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Kismet (dice game)
Encyclopedia
Kismet is the trademarked name of a commercial dice game
introduced in 1964. The game's name is the Turkish
word for "fate". E.William DeLaittre holds the trademark on the game, originally published by Lakeside Games, and currently produced by Endless Games
. Marketed as "The Modern Game of Yacht
", the game play is similar to yacht and Yahtzee
, with a few variations. A primary distinction is that in Kismet, the sides of the dice
have different colored pips.
The current Kismet game set comes in a green box marked with the Kismet logo, a black elongated rectangle containing six white diamonds, each containing a letter of the word "KISMET", and the words "IT IS FATE" along the bottom of the logo.
Contents of the game consist of: five white dice, with colored pips, 1 and 6 colored black, 2 and 5 red, 3 and 4 green; a dice-throwing cup; and a pad of scorecards.
's upper section, in that you score points for the number of pips on the dice displaying the chosen category number. There are six categories: Ace
s (ones), Deuce
s (twos), Trey
s (threes), Fours, Fives, and Sixes. Each of these categories is scored by adding the total of dice that match the category. For example, after the third roll, dice displaying (3, 4, 4, 6, and 4) may be entered as a score of 12 Fours section (the total pips on the dice displaying 4), a 3 in the Treys section (3x1), or a 6 in the Sixes section (6x1), if those categories are still open.
As in Yahtzee, a bonus of 35 points is earned with a minimum of 63 in the Basic Section. Kismet provides two further bonus levels; a score of at least 71 but no more than 77 earns a bonus of 55 points; and 78 or more, a bonus of 75 points.
hands. It is in this section that the colored dice come into play, as they determine scoring criteria below:
The twist of rolling a second Kismet comes in games where two or more people are playing; in multi-player games, if one player rolls a second Kismet, all other players must take a zero in the first open category (closest to the top on the scoresheet) in the Basic section, or the Kismet section if all Basic section boxes have been filled. The opponents also lose a turn, and the player who rolled the second Kismet rolls again. This applies to subsequent Kismets as well. This is where the name of the game comes into play; with the player rolling multiple Kismets, "it is fate" that they most likely will win.
Dice game
Dice games are games that use or incorporate a die as their sole or central component, usually as a random device.-Collectible dice games:Patterned after the success of collectible card games, a number of collectible dice games have been published...
introduced in 1964. The game's name is the Turkish
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
word for "fate". E.William DeLaittre holds the trademark on the game, originally published by Lakeside Games, and currently produced by Endless Games
Endless Games
Endless Games is a games manufacturer based in South Amboy, New Jersey and founded in 1996 by industry veterans Mike Gasser, Kevin McNulty and game inventor Brian Turtle....
. Marketed as "The Modern Game of Yacht
Yacht (dice game)
Yacht is a public domain dice game, similar to the Latin American game Generala, the English game of Poker Dice, the scandinavian Yatzy, and the Cheerio . It is also known as the predecessor of Yahtzee ....
", the game play is similar to yacht and Yahtzee
Yahtzee
Yahtzee is a dice game made by Milton Bradley , which was first marketed by game entrepreneur Edwin S. Lowe in 1956. The game is a development of earlier dice games, such as Yacht and Generala. The object of the game is to score the most points by rolling five dice to make certain combinations...
, with a few variations. A primary distinction is that in Kismet, the sides of the dice
Dice
A die is a small throwable object with multiple resting positions, used for generating random numbers...
have different colored pips.
Game contents
Contents of the game consist of: five white dice, with colored pips, 1 and 6 colored black, 2 and 5 red, 3 and 4 green; a dice-throwing cup; and a pad of scorecards.
Game play
As in similar dice games, players take turns rolling five dice. Each player can take up to three rolls per turn. On the second and third rolls, the player may hold back dice from the previous rolls in order to create better scoring combinations. At the end of the third roll, the player must enter a score into an open field on his scorecard. If the player cannot use their final die selection in any scorecard field, they must enter a zero into an open field.Scorecard
Each player keeps a running tally of their rolls on a scorecard. The scorecard is laid out in two sections, the Basic Section and the Kismet Section.Basic section
The Basic Section of the scorecard plays similarly to YahtzeeYahtzee
Yahtzee is a dice game made by Milton Bradley , which was first marketed by game entrepreneur Edwin S. Lowe in 1956. The game is a development of earlier dice games, such as Yacht and Generala. The object of the game is to score the most points by rolling five dice to make certain combinations...
's upper section, in that you score points for the number of pips on the dice displaying the chosen category number. There are six categories: Ace
Ace
An ace is a playing card. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit symbol located in the middle of the card, sometimes large and decorated, especially in the case of the Ace of Spades...
s (ones), Deuce
Deuce
Deuce, derived from French, refers to the number two and is commonly used to refer to the 2 in poker and other card games.Deuce may also refer to:-People:*Deuce McAllister, an American football player for the New Orleans Saints...
s (twos), Trey
Trey
Trey is the anglicized spelling of "tre", the Italian word for the number "three".It can refer to a nickname for those who are the third of their name...
s (threes), Fours, Fives, and Sixes. Each of these categories is scored by adding the total of dice that match the category. For example, after the third roll, dice displaying (3, 4, 4, 6, and 4) may be entered as a score of 12 Fours section (the total pips on the dice displaying 4), a 3 in the Treys section (3x1), or a 6 in the Sixes section (6x1), if those categories are still open.
As in Yahtzee, a bonus of 35 points is earned with a minimum of 63 in the Basic Section. Kismet provides two further bonus levels; a score of at least 71 but no more than 77 earns a bonus of 55 points; and 78 or more, a bonus of 75 points.
Kismet section
The Kismet Section is scored based on creating dice combinations similar to pokerPoker
Poker is a family of card games that share betting rules and usually hand rankings. Poker games differ in how the cards are dealt, how hands may be formed, whether the high or low hand wins the pot in a showdown , limits on bet sizes, and how many rounds of betting are allowed.In most modern poker...
hands. It is in this section that the colored dice come into play, as they determine scoring criteria below:
| Category | Description | Score | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Pair Same Color | Two pairs of numbers having the same color (1-1-6-6; 2-2-5-5; or 3-3-4-4); fifth die can be anything. Any Four-of-a-Kind, same-colored Full House, or Kismet can also be scored under this category. | Sum of all dice |    |
| 3 of a Kind | Three or more dice having the same number. | Sum of all dice |   |
| Straight | 1-2-3-4-5 or 2-3-4-5-6 (There is no "Small Straight" in Kismet.) |
30 |  |
| Flush | All dice showing the same color. | 35 | |
| Full House | A Three-of-a-Kind and a pair; color is not important. | Sum of all dice + 15 | |
| Full House Same Color | A Full House showing one color. | Sum of all dice + 20 | |
| 4 of a Kind | Four or more dice showing the same number. | Sum of all dice + 25 | |
| Yarborough | Any combination. (Kismet's "Chance" category) |
Sum of all dice | |
| Kismet | All five dice showing the same number | Sum of all dice + 50 | |
Rolling subsequent Kismets
Kismet does not provide for bonus points for multiple five-of-a-kinds. After scoring a Kismet, a subsequent five-of-a-kind can be used as a "joker", which can be scored in any open category in the Kismet Section (except the Straight category), or the appropriate number category in the Basic Section if it has not already been scored. Scoring occurs as the category specifies.The twist of rolling a second Kismet comes in games where two or more people are playing; in multi-player games, if one player rolls a second Kismet, all other players must take a zero in the first open category (closest to the top on the scoresheet) in the Basic section, or the Kismet section if all Basic section boxes have been filled. The opponents also lose a turn, and the player who rolled the second Kismet rolls again. This applies to subsequent Kismets as well. This is where the name of the game comes into play; with the player rolling multiple Kismets, "it is fate" that they most likely will win.