For DMs: Ticked off players and funky d20's

[Delemental]

LMAO...

He just sent an e-mail to me telling me I have "serious brass balls" because an Epic Wizard I made for a campaign I played in wasn't as effective in combat as his Epic Cleric. I have no idea how this other campaign came into the picture. I'm 32 and this guy is older than me. Can you believe this?

Well, of course your wizard wasn't as effective. You don't cheat on your dice...

Was this supposed to be some sort of threat? "Touch my dice and I'll kill your wizard"? Or is he somehow imply that the potency of a person's D&D character is directly proportional to their real-world toughness?

I say he's got four choices:

1. Use a real, clearly labeled d20.
2. Color in his "favorite" dice with two different, easy distinguished colors; one for 1-10, another for 11-20.
3. Let him keep his "favorites", but you make all his rolls (or he rolls right in front of you, and isn't allowed to touch the die until you say its OK)
4. Don't play in your game.

I'm in agreement with others - methinks the man doth protest too much.

Oh, there's option 5 - tell him you're going to use the 2d10 option in Unearthed Arcana. That way he can still use his 'favorite' d20s, but count the sides as numbered 1-10 twice (ignoring the + symbol).

 

[Nareau]

Alternately, just start writing down his rolls. You should be able to collect a reasonable set of data from just 1 or 2 sessions. After 20 or so rolls, average them all together. If the results are higher than average (10.5), just show him the calculations. Tell him that you're afraid his dice aren't "lucky," they're "weighted". If you've got a statistics person in the group, do a nice analysis, with graphs and stuff.

I can imagine him being upset because he feels that you've unjustly accused him of cheating. He's still reacting badly to the situation...but I can certainly understand him balking at the accusation (true or not).

It sounds like you're doing your best to make this not personal. But that's hard when his integrity is at stake. Your best bet will be to show him the numbers.

Spider

 

[Calico_Jack73]

Oh, there's option 5 - tell him you're going to use the 2d10 option in Unearthed Arcana. That way he can still use his 'favorite' d20s, but count the sides as numbered 1-10 twice (ignoring the + symbol).

That is BRILLIANT!

 

[radferth]

Is it good or bad to have "serious brass balls"?

On a more serious note: not wise to accuse someone of cheating via email. If he's not cheating he feels bad for no good reason; if he is cheating, he acts pretty much like your description of this guy. I don't have the vision to check anyone's dice rolls, so I can't relate to the dice themselves being a problem (although gamer dice susperstitions in general annoy the hell out of me). I would suggest the following solutions if a similar situation arises:

1) Keep track of all his rolls, with the amount of d20 rolls made, he should average pretty close to 10.5 over a session or two. If he is way higher, he is bumping his numbers or using crooked dice.

2) Do it old dice style, when dice were marked with 0 to 9 twice with no plusses or anything. Have him roll a d6 (or whatever) along with his d20 (now a d10) to determine whether the roll is in the ones or teens. (i.e. 1-3 it's 1-10, 4-6 it's 11-20). My brother is convinced that all his d20's roll low, and always rolls this way with an actual ten-sider for d20 rolls.

3) Make all his rolls for him (in plane sight, I suggest).

The last two still require more or less a declaration of suspicion, but I have met many gamers who would far rather have their own integrity questioned than that of their dice (go figure).

 

[Stalker0]

Keep in mind though 2d10 has a much different probability than 1d20.

I've seen all sorts of dice superstitions and the like, but this is ridiculous. Your the dm, and this is a reasonable request. Are the other players on board with this?

I would stick to your guns. However, whatever you decide, its probably true that he has been cheating. And cheaters don't stop that easily. So keep an eye on him.

 

[fredramsey]

Not Helpful Advice: I would not have allowed such a die in the first place.

Helpful Advice: Your request is perfect reasonable, IMHO. If he can't get with the program, tell him to hit the bricks.

 

[devilbat]

Man this guy seems infentile. I would have a private chat to another member in the group, to watch his rolls, and maybe get him to offer up a "How do you see what you've rolled with that die." out loud in front of the group. That should give him the picture that others are watching his rolls.

I have a player that pulls the "roll and snatch" method of cheating. I know he does it, so do the other players. So wandering encounters and general bad luck just seems to happen to him.

 

[BiggusGeekus]

You could also simply increase the CR of the encounters. Assume the guy has two bonus levels, that should be about what +9 to all skills, attack rolls, saves, intitative, and spell resistance checks would be. He's not giving himself bonus hit points or class abilities. He's rerolling if he gets lower than an 11.

But frankly, I'd walk. There are plenty of games in the northern virginia area.

 

[BlackMoria]

You can deal with the situation within game.

Simply, if the player 'cheats' on rolls, you 'cheat' on rolls verses his characters. The character of the player in question seems to have the misfortune of always getting the extra foe, or the extra attack or max damage or the confirmed critical. Don't be heavy handed about it .... but it should be apparent that the character is sucking up more damage than the other PCs.

If the player complains, simply tell him attribute it to the dice and the vaguarities of fate. If a low BAB hits and he has high AC and complains, tell him that as DM, you do not have to reveal 'all the modifers' for that die roll. You get the idea. That is the stick.

The carrot is this - if the player announces a low roll or his dice rolls are in the statistically normal range, you treat the character like any other.

In time, if he is halfways switched on, he is going to put it together. If he cheats, 'bad things' always happen to his character. If he doesn't cheat, his character is like any other. Then he will realize that cheating is availing him nothing but unwelcomed attention in the form of extra monsters, extra hits, and extra damage. That alone should modify his behavior.

Of course, he will likely complain during this process. If he does, offer that he can observe your dice rolls verses his character but only if he allows you to observe his rolls.

I have done this with several people over the years and it works well for me. Always the caveat - YMMV.

 

[Bobitron]

I have a hard time emphathizing with 'favorite dice' complaints, as I tend to just pick up the closest d20 when I roll. This guy sounds silly.