Who goes first?

Settle it and start playing

Type the players once, in the order you sit, going clockwise. Then pick whichever fits the game:

• Pick first player for most games, where play then goes around the table.
• Random turn order when the game uses a fixed order that is not seating order, or for a party game where people take turns at the front.
• Dice roll-off when the table wants to watch it happen. Ties roll again until one player is left.

After a game, "pass to the left" hands the start to the next seat, so the same person does not go first all night.

Rule books often settle this with a themed tiebreaker, like the youngest player or whoever most recently did something that suits the game. Those are fun, but the same person tends to win them every time. A random pick is the fair default when the rules leave it open.

How the pick is made

Every pick uses your browser's cryptographic random generator (crypto.getRandomValues). A random number that would not split evenly across the players is thrown away and drawn again, so the first name on the list has no edge from rounding. The turn order is a full shuffle in which every order is equally likely, and each virtual die face has the same chance. Automated tests check all three over tens of thousands of runs.

First player questions

What do rule books say about the start player?

Many name a start player, often with a playful rule tied to the game's theme, or the youngest player, or whoever last did something. Others say to choose at random, and a few say the person who lost the last game starts. If your game names a rule, use it; this page is for when it does not, or when the table would rather not argue.

Is going first an advantage?

In many games, yes, which is why some games give later players a small extra (more starting money, an extra card) to even things out. In others it barely matters. A fair random pick, then passing first player to the left each game, spreads any advantage around the table.

How does the roll-off work?

Everyone rolls one virtual die. The highest roll goes first. If two or more people tie for highest, only they roll again, and that repeats until one person is left. Every round of rolls is shown so the table can see it was fair.

What does "Next game: pass to the left" do?

It moves first player to the next name on your list. Enter the names in seating order, clockwise, and the button follows the usual habit of passing the start to the left after each game.