Et tu d20?

[Vaslov]

The last two games my dice have found a new low. Generally in the groups I game with I have a reputation for rolling poorly more often than typical. Posting this as misery loves company and I'd like to hear some others tales of their dice abandoning them.

In last weeks game we were playing D&D. Of the 4 combat encounters for the evening I rolled an initiative of 1 three times. The actual combat was not much better, but luckily I could hit what we fought most of the time with a 2 or better. Many 6, 7 and 8's were rolled. I lost count. I do recall rolling 20's twice for attacks over the night which helped to balance out the evening. Overall a typical night for me.

We have the lucky problem in my group of having too many GMs and were switchnig over to our LexOccultum game this week. For those not familiar with the system to sort out most skill rolls you roll a d20 with low rolls being better than high. I had been joking with the GM that this is our game as she shares too tends to roll pretty low. I only had 4 occasions to roll a d20 this week. First roll was a 10. As it was with one of my better skills on a fairly easy skill check it passed. Woo! I then proceed to roll 3 20's in a row completely failing and complicating things endlessly.

So this morning I sit here next to a hammer and the shattered remains of those d20s sipping on a morning beverage. Those dice shall betray me no more.

 

[Arvok]

A proven method for improving your rolls is as follows:

Whenever you roll up a new character, buy a new miniature and a new set of dice. This only works if you buy from your FLGS (Friendly Local Gaming Store). Also, if you need any extra dice (d6s for wizards, d8s for clerics, an extra d20 for inspiration), the ugly dice in the singles bin roll better.

Full Disclosure: I used to own a gaming store.

 

[Arilyn]

Ahh, dice. They lure me in with their pretty sparkles, cool swirl effects and unique shades, like watermelon, strawberry shortcake and dragon blood. Aha, I say, this set I found will match my new character or campaign perfectly! I can't not buy them. Then they turn on me. Everytime! I never learn. My ugly or plain old sets, in the meantime, sit in my drawer, tutting. I drag them out. They roll well. Criticals, very few 1s or 2s. Why did I ever abandon you for "deep nebula" or "ghostly whisps?"

Oh look, "tropical sunset!" Sigh, never learn.

 

[ccs]

About a month ago I had a 40k game where my dice (d6s) simply quit working.
They wouldn't roll hits, the few hits they did make they then wouldn't roll to wound, & they wouldn't roll anything resembling a save.
Unfortunately that's about the only 3 things dice are required to do in that game....

That night when I got home I pulled out the drill, a 1/16th bit, a length of 1/16 brass rod & converted the tratorous things into wound trackers for all multi-wound models in the army.
Each such model now has a lent of brass rod on its base that holds x drilled through d6. Lose a wound, remove a die.

 

[MarkB]

I hit a new low a few weeks ago. I had built an Elf Battlemaster Fighter, specialised in ranged combat, with the Elven Accuracy feat that allows me to effectively take the highest of three rolls when I have advantage.

First time he attacked in combat, I rolled a triple 1.

I'm not sure it's mathematically possible to have a worse attack roll than that in 5e.

 

[lycanthropejeff]

I had the same trouble when I started my new campaign. I posted on reddit, seeking advice, about a month ago here: https://www.reddit.com/r/DnD/comments/aqb20m/player_needs_divine_intervention/

There were certainly some useful comments. Best of luck, my friend.

jtk

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

At a con, I was playing through an adventure with my barbarian. At the final battle, against some extraplanar beasties, even with reckless attack, my dice get completely surly. I get one hit in, then proceed to miss repeatedly, fail saving throws, end up paralyzed, hit repeatedly, and making death saves. If not for one brave cleric, I would have been a goner.

One of the reasons I love support classes is that, most of the time, I can minimize my d20 rolling. Bring on the bards, clerics, and rogue masterminds!

 

[The Monster]

As a player, my dice are okay, not far off from average, allowing for occasional hot and cold runs.
As a GM, however... my NPC's have become a trope in my regular group. No matter what system, no matter which dice, behind the screen or on the open table, My NPCs have uniformly bad luck. They miss easy shots. They critfail. The off-course grenade lands in their lap. Their autofire weapons jam. They stand right where the random rockfall lands. I'm pretty sure the spirit animal for all my NPCs is really Wile E. Coyote.

 

[Dioltach]

A while ago I went through a bad patch. For three or four sessions, I don't think I once rolled higher than a 12. And we did a lot of rolling those sessions. I tried everything: switching dice, rolling the bad luck out of them (when it didn't count my dice were happy to throw up 19s and 20s, of course), borrowing dice from other players. Nothing helped.

Now my luck has returned to slightly worse than average. It's even spread to board games now. Last weekend I was playing Jamaica, and in the second half of the board my cards just refused to give me any forward movement.

(Maybe all this is punishment for one session some years ago where I was the DM: the whole session I didn't roll less than a 17. Perhaps I enjoyed it a bit too much.)

 

[rustythorn]

I rolled a triple 1.

I'm not sure it's mathematically possible to have a worse attack roll than that in 5e.

you could be "lucky" and roll a quadruplet 1 then add on "guidance" for a quintuple1 then be "inspired" for a sextuple1.