Each jumbo 1" cube has 6 images or icons, with a total of 54 all-different hand-inlaid images that can be mixed in over 10 million ways. You roll all 9 cubes to generate 9 random images and then use these to invent a story that starts with "Once upon a time..." and uses all 9 elements as part of your narrative. As a puzzle, Rory's Story Cubes will really give your imagination a work-out. You'll practically feel both sides of your brain dancing. Play it as a game for one or more players, or as a party game for three or more. Or play it as an improv game where each player contributes part of the story, picking up where the last one left off. Win award points for speedy delivery, inventiveness, imagination, drama and humor. Full instructions include several other ways to use the cubes to solve problems, break up writer's block, enhance your imagination and heighten your ability to find unifying themes among the diverse images. Interpret or get at the meanings of your answers more quickly. It's fun, easy, and mind-stretching. The challenge: Fit the 9 cubes into a 3x3 square. Now examine the cubes in any one row and turn them so their tops have something in common. Do this for all 3 rows. Explain your choices, or challenge another player to identify the element they share. More than one answer may be right, and there are thousands of possible combinations.
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Game intelligence
1. Gather all players around a shared play space. 2. Choose which game mode to play: Sí Señor, Debate, Cuéntame un Cuento, Concurso de Belleza, Preguntas/Respuestas, or Olimpiadas Story Cubes. 3. If playing Sí Señor, designate one player as "El Señor" (the boss). 4. For Olimpiadas, agree on which individual game modes will be included in the series. 5. Each player rolls their dice as instructed by the chosen mode to begin play.
Turn structure varies by game mode. In most modes, players take turns rolling a set number of dice (2–5) and must incorporate the resulting images into a creative response — a story, excuse, argument, answer, or question — within a time limit or before being cut off by the judge. In Sí Señor, El Señor controls the flow and decides when a player has performed poorly. In scoring modes (Cuéntame un Cuento, Concurso de Belleza), other players vote on quality after each turn. Used dice are eliminated from a player's pool, and running out of dice signals completing a challenge. Play continues until a winner or loser is determined per the mode's rules.
Varies by game mode: elimination modes (Sí Señor, Debate, Preguntas/Respuestas) end when a player accumulates enough penalties or is called out, making all others winners; scoring modes (Cuéntame un Cuento, Concurso de Belleza) tally peer-voted points across rounds with the highest scorer winning; Olimpiadas aggregates 1 point per mode won across the series. Target score: 3 penalty markers = loser in Sí Señor; highest point total in scoring modes Scoring sources: Penalty markers in Sí Señor (3 = loser), Peer quality votes 1–5 in Cuéntame un Cuento, Peer speed votes 1–5 in Cuéntame un Cuento, Peer accuracy votes 1–5 in Concurso de Belleza, Peer humor votes 1–5 in Concurso de Belleza, 1 point per mode won in Olimpiadas
Source: Rulebook
The most useful rules for getting a first game right.
In Sí Señor, one player takes the role of 'El Señor' (the boss). El Señor invents a story in which something has gone wrong and one of the other players must be the guilty party. Example story contexts: El Señor is a mafioso and the other players are hitmen who failed to eliminate a target; El Señor is a doctor and the players are nurses who lost a patient that could have been saved; El Señor is a feudal lord who returned from a hunt to find his castle conquered and the players are the soldiers who were supposed to protect it.
Each player rolls two dice. The images shown must both be incorporated into an excuse for whatever El Señor has accused them of. After giving their excuse, the player rolls one of their two dice again and uses that image to construct a trick or deflection that places the blame on the next player in line. The next player then continues the chain by defending themselves against the previous player's accusation, or — if the game has stalled — by attempting to save themselves from El Señor's original accusation.
El Señor cuts the game each time they judge a player to have performed poorly. When this happens, the player receives one penalty marker. A player who accumulates three penalty markers is declared the loser of the game. El Señor then punishes that player, and all remaining players are declared the winners.
El Señor may stop the game and penalize a player for any of the following reasons: (1) failing to include one or more of the rolled dice images in their excuse or accusation, (2) giving an excuse that El Señor deems inadequate or unconvincing, (3) taking too long to formulate the excuse or accusation, (4) repeating content already used, (5) excessive hesitation or uncertainty. Many of these criteria are subjective and rest entirely at El Señor's discretion.
To start the Debate mode, one die is rolled to establish the topic of debate. Each player then rolls 3 or 4 dice. These dice images must be incorporated into arguments — either for or against the debated topic — as the player chooses.
On each turn during the Debate mode, every player selects one of their dice and uses its image in a verbal argument supporting or opposing the debate topic. Once a die has been used in an argument, it is removed from that player's pool. A player who uses all of their dice has successfully completed the challenge.
In Debate mode, a player is penalized by the rest of the players — and eliminated from the game as the loser — for any of the following: (1) failing to include a dice image in their argument, (2) taking too long to present their argument, (3) repeating content already used, (4) excessive hesitation or doubt.
In Cuéntame un Cuento (Tell Me a Story), players take turns rolling 4 or 5 dice. After rolling, each player has 30 seconds to look at their dice and come up with a very short story. The player then tells their story, which must include all of the images shown on their dice.
Since used dice are eliminated from your pool and using all your dice means you've passed the challenge, you should strategically start with your easiest or most versatile die images to build momentum, then use trickier images when you've already established a narrative or argument frame. Saving difficult images for last risks hesitation penalties.
Since most of El Señor's penalty criteria (adequacy, hesitation, repetition) are explicitly subjective and at their discretion, a good strategy for non-Señor players is to be expressive and fast above all else — even a weak excuse delivered confidently and quickly is harder for El Señor to penalize than a good excuse delivered slowly.
Scores are granted for both quality (1–5) and speed (1–5), meaning a fast but mediocre story can outscore a slow masterpiece. Use the 30-second planning window to sketch the simplest possible narrative thread linking all images, rather than trying to craft something elaborate.
Accuracy and humor are scored independently, so a response that is both factually grounded AND funny can earn up to 10 points in a single round. Prioritize answers that have a clever but accurate angle rather than purely comedic or purely dry responses.
When organizing an Olimpiadas tournament, omitting Sí Señor (as the rulebook advises) keeps the session balanced. Choose 3–4 shorter modes (Debate, Cuéntame un Cuento, Concurso de Belleza, Preguntas/Respuestas) to ensure each mode contributes equally to the overall standings.
If the game stalls (e.g., the chain breaks), the current player must attempt to save themselves from El Señor's original accusation rather than the previous player's redirect. Normal play resumes from there.
Yes. The accuracy score (1–5) and humor score (1–5) are completely independent. A player may receive a high humor score regardless of whether their answer is factually or logically accurate.
It depends on the mode. In Cuéntame un Cuento and Concurso de Belleza (scoring modes), failing to include a dice image results in a score of zero for that round — the player is not eliminated. In Sí Señor, Debate, and Preguntas/Respuestas (elimination modes), failing to include a dice image is a penalizable offense that can result in receiving a penalty marker (Sí Señor) or immediate elimination (Debate, Preguntas/Respuestas).
Technically yes, since any of the game modes can be played in series. However, the rulebook explicitly notes that Sí Señor may be too long to fit comfortably within an Olimpiadas session, so it is advisable to omit it.
Both. Dice used in asking a question AND dice used in answering are both discarded immediately. This applies equally to both players involved in each exchange.
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