The Grumpy dice game is a mix of strategy and luck that will have you cheering in triumph and crying in defeat at the same time. Similar to the Frustration Rummy card game and the Phase Ten dice game, this game will fill your game night with just the right mix of fun and thought.
In this post we’ll cover how to play, the rules, and where to get the score sheet. Let’s get to it.
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What You Need for Grumpy Dice
You will need 9 dice in one colour and one dice in a different colour. You will also need a score sheet. We have a free score sheet in Fun Library (you can get your password in the black box below). You can get the printable rules in our shop.
If a score book is more your style, you can also get a score book here; Canadians here, to keep a log of your wins.
Playing Grumpy Dice Game
To start, you need to know that the Grumpy dice is the dice of a different colour. This will be important as we get into the rules. In the game you will be trying to make books and runs. A book is three dice with the same number. A run is three dice in a sequence.
What makes this game unique is that each round will use a different amount of dice and have a different mission. The score will also depend on if you complete the mission, if you use the Grumpy dice or if you don’t use the Grumpy dice, and how many rolls it took you to complete the mission.
You must use the Grumpy dice for each turn. Once you set it aside, you can’t change it for that round.
Round One
On your first turn, you will roll 4 dice, including the Grumpy dice. The mission is to get 1 book. You may set aside any of the dice that you wish and reroll any others. You have up to five rolls per turn. Once you set aside the Grumpy dice, you cannot change it or reroll it. On the other hand, you can change your mind on any of the other dice you have set aside at any point in you turn.
At the end of the three rounds, if you have completed the mission you will score based on if you have or haven’t used the Grumpy dice. If you don’t use it, you will get more points. On the other hand, if you have not completed the mission, you score 0 and the turn moves on to the next player.
The Rounds
Here is a chart of the rounds, how many dice each round has, and what the mission is. Remember, you will always use the Grumpy dice.
Round # of Dice Mission
1 4 1 book
2 4 1 run
3 7 1 book and 1 run
4 7 2 books
5 7 2 runs
6 10 2 books and 1 run
7 10 2 runs and 1 book
8 10 3 books
9 10 3 runs
At the end of each round you will score and the turn moves to the next player.
Scoring Grumpy Dice Game
Rolls With Grumpy Without Grumpy
1 50 70
2 40 60
3 30 50
4 20 40
5 10 30
Example Game
Here is a look at the first four rounds of a player’s Grumpy Dice game.
Round 1, player 1. This player took 5 rolls to get a book of 1s without using the Grumpy dice and will score 30 points.
Round 2, player 1. She rolled 4 times and got a sequence of 1, 2, 3 without the Grumpy and will score 40 points.
Round 3, player 1. She rolled just once and got a book of 5s and a run of 1, 2, 3 using the Grumpy and will score 50 points.
Round 4, player 1. At the end of the fifth, she did not have 2 books and will score 0 for the round.
Her score is now at 120.
Winning Grumpy
After the nine rounds, the player with the most points is the winner.
Fun and Frustration for All
This game is a mix of fun and frustration, a mix of strategy and luck, and a great game night main game. You can get the score sheet in the Fun Library or you can get it with the printable rules here. If you know you’re going to love this game, you can get a score book here; Canadians here, to keep track of all your games–and wins!
If you haven’t had enough, check out Frustration Rummy, Phase 10 dice, and our Jailed dice game. Be sure to visit the Family Game Shelf shop to find tons of fun with dice, card, seasonal and original games like our Dice Sticks game.
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