claim victory, regardless of any previous points accumulated.

Now it’s the next player’s turn.

Ending

The player who crosses the finish line with exactly 21 points wins!

Scoring

Refer to this scoring table to ensure you don’t bust!

Poker Hands									Points
					One Pair				1
					Two Pair				2
					Three of a Kind				4
					Full House Three of a Kind, One Pair				6
					Straight Five in a Row				8
					Four of a Kind				9
					Five of a Kind				10
					Blackjack Three Aces, Two Nines				21

Strategy

To avoid scoring over 21 points, which resets your score to 0, you’ll need to assess the scoring table and find dice combinations that get you to exactly 21 points. “One Pair” can be deceptively difficult to achieve if your score is currently 20. So plan a little in advance if you can!

Related

See also

• Poker dice
• Junior Royals
• Junior

Purchase