Ship, Captain, and Crew
Six, five, four. Then load the cargo.
The quick dice game with a crew to hire: roll a 6 for your ship, a 5 for your captain and a 4 for your crew, in that order, and whatever is left is your cargo. Here is everything you need to know before you sit down.
- Free practice
- No sign-up
- Play in your browser
Join a Game Room
Ship, Captain, and CrewGot a room code?
- Players
- 2 or more
- You need
- Five dice
- Style
- Roll in order
- Goal
- Biggest cargo
What is Ship, Captain, and Crew?
Find your crew. Fill your hold.
Each turn you get three rolls of five dice to find a ship (a 6), a captain (a 5) and a crew (a 4). They have to come aboard in that order, and each one stays set aside once it is in.
With all three aboard, the last two dice are your cargo, and their total is your score. Spare rolls can go on the cargo, but a reroll is final. The biggest cargo at the table wins the round.
The practice table
Try itLearn it with the dice in your hand.
Play a solo game with our Classic rules. The ship, captain and crew set themselves aside as they come, and the coach tells you when to keep your cargo and when to roll it again.
- Quick game sails 5 voyages. Full game sails 10. Beat your best cargo.
- Turn the coach off when you want to play it straight.
- No account, no host, nothing saved but your best score.
Scoring chart
| Your turn | Looks like | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Full crew, big cargo | 12 | |
| Full crew, small cargo | 3 | |
| Ship and captain, no crew | 0 | |
| A 5 and a 4 but no ship | 0 |
Voyage 1/5Best: –
Your dice
- Ship 6
- Captain 5
- Crew 4
Voyage 1 of 5. Roll all 5 dice.
You need a 6, then a 5, then a 4. You get all three in a turn about 54% of the time.
Quick rules
- Roll five dice, up to three times a turn.
- You need a ship (6), a captain (5) and a crew (4), in that order. A 5 can’t stay until you have a 6, and a 4 can’t stay until you have both. They are set aside for you as they come, several from one roll if they can.
- With all three, the other two dice are your cargo: their total is your score.
- Rolls left over can go on the cargo: reroll both dice, and keep the new total even if it is lower.
- No ship, captain and crew after three rolls scores 0.
- Our practice table is solo: add up your cargo over 5 or 10 voyages and beat your best.
Found a bug, or a rule that feels off?Tell us in our Discord →
A little history
A tavern game with a crew.
Ship, Captain, and Crew has been rolled in bars and at kitchen tables for generations, often for a round of drinks or a few coins. Every table seems to tell it a little differently.
We teach one Classic version, from the rules Bicycle publishes, and show it before every game.
Fun facts
- You get three rolls of five dice to find a ship (a 6), a captain (a 5) and a crew (a 4), in that order.
- With all three aboard, the last two dice are your cargo, and the best cargo you can score is 12.
- Spare rolls can go on the cargo, but a reroll is final.
- The biggest cargo at the table wins the round.
Why people love it
Fast, loud, lucky.
Learn it in a minute.
Six, five, four, then count the rest. Anyone can play on their first turn.
Every roll is a reveal.
Will the 6 show? Is a 4 hiding in there? The whole table watches the dice.
One real decision.
Keep the cargo you have, or roll it again and live with what comes up.
Any size table.
Two players or ten: everyone takes a turn and the best cargo wins.
How to play
Ship. Captain. Crew. Cargo.
Setup
- Players: two or more. Our practice table is solo.
- Dice: five standard six-sided dice.
- Who starts: anyone. Each player takes one turn a round.
- A turn: up to three rolls.
Winning
When everyone has rolled, the biggest cargo wins the round. Tied players roll again until one wins.
- 1
Roll all five
Start your turn by rolling all five dice.
- 2
Ship, then captain, then crew
Set aside a 6, then a 5, then a 4. A 5 can’t stay until you have a 6, and a 4 can’t stay until you have both. Several can come from one roll.
- 3
Roll the rest
Roll the dice you haven’t set aside, up to three rolls in all.
- 4
Count the cargo
With all three aboard, the other two dice are your cargo. Their total is your score.
- 5
Spare rolls
Rolls left over can go on the cargo: roll both dice, and keep the new total even if it is lower.
- 6
No crew
Without a 6, a 5 and a 4 after three rolls, you score nothing.
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.
6 quick lessons, one idea each. Make the call, see why it works, and move on. Your progress is saved in this browser.
Ship, captain, crew
You need a ship, a captain and a crew. Which dice are they?
Scoring
Only the cargo counts.
The ship, captain and crew score nothing themselves. They just let the cargo count.
| Your turn | Looks like | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Full crew, big cargo | 12 | |
| Full crew, small cargo | 3 | |
| Ship and captain, no crew | 0 | |
| A 5 and a 4 but no ship | 0 |
Our practice table is solo: you sail 5 or 10 voyages and add up your cargo. At a real table, the biggest cargo each round wins.
Strategy
Play it smart. Then play it feral.
Tip 1
Two rolls left? Reroll 7 or less.
With a second reroll to fall back on, the cargo averages about 8. Anything under that is worth chasing.
Tip 2
One roll left? Reroll 6 or less.
Two dice average 7, and a reroll is final. Keep a 7 or better.
Tip 3
Keep 8 or more.
Even with two rolls to spend, rerolling an 8 loses on average.
Tip 4
Play to the score to beat.
At a real table, you only need to beat the best cargo so far. If someone has a 10, your 8 is a reroll.
What would you do?
One decision. Every day.
A new Ship, Captain, and Crew 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 Ship, Captain, and Crew table with your people.
The Feral Worlds community
Play-testing Ship, Captain, and Crew? 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.
- Ship
- A 6. It has to come aboard first.
- Captain
- A 5. It can only stay once you have a ship.
- Crew
- A 4. It can only stay once you have a ship and a captain.
- Cargo
- The two dice left over. Their total is your score.
- Set aside
- Keep a die out of your next roll. The ship, captain and crew stay once in.
- Reroll the cargo
- Spend a spare roll on both cargo dice. The new total stands.
- Voyage
- One turn at our practice table.
The Feral twist
Still under the hat.
Every game can be played Classic. In Feral mode, the host writes the house rules: the number of rolls, what the crew needs, how the cargo counts. We'll show you what Ship, Captain, and Crew can do when it's ready.
In the Dice Games pack
Ship, Captain, and Crew 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.
Ship, Captain, and Crew is on the ballot
Save me a seat.
Hear when the Kickstarter opens so you can vote Ship, Captain, and Crew into the Dice Games pack, and when you can host it with friends.