Dominos is a game in which players place dominoes, or tiles, on end in long lines. When the first domino in a line is tipped over, it causes the next domino to tip over and so on. Very large domino chains can be made that form complex shapes and patterns. Dominos are also used for creative art projects such as building walls and houses, making pictures with them, and even putting them in 3D structures such as towers and pyramids.
Each domino has a different pattern of dots, or spots, that distinguishes it from other tiles. These spots are usually colored either black or white, but some are marked with a combination of colors. The other face of each domino is blank or identically patterned. Dominoes may have an identifying mark, such as a line or ridge, or they may be marked with a series of numbers that correspond to the number of pips on each side.
Most domino games involve a set of rules for how to play each hand. The goal of a hand is to empty one’s own dominoes and block the opponent’s by preventing him or her from scoring points. The player who plays the highest-valued domino, or “opening double,” begins the hand by laying it down so that its exposed ends match up with the corresponding exposed ends of the other pieces already played (one’s touch one’s, two’s touch two’s, etc.).
In some variants of the game, a player’s score is determined by counting the total of all of the opposing players’ remaining spots. This type of scoring is called partnership play and it can be especially exciting in large hands where the players try to out-distance each other by piling up their remaining dominoes as quickly as possible.
Whether you are playing a traditional game of dominoes or creating intricate artwork, it is important to plan out your design before beginning. Then you can determine how many dominoes are needed and how they should be placed on the table. You can create straight lines, curved lines, grids that form pictures when they fall, or stacked walls.
Dominoes are a fun way to entertain children or relax with friends. You can create your own masterpieces, or simply enjoy watching the dominoes tumble after a small nudge. A skilled domino artist, like Hevesh, can build a massive display that takes several nail-biting minutes to fall. Thousands of dominoes stand unmoving in their arranged rows until that final, tiny nudge. Once that happens, the potential energy stored in the dominoes becomes available to push on their neighbors until they all fall. That’s why the phrase domino effect is so well-known – it refers to events that start small but have huge, cataclysmic effects.
