D-Day Dice

Overview

D-Day Dice is a cooperative dice game set during the D-Day landings at Normandy on June 6, 1944. Players are Allied soldiers trying to organize units for an attack against a machine gun nest. Each player starts with a small unit and must collect resources, recruit specialists, find items, and advance up the beach sector by sector. If any player’s unit is wiped out, all players lose. Players win by storming the final Bunker together.

Components

8 double-sided Battle Maps (Exercise Tiger/Omaha Beach, Utah Beach/Gold Beach, Juno Beach/Sword Beach, Pointe-du-Hoc/Merville Battery)
4 Resource Cards with dials (1 per player, in 4 colors)
4 sets of 6 special dice each (2 Red, 2 White, 2 Blue per player)
4 decks of 13 Regular Specialist cards (1 per player)
4 player aids
4 Unit markers (1 per player)
4 regular six-sided dice (d6)
11 Unique Specialist cards
28 Item cards (10 Regular, 18 Special)
6 Vehicle cards
12 Award cards

Setup

Each player selects a Unit color and takes the corresponding Specialist deck, Unit marker, and Resource Card.
Select a Battle Map (new players should use “Exercise Tiger”).
All players place Unit markers on the Map’s starting position (usually Sector 1) with 1 chevron displayed.
Consult the Battle Map’s description for available Specialists and Items. Place available Items and Unique Specialists in the Pool (shared). Each player draws available Regular Specialist cards from their own deck.
Unavailable Items and Specialists return to the box.
Place Award cards on the table (not part of the Pool).
Note starting resources printed on the Map and record them on Resource Cards.

Turn Structure

Gameplay is simultaneous — all players complete each phase together before moving to the next.

Phase	Name	Summary
1	Roll the Dice	Roll 6 dice; lock 2 on first roll; re-roll remaining up to 2 more times
2	Upkeep	Count RWB bonuses, earn Awards, adjust Resource Cards, change Unit marker face
3	Recruit/Find	Spend Stars for 1 Specialist and/or Item Points for 1 Item; trade resources; purchase Awards
4	Move	Move forward or laterally; spend Courage to Advance; fulfill Sector requirements
5	Combat	Lose Soldiers equal to Sector DEF value plus Machine Gun Fire (if applicable)

Actions

Phase 1: Roll the Dice

Roll all 6 dice. On the 1st roll only, lock exactly 2 dice (cannot be re-rolled).
Re-roll any or all of the remaining 4 dice for the 2nd roll.
Re-roll any or all of the remaining 4 dice for the 3rd and final roll.
The locked dice can never be re-rolled. Players may discuss while rolling.
The final result is the “Final Tally.”

Die Faces:

Symbol	Effect
Skull	Cancels 1 other die of your choice (not another Skull)
Star	Used to recruit Specialists
1 Soldier	Add 1 Soldier to your Unit
2 Soldiers	Add 2 Soldiers to your Unit
Courage	Used to Advance between rows
Tool	Generates Item Points

Tool → Item Points conversion:

Tools	Item Points
1	1
2	3
3	6
4	12
5	24
6	48
Each additional	+24

Red, White & Blue (RWB) Bonuses

If 3 dice of different colors show the same result, you earn an RWB bonus (in addition to the dice results):

Triple Result	Bonus
3 Skulls	Dead Man’s Gift: +20 Item Points; Skulls don’t cancel dice
3 Stars	Leadership: Add 1 WHITE result of your choice to Final Tally (can trigger another RWB) OR another Unit gains +2 Courage
3 x 1 Soldier	Reinforcements: +4 Soldiers to your Unit AND +4 Soldiers to another Unit
3 x 2 Soldiers	Fresh Troops: +6 Soldiers
3 Courage	Battle Cry: +3 Soldiers OR ignore all Sector requirements and Courage cost when moving (Landmines still apply; Combat is normal)
3 Tools	Special Find: Find a face-down Item of your choice (still pay Item Points) OR +2 Stars

Phase 2: Upkeep

Collect all RWB bonuses and resources from the Final Tally.
Record everything on Resource Cards. All resources accumulate turn to turn.
Change Unit marker face to add 1 chevron. If already at 3 chevrons, change to the “must move” face.

Awards

Straight (1 of each result in Final Tally): Choose 1 Award card during Phase 2.
Purchase: Spend 6 Courage during Phase 3 to draw 1 Award at random.
Awards are used at the end of any Phase 1 (after Final Tally). One-time use. Max 1 Award drawn per turn.

Phase 3: Recruit Specialists / Find Items

Specialists: Spend accumulated Stars to recruit 1 Specialist per turn. Specialists count as Soldiers and have permanent abilities. If killed, they cannot be recruited again.
Items: Spend Item Points to find 1 Item per turn. Items are one-time use but there is no limit on how many can be used per turn.
Vehicles: Found like Items (cost Item Points). Permanent abilities affect all Units in the Sector. Cannot enter Bunkers or cross Landmines. Max 1 Vehicle per Unit.

Phase 4: Movement

Units may stay a maximum of 3 turns in any Sector (unless modified by Sector rules).
Movement is forward or lateral only — never backward. Units can never revisit a Sector.
Advancing (moving to a new row): Costs Courage as printed on the Map.
Sector requirements (need or sacrifice a Specialist) must be met upon entry.
Landmines: Roll 1d6 to determine Soldier losses when crossing.
If a Unit must move and cannot, it is wiped out (all players lose).

Phase 5: Combat

Each Unit loses Soldiers equal to the DEF value of their current Sector.
Machine Gun Fire: If applicable, roll the indicated number of d6. The total is additional Soldiers lost. Machine Gun Fire affects all Units in the same Sector individually.
Players choose which Soldiers (including Specialists) are lost.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

Winning: All players must reach the Bunker (final Sector). When all Units are in the Bunker, play one more full turn. If all Units survive that final Combat, players win.
Losing: If any Unit runs out of Soldiers at any time, all players lose immediately.
Entering the Bunker: Costs Courage (printed on Bunker). Any Sector requirements must be met. Units cannot stay more than 1 turn in the Bunker.

Special Rules & Edge Cases

Trading Resources: When 2+ Units share a Sector, they may trade Soldiers, Courage, Stars, Tools, Items, and Vehicles freely. Awards and Specialists (except the Messenger) cannot be traded. Trading can occur at any time, including after Machine Gun Fire rolls but before casualties.
Trading Dice (Lieutenant): Each Unit may trade exactly 1 die with 1 other Unit. Units do not need to share a Sector. Virtual results (from Sector bonuses or Leadership RWB) cannot be traded.
Sector “Can’t Stay Here”: Unit must leave during the next Phase 4.
Sector Bonuses/Penalties: Added to or subtracted from the Final Tally each turn. Bonus results have no color (cannot trigger RWB, cannot be traded via Lieutenant).
Skulls cannot cancel other Skulls.
Items that affect DEF or Machine Gun Fire affect all Units in the Sector until end of turn.

Player Reference

Resource	Source	Use
Soldiers	Die faces (1 or 2), RWB bonuses	Absorb combat losses; if 0, you lose
Stars	Die faces	Recruit Specialists
Courage	Die faces	Advance to new rows; purchase Awards (6 per Award)
Tools → Item Points	Die faces, conversion table	Find Items and Vehicles

Turn Sequence Quick Reference:

Roll 6 dice → lock 2 → re-roll up to 2 more times → Final Tally
Upkeep: record resources, RWB bonuses, Awards; advance Unit marker
Recruit 1 Specialist and/or find 1 Item; trade; purchase Awards
Move (if desired/forced); pay Courage to Advance; meet Sector requirements
Combat: lose Soldiers = Sector DEF + Machine Gun Fire