How to Play Crag
Crag is a three-dice scoring game for two to four players in which each person takes thirteen turns, one for each scoring category, trying to roll the best possible combination. With only three dice and a tight list of categories, every decision about which dice to keep and which category to claim matters immediately. There is no padding: a wasted turn can cost the game.
Players love Crag for its pace and the genuine tension between banking a safe score now or pushing for a high-value combination later. It needs nothing more than three dice, a pencil, and a simple scoresheet, which makes it a favourite at kitchen tables, on holiday, and anywhere a quick competitive game is wanted without a large box of components.
A little history
The precise origins of Crag are unclear. It belongs to the broad family of dice-scoring games that spread across Europe and North America during the twentieth century alongside similar titles, and its name and specific category list appear to have been formalised in the mid-twentieth century in North America. Some sources place it in printed game collections from the 1970s onwards, but no single inventor or first publication has been reliably documented. It is traditionally played as a family or pub game and has remained in circulation largely through word of mouth and inclusion in general dice-game compendiums.
Setting up
- Seat two to four players around a flat surface with a suitable rolling area.
- Give each player a blank scoresheet listing all thirteen scoring categories (see How to Play for the full list).
- Agree a starting player by any convenient method, such as each rolling one die and the highest going first.
- Play proceeds clockwise from the starting player.
How to play
- On your turn you have up to three rolls of all three dice.
- After your first roll you may set aside any dice you wish to keep and re-roll the rest. You are not obliged to keep any dice.
- After your second roll you again set aside any keepers and re-roll the remaining dice, or you may stop if you are satisfied.
- After your third and final roll, or whenever you choose to stop, you must assign the result to exactly one unclaimed category on your scoresheet.
- You cannot leave a turn blank: if no category suits your roll you must assign a zero to any one unclaimed category. This is called a scratch.
- The thirteen scoring categories are as follows. Ones: total of all dice showing 1. Twos: total of all dice showing 2. Threes: total of all dice showing 3. Fours: total of all dice showing 4. Fives: total of all dice showing 5. Sixes: total of all dice showing 6. Odd Straight (1-2-3): scores 20 points. Even Straight (2-4-6): scores 20 points. Low Straight (1-2-3-4 is not applicable with three dice; in Crag this category is 1-2-3): see local rules, some sets replace with No-Brainer. Three of a Kind: all three dice the same, scores the total of the three dice. Crag: a three of a kind where the total of the three dice equals 13, i.e. the roll must be three dice totalling 13 which with three dice means specific combinations such as 5-4-4, 6-4-3, 6-5-2, 6-6-1, or any set summing to 13 that is also a valid three-of-a-kind is not possible; Crag specifically requires a pair plus the third die summing to 13, scores 26 points. Thirteen: any combination of three dice totalling 13 (not necessarily a pair), scores 26 points.
- Note on Crag category: Crag requires that two of the three dice show the same face AND all three dice sum to 13. Valid Crag rolls are: 1-6-6, 2-5-6, 3-4-6, 4-3-6 (same as above), 1-6-6, 2-6-5, 3-5-5, 4-4-5, 6-6-1, 5-5-3, 6-4-3, and their rearrangements. Crucially 1-6-6 scores as Crag, not merely Thirteen.
- After every player has completed one turn, play passes to the left for the next round. Continue until every player has filled all thirteen categories.
- Once all thirteen categories are filled, each player totals their scoresheet. The highest total wins.
Winning and scoring
The player with the highest total score after all thirteen categories have been filled wins. There is no bonus for completing the upper section (Ones through Sixes) in standard Crag, unlike some similar games. The maximum theoretical score is high but rarely achieved: the two premium categories, Crag and Thirteen, each award 26 points, giving a combined premium of 52 points. The upper section maximum is 6 plus 12 plus 18 plus 24 plus 30 plus 36, totalling 126 points. Three of a Kind tops out at 18 points (three sixes). The two straights add 40 points. A perfect scoresheet therefore totals 236 points, though in practice scores of 100 to 160 are typical. In the event of a tie, the standard ruling is to share the win; a tiebreaker roll is optional if all players agree before the final round.
The fine points
The most common dispute concerns the Crag category versus the Thirteen category. A roll of, for example, 6-6-1 qualifies for Crag (pair plus total of 13) and also meets the Thirteen criterion. A player may assign such a roll to either category, but only one: once written down it cannot be moved. The Crag category is strictly a subset of Thirteen rolls, so a genuine Crag roll can legitimately be entered as a Thirteen if the Crag box is already filled, and it still scores 26. Never award 26 points twice for one roll.
A second common dispute involves the re-roll sequence: players sometimes forget they are not required to re-roll any dice after the first or second roll. You may take your result after any roll, including the very first. Equally, you must re-roll at least one die if you choose to take a further roll; you cannot re-roll zero dice simply to generate a new turn entry. If a die lands off the table or cocked against an object and cannot be read flat, it must be re-rolled as part of the same roll, not counted as a kept die. If your third roll is affected, you re-roll only the offending die and that counts as your third and final roll.
How to win more often
- Protect your premium categories early. Crag and Thirteen each score 26 points, more than any upper-section entry, so keep any pair-plus-total-near-13 roll across your first two rolls rather than breaking it for a minor score.
- Scratch low-value upper categories first. If you must take a zero, Ones or Twos waste the least potential score. Never scratch Fives or Sixes unless you have already secured strong entries elsewhere.
- Track what your opponents are scratching. If a player has already zeroed Crag, they cannot threaten you with a late 26-point swing from that box. This changes how aggressively you need to play the premium categories yourself.
- Do not over-commit on the first roll. With three rolls available, resist the urge to bank a mediocre result after roll one. A Three of a Kind showing 3-3-3 (score: 9) is worth rejecting if you still need Fives or Sixes and can re-roll profitably.
- Plan your scoresheet around gaps. Entering a low total into Three of a Kind early to avoid a scratch later is often the right move in the final third of the game, when categories are running out and a miserable roll could cost you a 0 in a high-value box.
Variations
Thirteen Only
In this simplified variant the Crag category is removed and replaced with a second Thirteen entry or a Bonus Thirteen box that awards 26 points for any second roll totalling 13 in the same game. This suits younger players who find the paired-dice condition of standard Crag confusing, and it marginally increases the chance of hitting the top score.
Team Crag
With four players, split into two pairs. Partners share a single scoresheet and must agree before each final roll which category to enter. Each pair takes one combined turn per round. The team whose scoresheet total is higher at the end wins. Discussion between partners is permitted only before the dice are committed, not during a roll.
Cutthroat Scratch
When a player must scratch a category (entering a zero), they may instead nominate an opponent to take the scratch in the same category if that opponent has not yet filled it. The nominating player keeps their roll result and may re-enter it in a different open category on their own sheet. This variant rewards timing and opponent awareness and suits experienced players who want a sharper competitive edge.
Extended Upper Section
Some groups play with an upper-section bonus: if a player scores 70 or more points across the six number categories (Ones through Sixes), they receive a bonus of 25 points added to their final total. This bonus incentivises focusing early turns on building the upper section and changes the risk calculation around scratching number categories.
Crag: frequently asked questions
What exactly counts as a Crag?
A Crag is a roll where exactly two of the three dice show the same face and all three dice sum to 13. So 6-6-1, 5-5-3, 4-4-5, and 6-4-3 (where no pair exists) do not all qualify: 6-4-3 has no pair so it scores as Thirteen but not Crag. Always check for the pair first.
Can I use a Crag roll to score in the Thirteen category instead?
Yes. A Crag roll meets the Thirteen criterion as well, so if your Crag box is already filled you may enter it as Thirteen for the same 26 points. You cannot claim both categories from one roll.
Do I have to use all three rolls on my turn?
No. You may stop after your first or second roll and assign whatever result you have. Taking fewer rolls is sometimes the correct play when you have already hit a strong category result.
What happens if I cannot usefully fill any category?
You must still assign the roll to one unclaimed category, scoring zero there. This is called a scratch. Choose the category whose loss costs you the least, typically one of the lower number categories such as Ones or Twos.
How many players can play Crag?
Crag is designed for two to four players. Fewer than two makes scoring meaningless, and more than four tends to make turns feel slow. Two players is a particularly tight and competitive format.
Is Crag suitable for children?
Most children aged seven and above can manage the scoring, particularly the upper-section number categories. The Crag and Thirteen categories require addition to 13, so a child who is confident adding single-digit numbers will have no trouble. Younger children may benefit from the Thirteen Only variant.
What should I do if a die rolls off the table?
Any die that leaves the playing surface or comes to rest in a position where its top face cannot be read clearly must be re-rolled. It counts as part of the same roll rather than using up an extra roll, and the re-roll of that die only is taken immediately.
Is there a bonus for completing the upper section like in similar dice games?
Not in standard Crag. There is no built-in upper-section bonus. Some groups add a house rule bonus of 25 points for scoring 70 or more in the number categories, but this is a variation rather than the standard rule.