Ship, Captain & Critters
2+ players
Objective
The object of the game is to be the player with the highest score after a single round.
How to play
Determine a starting player. This can be accomplished by any method of the players' choosing but is typically done by having each player roll three dice. The player rolling the highest total becomes the starting player.
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If playing for stakes, players ante before any dice are rolled.
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Beginning with the starting player, each player in clockwise order takes their turn by rolling the dice up to three times to determine their final score.
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On their turn, a player trys to roll a 6 (the ship), a 5 (the captain), and a 4 (the crew). These numbers, when rolled, are set aside and are not rolled by the player again except that they must be rolled in order, so that a 5 and 4 cannot be kept until a 6 has been rolled, and a 4 cannot be kept until a 6 and a 5 have been rolled.
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If a player does not roll a 6, 5 and 4 with their three rolls, then they score zero points. If, however, they manage to roll a 6, 5, and a 4 then the remaining two dice (the cargo) are added together to determine the player's score.
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It's possible that the player will roll the 6, 5 and 4 in only one or two rolls. If this is the case then the player has the option of using their remaining rolls to re-roll both of the cargo dice to try and achieve a higher score. If they choose to reroll, they must keep the total of the new roll even if it is lower than their previous score.
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How to win
Once all players have had a turn, the player with the highest score is the winner.
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In case of a tie, all tied players take one additional turn each until a single winner is determined.
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If played as a drinking game, everyone except the winner must then drink.
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If playing for stakes, the winner receives the entire pot.
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Usually multiple rounds, or games, are played. When starting the next game or round, the player to the right (counter-clockwise) of the previous starting player becomes the new starting player.
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