Dice pioneer Louis Zocchi passes away

Sketchpad · Monday at 12:56 PM

Flying Toaster said:
He is also the inventor of the 100-sided "Zocchihedron."

In the late 80s I had one of those, in lime green. It looked a bit like a golf ball and rolled like one too, taking some time to come to a full stop. Maybe someday I will find it in a box somewhere.

I had a few of those Zocchihedrons back in the day, and we'd always call them "The Golf Ball" at the table. Whenever I allowed a re-roll on a d100 roll, I used to encourage players to use it. Gave everyone else a quick break as it rolled off the table and around the room. But, man, did we have fun with it.

Life's a little less fun without Mr. Zocchi in it.

RealAlHazred · Monday at 1:03 PM

For people who didn't get a chance to meet Col. Zocchi, he was a character. If you passed by his booth and showed an interest, he'd talk your ear off for 3+ hours talking about dice. He was passionate about RPGs in a way many people just coming into the hobby aren't -- a passion borne of long-term commitment and introspection. I thought it was annoying back in the day, but I came to appreciate him as I grew up, and I'll miss him the next time I go to GenCon. I need to buy one of his Zocchihedrons -- I never got around to it earlier, he'd talked to me so long I was going to be late for my next game slot!

Zander · Monday at 1:19 PM

I was very sorry to hear of Lou Zocchi’s passing which has been confirmed by his daughter. Being in the UK, I never got to meet Lou in person, but I had the pleasure of talking with him on the phone many times and exchanging e-mails when we worked on a project together a long time ago. He was a pioneer of the gaming industry and a real character. The world is a lesser place without him.

General_Tangent · Monday at 1:26 PM

Sad news but I still have fun rolling the D100 he designed.

I remember a letter to White Dwarf in which the writer showed a distribution curve and how the die was uneven in its randomness.

I understand Lou redesigned the die after seeing the letter

Stormonu · Monday at 3:21 PM

He used to be a staple down here in Mississippi and at Coastcon. Can't tell you how many times I listened to his speech about dice - and Tegel Manor (which got me to buy it). He was quite the character, and a simple, good man. He will be greatly missed.

Not only did I get my first Zocchihedron from him, but also d30's and my first "decaider" (which glows in the dark) - I'm not sure he created the latter two, but I got my first few from him. Back in the day, the decaider (10-20-30-40-50-60-70-80-90-00) was such a novel concept, on the level of ascending AC.

Bravesteel25 · Monday at 3:35 PM

I'm sorry to hear that he passed. I got to speak with him shortly the one time I went to GenCon and I could feel his passion, not only for his wares but for gaming as a whole. The tabletop gaming hobby is diminished without his presence.

Nutation · Monday at 4:26 PM

RealAlHazred said:
For people who didn't get a chance to meet Col. Zocchi, he was a character. If you passed by his booth and showed an interest, he'd talk your ear off for 3+ hours talking about dice.

I also talked with him a few times at GenCon. I have bought many Gamescience sharp-edged dice, including d5, d14, d16, d24. I love to roll my 0-9 icosahedra and watch people's puzzled faces (d20 for damage?).

Starmaster · Monday at 7:43 PM

I got a d30 back in the 1980s. It took quite a while to stop rolling, but I loved using it any chance I got. Never got a d100 because, based upon my experience with the d30, I figured it would take 10 minutes for a d100 to stop rolling. But I definitely admired the gumption he showed in marketing a d100. Since then, I've regretted not getting a d100 back in the '80s when we would power game AD&D all through the night and into the next morning.

Lou Zocchi was definitely one of those names that you heard mentioned periodically in gaming circles and publications down through the years along with Gygax, Steve Jackson, and all the others. And there was his Gen Con presence as well.

JML · Monday at 8:13 PM

RIP, Mr. Zocchi. A life well-lived by all accounts! 91 is a pretty fine run at it. Met him at a couple of cons, always nice, especially to anyone who wanted to talk about dice!