How to Play the Ship Captain Crew Dice Game

Setup

Set out 5 six-sided dice for the players. You need at least 2 players for a game of Ship Captain Crew, but it’s the most fun with more people. Use the same set of dice for all the players, or give each person their own. When you roll the dice, a 6 is known as the Ship, a 5 is the Captain, and the 4 is the Crew. The other 2 dice become the Cargo and their total count as points when the round is over.

Choose a random player to go first. Take turns rolling a single die, and whoever gets the highest result takes the first turn. If there’s a tie, have all the tied players keep rolling the die until someone gets a higher value.

Gameplay

Roll the 5 dice up to 3 times trying to get a Ship, Captain, and Crew. When you roll a Ship (6), Captain (5), or Crew (4), they get set aside. However, you must take them in order, so you must roll a Ship before a Captain, and a Captain before a Crew. If you don’t get Ship, Captain, or Crew on your first roll, then roll the remaining dice to try again. You may roll the dice a total of 3 times. For example, if you rolled a 5 or 4 but didn’t get a 6, then you can’t keep any of the dice. If you aren’t able to get Ship, Captain, and Crew within your 3 rolls, then your turn is over and you automatically score 0 points for the round.

Reroll cargo if you want to try increasing your score. If you’re able to set aside a Ship, Captain, and Crew within 1 or 2 rolls, then you can choose to stop with the Cargo you have or use your rerolls for a chance at a higher score. If you choose to risk it, roll both dice and keep the result, even if it’s lower. The lowest number you can roll is 2, and the highest you can roll is 12. If you have 5 or lower on your Cargo dice, there are good odds that you’ll get a higher number if you reroll.

Winning the Game

Take turns until every player has rolled. Pass the dice to the next player to the left so they can take their turn. As players roll the dice, keep track of their scores. Once everyone has taken a turn, the game is over. Whoever had the highest score from their Cargo dice wins the game!

Rule Variations

Track the score for multiple rounds for a longer game. Write down the scores for the round on a sheet of paper. Start a new round with the player to the left of whoever went first last round. Tally up the scores in between rounds, and whoever earns the most points after 10 rounds wins the game. Alternatively, have the player who won the last round choose a player to start the next round.

Make the losers drink to play Ship Captain Crew as a drinking game. Play the round as you normally would, but have anyone who lost the game sip from their drink or take a shot. As an extra incentive to win, play so the winner gets to choose the type of drink that the losers have.

Ante in for each round if you want to try a gambling game. At the start of each round, have each player put a poker chip or a quarter into the middle of the table for the “pot.” Play the game as normal, and whoever has the highest score wins the entire pot for themselves. If there’s a tie and no one wins, no one wins the pot. Everyone adds another ante to start the next round.

Reroll only 1 Cargo die with the “shifting cargo” rule. Normal Ship Captain Crew rules force you to roll both Cargo dice. With shifting cargo, you only have to choose one die to roll so you can save one that’s a higher value.

Use 1, 2, and 3 as the Ship, Captain, and Crew values. Instead of rolling a 6, 5, and 4 on their turn, players now must roll a 1, 2, and 3 in that order before they’re able to earn points.

Award bonus points if you don’t reroll your dice. If you choose not to reroll your Cargo dice after getting a Ship, Captain, or Crew, you can earn points for however many rolls you didn’t use. Example: If you rolled a 6, 6, 5, 4, 1 on your first roll, you could set aside the Ship, Captain, and Crew and stop to earn 9 points (7 points from the 6 + 1, and 2 points from the unused rolls).

FAQ

What is the tiebreaker for Ship Captain Crew? The tied players take one more turn to roll the dice. Just like their regular turn, they have to roll 6, 5, and 4 in order to score the other 2 dice. Whoever has the highest score after that wins the game. On the rare chance there’s still a tie, keep playing tiebreaker rounds until somebody wins.

What is the probability of getting Ship, Captain, and Crew on your first roll? You have about a 15-30% chance of rolling the ship, captain, and crew dice based on players who calculated the probability. If you don’t get it on your first roll, it’s about a 50% chance that you’ll get the dice you need for scoring in the next 2 rolls.