Ever played without special dice?

[IcyCool]

Is there a system for using just regular d6 die instead of having to buy d20? I'm not sure how it would work, but maybe someone found a way.

??? *clueless*

Thanks for any ideas.

There are a couple of systems that use just d6's, but they aren't D&D. Check out Shadowrun (one of my favorites) and the old West End Games Star Wars system.

And if I'm not mistaken, doesn't GURPS use only 6-siders?

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

Good point, AR...

 

[arscott]

you can also use d6s to simulate any other sized dice:

d4: roll die, then reroll if result is 5 or 6
d6: (duh)
d8: roll as d4 above. then roll a second die. if result is even, add 4
d10: roll die, rerolling results of 6. then roll a second die and add 5 if even, counting a 10 as 0 if needed.
d12: roll die normally. then roll a second die and add 6 if even
d20: roll as d10 above. then roll a third die and add 10 if even

this gets complex if you have to roll 3d20 or something, but the game is set up so that if you're rolling lots of dice, they're probably six-siders.

 

[kenobi65]

Write the numbers 1 through 20 on little even sized chits. Put them in a Yahtzee cup. Voila', you're good to go.

From what I've read, in the very early days of D&D (i.e., before polyhedrals were widely available), this was the recommended way to generate numbers beyond d6s.

In a very early issue of either Dragon or The Strategic Review (republished in Best of the Dragon, Vol. 1), there was a humor article on alternate ways to generate random numbers, beyond the chits in a bowl. Those included numbering Mexican Jumping Beans, pulling random numbers of hairs out of each other's chests (only recommended for hirsute gamers), etc.

Also...I used to play a lot of Strat-o-Matic Baseball. In that game (which mostly uses d6s), there is also a need for generating random numbers between 1-20. These days, they supply a d20 with the game. Back in the 70s, when I first bought the game, it came with a "split deck" -- a deck of small cards (about 1" by 1.5"), with a number from 1 through 20 printed on one side, that you'd punch out. IIRC, there were 40 cards in the deck, 2 sets of each number. When you needed a "split" number, you'd draw the top card from the deck, and use that result.