Can't Stop Boardgame - Calculator for Odds
Can’t Stop is a song by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Can’t Stop is also the name of a competitive boardgame that lures in boardgamers with the addictive mechanic of double-or-nothing, just like going to Vegas.
Rules
The objective is to be the firstplayer to complete three columns, numbered 2 - 12. On a player’s turn, the player rolls four dices and rearranges them into any set of two pairs and takes the sum of each pair (let’s call these sums A and B). The player then takes their temporary marker and moves it up one higher from their previous permanent positions in A and B. The player then has the option of rolling the four dice again, or locking in their gains for the turn. If they choose to roll again, they can continue moving along three different columns (A, B, or C), or if they have no legal move, they lose all their progress this turn! The joy in this game is the odds of advancing are generally greater than 75%, so every player has to balance their odds of continuing against keeping all they’ve already achieved in the turn.
It’s a game that definitely makes a lot more sense when demonstrated than explained. Boardgamearena has an excellent tutorial on how to play.
Calculator
So where does the calculator come in? Well, throughout the course of the game, columns are completed by you and other players, which means that rolls with that column number are no longer safe. Furthermore, you could be limited on your turn where you have already placed temporary markers. The calculator calculates the odds of you rolling a set of 4 die where the placement is not legal.
The calculator was made with care in VBA with a retro colour scheme suggested by Coolors.co to match the 80’s original publishing of the game. Please ensure you choose ‘Enable Contents’ when you first open the file.
