One of the most important aspects of a game is replayability. Being able to play the same game over and over and still get the same enjoyment is the hallmark of a great game. Zombie Dice is the type of game where you and a bunch of friends can spend hours playing over and over, with no game ever being exactly the same.

WHAT'S INCLUDED:

Thirteen dice (Six green dice, four yellow dice, three red dice), cup for storing dice

HOW TO PLAY: You are the zombie rolling to see how many brains they can get, and the first zombie to accumulate thirteen brains is the winner. Each die has brain, footsteps, and shotgun markers in numbers varying depending on the colour of the die. For example, green dice have the most brains and fewest shotguns while red dice have the opposite.

Players take turns rolling three random dice from the cup at a time. After each roll, they have the option to bank any brains they have rolled to carry over into their next turn, or continue rolling. A player’s turn ends when they’ve either banked their brains or they roll three shotguns. When a player rolls three shotguns, their turn ends immediately and they lose any brains they’ve gained during this turn. When a player runs out of dice, they take any footsteps they’ve rolled and put them back in the cup to roll again, signifying a second chance at hunting down the humans that previously escaped.

One of the biggest steps to really doing well in Zombie Dice is learning when to bank your brains and save your progress. It can be easy to fall into the gambler mentality of letting it ride, but you should always be aware of how many of each colour dice you have left in the cup. You could be on a hot streak if you’re rolling mostly greens and yellows, but since the red dice are mostly shotguns you can wipe out all your progress in a single roll. This is especially important because it’s common to be sitting on two shotguns, so you often have to ask yourself whether it’s worth the risk to continue rolling.

One strategy that is particularly effective when first playing is cutting your turn early after a certain threshold of brains, typically around three to five. This game plan uses incremental advantages of gaining smaller amounts of brains at a time to play it safe, as opposed to the bigger gambles of aiming for larger amounts.This success of this strategy really hinges on the rest of the people you’re playing with because if everyone has the same idea, it becomes something of a race to see who can balance playing safe and raising their own threshold for banking.

The last strategy is also playgroup dependent, but is incredibly fun when everyone is on the same level. The “Do it, ya coward” strategy invokes a person’s innate weakness to peer pressure by goading them into continuing a turn past the point of safety. By goading your friends into rolling more, it increases the odds of falling into the trap of rolling shotguns. However, in using this strategy it’s important to join in when another player attempts to use it on you, since it just makes everything way more fun.

Zombie Dice is an incredibly fast game that is easy to pick up and play. It doesn’t require a ton of board game knowledge, so it’s great for players of all skill levels, and the randomness of dice rolling keeps the playing field fairly even. This is a fantastic game for parties, and even works just as a breather in between games for a board game night. It’s something I always recommend for just getting into board games, and it’s something even veteran gamers will enjoy, so roll some dice, eat some brains, and give Zombie Dice a try!

Get your own copy today at legendswarehouse.ca!