Shut the Box

What You Need

• A Shut the Box board with tiles numbered 1 to 9. Nine coins on a strip of paper work too.
• 2 dice
• Paper and a pencil if you play more than one round

Setup

Flip every tile up so all nine numbers show. Roll one die each to decide who goes first. High roll starts. Agree before you begin on a single round or a series to a points total.

How a Turn Works

1. Roll both dice. Add them.
2. Shut any set of open tiles that adds up to exactly that total. On a roll of 8 you could shut the 8, or 7 and 1, or 6 and 2, or 5 and 3, or 5, 2 and 1, or 4, 3 and 1. Pick one option.
3. Roll again and repeat. You keep rolling as long as you can make a legal shut.
4. Once the 7, 8 and 9 tiles are all shut, you may roll one die instead of two. Your choice on every throw.
5. Your turn ends the first time you roll a total that no set of open tiles can match.
6. Add up the numbers on the tiles still open. That is your score for the round. Low is good.
7. Flip all the tiles back up for the other player.

You must shut tiles for the whole dice total or nothing. You cannot shut a 6 for a roll of 8 and ignore the leftover 2.

Winning

After both players have taken a turn, the lower score wins the round. Shut every tile and you have shut the box. You win the round on the spot, and the other player does not get a turn.

For a longer game, keep a running total across rounds. One common series rule plays until someone reaches 100 points, and the player with the lower total at that moment wins. Another ends it at 45. When your total hits 45 you are out, and your opponent wins.

If both players tie in a single round, play it again.

Two-Player Notes

Shut the Box is a pub game for any number of players, but two is where it is best. The first player sets a target and the second player knows exactly what number to beat. Alternate who goes first each round so neither player always has that information.

Strategy Tips

• Shut the high tiles first. The 9, 8 and 7 are hard to hit later, and clearing them unlocks the one-die option.
• Use big rolls on big tiles. Spend a 9 on the 9 tile, not on 4, 3 and 2.
• Once the one-die option is open and only small tiles remain, roll one die. Two dice cannot roll below 2 and often roll above anything you have left.

Variations

• Missionary. Score the count of open tiles, not their sum. Three tiles open is 3 points.
• Digital. Read the open tiles as one number from left to right. Tiles 1, 2 and 5 open scores 125. Brutal.
• Jackpot, also called Thai style. Always roll two dice, but shut only one tile per roll. It must match one die or their sum. Roll a 2 and a 3, and you shut the 2, the 3 or the 5. About 8 percent of turns shut the box this way.
• 12-tile boards. Same rules with tiles 1 to 12. Some rule sheets call it Full House.
• Canoga. Everyone antes into a pot. Losers pay the winner the difference in their scores. Shutting the box doubles the payout and takes the pot.
• Unlucky 7. The moment anyone rolls a 7, the round stops.
• Kids' version. After each roll, shut the total, or one die's number, or both dice's numbers. First to shut every tile wins.