How To Play LCR: 14 Steps (with Pictures) - WikiHow

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Terms of Use wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. Learn why people trust wikiHow How to Play Left Right Center & Other Fun Dice Games PDF download Download Article Learn this classic dice game & its variations with our complete guide Co-authored by Hunter Rising Reviewed by Ashton Wu

Last Updated: February 19, 2026 Fact Checked

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  • Setup
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  • Rules
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  • Strategy
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This article was reviewed by Ashton Wu and by wikiHow staff writer, Hunter Rising. Ashton Wu is a Board Game expert at Shelfside. After delving into the Yugioh tournament community while growing up, Ashton launched himself into the board gaming community in 2014 and went into reviewing board games as a career full-time in 2019. His YouTube channel Shelfside has over 50K subscribers and over 4 million views, assisted by written reviews on the Shelfside website and BoardGameGeek.com. He also consults with gaming companies to build high-quality gaming products. Ashton is a tournament commentator, board game playthrough director, and host of the Shelfside Podcast, where he talks about board games with his business partner, Daniel. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics at the University of California, Santa Barbara, in addition to the Technology Management Certificate. There are 10 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 1,159,407 times.

When you’re looking for the perfect game for the whole family, LCR (Left-Center-Right) is the perfect choice. This dice game has simple setup and rules so anyone can learn it within a couple of minutes. Keep reading, and we’ll walk you through how to play along with some house rules and other dice games to try out!

LCR Rules At a Glance

To play LCR, give everyone 3 chips, and roll the dice on your turn. Pass 1 chip to your left for each L, 1 chip to the center pot for each C, and 1 chip to the right for each R. If you have fewer chips, roll fewer dice. If you’re the last person with chips, you win the game!

Steps

Section 1 of 5:

LCR Setup

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  1. Step 1 Sit in a circle with at least 3 players. 1 Sit in a circle with at least 3 players. There’s no limit on how many people you can play with, but you’ll need at least 3 players. Sit at a table or on the floor so you have someone to your right and left. Leave open space in the center to place chips into the “pot.”
  2. Step 2 Give each player 3 chips. 2 Give each player 3 chips. If you have a copy of LCR, it will come with a set of chips. Otherwise, you can play with poker chips, checkers, buttons, or any other small tokens you have at home.[1]
    • Put away all the extra chips because you won’t need them during the game.
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  3. Step 3 Assign "L," "C,"... 3 Assign "L," "C," "R," and dots to dice rolls if using standard dice. If you don’t have a boxed copy of LCR, you just need 3 regular 6-sided dice to play the game. Assign each die face with these substitutions:[2]
    • 1, 2, & 3: dots
    • 4: left (L)
    • 5: center (C)
    • 6: right (R)
  4. Step 4 Take turns rolling the dice to decide the first player. 4 Take turns rolling the dice to decide the first player. Roll all 3 dice and count how many dots are showing. After everyone has a chance to roll, whoever had the most dots takes the first turn.
    • If there’s a tie, either roll the dice again or choose the youngest player to go first.
    • If you’re playing with standard dice, remember that dots are any dice showing 1, 2, or 3, not the individual dots printed on the dice.
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Section 2 of 5:

Left-Center-Right Rules

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  1. Step 1 Roll all 3 dice on your first turn. 1 Roll all 3 dice on your first turn. Each player starts with 3 chips, so everyone rolls the same number of dice during their first turn. Take all 3 of the dice and roll them in the middle of the table so everyone can see the results.[3]
  2. Step 2 Pass or keep chips based on the dice roll’s results. 2 Pass or keep chips based on the dice roll’s results. Look at the results of your dice roll to see which sides are face-up. Dots mean your chips are safe, but any of the letters will make you lose your chips.[4]
    • Dot (1, 2, or 3): do nothing
    • L (4): pass 1 chip to the person on your left
    • C (5): pass 1 chip to the center pot
    • R (6): pass 1 chip to the player on your right
    • You may pass all of your chips on your first turn, but don’t worry because you’re still in the game! Other players might have to pass you chips on their turns.
  3. Step 3 Give the dice to the next player to continue the game. 3 Give the dice to the next player to continue the game. When you finish your turn, pass the dice to the player on your left. Everyone continues rolling the dice and passing chips until the end of the game.[5]
    • It’s possible to have more than 3 chips during the first round if you received them from other players. Still roll all 3 dice like normal. You’ll only move a maximum of 3 chips on your turn.
  4. Step 4 Roll up to 3 dice depending on how many chips you have. 4 Roll up to 3 dice depending on how many chips you have. When it’s your turn after the first round, count how many chips you have in front of you. If you still have 3 or more, then roll all 3 of the dice. Otherwise, roll 1 die for each chip you have.[6]
    • If you don’t have any chips, you lose your turn and don’t get to roll the dice. If another player passes you a chip on their turn, then you get your turn back.
  5. Step 5 Win the game (and the pot) if you’re the last player with chips. 5 Win the game (and the pot) if you’re the last player with chips. Continue taking turns, passing chips between the players, and adding them to the pot. If there's only one person with chips in front of them, they win the game! As their prize, they get to take all of the chips from the pot as well.[7]
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Section 3 of 5:

Are there strategies to win LCR?

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  1. Nope, LCR is entirely based on luck. You can’t really control the results when you roll the dice, so you just have to hope you get lucky on your turn. LCR is a pretty low-stakes game, so just have fun rolling the dice and seeing where your chips end up!
Section 4 of 5:

Fun LCR Variations to Try

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  1. Step 1 Try LCR Wild for a more competitive game. 1 Try LCR Wild for a more competitive game. LCR Wild replaces one of the faces with a Wild symbol. If you’re using standard dice, assign the 1 as a wild instead. Play the game as you normally would, but make these changes whenever you roll a Wild:[8]
    • 1 Wild: take 1 chip from any player
    • 2 Wilds: take 2 chips from 1 player or 1 chip from 2 different players
    • 3 Wilds: win the game immediately
  2. Step 2 Race to get rid of all your chips first to play Last Chip Wins. 2 Race to get rid of all your chips first to play Last Chip Wins. Rather than trying to be the last person with chips, win the game if you move your final chip into the pot. If you ever only have 1 chip left and you roll a C, then you win![9]
    • If you roll an L or R with your last chip, you’re still in the game. You only win if you roll a C with your final chip.
  3. Step 3 Make the last player with chips roll all dots to make winning more difficult. 3 Make the last player with chips roll all dots to make winning more difficult. Play the game as you normally would until only 1 person has chips left in front of them. They’ll roll the dice one final time. If they roll all dots, then they win! If they still roll any Ls, Cs, or Rs, pass the chips as you normally would and continue playing.[10]
    • If you have 3 or more chips in front of you, then you have to roll dots on all 3 dice. If you only have 1 or 2 chips, then you only have to roll 1 or 2 dice instead.
  4. Step 4 Use money instead of chips for a light gambling game. 4 Use money instead of chips for a light gambling game. Replace the chips with pennies, quarters, or even dollars to make your own stakes for the game. Choose the value of each chip and play the game as normal. Whoever wins the game gets all of the money in the pot as their winnings.[11]
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Section 5 of 5:

More Dice Games to Play

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  1. Keep the fun rolling with these other exciting games. Don’t let game night end once you finish a game of LCR. There are plenty of other easy games you can play as long as you have some dice at home. Check out our rules guides and hop into your next game right away!
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Community Q&A

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  • Question Do we only roll the dice once each time? Community Answer Community Answer Yes, only once. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 6 Helpful 35
  • Question How many players do I need to play LCR? Community Answer Community Answer Minimum of 3, no maximum. You can play with pennies or other coins if you don't have enough chips. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 11 Helpful 30
  • Question How do I get the coins out of the center? Community Answer Community Answer They stay in the center until the round is over. When someone wins, they win the coins/chips in the center. If you are playing for keeps, the person keeps the chips (coins, if you're playing for money). Then everyone antes 3 more, or re-distribute the coins evenly again. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 19 Helpful 34
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References

  1. ↑ https://officialgamerules.org/game-rules/left-center-right/
  2. ↑ https://www.coololdgames.com/dice-games/left-center-right/
  3. ↑ https://youtu.be/ijpC21AD8nE?t=132
  4. ↑ https://officialgamerules.org/game-rules/left-center-right/
  5. ↑ https://youtu.be/OxxpTWk3Rx0?t=43
  6. ↑ https://youtu.be/OxxpTWk3Rx0?t=18
  7. ↑ https://images.thdstatic.com/catalog/pdfImages/27/271ddb57-336c-444b-8bf4-7e55978a5b82.pdf
  8. ↑ https://www.geekyhobbies.com/lcr-wild-dice-game-rules-and-instructions-for-how-to-play/
  9. ↑ https://youtu.be/Bcv_vlSO1Y8?t=155
More References (2)
  1. ↑ https://youtu.be/Bcv_vlSO1Y8?t=140
  2. ↑ https://youtu.be/E9zZ5hxK2t4?t=53

About This Article

Ashton Wu Reviewed by: Ashton Wu Board Game Expert This article was reviewed by Ashton Wu and by wikiHow staff writer, Hunter Rising. Ashton Wu is a Board Game expert at Shelfside. After delving into the Yugioh tournament community while growing up, Ashton launched himself into the board gaming community in 2014 and went into reviewing board games as a career full-time in 2019. His YouTube channel Shelfside has over 50K subscribers and over 4 million views, assisted by written reviews on the Shelfside website and BoardGameGeek.com. He also consults with gaming companies to build high-quality gaming products. Ashton is a tournament commentator, board game playthrough director, and host of the Shelfside Podcast, where he talks about board games with his business partner, Daniel. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics at the University of California, Santa Barbara, in addition to the Technology Management Certificate. This article has been viewed 1,159,407 times. 40 votes - 85% Co-authors: 22 Updated: February 19, 2026 Views: 1,159,407 Categories: Games of Chance Article SummaryX

LCR, or Left-Center-Right, is a fun dice game where players try to be the last one in the game with any poker chips. You’ll need at least 3 players, and you can play with up to as many players as you’d like. You’ll also need 3 poker chips (or any small item) for each player and 3 six-sided dice. Choose one player to go first. On a player’s turn, they roll as many dice as they have poker chips. For example, if a player has 3 poker chips, they roll 3 dice. If a player has 0 poker chips, they roll 0 dice and skip their turn. After rolling, the player checks the number on each die to determine what they do next. For each 4 they rolled, the player must pass 1 poker chip to the player on their left. For each 5, the player must put 1 poker chip in the center of the playing area. For each 6, the player must pass 1 poker chip to the player on their right. If a 1, 2, or 3 is rolled, nothing happens for that die. After a player rolls and passes their chips according to the dice, the player to their left goes next. Play continues clockwise until only one player has any poker chips left. Whoever is the last player standing with poker chips wins the game! Did this summary help you?YesNo

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Yes No Advertisement If you buy through links on our site, we may earn a commission.Cookies make wikiHow better. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Ashton Wu Reviewed by: Ashton Wu Board Game Expert Co-authors: 22 Updated: February 19, 2026 Views: 1,159,407 85% of readers found this article helpful. 40 votes - 85% Click a star to add your vote Glenda Mills

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