Hazard: A Medieval Dice Game

Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood

Want a quick and easy minigame to play when your PCs stop at a tavern? One game I've used to great success in a few campaigns is the medieval dice game of Hazard - the ancestor of modern-day Craps, and the source of the modern-day word meaning something dangerous (after all, if you wager too much on a die roll, you're in trouble!). All you need is two six-sided dice, which you should have already at your table. It's easy to play, moves quickly, and adds a little bit of historical versimilitude to your game worlds - which, naturally, I approve of!

How to Play

One player is the Caster and takes two six-sided dice. They first announce a number from 5 to 9 - this is called the Main. Then, they roll the dice.

• If they roll the Main, they win - this is called Nicking.
• If they roll a 2 or 3, they lose - this is called Outing.
• If they roll an 11, they Out if the Main was 5, 6, 8, or 9, but Nick if the Main was 7.
• If they roll a 12 (ie. boxcars), they Out if the Main was 5, 7, or 9, but Nick if the Main was 6 or 8.
• If they roll any other number, it is a Chance. And that's where Hazard gets interesting.

When the Caster rolls a Chance, the note which number they rolled. Now, they must keep rolling the dice, and the target numbers change.

• If they roll the Chance again, they win.
• If they roll the Main, they lose.
• If they roll any other number, they must keep rolling until they roll either a Chance or Main.

Essentially, it becomes a game to see if you will roll the Chance again before landing on the Main!

If the numbers are hard to keep track of, Wikipedia has a handy table that I'll reproduce here:

Once the Caster loses three times in a row, they pass the dice to the player at their left, who becomes the new Caster.

Betting

Both the Caster and any other players at the table may place bets on whether or not the Caster will Nick or roll the Chance before the Main. There are rules for this too:

• If the Caster Nicks, they win an amount of money equal to their bet.
• If the Caster rolls the Chance before the Main, they win an amount of money related to the odds. Again, Wikipedia's table may be helpful:

An Example of Play

On his way to Dernburg, Johann stops at the Golden Boar tavern, where he joins in a game of Hazard. As the Caster, he wagers four silver coins and chooses a Main of 6. His first roll is a 4 and a 5, for a total of 9. Now, he must roll a 9 (the Chance) before he rolls a 6 (the Main). If he does, he will get his bet back and win five silver coins (as the odds of this are 5/4, and 5/4 * 4 = 5).

His next roll is a 1 and a 2, for a total of 3. Neither the Chance nor the Main, so he must keep rolling.

His next roll is a 4 and a 3, for a total of 7. Again, another roll.

His next roll is a 4 and a 5, for a total of 9 - the Chance. Johann wins, and now has nine silver in his purse!

Next, Johann, feeling emboldened, decides he will wager eight silver coins and calls a Main of 9. Alas, Fate has not smiled upon him, and his first roll is snake eyes - a 2. He has Outed, and gets nothing, so he is left with one silver coin.

After playing two more rounds, and losing both, Johann passes the dice to Helen, who becomes the new Caster. Her chosen Main is 5, and she wagers two silver. Her first roll gives her a 3 and a 2 - so she Nicks, and wins two silver coins, so is left with four. And so on!

Cheating at Hazard

5e allows characters who have proficiency in gaming sets to add their proficiency bonuses to rolls when playing games. This is all fair and good for games of skill, such as chess, but it doesn't exactly make much sense to be better than others at card or dice games that are based on luck. In these cases, I prefer to treat playing the game as a dice roll or a minigame, like this one.

However, it does make sense that certain characters might know a few tricks about cheating at games of chance - counting cards, tapping the table, using weighted dice, and so forth. In these cases, I would allow them to apply their gaming set proficiency bonus if they decide to cheat at the appropriate game, and have them roll an appropriate skill, probably something like Deception or Sleight of Hand. If they succeed, they might automatically win the round, or have Advantage on their throw to represent tipping the odds in their favor.

This is an optional rule, and DMs should handle it at their discretion. It may not work for every table.