Killing the Ace:
When to "Kill the Ace"? “Killing the Ace” refers to calling the Ace on the very first call, which then nullifies it as a “Wild Card” for the remainder of the round. Now the game is played with natural numbers only. The only player who can kill the Ace (by calling 1 or more Ace/Aces on the opening call), is the person who starts the round (either by losing the previous round or winning the opening Ping). It is a right reserved only for the very first player. No one else has that option.
Killing the Ace can be a very strategic maneuver, or it can backfire in your face, which is why Liar’s Dyce is such an intense and interesting game (a quick paced chess match).
I was recently playing with a couple of Dyce Sharks who were taking me to the cleaners. Now in what was going to be my final game, I quickly lost my first two dyce. Not my day. Frustrated with only 3 dyce against their full kups, I’m debating buying back in (a topic for another day). I had a lousy straight, nothing to work with, so out of pure desperation I took a risky move killing the Ace, and their reaction was quite noteworthy.
The cocky confidence immediately dissipated with a surprised look of disbelief from both. The reaction makes it appear, they both had Aces in their kups and I just rendered them useless. Their original strategy they were so eager to play, now proved meaningless and I suddenly felt in control.
They were both assuming I killed the Ace because I most likely rolled 3 of a kind and that’s precisely what I was hoping they would think.
Shark #1 carefully reassessed his situation and in an effort, not to disclose his real hand (he rolled 2 fours and 2 Aces for 4-of-a-kind… but now unable to play them). Eventually, he made a quiet but bold call of 3 Aces (now playing as a natural number), which is a very crafty move considering the situation. He had 2 Aces, Shark #2 surely had the 3rd? A very reasonable assertion.
Shark #2, now forced to make a 3 call, without hesitation, jerks his kup because he didn’t have an Ace and he was confident I didn’t have one either. His assumption was correct and Shark #1 lost a die.
Killing the Ace, completely changed the dynamics of the game and the momentum turned in my favor. I started winning. If you’re on a losing streak, sometimes you simply must do something different to avoid being predictable. I was rolling good dyce but couldn’t find a way to win and they were cashing in. Get out of your rut and confuse your opponents. Who in their right mind would kill the Ace without at least a natural pair in their kup? This was the mindset both Sharks shared and I got away with it.
Good luck…shake, rattle and roll!
When to "Kill the Ace"? “Killing the Ace” refers to calling the Ace on the very first call, which then nullifies it as a “Wild Card” for the remainder of the round. Now the game is played with natural numbers only. The only player who can kill the Ace (by calling 1 or more Ace/Aces on the opening call), is the person who starts the round (either by losing the previous round or winning the opening Ping). It is a right reserved only for the very first player. No one else has that option.
Killing the Ace can be a very strategic maneuver, or it can backfire in your face, which is why Liar’s Dyce is such an intense and interesting game (a quick paced chess match).
I was recently playing with a couple of Dyce Sharks who were taking me to the cleaners. Now in what was going to be my final game, I quickly lost my first two dyce. Not my day. Frustrated with only 3 dyce against their full kups, I’m debating buying back in (a topic for another day). I had a lousy straight, nothing to work with, so out of pure desperation I took a risky move killing the Ace, and their reaction was quite noteworthy.
The cocky confidence immediately dissipated with a surprised look of disbelief from both. The reaction makes it appear, they both had Aces in their kups and I just rendered them useless. Their original strategy they were so eager to play, now proved meaningless and I suddenly felt in control.
They were both assuming I killed the Ace because I most likely rolled 3 of a kind and that’s precisely what I was hoping they would think.
Shark #1 carefully reassessed his situation and in an effort, not to disclose his real hand (he rolled 2 fours and 2 Aces for 4-of-a-kind… but now unable to play them). Eventually, he made a quiet but bold call of 3 Aces (now playing as a natural number), which is a very crafty move considering the situation. He had 2 Aces, Shark #2 surely had the 3rd? A very reasonable assertion.
Shark #2, now forced to make a 3 call, without hesitation, jerks his kup because he didn’t have an Ace and he was confident I didn’t have one either. His assumption was correct and Shark #1 lost a die.
Killing the Ace, completely changed the dynamics of the game and the momentum turned in my favor. I started winning. If you’re on a losing streak, sometimes you simply must do something different to avoid being predictable. I was rolling good dyce but couldn’t find a way to win and they were cashing in. Get out of your rut and confuse your opponents. Who in their right mind would kill the Ace without at least a natural pair in their kup? This was the mindset both Sharks shared and I got away with it.
- Kill the Ace to protect your natural pairs, triples or more (depending on how many dyce are at play).
- Kill the Ace when you have nothing, to hopefully expose your opponents kup. My experience is that the Liar’s portion of Liar’s Dyce tends to subside without the Ace and players tend to play with much more honesty.
- Kill the Ace when you simply want to confuse your opponents or change the momentum of the game. Don’t be predictable, mix it up!
Good luck…shake, rattle and roll!
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