What is Chicken Foot?
Chicken Foot is a dominoes game for two to eight players in which every double sprouts new lines. Up to six players use the double-nine set of 55 tiles and play ten rounds, one for each double from 9-9 down to 0-0; seven or eight players use the double-twelve set of 91 tiles and play thirteen, from 12-12 down. The round's double starts in the centre of the table.
Before anything else, the starting double needs six tiles laid against it, each matching its number: the toes of the first chicken foot. After that you play one tile on your turn, at the open end of any line. A double played at the end of a line closes that line, and it needs three toes of its own, three tiles matching it, before anyone may play elsewhere.
If nothing fits, you draw one tile and play it if you can, or else pass. The round ends when a player plays their last tile, or when the boneyard is empty and nobody can play. The tiles left in each hand count as penalty points, with the double-blank worth 50, and after the last round the lowest total wins. Equal lowest totals are a draw.
The deal follows the number of players. From the double-nine set each player gets 20 tiles with two players, 14 with three, 11 with four, 9 with five and 7 with six; from the double-twelve set, 10 each with seven and 9 with eight. Choose fewer rounds, or more than four players, in the table setup.
Rule changes
| Rule | Standard Dominoes | Chicken Foot |
|---|---|---|
| Players | Standard DominoesTwo to four players. | Chicken FootTwo to eight. For five to eight, choose the number of players in the table setup. |
| Set | Standard DominoesDouble-six, 28 tiles, with double-nine and double-twelve as options. | Chicken FootDouble-nine, 55 tiles, for up to six players; double-twelve, 91 tiles, for seven or eight. |
| Deal | Standard Dominoes7 tiles each with two players, 5 each with three or four. | Chicken FootDouble-nine: 20, 14, 11, 9 and 7 tiles each for two to six players. Double-twelve: 10 each for seven, 9 for eight. |
| Start | Standard DominoesThe holder of the highest double leads, with any tile. | Chicken FootThe round's double, the highest in the set in the first round and one lower in each round after, is placed in the centre before the deal. The first turn moves one seat on each round. |
| The first chicken foot | Standard DominoesNo such rule: the lead is just the first tile of the line. | Chicken FootSix tiles matching the starting double must be laid against it before any other play. |
| Where you play | Standard DominoesAt either end of the line. | Chicken FootAt the open end of any line, once every double has its toes. A line that ends in a double is closed. |
| Doubles | Standard DominoesA double lies in the line like any other tile. | Chicken FootA double ends its line and needs three toes, tiles matching it, before anyone plays elsewhere. |
| When you cannot play | Standard DominoesDraw from the boneyard until a tile fits or the boneyard is empty. | Chicken FootDraw one tile and play it if you can, otherwise pass. |
| Length | Standard DominoesOne hand decides the game. | Chicken FootA round for each double down to 0-0: ten rounds with double-nine, thirteen with double-twelve. Half the match or a single round are options. |
| Scoring | Standard DominoesThe first player out wins and is credited with the pips left in the other hands; a blocked game goes to the lowest pip total. | Chicken FootThe tiles left in your hand are penalty points, with the double-blank worth 50. After the last round the lowest total wins; equal lowest totals are a draw. |
| Other options | Standard DominoesBlock game, All Fives, Bergen, larger sets and partnership play can be chosen. | Chicken FootNone of them combine with Chicken Foot: everyone plays alone, and the set follows the number of players. |
History
Chicken Foot belongs to the same family of train games as Mexican Train. The difference is in the doubles: in Mexican Train a double stays inside its train and is covered by the next tile laid on it, while in Chicken Foot it closes its line and opens a junction where new lines grow, and descriptions of Mexican Train point out exactly that contrast.
Its origins are uncertain. One account credits it to Louis and Betty Howsley in 1986, while a long-standing reference on card and tile games says it seems to have come from Texas or Mexico and describes it as a version of Maltese Cross played with a double-nine set. The name is spelled in several ways, among them Chickenfoot and Chicken-Foot Dominoes, and the game is also called Chickie, after the call a player makes on laying a double.
Rules differ mostly over the starting double. Some players lay one tile on each of its four sides before play goes further; others, as here, want six tiles around it, three on each side, a form known as a double chicken foot. Every later double takes three toes, and the double-blank left in a hand counts 50 points, though some play it as 25. A match runs down the doubles from the highest to the double-blank, ten rounds with a double-nine set; some groups instead play until one player passes an agreed total, and that player loses.