Domino is a game of skill and strategy. It can be played with a single player or between two. The game is usually a team game and the winner is the first person to play all of their dominoes or to win by scoring the most points. There are many variations of the game, but one basic rule is that all tiles must be stacked with an open end (opposite to a wall or another domino) facing up. Each end is numbered and identifies the value of the domino, normally from 1 to 6, but some sets use a 0 or blank as an open end.
The earliest dominoes were made from ivory, bone and other natural materials, but today they are often made of plastic. They can also be found in more exotic materials such as metal, stone and frosted glass.
There are different sizes of domino, but a typical one is 2 inches long, 3/8 inch wide and about half an inch thick. This size is easy to hold, yet large enough to be manipulated, and thick enough to stand on edge. The most common domino set has 28 pieces. This is enough for most games with two players, but some sets are “extended” by introducing additional ends, such as double-nine and double-12, to increase the number of unique tiles.
Most dominoes have a line down the middle to divide them visually into two squares, with one end containing numbers and the other a blank or zero. The pips, or dots, on each end determine the value of that domino. A domino with more pips is typically heavier or more valuable than a domino with fewer pips.
A domino is able to fall in an almost endless number of ways. Unlike most toys, which tend to break easily, dominoes are durable and can last for generations if handled carefully. They are also a fascinating example of how simple principles can create surprisingly complex systems.
In a story, dominoes can be used to illustrate the power of cascading events. The domino effect is an important concept for novelists to understand. Writing Tip for Today: In your novel, look for scenes that build upon each other to advance the story. Each scene should be a domino that helps the hero get closer to or farther away from the goal, but each must be well-timed to work with the other scenes in the story.
Lily Hevesh started playing with dominoes when she was 9 years old. Her grandparents had a classic 28-pack, and she loved setting them up in a straight or curved line and flicking the first domino ever so slightly to watch them fall. This childhood hobby turned into a career, and now she’s an internationally acclaimed domino artist. She teaches her skills through online tutorials and has over 2 million YouTube subscribers. She also exhibits her work across the country. Her YouTube channel, Hevesh5, is a must-see for any domino fan.