So I just bought a set of precision d6s. They are clunky, huge things that require special rolling surfaces and truly are inconvenient for a tabletop game. I will probably pick up a set of precision backgammon dice after this, but the question is: why? In tabletop circles dice are front and center in a lot of games. They are a quick way to get a random roll and a lot of superstition, ritual, pomp and thought goes into them. My collection ranges through a wide gambit of designs and materials from iron alloys mined from meteorites to simple polymers.
I've never been one to punish dice or to get too obsessed over the minute differences in face size that can make a die stray from true random, however it is unquestionably an existent drive within the tabletop community. I see people die testing at the table before rolling, I see all sorts of rituals, superstitions and etiquette evolve from table interactions over what are essentially shaped pieces of plastic. This has always fascinated me. In history, dice were and are extremely iconic cultural symbols. A d20 is almost universally accepted as a symbol of tabletop gaming. The piped d6 is nearly universally seen as a symbol of chance.
Games of chance have always had a high place in society. The chivaric code of knights only ever necessitated one type of debt be payed: the debt of honor, or in modern parlance gambling debts. The idea that (G/g)od(s) controlled the outcome of the dice lead to the implements being used widely in games of honor within the nobility. Backgammon, Parcheesi and the Royal Game of Ur where all developed from this notion. Then they transcended class lines.
Games of dice have been used for most of recorded history, evolving from knuckle-bones and being easily transportable and obtainable by the masses. Games and amusements evolved. Iconic phrases like "The die is cast." (Alea iacta est) arose from their prevalence in society. Given this long history and ancient connection, the level of veneration and superstition at the game table almost makes sense.
Empires have risen and fallen by the toss of the dice, fortunes made and lost. Heroes rise and fall. Even in our age of reason we have not moved past the importance of dice. My precision d6s were machined to tolerances that would not be out of place in a rocket lab at NASA. These specifications are legally mandated in order to ensure the fairest dice rolls possible in legal casinos. The amount of physics and chemical knowledge that is required to ensure the perfectly uniform and perfectly weighted center of these dice is truly astounding. When rolled properly these are the fairest dice you will ever probably get your hands on.... but that fairness is realistically only seen in the long run. With the hundreds of rolls that a pair of dice will see in a casino, the statistical spread from a cheep pair of game dice would likely be noticeable. However, keep in mind that casinos operate on margins of probability as thin as 1.4% in these sort of games.
The dice at your game table? Well, if you have more than one set and they are not visibly deformed you will likely never see the statistical bias of your dice. With the frequency that I pick up a new die set, or get lazy and ask to use someone else's the probability of the innate bias of a single dice affecting my long game becomes asymptotic. In fact, compared to a single pair of precision d6s, the mess of polysets that I use will, across the course of play, be /more/ fair. And yet...
Even before I ponied up the big bucks for machined d6s, I owned not one but two pairs of some of the first casting of Gamescience dice. These re dice that forgo the usual tumble polish process of rpg dice from manufacturers like Chessex. The appeal of these dice is that they have, on average, more uniform faces and diameters. This makes them fairer dice. However, there is really no fundamental difference between a toss with game-science dice and a toss with the competition. You will only see a pattern emerge after hundreds of tosses and even then it will be a minimal increase in probability. The idea of a true random die is in practical since extremely, extremely abstract.
And I want it.
I can rationally tell you that these dice make no statistical difference for the small number of rolls we put them though. I can rationally explain it to myself and I, for the most part, accept it. Yet, here I am with a set of precision dice that cost more than ten full polysets, absolutely giddy that they represent something that is mathematically fair. That abstract notion that I will never personally be able to verify gives me a pleasure that seems entirely and utterly unique to tabletop gaming. Even roll20.net made a stupidly huge investment to ensure as true random rolls as possible: http://blog.roll20.net/post/80684919470/data-delve-dev-blog-1-introducing-quantumroll
So, here is a tribute to that undefinable allure. That near universal tabletop quest. Let us raise a tankard of ale (Romulan if you have it) and sing a toast to the pursuit of chaos!
TL;DR:
Lets share dice stories. :3
I've never been one to punish dice or to get too obsessed over the minute differences in face size that can make a die stray from true random, however it is unquestionably an existent drive within the tabletop community. I see people die testing at the table before rolling, I see all sorts of rituals, superstitions and etiquette evolve from table interactions over what are essentially shaped pieces of plastic. This has always fascinated me. In history, dice were and are extremely iconic cultural symbols. A d20 is almost universally accepted as a symbol of tabletop gaming. The piped d6 is nearly universally seen as a symbol of chance.
Games of chance have always had a high place in society. The chivaric code of knights only ever necessitated one type of debt be payed: the debt of honor, or in modern parlance gambling debts. The idea that (G/g)od(s) controlled the outcome of the dice lead to the implements being used widely in games of honor within the nobility. Backgammon, Parcheesi and the Royal Game of Ur where all developed from this notion. Then they transcended class lines.
Games of dice have been used for most of recorded history, evolving from knuckle-bones and being easily transportable and obtainable by the masses. Games and amusements evolved. Iconic phrases like "The die is cast." (Alea iacta est) arose from their prevalence in society. Given this long history and ancient connection, the level of veneration and superstition at the game table almost makes sense.
Empires have risen and fallen by the toss of the dice, fortunes made and lost. Heroes rise and fall. Even in our age of reason we have not moved past the importance of dice. My precision d6s were machined to tolerances that would not be out of place in a rocket lab at NASA. These specifications are legally mandated in order to ensure the fairest dice rolls possible in legal casinos. The amount of physics and chemical knowledge that is required to ensure the perfectly uniform and perfectly weighted center of these dice is truly astounding. When rolled properly these are the fairest dice you will ever probably get your hands on.... but that fairness is realistically only seen in the long run. With the hundreds of rolls that a pair of dice will see in a casino, the statistical spread from a cheep pair of game dice would likely be noticeable. However, keep in mind that casinos operate on margins of probability as thin as 1.4% in these sort of games.
The dice at your game table? Well, if you have more than one set and they are not visibly deformed you will likely never see the statistical bias of your dice. With the frequency that I pick up a new die set, or get lazy and ask to use someone else's the probability of the innate bias of a single dice affecting my long game becomes asymptotic. In fact, compared to a single pair of precision d6s, the mess of polysets that I use will, across the course of play, be /more/ fair. And yet...
Even before I ponied up the big bucks for machined d6s, I owned not one but two pairs of some of the first casting of Gamescience dice. These re dice that forgo the usual tumble polish process of rpg dice from manufacturers like Chessex. The appeal of these dice is that they have, on average, more uniform faces and diameters. This makes them fairer dice. However, there is really no fundamental difference between a toss with game-science dice and a toss with the competition. You will only see a pattern emerge after hundreds of tosses and even then it will be a minimal increase in probability. The idea of a true random die is in practical since extremely, extremely abstract.
And I want it.
I can rationally tell you that these dice make no statistical difference for the small number of rolls we put them though. I can rationally explain it to myself and I, for the most part, accept it. Yet, here I am with a set of precision dice that cost more than ten full polysets, absolutely giddy that they represent something that is mathematically fair. That abstract notion that I will never personally be able to verify gives me a pleasure that seems entirely and utterly unique to tabletop gaming. Even roll20.net made a stupidly huge investment to ensure as true random rolls as possible: http://blog.roll20.net/post/80684919470/data-delve-dev-blog-1-introducing-quantumroll
So, here is a tribute to that undefinable allure. That near universal tabletop quest. Let us raise a tankard of ale (Romulan if you have it) and sing a toast to the pursuit of chaos!
TL;DR:
Lets share dice stories. :3
