Mexican Train Rules – How to Play and Score

🎲 1. Setup

This game is designed for a standard Double‑12 domino set, but you can also play with Double‑9 by adjusting your starting round and hand size.

• Before shuffling, remove the highest double (e.g., 12‑12) and place it in the center. This is the "engine" tile for the round.
• In each new round, use the next-lower double (e.g., 11‑11, 10‑10...) until you reach double‑0 or double-blank.
• Players may agree to play fewer rounds, especially when using larger sets.
• Shuffle the remaining tiles and deal the following number of dominoes:

• Double‑12 Set:
  • 2 to 4 players: draw 15 dominoes each
  • 5 to 6 players: draw 12 dominoes each
  • 7 to 8 players: draw 11 dominoes each
• Double‑9 Set:
  • 2 to 3 players: draw 15 dominoes each
  • 4 players: draw 10 dominoes each

Any leftover dominoes form the "boneyard" for drawing during the game.

🎯 2. Objective

Play all of your dominoes and finish each round with the lowest possible total. At the end of all rounds, the player with the lowest cumulative score wins.

🔄 3. How Turns Work

• On your turn, you may play one tile on:
  • Your personal train (private unless marked otherwise)
  • The Mexican Train (always public)
  • Another player's train (only if it's marked public)
• If you can play, you must. If not, draw one tile from the boneyard:
  • If you can play it, do so.
  • If not, your train becomes public so others can play on it.

✳️ 4. Doubles

• Play doubles perpendicular to the train.
• When you play a double, you must immediately follow it with another tile ("cover" it).
• If you can't cover it:
  • Your train becomes public.
  • Responsibility to cover the double passes clockwise until it’s covered.

🚂 5. Mexican Train

• Any player may start the Mexican Train once the engine is in play.
• Once started, the Mexican Train remains public and available to all players.

⬇️ 6. When No One Can Play

Since the engine tile is set at the start of each round, play will always begin. If all players pass and the boneyard is empty, the round ends immediately and scores are tallied.

🏁 7. Ending a Round

• A round ends when:
  • A player empties their hand, or
  • No one can play and the boneyard is empty.
• Scoring:
  • The winner of the round scores 0.
  • All other players total the pips on their remaining dominoes and add to their score.

🏆 8. Winning the Game

The game continues round by round, descending from your chosen starting double. At the end of the final round, the player with the lowest total score is the winner.

🔄 9. Optional Variations

• First-turn flexibility: allow players to play multiple tiles when starting.
• Partnerships: teams of 2 or more players can play cooperatively.
• Doubles as forks: require covering with 2+ tiles (like Chicken Foot).
• Some house rules allow skipping doubles with no penalties.
• You may choose to play a shorter game (e.g., from 12 down to 6).