Cross Off
Roll the dice. Cross off the numbers.
A quick roll-and-write dice game for two to five players. Every roll, everyone crosses off a number on four coloured tracks, so nobody waits for a turn. Skip too far and the numbers are gone for good. Here is everything you need to know before you sit down.
- Free practice
- No sign-up
- Play in your browser
Join a Game Room
Cross OffGot a room code?
- Players
- 2 to 5
- You need
- Six dice and a sheet each
- Style
- Roll and write
- Time
- About 15 minutes
What is Cross Off?
Roll. Cross off. Never wait.
Each player has a sheet of four coloured tracks of eleven numbers. Red and yellow run from 2 up to 12. Green and blue run from 12 down to 2. Six dice are rolled: two plain ones and one for each colour. On every roll you decide which numbers to cross off.
You may skip ahead along a track, but anything you skip is gone for good, and long tracks score far more than short ones. Because every player can use every roll, nobody is ever left waiting.
The practice table
Try itLearn it one roll at a time.
Play against one to four bots with our rules. Tap a white-ringed number on your sheet to mark it, and the coach shows its choice and why.
- Easy, Normal, or Sharp bots. Sharp plans both steps of its turn together.
- Five modes from the kit: Classic, Finish the turn, Quick, Long and Easy close.
- No account, no host, nothing saved.
Two closed tracks or four penalties end the game, at once.
The dice
Your sheet0 points
Your roll. Roll the six dice.
Everyone marks the sum of the two plain dice, then you may mark a pair.
Bot 10 points
Bot 20 points
red 2 → 12yellow 2 → 12green 12 → 2blue 12 → 2
Quick rules
- Each player has a sheet of four tracks of numbers. Red and yellow run from 2 up to 12. Green and blue run from 12 down to 2.
- You mark numbers from left to right only. You may start anywhere, but a number you jump past can never be marked later.
- Six dice: two plain and one for each track. The roller rolls them all. Everyone may mark the sum of the two plain dice on one track, or pass.
- Then the roller alone may add one plain die to one coloured die and mark that sum on the track of that colour, or pass.
- A roller who marked nothing in either step takes a penalty of 5 points. Everyone else may pass for free.
- The last number of a track can be marked only after five marks on that track. It adds a bonus mark and closes the track for everyone.
- The game ends when two tracks are closed or someone has four penalties. A track with n marks scores 1 + 2 + … + n, a penalty costs 5, and the highest total wins.
Found a bug, or a rule that feels off?Tell us in our Discord →
A little history
A whole family of games.
Cross Off belongs to the roll-and-write family: games where everyone rolls the same dice and writes on their own sheet. The style took off because it is quick to learn, plays with a crowd, and keeps everyone busy on every turn.
The twist here is the tracks. Two run up and two run down, and a number you pass is lost, so every mark is a small bet about what you will roll later.
Fun facts
- A track with eight marks scores 36 points, more than seven times a track with three.
- Only the roller can take a penalty. Everyone else may pass for free.
- Closing a track freezes every other player’s progress on it, and brings the end of the game nearer.
Why people love it
Quick to learn. Hard to stop.
No downtime.
Everyone marks the plain sum at once, so you are in every roll, however many players there are.
Tension in every mark.
Skip a number and it is gone for good, so each choice is a small gamble.
Big scores, built slowly.
A track’s score grows with the square of its marks, so patience pays off.
A game of choices.
You decide when to take a mark, when to pass, and when to close a track.
How to play
Roll. Mark. Close it out.
Setup
- Players: two to five, taking turns as the roller.
- Dice: six: two plain, and one each in red, yellow, green and blue.
- Sheets: four tracks of eleven numbers each, one sheet per player.
- Tracks: red and yellow run 2 up to 12. Green and blue run 12 down to 2.
Winning
Have the highest score when the game ends. It ends when two tracks are closed or a player takes a fourth penalty.
- 1
The roller rolls all six dice
Every turn, one player rolls. The roll belongs to everyone.
- 2
Everyone marks the plain sum
At the same time, every player may add the two plain dice and mark that number on one track, or pass. You may only mark to the right of your last mark on that track.
- 3
The roller marks a pair
Then the roller alone may add one plain die to one coloured die and mark that sum on that colour’s track, or pass.
- 4
Skipped numbers are gone
Marks go left to right only. A number you jump past can never be marked later.
- 5
Close a track
The last number of a track needs five marks first. Marking it adds a bonus mark and closes the track for everyone.
- 6
The roller’s penalty
A roller who marked nothing in either step takes a penalty of 5 points. Other players never do.
These are our Classic rules, taken from the Feral Game Kit's definition of the game. The kit's other modes are here too: Finish the turn, Quick, Long and Easy close. The rules are shown in every room before the game starts. Printable rules card →
Lessons
Learn it in a few minutes.
8 quick lessons, one idea each. Make the call, see why it works, and move on. Your progress is saved in this browser.
The six dice
Six dice are rolled: two plain white ones, and one each in red, yellow, green and blue. Which do all players use?
Scoring
What a track scores.
A track with n marks scores 1 + 2 + … + n. Add up the four tracks, take off 5 for each penalty, and the highest total wins. Tied leaders share the win.
| On your sheet | Points | |
|---|---|---|
| A track with 1 mark | 1 | |
| A track with 3 marks | 6 | |
| A track with 5 marks | 15 | |
| A track with 8 marks | 36 | |
| Closing a track | One bonus mark | |
| Each penalty | Minus 5 |
Closing a track marks its last number and adds a bonus mark, two marks in all. A track with five marks that then closes has seven, and scores 28.
Strategy
Play it smart. Then play it feral.
Tip 1
Do not jump far early.
Every number you skip is lost, and a few extra marks late in the game are worth far more than one early.
Tip 2
Take the plain sum only when it fits.
The plain sum is free for everyone, so take it when it skips little or nothing, and pass when it does not.
Tip 3
As the roller, a small skip beats a penalty.
A penalty costs 5 points, so a skip of one to three numbers is usually the better choice.
Tip 4
Plan both steps together.
As the roller, pick the plain-sum mark that still leaves a good pair, not the one that spoils it.
Tip 5
Close tracks when you are ahead.
Closing banks your bonus mark and freezes everyone’s progress there. Keep tracks open when you are behind.
What would you do?
One decision. Every day.
A new Cross Off 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 Cross Off table with your people.
The Feral Worlds community
Play-testing Cross Off? 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.
- Roller
- The player whose turn it is to roll. Only the roller marks a pair, and only the roller takes a penalty.
- Plain sum
- The two plain dice added together. Every player may mark it.
- Pair
- One plain die plus one coloured die, marked on that colour’s track. The roller’s second step.
- Skip
- Marking past numbers on a track. The numbers you pass can never be marked later.
- Lock
- Marking a track’s last number, after five marks. It adds a bonus mark and closes the track.
- Penalty
- Five points off the roller who marked nothing in a turn.
- Closed track
- A track whose last number has been marked. Nobody marks there again, and its die leaves the game.
The Feral twist
Still under the hat.
Every game can be played Classic. In Feral mode, the host writes the house rules: how many marks close a track, how many tracks end the game, how much a penalty costs. We'll show you what Cross Off can do when it's ready.
In the Dice Games pack
Cross Off is on the ballot.
Backers vote on which dice games join the Dice 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.
Cross Off is on the ballot
Save me a seat.
Hear when the Kickstarter opens so you can vote Cross Off into the Dice Games pack, and when you can host it with friends.