Pass the Pot

My family loves the simplicity and the thrill of push-your-luck dice games. These games create a level playing field with limited strategy, making them perfect for everyone from kids to grandparents. Plus, they allow for easy conversation while playing. Enter Pass the Pot, a push-your-luck dice game for 2-5 players, designed by Oswald Greene Jr and published by R&R Games.

Setup

Everyone rolls a die to determine first player. Give this player a set of 3 dice, the container lid, and the bank of coins. Place two “1” coins on the lid and give every player a 3 coin.

Gameplay

In Pass the Pot, the dice are numbered 1-5, with a P, O, or T replacing the 6. The starting player rolls 3 dice and can either keep the roll to score, or re-roll any number of dice for free.

After the second roll, they can pay a single coin to the pot for a final re-roll. When the player stops rolling, they claim rewards based on any achieved dice combos (listed below). The sum of their dice becomes their “score”, with letters counting as 0. This score sets the benchmark for the next player to beat.

A player’s turn ends immediately if they roll 1-1-1, and they must pay a penalty. Rolling P-O-T also ends the turn, but the player collects a big reward!

Combos

• 1-2-3: Take 1 coin from the Bank, then re-roll the 1 and 3 to get a final total.
• 2-3-4: Take 1 coin from the Bank.
• 3-4-5: Take 1 coin from 2 different players, or take 2 coins from the Bank.
• P-O-T: Take 2 coins from the Bank, 1 coin from each other player, and the POT. Turn ends immediately.
• 1-1-1: Turn ends immediately; pay 3 coins to the Bank.
• 2-2-2: Take 2 coins from one player, OR 1 coin from two different players, OR 1 coin from the Bank.
• 3-3-3: Take 2 coins from the Bank AND 1 coin from another player.
• 4-4-4: Take 2 coins from the Bank AND 1 coin from 2 other players.
• 5-5-5: Take 5 coins from the Bank; keep 3 and give 1 each to two other players.

The dice remain in front of the player after their turn. The next player then rolls the second set of dice to start their turn. If their final rolled score is higher than the previous player’s, they take control of the POT, making their score the new target to beat. If their score is tied or lower, the next player rolls to try to steal the POT. However, if a player can keep control of the POT until their next turn, they win all the coins in it!

The player who wins the POT adds 2 coins from the Bank back into the POT and then takes their next turn. Gameplay continues until a player accumulates 24 coins. Finish the round, then the player with the most coins wins! In the case of a tie, a sudden death roll-off determines the winner.

Impressions

Getting push-your-luck dice games to the table with my family is always easy. Pass the Pot is perfect for a family game night where you want to snack, chat, and enjoy each other’s company. I recently played with my 95-year-old Nonnie, my parents in their early 70s, and my 15-year-old. I taught them Pass the Pot in under two minutes, and we were off and rolling.

Turns move quickly, and even with five players, rounds passed at a good pace—unless Nonnie started trash-talking and wagging her finger at me, her grandson. The Pot grows even faster when players pay a coin for a second re-roll.

Players often roll combos for incremental rewards, so most people take the chance. More often than not, someone rolls something rewarding. However, rolling a P-O-T is tough. Even with two rerolls, you only have a 1-in-6 chance of landing a letter. You’ll need to weigh the risk of pushing for that third letter against trying to score higher than the previous player to take the pot.

For Families

When playing with young kids, be aware that several combos involve stealing coins from other players. Players can choose who to take from, but this might upset younger ones. In my case, I kept stealing from my Nonnie, even if she wasn’t in the lead—we get a little competitive.

So, who is Pass the Pot for? Families who love simple dice games of course! The game only requires basic addition skills. If you’re looking for deep strategy or mitigation, this isn’t the game for you.

Pass the Pot is perfect as a light-weight dice game for family nights or even at a pub. It takes up almost no table space, so it works well even at a restaurant like Chili’s. If your friends or family enjoy LCR, Pass the Pot makes the perfect gift. In my opinion, it’s an LCR killer!

Ready to roll big and cash in on big Pots? Pick up a copy of Pass the Pot on Amazon, R&R Games or your friendly local game store.

---

R&R games provided The Family Gamers with a promotional copy of Pass the Pot for this review.

This post contains affiliate links, which do not change your price, but help support The Family Gamers.