House Rules and Variations

Mexican Train has no official rulebook. It spread by being taught at kitchen tables, and every table kept its own version — which is why "that is not how we play it" is the most common sentence in the game. Here are the variations that actually come up, framed as choices rather than mistakes.

The double blank

The most-argued rule in the game: worth nothing by its pips, and the hardest tile to get rid of. Families give it a penalty of 25 or 50 points, or none at all. It has its own page because it deserves one.

Covering doubles

Most groups require a played double to be covered before normal play resumes, with the chain passing round the table if nobody can. Some drop it entirely and let play carry on. Dropping it makes for a quicker, gentler game and takes out the bit that most often confuses new players. Details on the doubles page.

Going out on an uncovered double

Separately: may you end the round while a double sits uncovered? Usually not — and that is what Blake’s rule exists to unstick. Some tables allow it, which removes the edge case at the cost of a slightly flatter endgame.

Branching

After a double is covered, may the train split into two branches? Branching gives more open ends and suits a big table. Single-line trains make a tighter game. Both are common.

Drawing

Variation	How it plays
Draw one, then pass	The usual. One tile per turn; if it does not help, your train opens and your turn ends.
Keep drawing until you can play	Faster to unstick, but hands balloon and the boneyard empties quickly.
No drawing at all	Rare in Mexican Train, standard in block dominoes. Rounds block much sooner.

Drawing when you could have played

Some tables let you draw whenever you like, even holding a playable tile — useful if you would rather not open a train. Others forbid it. Online this is a personal setting called Safe Mode, which stops you drawing when you had a play available. Because it only affects you, one person at the table can have it on and another off.

Who starts each round

Either the previous round’s winner leads, or it is random. The winner-leads version rewards a good round; random keeps things level. Traditional rules have whoever holds the engine double start, which does not apply when the engine is set aside.

How many tiles, and how many rounds

The standard deal is 15 tiles for two to four players, 11 for five or six, and 8 for seven or eight. Plenty of families deal a flat number instead. And you need not start at the 12-12 — beginning lower is the usual way to fit the game into the evening you actually have.

Which of these are settings online

Most of them. When you create a game you choose the starting double, who leads each round, branching, both doubles rules, the double-blank penalty and the tiles per player. Those are game rules: they apply to everybody at that table and are fixed once play begins.

Safe Mode is different — it is a personal setting, yours alone, changeable mid-game. If you are unsure which is which, there is a help article on exactly that.

New to the game? Start with how to play Mexican Train.

Keep reading

• How to play Mexican Train — the whole game
• The double blank rule
• Doubles, covering and Blake’s rule
• How scoring works