The Gift Exchange Dice Game is a fun variation of the White Elephant game where players roll dice to determine their actions. This game is the best way to swap gifts with friends or family based on the traditional gift exchange theme, where the roll of a die or a pair of dice decides your fate.
Gift Exchange Dice Game Rules
To play the Gift Exchange Dice Game, you will need the following items:
- A wrapped gift for each player and one or two standard 6-sided dice.
- You can use a single die or a pair of dice, depending on your chosen rules.
- A rules sheet that explains the actions for each dice roll. You can use a pre-made rules sheet or create your own.
- A timer for the stealing round. You can use a stopwatch, a smartphone app, or a kitchen timer.
Setup
Before the game begins, place all the wrapped gifts in a pile in the centre of the table or the room. Make sure everyone can see and reach the gifts.
To determine who goes first, each player rolls one die. The player with the highest number starts the game, and the play proceeds clockwise. If there is a tie for the highest number, the tied players roll again until one gets a higher number.
How to Play Gift Exchange Dice Game
On your turn, you roll the die or the pair of dice and follow the rules sheet. The rules sheet tells you what action to take based on the dice roll. For example, you may have to unwrap a gift, switch gifts with someone, or steal a gift from someone.
You can roll up to three times per turn, but you must stop after you take an action. For example, if you roll a 6 and unwrap a gift, you cannot roll again. If you roll a 3 and switch gifts with someone, you cannot roll again. If you roll a 1 and do nothing, you can roll again.
However, if you roll the dice and none match any action on the rules sheet, you lose your turn and do nothing. This is called a “bust” or a “farkle”.
The game ends when all the gifts have been unwrapped. However, there is one final round of stealing, where players can try to get the gift they want. The stealing round has a time limit, such as 5 or 10 minutes. During the stealing round, players roll the dice and steal gifts from each other, following the rules sheet. Once the timer runs out, the stealing round ends and the game ends.
Scoring
There is no scoring in the Gift Exchange Dice Game. The goal is to have fun and enjoy the gifts you get or give. However, you can also vote for the best or worst gift, the funniest or most creative gift, or the most surprising gift, and award prizes or trophies to the winners.
Variations
The Gift Exchange Dice Game has many variations, and you can customize the game to suit your preferences and group. Here are some examples of variations:
- You can use a single die or a pair of dice, depending on how many actions you want to have. A single die has six possible actions, while a pair of dice has 11 possible actions (excluding doubles).
- You can create your own rules sheet or use a pre-made one. You can also change the actions for each dice roll or add new ones. For example, you can add actions like “give a gift to someone”, “take a gift from the pile”, or “swap gifts with the person across from you”.
- You can change the order of the actions or make them depend on the order of the dice. For example, you can make the 6-5-4 rule, where you must roll a 6, a 5, and a 4 to unwrap a gift. Or you can make the high-low rule, where you have to roll a higher number than the previous player to take an action.
- You can add a theme to the gifts, such as “something red”, “something edible”, or “something funny”. You can also add a challenge to the gifts, such as “something you can wear”, “something you can use”, or “something you can make”.
- You can add a twist to the game, such as “Dirty Santa”, where you can only steal gifts that have been unwrapped, or “Secret Santa”, where you don’t know who brought which gift. You can also add a penalty to the game, such as “naughty or nice”, where you must do something embarrassing or funny if you roll a specific number.
