It's great how a thread about anecdotes of great moments in gaming turns into an argument over the philosophy behind the dice rolls.
Okay,
Rechan, I'll throw one in just for you.
Traveller game, District 268, Spinward Marches. Free trader, captained by my character, with a hold full of gems and computer parts - very high value, sucked up literally all of our spec capital. If anything happens to this cargo, we're ruined.
We emerge from jump space and are hailed by what appears to be a patrol cruiser of the planetary navy - at least that's how they're announcing themselves as they direct us to permit them to board for inspection. My character, Captain Hauser, tries to put them off: we have a possible contaminant on board, can you inspect us in port instead?
No dice.
At this time our ship was equipped with two triple turrets, one all of sandcasters, one with a pair of beam lasers and a missle launcher. A Type T patrol cruiser has four triple turrets. It also has triple our acceleration. We've just come out of jump space, so we don't have the fuel to escape by jumping away. We're thoroughly outgunned and we can't run away; moreover an
El-Kay usually carries a dozen or so additional personnel so we're likely outmanned as well.
If this goes south, it goes south fast and in a blaze of light and heat.
Our gunners take up position in their turrets, and I load the gunnery programs, which with our little Model/1 computer means the maneuver drive is now shut down; we're committed to whatever happens. The crew vacc suits up, seals the passengers in rescue bubbles, and the engineer depressurizes the ship. The ship's medic, the only crewmember not otherwise engaged, grabs his med kit, some suit patches, and a pair of snub guns and prepares to repel boarders at the airlock.
I make a Navigation skill check for Captain Hauser, to plot the cruiser's course; instead of matching vectors opposite our airlock, the cruiser is coming in behind us, opposite our engine space.
It looks like they're going for our drives or our power plant.
"Routine inspection" my Solomani arse.
I instruct the top turret gunner, with the twin lasers and the missle launcher, to fire. She rolls the dice: a hit with one laser and a missle on the way.
She rolls a twelve for hit location: critical hit! A collective gasp from the players.
Let it be their computer, I think, as she rolls for effect.
A single die clatters onto the table: six.
Explode.
A 1-in-216 shot. A Sword Worlder privateer reduced to a debris cloud.
And we cashed in on our cargo.