Domino is a classic game of chance and strategy that uses dot-marked tiles. The tiles are stacked on end in long lines and if one domino is tipped over it triggers the next domino to tip over and so on. This type of chain reaction is the origin of the phrase, “the domino effect.”
The domino game has been played for centuries. It has spawned a variety of games and has influenced other board and card games. Today, domino is played both online and offline in many ways. The digital versions of the game offer many more options and challenges than traditional domino games. These digital versions can be played alone or with a partner and many of them offer different difficulty levels and variations on the rules of the game.
In a traditional domino game, players alternate turns playing one domino from their hand to the boneyard. The first player to play a domino of the required value wins the game. The value of a domino is determined by the number and color of dots on each side, also known as pips. The value of a domino can range from six pips to none at all or blank. A domino that has more pips is usually considered heavier than a lighter tile with fewer pips.
Many different materials have been used to make dominoes, including silver lip ocean pearl oyster shell (mother of pearl), ivory or a dark hardwood such as ebony with contrasting black or white pips. Other domino sets have been made out of stone (e.g., marble or granite); metals such as brass or pewter; ceramic clay; glass and even crystal. These sets have a more unique look than wooden or polymer dominoes and can be more expensive.
While Domino is a mercenary, she has maintained a close working relationship with Cable. During a mission in Uruguay that went wrong, Domino was assaulted by Prime Sentinels and had a neural inhibitor planted at the base of her skull that interfered with her ability to react quickly to threats. This robbed her of her fighting prowess and she left X-Force, broke up with Cable and returned to her mercenary work.
When Earth was overlapped with Reality-295 during the Age of Apocalypse, Domino found herself paired with her Six Pack teammate, Garrison Kane, who became her co-leader after the other members were killed. During that period, she helped restructure X-Force and investigated a murder committed by her feral former Six Pack teammate Grizzly. She was then approached by mutant Jesse Aaronson who asked for her help in finding his brother, and she agreed.
When most people think of the domino effect, they envision things that fall over due to one thing causing another to topple. However, this is a very limited use of the phenomenon. The real power of the domino is its ability to knock over things that are much larger than it is itself. University of British Columbia physicist Lorne Whitehead proved this in a 1983 demonstration, where he set up 13 dominoes that were about one-and-a-half times their size.