Klondike (dice) Dice Game Rules

Klondike is a banking dice game for 2 to 8 players. You need five dice and a pile of chips. The game takes its name from the Klondike gold rush of the 1890s and was traditionally played for money, but it works just as well at home with chips or points that carry no value.

Pick one player to act as the banker for the first round. Everyone else places a stake on the table in front of them, one chip each for example.

The banker rolls all five dice, a single throw. The roll is read as a poker-style hand: five of a kind is best, followed by four of a kind, full house, three of a kind, two pairs and one pair. Each player then rolls their own five dice in turn, also getting just one throw.

If your hand beats the banker's, the banker pays you the same amount as your stake. If your hand is equal or worse, the banker takes your stake.

The hands rank as follows, from best to worst:

1. Five of a kind
2. Four of a kind
3. Full house: three of a kind plus a pair
4. Three of a kind
5. Two pairs
6. One pair
7. Highest single die

In Klondike the ace, meaning the 1, ranks highest, followed by 6, 5, 4, 3 and 2. A pair of aces therefore beats a pair of sixes. Straights do not count.

Play an agreed number of rounds and pass the bank to the next player after each one. When the final round is over, the player with the most chips wins.

These rules describe the casino dice game Klondike with five dice, where players roll against the banker and ties go to the bank. The solitaire of the same name is a different game.