NEWS

Dice superstitions

  • 234 Replies
  • 69978 Views

FastJack

  • *
  • Administrator
  • Prime Runner
  • *****
  • Posts: 6367
  • Kids these days...
« on: <09-22-10/1407:55> »
So, it was mentioned on the Horror Stories thread that a discussion about dice superstitions should be started.

Ask, and ye shall receive.

To start off, I go this neat 'scrap-booking'/hobby case for a Christmas a few years back from the ex (before she was ex) and I've been keeping all my gaming stuff and dice in these trays. I group them by the set they belong to, making sure sets don't mix (unless it was a mixed set to begin with). The only ones that do mix on a general basis are the mini-dice, but that's because I can fit multiple dice in a single slot.

I've only got two main superstitions, though. The first is that if I use dice, they have to be of the same set. The only exception for this was for a Changeling character I played in Eberron where it made more sense to my superstition that every die should be from a different set. So whether it be a set of polyhedrons for D&D or a bunch of d6's for Shadowrun/BattleTech, they gotta match in style.

The second thing is that when the dice ain't rollin', they're showin'. In other words, if I'm not actively using them at the moment, I got them all sitting there showing the highest result on the particular die. The way I see it, if they sit like that, they get used to having that number show (and gravity pulls on it, subtly altering the dice to 'pull' to that number).

What about yours?

The_Gun_Nut

  • *
  • Ace Runner
  • ****
  • Posts: 1583
« Reply #1 on: <09-22-10/1430:08> »
I really don't have any.  I like to keep my dice together, but that's more possessiveness than anything else.

Oh, BTW, if you want to play SR for any length of time, invest in some casino dice and ditch the rounded edges/pips out dice.  Your characters will thank you for it.
There is no overkill.

Only "Open fire" and "I need to reload."

Dead Monky

  • *
  • Omae
  • ***
  • Posts: 746
  • I demand tacos!
« Reply #2 on: <09-22-10/1431:49> »
I don't have any either.  I'm not a superstitious person.

Usda Beph

  • *
  • Omae
  • ***
  • Posts: 765
  • aka Black Angus
« Reply #3 on: <09-22-10/1432:36> »
Apparently The Doomed One had an issue with his dice once... He has a d6 cut in half in his dice bag which he leaves on the table to "keep his dice in line" :o

In a CBT game I needed 5's to hit a Mech once... I missed 6 times!
Yeah, I'm A Minotaur! You Gotta Beef with that?
I'm a Minotaur not a bully!
I studied at the Rocky Mountain Culinary School.I specialized in Seafood.
My Dad worked out of el Toro In New Mexico.

The_Gun_Nut

  • *
  • Ace Runner
  • ****
  • Posts: 1583
« Reply #4 on: <09-22-10/1436:41> »
Well, I don't have a superstition, but this guy I played Battletech either did or thought I had loaded dice.

I needed 10s to hit his mech with my machine guns.  I head shotted him with them 3 turns in a row.  He threatend to crush my dice in a vice, although with the look on his face he might have been speaking about something else, entirely...
There is no overkill.

Only "Open fire" and "I need to reload."

Dead Monky

  • *
  • Omae
  • ***
  • Posts: 746
  • I demand tacos!
« Reply #5 on: <09-22-10/1440:02> »
You just have to love the vagaries of probability.  And the occasional slight imbalances that can come with cheaply made dice.

Usda Beph

  • *
  • Omae
  • ***
  • Posts: 765
  • aka Black Angus
« Reply #6 on: <09-22-10/1440:42> »
I once had an "Impact Resistant" d20. It was doing me wrong at a table one night in the barracks. I grabbed my wrist rocket and determined that Impact resistant is relative to the surface impacting on (cinder block wall) and the velocity which it impacts! the Die glitched on impact.
Yeah, I'm A Minotaur! You Gotta Beef with that?
I'm a Minotaur not a bully!
I studied at the Rocky Mountain Culinary School.I specialized in Seafood.
My Dad worked out of el Toro In New Mexico.

Chaotic Insane

  • *
  • Omae
  • ***
  • Posts: 316
« Reply #7 on: <09-22-10/1442:10> »
I have enough trouble keeping 10 small d6 in my hands when I'm rolling them. o_0;; Casino dice are not small.

My dice HAVE to match. Period. I am ridiculously OCD about that. XD I only have 7 white/clear d6 so I had to keep borrowing Dad's and Doom's... and I wouldn't even touch the colored ones. XD I have to either use the clear crystals, or the white minis, or the blue and gold, or the two bone d6 when I'm playing D&D. If I need more of a particular die I'll just re-roll them as needed.

They have to be in a straight line with the high number facing up, and if I have more than one set on me, the set I'm not using HAS to be put away... Though that more stemmed out of losing so many damn dice to couch monsters.

Touching the dice without permission will get you slapped. No negotiations. Unless you're like... helping me pick up wayward ones or something. I'm not THAT bitchy, contrary to popular opinion.

When I'm adjusting dice pools, the dice that rolled ones and twos get banished out of the dice tray first. I also will change up the base 10 dice I keep out about halfway through the session, more if they're sucking.

My dice have been threatened with fire, and I've thrown one set of d6 out after going 7 hours without hitting a damn thing in battletech, only to break the streak by failing my piloting skill roll, falling over, and then critting myself in the head. I would have done much more horrible things to them with all the rest lined up to watch had I had more time.
"People say I hate the living. It's not true. I just happen to see the potential inside all people; those great things anyone can do if they aren't trapped in their own consciousness and morals. And when I unlock that potential, death is the side-effect. I can't help that." - Dr. McMourning

TranKirsaKali

  • *
  • Chummer
  • **
  • Posts: 148
« Reply #8 on: <09-22-10/1450:38> »
I use dice from the same set as well.  I have also been known to buy dice for a character and only use them with that character.  For one character it took me 6 years to find the right dice for her then the game died!  LOL

The_Gun_Nut

  • *
  • Ace Runner
  • ****
  • Posts: 1583
« Reply #9 on: <09-22-10/1451:01> »
Casino dice are the truest rolling dice you are going to see at a game table.  I highly recommend them.

The dice with the pips out roll low numbers more often than high numbers.  This isn't superstition, this is science fact.  When you dig the pips out, the mass of each facing changes slightly.  The more pips, the less mass that facing has.  And because of momentum:

P = m * v

the more mass a side has, the more momentum that side has.  This makes it more likely to rebound away from the table.  If the die has rounded edges, then it requires less energy to roll over or bounce to another face.

Factoring all this in, the "6" face has more mass taken from it, therefore it has less momentum => less likely to roll over => more likely to stop with the "1" face up.  The same can be said of the "2" and "3" face, but these become less pronounced as the difference in momentum of each face pair becomes smaller and smaller.

Of course, if you are using faces with numbers instead of pips, one has to calculate the mass removed from each face at that point.  That is a lot more calculation, and not terribly useful, as the difference in momentum is likely to be very small.  Since pips are the most popular D6 style, however, it is something to consider.
There is no overkill.

Only "Open fire" and "I need to reload."

FastJack

  • *
  • Administrator
  • Prime Runner
  • *****
  • Posts: 6367
  • Kids these days...
« Reply #10 on: <09-22-10/1452:44> »
Well, one friend has been known to stop on the bridge crossing the Susquehanna river on his way home from a game. They sleeps with the fishes now. He's also been know to bring a hammer with him to games to make public demonstrations of problem dice.

deek

  • *
  • Newb
  • *
  • Posts: 31
« Reply #11 on: <09-22-10/1452:49> »
I'm also a "If its not rollin', its showin'" type.

And I don't like other people touching my dice, which, since I always have them showing high numbers, they tend to do.  Either they flick them, flip them or toss things from across the table, on occasion, to move my dice.

I do have a d20 that I purchased at least 15 years ago.  When I started playing again back 4 years or so ago, I found it and used it.  In fact, last Monday I was running a DnD game and it rolled three 20s out of 4 rolls, at one point.  Even when I don't play a game that needs it, I like to bring it along and keep it on the table.

Chaotic Insane

  • *
  • Omae
  • ***
  • Posts: 316
« Reply #12 on: <09-22-10/1454:57> »
Oh! And the dice forts. A friend of mine would construct the most elaborate dice forts between rounds, but then have to play dice jenga to get out which one she was going to roll.
"People say I hate the living. It's not true. I just happen to see the potential inside all people; those great things anyone can do if they aren't trapped in their own consciousness and morals. And when I unlock that potential, death is the side-effect. I can't help that." - Dr. McMourning

Dead Monky

  • *
  • Omae
  • ***
  • Posts: 746
  • I demand tacos!
« Reply #13 on: <09-22-10/1455:11> »
Gun Nut, the changes in mass you're talking about are minuscule.  And the changes in momentum are likely to be very small.  It's doubtful that over a decent sized sample base, casino dice would roll out noticeably more high numbers.

And the OCDs among you would hate my dice.  They're all randomly assorted.  I don't ever buy collections, I just pick ones I like.

The_Gun_Nut

  • *
  • Ace Runner
  • ****
  • Posts: 1583
« Reply #14 on: <09-22-10/1457:43> »
They produce significant, notable changes in the odds of rolling a specific number.

For example, the worst offenders are the small, rounded, pipped D6's, which roll 1's approximately 30% of the time.

Larger dice (rounded and pipped) roll 1's approximately 25% of the time.
There is no overkill.

Only "Open fire" and "I need to reload."