Is Dragomino good for kids? Age and difficulty

How do you set up Dragomino?

Checked against the Dragomino rules from Blue Orange Games USA, copyright 2020 Blue Orange Edition. The page numbers below are the printed page numbers in the booklet, where the cover is page 1.

1. Put the bottom of the box in a corner of the table with the contents inside (page 2).
2. Each player takes a starting domino and puts it in front of them. This starts their exploration zone. Set the unused starting dominoes aside (page 2).
3. Mix the exploration dominoes and leave them in the box (page 2).
4. Take 4 exploration dominoes from the box and put them face up at random on the table (page 2).
5. Spread the Egg tokens flat next to the box, egg side up, grouped by egg type (page 2).
6. Give the Mommy Dragon to the youngest player (page 2).

How do you teach Dragomino to kids?

The box says 5 and up. We suggest 4 and up with an adult helping, and 5 and up on their own. Teach one turn at a time. The rules are short, and most of the work is pointing at which squares touch.

Say this

1. We are exploring a dragon island. We pick dominoes and look for dragon eggs.
2. On your turn, pick one of the dominoes on the table.
3. Put it next to your own dominoes so that they touch.
4. Look at every square that touches. If the land is the same, take an egg of that land and turn it over.
5. A baby dragon is 1 point. An eggshell is nothing, but you grab the Mommy Dragon.
6. When all the dominoes are used, count your baby dragons. The most wins.

The rulebook has one official variant, the Dragon's Thirst, which adds more eggs and more choices (page 4). It has no beginner variant, so every simplification below is a house rule.

First-game simplifications

• House rule Let a grown-up point at the squares that touch the new domino, so a younger player can check for matching lands one square at a time.
• House rule Let a grown-up count baby dragons at the end, with the scorer below.
• House rule Let a grown-up hand the Mommy Dragon over after each eggshell and say who starts the next round, so little ones do not have to track it.

Watch-outs for kids ages 4 to 5

• The new domino has to touch your exploration zone on at least one side (page 3).
• Only squares of the same landscape give eggs. Different landscapes do nothing (page 3).
• One domino can touch several squares, so check every connection. You can collect more than one egg in a turn (page 4).
• An eggshell gives no points. It means you take the Mommy Dragon and start the next round (page 3).
• Holding the Mommy Dragon at the end of the game is 1 bonus point (page 4).
• Each egg family has 7 baby dragons. The bigger the family, the smaller the chance of a baby dragon (page 4).

Back for another game?

• Setup: starting domino in front of each player, 4 exploration dominoes face up in the middle, egg tokens sorted egg side up, Mommy Dragon to the youngest player (page 2).
• Your turn: 1. Pick a domino from the table. 2. Put it next to your zone so it touches on at least one side (page 3).
• Eggs: for each square that touches a square of the same landscape, take an egg of that landscape and turn it over. A baby dragon is 1 point. An eggshell is nothing and you take the Mommy Dragon. Put the egg between the two dominoes (pages 3 and 4).
• New round: after everyone has played, discard any dominoes left and put 4 new ones face up. The player with the Mommy Dragon starts (page 4).
• Game end: when all the dominoes have been played. The box has 28 and each round uses 4, so that is 7 rounds. The rulebook does not state the number, so we worked it out. Each baby dragon is 1 point, and the Mommy Dragon holder gets 1 bonus point (page 4).
• Winning: most points wins. Tied? The player with the most eggshells wins. Still tied, you share the win (page 4).

How do you score Dragomino?

At the end, each baby dragon is 1 point, and the player holding the Mommy Dragon gets 1 bonus point (page 4). Count each player's baby dragons and eggshells. If players tie on points, the one with the most eggshells wins, and if that is a tie too, you share the win (page 4).