Gambling Guide

Mr. Three (a.k.a. Three Man, Hat Man) is a drinking game played with dice. The game is usually played with a larger group (6-15) of people than other drinking games and is designed so as to not require a great deal of participation from the players not directly involved in the current dice roll. This allows the game to be played in a relaxed atmosphere with a lot of people.

The game is played with two dice, often rolled on some kind of portable surface that holds the dice. A pie pan, beer tray, box top or some other similar device with a rolling area and edges to catch the dice are standard equipment, but often the dice are simply rolled on a table top. The current player rolls the dice, if the roll results in a drink then a drink is assigned accordingly, else the dice (and the pan, if one exists) are passed to the player on the left. The drinking rolls include:

• 7: The player to the right of the roller has to drink.
• 11: The player to the left of the roller has to drink.
• 10: This is a "social" roll. All players take a drink, often calling "social" together, or any other pre-determined word or phrase.
• DOUBLES: The roller assigns drinks up to the number on a single die to any other player or players (e.g. if double 4's are rolled, the roller may assign three drinks to player A and one drink to player B, or instead assign all four drinks to player C).
• 4 and 1 appearing: All players must touch their nose, or perform another pre-arranged task. The last person to do so must drink.
• 3 appearing on any die: "Mr. Three" (or "the Three Man") has to drink. Rolling a 1 and a 2 may also bring about this result.

The above rules are combined when appropriate:

• If a 4 & 3 are rolled, the player to the right AND "Mr. Three" must drink (if they are the same person then they must drink twice).
• If 5 & 5 are rolled, everyone must drink and the roller must assign 5 drinks to other players.

If none of the above scenarios apply - for instance, a player rolling a 2 and a 4 - the dice pass to the next player.

The first player in the game to roll a single 3 becomes "Mr. Three". From then on, "Mr. Three" must drink whenever a 3 is rolled. If "Mr. Three" rolls another single 3 on one of his rolls, the title is up for grabs again. However, if Mr. Three rolls double 3's then he is instantaneously unassigned and then reassigned the title, and must assign 3 drinks to other players.

The "stupidity rule" usually applies to the roller but may apply to anyone who is not following the rules. Whenever the rules are broken or a mistake is made, the infracting player must drink. Examples include:

• A 4 & 3 are rolled, the roller informs the player on the right to drink but forgets to inform Mr. Three to drink.
• One or both of the dice are tossed out of the pan, if it exists, or the dice are rolled off the table if a pan is not present.
• The roller attempts to lie and assigns a drink when one was not required.

Contents 1 West Coast Rules 2 Midwest Rules 3 Statistics 4 Alternate Rules 5 The Hat

West Coast Rules

Before the game starts all participants roll a die. The first person to roll a 3 becomes the "Three Man" and starts the game. The Three Man can lose his title by either: (a) rolling a 3; or, (b) rolling a 2&1 (the sum of which equals 3). If A or B happen the roller gets to designate another player to be the new Three Man. Alternatively other players can automatically become Three Man by doing either of the following: Rolling double 3's or rolling a die off the table. That person then becomes the new Three Man and passes the dice to the next player. A player may continue to roll as long as one of these combinations is rolled:

• Doubles (except double 3's) - The roller has the opportunity to pass out drinks. He/she can do one of several things: (a) give one person the total number of drinks; (b) split the drinks between two people; (c) make one person roll the dice and drink the sum of the roll; or, (d) make two people roll a die with each drinking his/her roll. If doubles are rolled again during C or D the player who passed out the dice is forced to drink.
• 3 - When a three is rolled (on either dice), the Three Man must drink. If the Three Man rolls a 3, he may give the title of "three-man" to another player.
• 7 - Person to the left of roller drinks.
• 11 - Person to the right of roller drinks.
• 9 - Social. Everybody drinks.
• 1&1 (Snake Eyes) - Player gets to make up a rule. (Ex: Three man drinks every time any other player has to drink).
• 3&3 - Player automatically becomes Three Man.
• 2&1 - Three man drinks.

Midwest Rules

Before the game starts, all players roll one die. The player with the highest roll becomes Three-man and starts the game. Players continue to roll as long as they match one of the four following combinations - Doubles, 7-11, 3, or 1 & x (explained below):

• Doubles - The roller gives one of the dice to another player who drinks the number which was rolled (i.e. If a pair of fives are rolled, the roller gives away 5 drinks). The roller also gives away the other dice to another player to roll. The receiver then rolls the dice and drinks the number indicated, unless they roll the original number in which case the drinks are returned to the player who rolled the doubles. (i.e. if a pair of fives were rolled, and the second player rolls a five, the first player must take five drinks).
• 7-11 - If the dice total seven, the person to the left drinks. If they add up to eleven, the person to the right drinks.
• 3 - When a three is rolled (on either dice), the three-man must drink. If the three-man rolls a 3, he may give the title of "three-man" to another player.
• 1 & 2 - Player may make a rule.
• 1 & 3 - "Minority" - The roller selects some attribute, and all players who match the description must drink. (i.e. All females must drink, everybody wearing a hat must drink, everybody named “Carl” must drink) But whatever attribute is selected, it may only apply to one half or fewer of the players. (i.e. in a game with 3 females and 2 males, it would be permissible to make all males drink, but not all females).
• 1 & 4 - "Finger on the Nose" - Players must put their finger on their nose. The last person to do so must drink.
• 1 & 5 - "Social" - All players take one drink.

If a player rolls a 2&4, 2&6, 4&5, or 4&6, he has "crapped out" and the dice are passed to the next player.

Here is a listing of all 21 possible combinations:

• 1-1 - Doubles - Give one person 1 drink, and make somebody else roll 1 dice and drink the amount rolled.
• 1-2 – Make a rule.
• 1-3 - Minority - Pick something that applies to 1/2 or less of the players, and make them drink. (i.e. Everyone wearing a hat, all females, all red-heads, anyone smoking a cigarette, all left-handed midget albino Eskimos wearing a silk hat, etc.). Also: 3-Man must drink
• 1-4 - Finger on Nose - As soon as you see this combination, you must put your finger on your nose. The last person to do so must drink.
• 1-5 - Social - Everybody must drink.
• 1-6 - 1+6=7 - Player on roller's left must drink.
• 2-2 - Doubles - Give one person 2 drinks, and make somebody else roll 1 dice and drink that many.
• 2-3 - 3-man drinks.
• 2-4 - NOTHING - pass dice to next player
• 2-5 - 2+5=7 - Player on roller's left must drink.
• 2-6 - NOTHING - pass dice to next player
• 3-3 - Doubles - Give one person 3 drinks, and make somebody else roll 1 dice and drink that many. Also: 3-Man takes TWO drinks
• 3-4 - 3+4=7 - Player on roller's left must drink. Also: 3-man drinks
• 3-5 – 3-man drinks
• 3-6 – 3-man drinks
• 4-4 - Doubles - Give one person 4 drinks, and make somebody else roll 1 dice and drink that many.
• 4-5 - NOTHING - pass dice to next player
• 4-6 - NOTHING - pass dice to next player
• 5-5 - Doubles - Give one person 5 drinks, and make somebody else roll 1 dice and drink that many.
• 5-6 - 5+6=11 - Player on roller's right must drink.
• 6-6 - Doubles - Give one person 6 drinks, and make somebody else roll 1 dice and drink that many.

Statistics

Using the above "Midwest" version of the game, there are 24 out of 36 combination of the dice which yield "good" rolls (Rolls that allow player to roll again). This means that on each roll the player has a 66.6% (2 out of 3) chance of rolling a "good" roll. Using a simulation, it was found that the average turn last for roughly 3.5 rolls. Players will have turns with no good rolls 22.22% of the time. Streaks of at least 10 consecutive "good" rolls will occur 8.1% of the time. The odds of getting 72 consecutive “good” rolls in a row is 1 in 72,117,406, which is close to the odds of winning the jackpot in an average state lottery.

The number of drinks each player takes each turn depends on the number of players in the game.

• 2 players - each person takes 4.83 drinks per turn.
• 3 players - each person takes 5.88 drinks per turn.
• 4 players - each person takes 6.66 drinks per turn.
• 5 players - each person takes 7.16 drinks per turn.
• 6 players - each person takes 7.69 drinks per turn.
• 7 players - each person takes 8.07 drinks per turn.
• 8 players - each person takes 8.52 drinks per turn.

The number of drinks per turn goes up with the number of players involved in the game. But a more relevant question is how many drinks per minute each player will consume. The more players who are involved in the game, the longer each turn is going to take, which will slow the pace at which each player drinks. The exact amount of time each round lasts is largely affected by the pace at which the game is played. However, if we assume that each roll of the dice takes 10 seconds (a rather leisurely, but realistic, rate) a simulation yields the following number of drinks per minute:

• 2 Players - 3.22 Drinks per Minute
• 3 Players - 2.61 Drinks per Minute
• 4 Players - 2.22 Drinks per Minute
• 5 Players - 1.91 Drinks per Minute
• 6 Players - 1.71 Drinks per Minute
• 7 Players - 1.53 Drinks per Minute
• 8 Players - 1.42 Drinks per Minute

This rate can also be affected by "player-made" rules (after rolling a 1 & 2). These rules usually require a person to perform some action (or not perform some action), and a violation of these rules usually results in additional drinks being imbibed.

Alternate Rules

• In some circles, "Mr. Three" can only lose his designation in three fashions.
  • If he rolls a three during his turn, at which time he may designate the new "Mr. Three."
  • If another player rolls one or both dice off the table (known as "sloppy dice"), at which time that roller becomes "Mr. Three."
  • If another player joins in while the game is in progress, that player instantly becomes "Mr. Three."
• Sometimes when a certain dice combination is rolled, often 4-1, the rolling player is then designated the Thumbmaster until another player rolls the same combination, and the designation is transferred.
• Chico 10-roll rule. If a player rolls the dice 10 turns in a row resulting in drinks for any opponent before throwing a roll that results in an end of turn and a passing of the dice to the next shooter, that player is allowed to pass the dice and make an additional table rule. (Rule example: Any shooter that rolls a ten must say "I'm sorry, Marc my lord." or drink 5.) This variation offers two new elements, additional rules to add some fun to the game, and a chance for the Three man to keep the dice and exact some revenge.
  • There may be up to three rules in place. If there are three rules already in place, the shooter chooses one to replace with their own rule. Also, instead of making a rule, they may choose to cancel an existing rule.
  • The Three man may choose to keep the dice if he rolls any "3" to obtain the 10 successful rolls, but must drink the penalty as if it was another player that rolled the dice.
  • Dice are passed to the next shooter upon making/abolishing a rule.
• Chico No Drink, Drink Double. If a player finishes their drink and manages to get drinks assigned with an empty cup, the number of drinks is doubled. Also, if the player leaves the table to grab a new drink, play continues with the player forfeiting their rolls until returning. This normally results in the absent player becoming Three man and accumulating a number of drinks upon returning to the table (or floor).
• Chico Alternate Doubles Rules
  • Roll Your Fate. When doubles are rolled, the shooter may choose to give the face value of the dice, or have the opponent roll their fate. (Instead of a player getting off easy with snake eyes, they may roll up to 12 drinks.) This works with splitting the dice.
  • Split Dice. The dice may be split so that two opponents either drink the face value of the die, or roll their fate instead of one person getting both dice.
  • You Roll, but You Drink. The shooter may decide to give the doubles as a roll your fate to one player and the resulting drinks to another opponent. Also works with splitting the dice.
• Sloppy Dice
  • If one or both dice land on the floor during a roll then "Sloppy Dice, drink twice, pass the dice to the right"

The Hat

A common feature of the game is for the person who is currently "Mr. Three" to be easily identified by wearing a special hat of some sort. The hat is usually something silly, awkward, or otherwise embarrassing to wear. A common and readily available choice for the Three Man Hat is a torn open box from a twelve-pack of beer, worn like a helmet in some fashion. When the player loses the Three Man Status and passes it on to another player, the hat is also passed to the other player.