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Story Cubes

Nine dice, each face a picture instead of a number — roll them, and the room has to build one story out of whatever lands face up. It works because the images do the prompting: nobody invents a starting point from nothing, they just keep making the pictures connect.

15–30 min1–30 peopleEasyStory Cubes (set of 9)In-person onlyClassroom ✓
By Jon Zajac · Founder & Chief Icebreaker · Last updated February 19, 2024

What is Story Cubes?

Story Cubes rolls nine dice, each face a picture instead of a number, and asks the group to build one story that uses every image that lands face up. Play it solo or as a group: alone, you tell your own story start to finish; in a group, each person adds a sentence built from one of the images until all nine are accounted for.

It works because the pictures do the prompting. Nobody has to invent a starting point from nothing — the roll hands everyone a set of odd, half-connected images, and turning those into one sentence at a time is a much lower bar than free-associating a whole story out loud.

It's built for a room with real Story Cubes on hand and a few unhurried minutes — a classroom rug, a circle of chairs, a blanket at the park. Skip it for a fully remote team or a slot with no margin to spare: this needs everyone looking at the same physical dice, and passing images through a video call adds a step nobody's worked out here.

The rules

  1. Roll all nine Story Cubes onto a flat surface where everyone can see them.
  2. Give the room time to look over every image before the story starts.
  3. Interpret images literally, symbolically, or metaphorically — any reading counts.
  4. Build one story that works every image that landed face up into the plot.
  5. Add lines round robin, or let the story run freeform.
  6. The story isn't finished until every cube face has a place in it.

Before you start

  • Group size: 1 to 30. Works solo or as a group — decide which before you start, since it changes whether people take turns or write on their own.
  • A circle where every image is visible. Classroom, meeting room, park, or beach — any space works as long as everyone can see the cubes once they land.
  • Bring the Story Cubes. One set (nine dice) covers the whole activity; the images span categories like actions, voyages, clues, and enchantments.
  • Optional props. Notepads for solo writers, markers for visual aids — neither is required, but both help on longer runs.
  • Set the ground rules first. Say it before the first roll: listen fully, don't interrupt, and treat every interpretation as valid.

How to run it

  1. Introduce the activity 1 min

    Say the whole goal in one line: build one story using every image that lands face up when the cubes are rolled. Decide upfront whether the room plays solo or as a group.

  2. Roll and look 1 min

    Roll all nine Story Cubes onto a flat surface where everyone can see them, and give the room a moment to take in every image before anyone starts talking.

  3. Interpret, out loud 1 min

    Remind the group that images can be read literally, symbolically, or metaphorically — there's no wrong read, just a sentence that uses one of them.

  4. Build the story 10–20 min

    Go round robin, one sentence per image, or let it run freeform — either way, keep going until all nine images have a place in the plot.

  5. Close it out 2–5 min

    Once every image is accounted for, that's the end of the story. Sharing stories afterward is optional — ask first.

← the dice write the plot, you just narrate.

Facilitator tips

Explain the interpretation rule up frontSay literally, symbolically, or metaphorically before anyone rolls — it's the line that keeps people from freezing over a picture that doesn't obviously mean anything.
Split big groups before the cubes hit the tablePast a certain size, break into smaller circles or pairs so quieter players get more room to add a line before attention drifts.
Sharing stories stays optionalSome players would rather keep their story private. Ask, don't assume — respecting a pass keeps the activity from feeling like a performance requirement.
Add a genre or time limit once the group's warmed upA time limit or a set genre — mystery, comedy, fairy tale — turns the same nine images into a different challenge without changing a single rule.

Variations

Timed rounds

Set a limit per turn or per whole story — pace picks up and nobody stalls over one stubborn image.

Themed rounds

Agree on a genre before rolling — mystery, fairy tale, sci-fi — and the same nine cubes tell a completely different kind of story.

Competitive scoring

Add judging criteria and reward points if the room wants stakes on top of the story.

Why it works

The pictures do the promptingNobody free-associates from a blank page — the roll hands everyone a starting shape, so the very first line is already built from something on the table.
Continuity forces listeningRound robin only works if each line connects to the last, so tracking the thread is built into the format, not requested separately.
Odd images make lateral thinking normalReading a picture literally, symbolically, or metaphorically is baked into the rules, so linking unrelated images together feels like the game instead of a stretch.
HELLO, MY NAME ISJon

"I like that the only real prep is owning the cubes. Roll them, and suddenly a room full of strangers is building one story together, each reading the same picture a different way."

Jon Zajac · Founder & Chief Icebreaker

Reflection questions

For classrooms and trainings that want the debrief — these turn a round of stories into an actual conversation about the process.

  1. What was your favorite image or moment from the stories we shared?Gets the group naming favorites out loud — a quick highlight reel of what just happened.
  2. How did it feel to interpret the dice images and build them into your story?Surfaces how comfortable the room is with improvising, which is useful for planning what to try next time.
  3. Did any of the images give you trouble? Which ones, and why?Points at real sticking points, so you can adjust the interpretation guidance for the next round.
  4. How did Story Cubes affect the group's collaboration and communication?Ties the game back to why you ran it — the answer is the actual case for doing it again.
  5. Would you play Story Cubes again? Why or why not?A quick temperature check on whether this one earns a repeat spot in the rotation.

If this fits, so will these

Activity

Finish the Story

A story opener gets read aloud, then everyone adds a line to keep it going.

Activity

Two-Word Story

The collaborative story idea, cut down to two words a turn.

Activity

Sentence Starter

One line to start, then the group runs with it.

Activity

Connecting Stories

A different shape for the same group-storytelling idea.

Activity

Conducted Story

Segment by segment instead of sentence by sentence — same idea, longer turns.

Activity

Mystery Box

A random object in the middle of the circle decides where the story turns next.

Activity

Team Story

The same shared-story format, framed for teams.

Activity

Story Starters

A bank of openers for building a story as a group.

Activity

Tall Tales Story

Group storytelling, exaggeration encouraged.

Jon Zajac

Founder & Chief Icebreaker

I started IcebreakerSpot because I believe strong connections are the foundation of successful teams. This site exists to make it easy to find and share the icebreakers and team-building activities that build trust, spark collaboration, and help groups do great things together.

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