When Bad Luck Strikes... and Persists

[Chriskaballa]

(Some of you regulars (read as: long-time ENBoarders) may have read a few postings I made on these very boards about 1 year ago regarding my campaign.... Well, now I'm a player with some of the same issues I had as a DM. Read on...)

I am currently in a campaign with a few of my friends. I am playing a cleric (13th level, we started at 10th). My bad luck is absolutely incredible. I have not yet hit with a touch spell, hit with melee or ranged attacks far less often than numbers dictate (this is over an average 2-3 levels' worth of combats), and my Cure spells and such, with variable parts, always fall short of averages and expectation.

In short, my luck stinks.

It's sucking all the fun out of the game for me faster than an Electrolux vacuum. It's not a one-time episode of luck, or a bad streak- it's persistent. I just don't roll low, I roll POORLY- in situations (in any game) where low is good, I tend to roll high! I can't have much fun in my character is totally ineffective, doesn't add anything to the party, and I don't get a feeling of accomplishment when the party succeeds at something, because I contributed little, if any, to the effort.

Is there anything at all I can do? How can I have fun even if I roll low? Can I improve my luck in any way? Should I ask the DM if he can do anything for me?

~~Chris

 

[Katerek]

Well, you know what they say: "If you aint cheatin', you ain't tryin'."

You could go get one of the d20's that came bundled with the Formula De game, they are numbered 11 to 20 twice. I think Formula De dice can be bought seperately as well.

As a side note...FD is a really fun game I encourage anyone to try it.

 

[Mouseferatu]

I've seen this sort of thing before myself, so I know that--law of averages aside--it happens.

I think the first and simplest question to ask is, have you tried changing dice? Some sets of dice are naturally off-center in terms of weight, thus leading them to roll in certain ways. And if you believe in such things--I don't, but YMMV--the dice themselves may just be unlucky.

 

[Mark]

(Some of you regulars (read as: long-time ENBoarders) may have read a few postings I made on these very boards about 1 year ago regarding my campaign.... Well, now I'm a player with some of the same issues I had as a DM. Read on...)

(snip)

Is there anything at all I can do? How can I have fun even if I roll low? Can I improve my luck in any way? Should I ask the DM if he can do anything for me?

~~Chris

How have you been Chris? I hope that you are doing well in your studies...

Try to enjoy the role-playing aspects of the game until your luck turns around. And with the dice, in the meantime, avoid rolling when you can and when you can't, plan for the worst and hope for the best.

 

[Katerek]

Another idea which may or may not be handy.

There used to be this girl that played with us that had a 2 yo son that loved to pester us when we played. So I would sit him on my lap and let him do all my rolling. I actually rolled better more often than not AND he quit being a distraction.

 

[Shadeus]

Mark brings up a good point. When you have a streak of bad luck like that, its fun to put it into your character! "I've been cursed by Vecna! He clearly only wants me to work touch spells with his hand..."

I've been there too. I even have in my campaign notes where I chucked a d8 into the woods when it refused to roll anything but 1s or 2s a record 12 rolls consecutively. We were 3 hp away from a TPK too at the time.

 

[Viktyr Gehrig]

Put some of your d20s in the microwave with the 20 facing up, and microwave them for four or five minutes. This won't be enough to deform them, but it'll soften them and allow the weight to distribute towards the "bottom"-- the side away from the 20, so that the 20 comes up facing upwards more often.

 

[Dagger75]

I'm in the same boat

I have the same problem and frankly these jokers on the boards will be of no help. They didn't help very much when I stated I had the very same problem,

http://enworld.cyberstreet.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=35665&highlight=dice

My solution: Use everyone elses dice, either your bad luck will wear off on them and you will all be on equal footing or you will get good luck. You will hear these people who don't have our problem complain about that solution but this is desperate times my friend.

 

[Oni]

Take the offending dice, and sacrifice them up to the gods with say a sledge hammer, or blow torch. This may or may not change your luck, but it might make you feel better. Good vibes might help you roll better, or maybe you'll scare all your other dice into acting properly (for best effect line them up and have them witness the "sacrifce").

I'm only half-kidding here...

 

[Vanye]

My girlfriend likes to "warm up" poorly performing dice by stuffing them down her shirt. Seems to work, too, as one of our friends had a sudden dramatic increase of double digit numbers on his 20 sider, and she usually roles pretty good too.