DEAD MAN'S DICE

Rules of Dead Man's Dice

You sit across from a hooded entity who has played this game since before your grandfather's gods were born. Each round you both ante gold into the pot, then roll two dice — your bone dice against his shadow dice. Higher sum takes the pot.

• Your wager: before rolling, pick a bet on your own dice. It costs ¼ of your stake (win or lose) and pays out of the Stranger's purse.
• Raise the stakes: after your roll, you may DOUBLE the duel. He will call or fold — watch his eyes.
• His tells: steady burning eyes mean confidence; flickering, trembling eyes mean fear. But a liar may wear either face…
• Ties: the pot carries over, swelling the next round.
• Dead rounds: every 5th round the stakes triple.
• All-in: after your roll, you may shove your entire purse into the pot. Glory or ruin.
• The bone charm: once per run, after your roll you may re-roll your duel dice. Your side wager stands as thrown.
• Tavern's mercy: lose twice in a row and the Stranger grows careless — his lies and raises falter.
• The marker: once per run, bankruptcy can be answered with a 50-gold loan… at the cost of swelling his purse by 75.
• New faces: each table brings a sharper dealer with their own tells — read the hint beneath his words.
• High Roller table: unlocked at 10+ career round wins — 5× stakes, and the Stranger bluffs far more often.
• Win: empty his purse to clear the table — and learn what hides beneath the hood.
• Lose: go bankrupt and the run ends. Your score is gold won + rounds survived.

Stakes rise every round. The Stranger plays sharper at every new table.