Ship, Captain & Crew

A fast-paced dice game popular among sailors, pirates, and tavern-goers alike.
Though playable with as few as two participants, it is most entertaining with five or more.

Goal
Players compete to roll a “crewed ship” and secure the highest cargo, with the winner taking the pot.

Buy-In
Typical buy-in: 25 gp.
The winner takes the total pot.

Gameplay

  1. Dice Setup

    • Each player rolls five dice per turn.

  2. Objective

    • Roll a 6 (Ship), 5 (Captain), and 4 (Crew) in descending order.

    • As each required number is rolled, it is banked aside.

  3. Rolls

    • Each player may roll up to three times.

    • Dice that have been banked are not re-rolled.

  4. Scoring

    • If a player has a crewed ship (6, 5, and 4), their score equals the sum of the remaining two dice (“cargo”).

    • If a player fails to assemble a crewed ship, they score zero.

  5. Winning

    • After each round, the player with the highest cargo total wins the pot.

Each player starts their turn by rolling five d6 dice.
They are attempting to roll a six, five and four in descending order,
and whenever the number they require is rolled, they "bank" it by setting it aside.

For example, if the first roll of the dice shows six, four, three, three, and one, the player banks the six but must reroll the four because there is no five yet.
If their second roll is a six, five, four, and one, they may bank the five and four together, and now they have a full "crew" for their ship.

Each player has only three rolls, and after their third they score their turn.
If they have a crewed ship then they score the "cargo" - the total of the other two dice.
If they do not have a crewed ship, they score nothing.

The winner is the player at the end of a round who has the highest score. If the winner of the round scores with a ship, captain, crew on the first roll, that sets the pace for the other players: ship, captain, crew + 6 in one shake is what to beat. One shake to best the previous player. When beginning the next round, play begins with the player to the right (counterclockwise) of the first player in the previous round. Alternatively, the player who won the last round starts the next round.