The Basics of Domino

Domino is the term for a game in which players make a line of dominoes by placing them edge to edge against each other so that the adjacent dominoes form identical or specified totals. This basic set of rules allows a wide variety of games to be played. These games can be grouped into four categories: bidding, blocking, scoring and round games.

Dominoes are usually made of bone, silver lip ocean pearl oyster shell (mother-of-pearl), ivory or a dark hardwood such as ebony, with black or white inlaid pips. Many sets are molded from a combination of these materials for a more unique appearance and feel. Sets are also manufactured from a wide variety of other natural materials such as marble, soapstone, stone, wood, metal and ceramic clay. These more specialized sets have a heavier weight and can cost considerably more than those that are produced with polymer materials.

After the dominoes have been shuffled and the players have drawn their tiles from the stock, the player who draws the highest double for the first play makes his or her move. Some games allow the option to buy additional tiles from the stock, adding them to those in the player’s hand. When a double is purchased and played, the number of pips on the purchased tile is added to the player’s total.

When a domino is pushed onto its tipping point, it sets off a chain reaction that travels down the line just like a nerve impulse in your body. Each domino that is displaced pushes on the next one in the line. This continues until all the dominoes have fallen. Dominoes have a great deal of energy stored in them, but they only expend this energy when a force is applied to them.

In some domino games, the winner is determined by counting the pips on the winning player’s tiles that remain in his or her hand at the end of the hand or the game. In other games, the total of the pips on the losing players’ tiles is added to the winner’s score.

Depending on the game being played, the line of play may be joined to a spinner and the next tile is added after each turn by playing a double over it. In some games, the double is played crosswise; in others it must be lengthwise. Some games also have a rule that the next tile played must be a double or a spinner.

Plotting a novel requires that the writer consider how a character’s actions will affect those of the other characters in the scene. Domino effect explains how the events of a scene follow logically from one another, and helps writers answer the question: “What will happen next?” Using the principles of domino effect can help writers plot their manuscripts in a way that keeps readers engaged throughout their stories. For example, if a character does something that most readers would consider immoral, the story may lose reader interest if the writer does not provide a reason for the hero to deviate from societal norms.