Parcheesi Drinking Game

Parcheesi is a simple board game that is fun for 2-4 players. The objective is to be the first to move all your pieces around the board from start to home. The game rules create twists and turns (specifically that allow you to screw other players over), which makes for a perfect Parcheesi drinking game!

Parcheesi Rules

All players’ pieces begin in the “start” area. Everyone rolls the two dice, and the highest roller gets to go first. Beginning with that player, everyone takes turns rolling to try to move their pieces out of start. A 5 (either on one or both dice, or if the two dice total 5) lets one of your pieces enter the game. 

Once you have a piece on the board, you roll to see how many spaces you can move along the path. You can use the dice total to move one piece, or each individual die to move 2 different pieces. You must move, if possible. 

If you roll doubles, you get to roll again. If all four of your pieces are out when you roll doubles, you get to use the numbers on both the top and bottom of the dice to move (hint: it always adds up to 14). You can benefit from rolling doubles twice in a row, but if you happen to roll them three times in a row, your piece that is closest to home must go back to the start area and your turn ends.

A blockade can be made by 2 of the same pieces occupying the same square. Nobody can move past the blockade, even the person who made it. You cannot move a blockade up and keep it intact in the same turn. 

If you land on another person’s piece, you send it back to home. This will happen a lot! You can go from first place to last place really quickly in Parcheesi. 

To win, you must be the first player to get all 4 of your pieces “home.” You’ve got to roll the exact number of spaces it takes to get a piece into the home area. 

To get a piece “home,” you’ve got to roll the exact number of spaces it takes to move the piece into the home area. The first person to bring all 4 pieces home is the winner!

Of course, this fun game can be made even more fun with alcohol!

Parcheesi Drink Pairing

As this is a traditional Indian game, our drink recommendation also has roots in India. Whisky Mac originated during British Raj in India, but is still popular in Indian culture today. 

Add 1 oz scotch whisky and 1.5 oz Stone’s Green Ginger Wine to a cocktail shaker and shake with ice. Pour and enjoy!

As always, keep an eye on your friends, drink responsibly, and hydrate. Any sip that you have to take can always be replaced by water!