Chicken Foot
Build the foot. Go out first.
The dominoes game where the board grows three ways at once. Each round starts with a double, three tiles go on it to make the chicken foot, and then everybody races to empty their hand. Here is everything you need to know before you sit down.
- Free practice
- No sign-up
- Play in your browser
Join a Game Room
Chicken FootGot a room code?
- Players
- 4
- You need
- A double-nine set
- Style
- Shed your tiles
- Goal
- Lowest score
What is Chicken Foot?
Spread out. Then run out.
Chicken Foot is played with a double-nine set of 55 dominoes. Everyone takes ten, and the player holding the round’s double starts by setting it down.
Three tiles must go on that double, one on each of its free sides, to make the “foot”. After that, play grows along three arms, and whoever empties their hand first ends the round. Everyone else pays for the pips they are still holding.
The practice table
Try itLearn it with the tiles in your hand.
Play against three bots with our Classic rules. Tap a domino to play it, and the coach shows the play it would make and why.
- Easy, Normal, or Sharp bots. Sharp bots notice which numbers you cannot match.
- Quick game plays five rounds. Full game plays ten.
- No account, no host, nothing saved.
A little history
A Texas and Midwest favourite.
Chicken Foot is a member of the long-train family of domino games, played at family tables and in clubs across the United States. The three-armed layout gets its name from the shape of a bird’s foot.
Like most table classics, it travels with house rules: how many tiles are dealt, when the boneyard is closed, how a blocked round is scored. These are our Classic rules.
Fun facts
- It uses a double-nine set of 55 dominoes, and everyone takes ten.
- Three tiles must go on the first double, one on each free side, to make the foot.
- Whoever empties their hand first ends the round, and everyone else pays for the pips they are still holding.
Why people love it
Wide open. Never dull.
Three arms, plenty to play.
With three open ends you almost always have a play, and the board keeps changing.
Doubles matter.
A double at the end of an arm forces the next tile onto it, so you can steer the table.
The boneyard is a gamble.
Stuck? Draw until something fits, and hope it is not a heavy one.
A run of rounds.
Every round starts with a different double, so the game has a shape and a finish.
How to play
Set the foot. Empty your hand.
Setup
- Players: four: you and three bots, each playing for yourself.
- Dominoes: a double-nine set of 55. Ten each, and the rest are the boneyard.
- Rounds: one for each double, from the double 9 down. Our Quick game plays five rounds and the Full game ten.
- First play: the holder of the round’s double sets it down. If nobody holds it, the dominoes are shuffled and dealt again.
Winning
After the last round, the lowest total wins. Each round, everyone but the player who went out scores the pips left in their hand.
- 1
Make the foot
Three tiles must go on the opening double, one on each free side. Nobody plays on the ends until all three are down.
- 2
Match an end
After that, play a domino on the open end of any of the three arms, matching the number showing.
- 3
Cover the double
A double played at the end of an arm must be covered by the very next tile before anybody plays elsewhere.
- 4
Draw or pass
No play? Draw from the boneyard until one fits. If it is empty, you pass.
- 5
Go out
The first player to play their last domino ends the round.
- 6
Pay for your pips
Everyone else scores the pips on the dominoes they still hold.
These are our Classic rules, and they'll be shown in every room before the game starts. Printable rules card →
Lessons
Learn it in a few minutes.
4 quick lessons, one idea each. Make the call, see why it works, and move on. Your progress is saved in this browser.
Making the chicken foot
The double 9 is down. Before play spreads out, how many tiles must go on it?
- Opening double
- Double 9
- Tiles on it
- None yet
Scoring
Every pip counts against you.
Only the player who goes out scores nothing. Everyone else adds up the pips on the dominoes they are left with, so heavy tiles are a liability.
| At the end of a round | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Out of dominoes first | 0 | |
| Every pip left in your hand | 1 each | |
| Blocked round: everyone counts their hand | 1 each | |
| Lowest total after the last round | Wins |
Our Classic rules: the lowest total after the last round wins. Some tables score the winner a bonus, or stop the game at a score; those are house rules.
Strategy
Play it smart. Then play it feral.
Tip 1
Play the heavy tiles first.
Whatever you hold at the end counts against you, so shed the big ones while they still fit.
Tip 2
Get rid of doubles early.
A double only fits one number, so it is the hardest tile to place later on.
Tip 3
Cover your own doubles.
Leave a double on an arm when you can cover it next turn, and keep the table narrowed.
Tip 4
Watch who draws.
A player who drew had no match for the numbers showing. Leave those numbers open for them to miss again.
Tip 5
Hold numbers you can always play.
Keeping a few tiles of one number gives you a safe play when the table closes up.
What would you do?
One decision. Every day.
A new Chicken Foot puzzle every day, the same for everyone. Solve it, then send it to the group chat and see who gets it right.
Want more? See today's puzzles for every game →
Your path to game night
Learn it here. Play it with friends.
Finish the lessons or win a practice game and you're ready to sit down at a real Chicken Foot table with your people.
The Feral Worlds community
Play-testing Chicken Foot? Tell us in Discord.
Found a bug, a rule that feels off, or a house rule your family swears by? Our Discord is where we collect play-test feedback, and where game nights are starting to happen.
Glossary
Talk like a regular.
- Chicken foot
- The opening double with a tile on each of its three free sides.
- Arm
- One of the three lines of dominoes growing out of the foot.
- Boneyard
- The dominoes nobody was dealt, drawn from when you cannot play.
- Cover
- To play a tile on a double so the table opens again.
- Pips
- The dots on a domino. They are your score at the end of a round.
- Blocked
- A round where nobody can play and the boneyard is empty.
The Feral twist
Still under the hat.
Every game can be played Classic. In Feral mode, the host writes the house rules: how many tiles are dealt, how a blocked round is scored, when the game ends. We'll show you what Chicken Foot can do when it's ready.
In the Tile Games pack
Chicken Foot is on the ballot.
Backers vote on which tile games join the Tile Games pack. Owning the pack means every one that joins is yours too.
$9.95, one time, to host every game in it. Playing is always free. Packs go on sale when the full game launches.
Chicken Foot is on the ballot
Save me a seat.
Hear when the Kickstarter opens so you can vote Chicken Foot into the Tile Games pack, and when you can host it with friends.