What is Double-nine and double-twelve sets?
A domino set has one tile for every pair of numbers up to its highest double. The standard double-six set has 28 tiles, from 0-0 to 6-6. The double-nine set has 55 tiles, from 0-0 to 9-9, and the double-twelve set 91, from 0-0 to 12-12. The rules do not change: the holder of the highest double leads, tiles are matched to the ends of the line, a player who cannot play draws from the boneyard, and the first player out wins.
With double-nine, each player is still dealt 7 tiles with two players and 5 with three or four, but most of the set stays in the boneyard: 41 tiles in a two-player game against 14 with double-six. There are ten numbers to match instead of seven, so a hand covers fewer of them and you draw more often. With partners at four seats, each player gets 10 tiles.
With double-twelve, every player gets 15 tiles, whether two, three or four play, and with partners too, so a game lasts far longer. The set holds 1,092 pips against 168 in double-six, and fifteen tiles can easily hold over a hundred, so the pips left in your opponents' hands make big scores.
The Play button starts with the double-nine set; choose Double-twelve under Tile set in the table setup. Both sets also work with the Block game, All Fives, Bergen and partnership play.
Rule changes
| Rule | Standard Dominoes | Double-nine and double-twelve sets |
|---|---|---|
| Set | Standard DominoesDouble-six: 28 tiles, from 0-0 to 6-6. | Double-nine and double-twelve setsDouble-nine: 55 tiles, from 0-0 to 9-9. Double-twelve: 91 tiles, from 0-0 to 12-12. |
| Numbers | Standard DominoesEnds show 0 to 6, and each number appears on 7 tiles. | Double-nine and double-twelve setsDouble-nine: 0 to 9, each number on 10 tiles. Double-twelve: 0 to 12, each number on 13 tiles. |
| Deal | Standard Dominoes7 tiles each with two players, 5 each with three or four; 7 each with partners. | Double-nine and double-twelve setsDouble-nine: the same, except 10 each with partners. Double-twelve: 15 tiles each for any number of players. |
| Boneyard | Standard Dominoes14 tiles with two players, 13 with three and 8 with four. With partners it is empty. | Double-nine and double-twelve setsDouble-nine: 41, 40 and 35 tiles, and 15 with partners. Double-twelve: 61, 46 and 31 tiles. |
| Lead | Standard DominoesThe holder of the highest double leads, often 6-6. | Double-nine and double-twelve setsThe holder of the highest double dealt leads. Much of the set stays in the boneyard, so that is often lower than 9-9 or 12-12. |
| Pips in the set | Standard Dominoes168 pips in all. | Double-nine and double-twelve setsDouble-nine: 495 pips. Double-twelve: 1,092 pips, so the winner's score, the pips left in the other hands, runs much higher. |
History
Extended sets have more numbers than the double-six set: double-nine with 55 tiles, double-twelve with 91, double-fifteen with 136 and double-eighteen with 190. Larger sets are popular for games with several players or for players looking for long games, a 45-tile double-eight set appeared in Austria, and Mexican Train and Chicken Foot are games that take advantage of the larger sets. Those games build several lines at once and have pages of their own; this page plays the ordinary line game with a bigger set.
The double-nine set is the set of Cuban dominoes. Accounts of the Cuban game describe four players in two partnerships, partners sitting opposite, with 10 tiles each and the 15 tiles left over put aside. With partners, the double-nine set here deals the same 10 tiles each; in the standard Draw game the 15 left over form the boneyard, and in the Block game they stay out of play, as in Cuba.