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Questions tagged [dice]

This tag refers to questions specifically about dice themselves, covering topics such as rolling, construction, sizes etc. It *is not* a meta tag for adding to any game-with-dice question (including identify this game with dice; the identify-this-game tag is sufficient)

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28 votes
2 answers
5k views

What is this weird d12 for?

So I won these d12s at an arcade only to realise they're not normal. Instead of having 1-12 on them, they have some array of numbers from 3-8 or 4-9. There were red, blue and white ones, and I don't ...
Deathly's user avatar
  • 281
25 votes
1 answer
5k views

What game did these black and yellow dice come from?

I found these in Australia: A set of six six-sided dice, black with yellow markings. The dice are identical. The sides are the numerals 1, 2, and 3; an unfilled pip and a filled pip; and a weird ...
Ryan Veeder's user avatar
25 votes
4 answers
32k views

Is there a standard way to number the faces of a 20-sided die?

I hold a 20-sided die (icosahedron) in my hand. As with any other die, to help fairness, values on opposing sides sum to twice the mean (as explained here). I know that in a "normal" 6-sided die, ...
Bach's user avatar
  • 353
24 votes
2 answers
110k views

What is the special die with pictograms in Monopoly used for?

I think that I have a pretty standard version Monopoly, which looks exactly like I see in the Web It has two white dice with values 1 to 6 and one red with values 1,2,3 and 3 pictures. I haven't seen ...
Val's user avatar
  • 343
24 votes
1 answer
3k views

Where is this six-sided die from

Gaming with my daughter's boyfriend, I noticed this die. I asked him about it, but his tl;dr was it was a found die, and he has no idea what it's for or from. Any ideas? I do note that 3 & 4 are ...
Longspeak's user avatar
  • 453
22 votes
1 answer
3k views

What game uses dice with compass point arrows, forbidden signs, explosions, arrows and targeting reticles?

A while ago I bought a few bags of factory 2nd dice. Out of those bags, there are a handful of dice that I have not been able to immediately identify. Some I have later been able to identify through ...
Liam Morris's user avatar
22 votes
2 answers
1k views

Can anyone tell me what game these dice come from?

There are 7 d6 and a d10. Sides contain horseshoes, crossbows, swords, wings, faces, etc.
Jason Templeman's user avatar
20 votes
4 answers
9k views

Why do the opposing sides of a D20 generally add up to 21

Most D20s I own (with the exception of poorly made foam ones or MTG spin-down dice) seem to have all opposing sides add up to 21 (20 + 1, 15 + 6, etc). Why is this? Who started this?
St. John Johnson's user avatar
18 votes
2 answers
4k views

Why are the pips on dice organized the way they are?

Is there any particular reason why the pips (the little dots) on a die are arranged in those patterns (3 is a diagonal line, 6 is two horizontal lines, etc.)? And also why any face plus its opposite ...
user45266's user avatar
  • 536
17 votes
1 answer
2k views

Where is this die from?

The die appeared in my old room, lying perfectly on a table, and nobody knows where it came from. I would be thankful if you would help me identify this die.
Somebody's user avatar
  • 171
14 votes
5 answers
4k views

What dice to use in a game that revolves around triangles?

I am currently in the process of prototyping a game that revolves around triangles. I want my players to roll 3d4 dice to move, but am worried about the effects it might have vs. a traditional 2d6 ...
TheCentaur's user avatar
14 votes
1 answer
25k views

What board game does this die belong to?

I found a red and black die in my pocket. The sides are a T, a Roman column, two people, a clock with x2, one person, and another T; each image is bordered by a circle. I have no idea what it's from; ...
Annamarie's user avatar
  • 141
13 votes
4 answers
3k views

Playing Settlers of Catan with a D12 instead of 2D6

Has anyone tried this? Does it break the game? Does it make it easier/quicker? Assuming a 1 gave no resources to anyone and a 7 still invoked the robber how different a game would this make Settlers?
Omar Kooheji's user avatar
  • 1,313
13 votes
4 answers
2k views

Fairness of Cowry Shells as Dice

I just learned about the use of cowry shells as binary dice and find the idea enchanting. However, I'm concerned about the apparent "fairness" of the dice. Obviously, because there are multiple ...
JAMalcolmson's user avatar
12 votes
5 answers
6k views

Why do people call an n-sided die a "d-n"?

e.g. "d6", for a 6-sided die. Put the letter after the number, and that makes sense. That's an abbreviation for "six-dimensional". When you've got a tuple, for example, you just ...
user avatar
11 votes
1 answer
555 views

What game is this with colored tokens, a dice, and what looks like a spoon?

I bought it secondhand and it came with one red die with a devil, a woman, a man, a club, a fan, and a wooden paddle, and each side is numbered. It also came with 6 red chips, 5 yellow chips, and 4 ...
Erin's user avatar
  • 111
11 votes
0 answers
501 views

What is this d6 for? Faces are 0, 0, 1, 5, 5, and 6

I found a strange d6. It has two "blank" faces, one "1" face, two "5" faces, and one "6" face. Here's a couple photos: It was in a very old and battered ...
William's user avatar
  • 211
10 votes
1 answer
3k views

What game uses dice with sides powers of 2?

I have one die. It has six sides marked 2, 4, 8, 16, 32 and 64. Does anyone know what game uses this?
Mayabella's user avatar
  • 101
10 votes
8 answers
808 views

Is there a method that gets beneficial diminishing returns when adding more dice, yet stays random?

Short Story: I want to find a dice system where multiple dice are rolled and compared at once, but rolling more dice is only slightly more effective than rolling fewer dice, while still being fairly ...
Man_Over_Game's user avatar
10 votes
1 answer
427 views

Which game do these dice belong to?

I found these dice, but I dont know which game they belong to... any help is appreciated. The red dice has only D's (in yellow) and 0's on it; The green dice has -2, -1, 0, 1, 2 on it and only one 3 ...
SCPUGGLE's user avatar
  • 101
10 votes
1 answer
1k views

Balance of Numbers on dice

Six-sided dice traditionally have opposite faces adding to a constant, and this tradition is carried over (unquestioningly, it seems) to other dice. Is there a good reason for it? Why wouldn't you ...
Anton Sherwood's user avatar
8 votes
1 answer
890 views

What game has this weird 12 sided die with clouds, a bug, a pear and other stuff on it?

I found this unusual and hilarious die. I have no clue what it could be from. On the 12 faces I see these 4 particular shapes: a lady bug or beetle a vest or blouse a creepy clown face a partly eaten ...
Octopus's user avatar
  • 283
8 votes
3 answers
511 views

Does die unfairness visibly influence real-world games?

I'm thinking about designing some custom dice, and the easiest way to prototype would just be to put stickers/paint on wooden cubes. Does their fairness (clearly imperfect, especially so with ...
Hypergardens's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
534 views

What game? Matching dice with two each of d4, d6, d8, and d10

I bought this game at gen con in 2015. It is not dissimilar to Yahtzee or Farkle. I'd given it to my grandmother as a gift, but she has misplaced it. You have two four-sided dice, two six-sided dice, ...
goodguy5's user avatar
  • 271
7 votes
2 answers
1k views

In Elder Sign, after rolling, can I do both - complete a task AND use any dice previously secured by a spell to complete a second task?

For example: I have secured dice by a spell which can complete a full task on the adventure, but, it is an adventure with an order arrow, and the secured dice are needed for the last task. Now I roll ...
user7272's user avatar
  • 141
7 votes
1 answer
317 views

6 / 8 / 10 / 12 Sided Dice Identification

dice Any help with what these dice might go to? Can't find them in the dice ID questions here or anywhere online. The 16 six sided dice show most of the symbols found on these dice. The 3 larger six ...
trangert418's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
391 views

Unknown Dice Game

Does anyone know what this game is? My wife picked up 2 of these shakers and I cannot identify the game. Thanks in advance!
Goose's user avatar
  • 73
6 votes
3 answers
2k views

What is this die for?

I came across a strange green die. I'm wondering if anybody knew what it was from. As you can see, the one on the die is replaced with an odd symbol.
user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
1k views

Can experts roll dice with non-uniform distribution?

Is it possible to roll a fair, n-sided die with a controlled throw such that a particular face is landed on with a probability higher than 1/n? The golden touch craps claims that he can teach you ...
Cohensius's user avatar
  • 4,480
6 votes
1 answer
337 views

What game uses dice with shields, fleur-de-lis and rapier hilts?

A while ago I bought some dice from the "discount dice jar" of mismatched dice at my local games store. The store personnel claim to have no idea where these dice came from. From what I can gather, ...
IvanSanchez's user avatar
6 votes
3 answers
859 views

Does this dice mechanic exist in other games and does it have any drawbacks?

Forgive me if this is an obvious question: I've only just started looking at board game design, so I'm still learning of the different game mechanics. I have a concept for a dice mechanic and I as ...
Dre's user avatar
  • 161
6 votes
3 answers
1k views

Where can I find D4 dice that are truncated tetrahedrons?

The points are truncated (so it technically has 8 sides). The die cannot come to rest on these small, truncated, sides, which have the opposite large side number printed on their face. These seem ...
DieGuy's user avatar
  • 71
6 votes
1 answer
995 views

Does this have an official name and rule set?

At work during lunch break, me and my colleagues often play a game using a cup and poker dice. We use five poker dice, which have the traditional faces (9, 10, jack, queen, king, ace). Contrary to ...
G_H's user avatar
  • 161
5 votes
1 answer
422 views

Which game does this die belong to?

My brother found a d6 die that had numbers 50, 100, 200, 500, 50 and 200 instead of normal 1-6. Which game is this die from?
Juha Partanen's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
2k views

What game is this die from?

I have found a die. The faces depict Fire, a Sheep, a Lock, a Footprint, an "L", and a Magnet. What game is it from?
Nathanael hines's user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
441 views

What game do these dice go to?

I remember that these dice went to a specific game that we played growing up. (I was born in '75.) But that is all I can remember!
Jennifer Harding's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
270 views

Does this mining mechanic add genuine choice to my game?

To be concise, I am designing a game based on resource/risk/conflict management. Units will be carrying around several piles of resources, which also power and boost actions like movement, attacking ...
Hypergardens's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
184 views

Can anyone identify this die with an 'a', a cheese wedge, a movie camera, a G-clef, a coffee cup and a moustache?

We have a random die, probably from a trivia game but we're not sure. Does anyone recognize it?
gbonehead's user avatar
  • 153
5 votes
3 answers
1k views

Implementing a map exploration mechanic cheaply

I'm building a game in which players explore and steal from a castle. There needs to be an element of surprise and risk, so I've been considering a tile-based system like that used in Carcassonne. ...
Mitch D's user avatar
  • 183
5 votes
1 answer
445 views

What do the sides of the movement dice in Runebound look like?

I lost my movement dice from Runebound. So I am trying to figure out what is on the different sides so I can use a normal D6. Anyone have images of the different sides or can give me a list of what is ...
AquaAlex's user avatar
  • 153
5 votes
1 answer
492 views

Re-rolling secured red/yellow dice in Elder Sign?

It's clear from the rules that any player can use the red/yellow dice secured by a spell during their turn for resolving a task without using an Add red/yellow die Cards' effects. The rule also says, ...
user7272's user avatar
  • 141
4 votes
1 answer
15k views

Usual size for D6 dice?

Whilst looking for new dice I have noticed that the sizes differ. What is the standard size of D6 dice in table top, card, and ball games? My assumption is at least 15mm add it seems to be the ...
Terry's user avatar
  • 257
4 votes
1 answer
626 views

What board game is this die from?

It just appeared on the floor in my house and I have no clue where it came from. My kids moved out over a decade ago. It has these words on the sides - REVERSE, WILD, ANY TWO, END (gold background), ...
Kimberly D's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
384 views

What game does this black die belong to?

Bought a house and found this die in the backyard. The icon is in the spot where the 1 would go. This has peaked my curiosity and have tried to search google image but have had no luck. I also thought ...
Paco Rich's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
364 views

Dice with same letter on each side

I would like to surprise somebody by spelling out a phrase in Boggle. When we start playing, they will instantly recognize the phrase. When we have play in the past, the other person is virtually ...
bill999's user avatar
  • 181
4 votes
2 answers
16k views

Are there any dice games you can play with a standard 7-die set? [closed]

Are there any dice games that you can play with a standard role-playing 7-die set (d4, d6, d8, d10, d%, d12, d20)? Maybe you have some time to kill before your tabletop session starts, or during a ...
redlamp's user avatar
  • 169
4 votes
0 answers
1k views

What's the (Dutch) name of this "push your luck" dice game?

My wife and her family introduced a game to me that they know (in Dutch) as "knobbelen". It seems similar to the game of 5000s(in Dutch). In this game, each player throws three dice (d6) ...
SQB's user avatar
  • 1,598
3 votes
4 answers
854 views

What's the most intuitive way to use a die for a pass/fail test?

I'm working on a board game for general, non-gamer audiences. (Think people who have played Monopoly and Uno, but not Risk or Settlers of Catan.) Sometimes the player faces a test with only two ...
Joe's user avatar
  • 3,445
3 votes
2 answers
914 views

How is the die for Cat Tower configured?

I just bought Cat Tower yesterday and the die came unlabeled with the stickers to be applied to each of the 6 faces. Unfortunately, it gave no indication as to how to apply the stickers. Based upon a ...
demongolem's user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
817 views

What is the optimal strategy for deciding dice to reroll when trying to reach a target value?

Let's say that I have N dice (standard d6) and I'm trying to reach a value of x or higher. I roll all of the dice once and I don't get my target value. I can do one reroll and can freely choose ...
dsollen's user avatar
  • 131