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<blockquote data-quote="[OMENRPG]Ben" data-source="post: 5969700" data-attributes="member: 6677983"><p>You're getting the gist of it [MENTION=6696935]Heartofvalor[/MENTION] , but I think you're missing out on some of the more typical uses. Generally a game system uses as few different dice mechanics as possible (there are exceptions) to help simplify things mathematically.</p><p></p><p>As a system designer myself, I know that ideally a truly "simple" or "streamlined" system uses a single dice mechanic. In D&D, there are two major dice mechanics as listed by the Jester. The first is the 1d20, the second is all of the other dice. </p><p></p><p>I'll give you a contextual example:</p><p></p><p>Ned the warrior is locked in battle against an ugly orc. The Dungeon Master (DM) wants to determine who goes first in this battle, as D&D is a turn-based game. The DM asks for Ned to roll 1d20 for his "Initiative", and add a few modifiers based upon Ned's speed and quick reflexes. </p><p></p><p>Ned is pretty good at stuff like this, so he gets to add +4 to his Initiative roll. He rolls his 1d20, rolls an 11, adds +4, and gets a final result of 15. </p><p></p><p>"Cool, I got 15" Ned's player would say. </p><p>The DM rolls for the Orc (typically in secret). The orc is strong but isn't quite as quick as Ned, and only gets a +2 to his Initiative roll. The DM also rolls an 11, but with his +2 bonus, only ends up with a 13. Since 13 is less than 15, Ned gets to act first.</p><p>"Okay, what does Ned do?" The DM asks.</p><p></p><p>Ned: "I want to charge up to the orc and try to slash him with my sword"</p><p>DM: "Okay, you can charge 30 feet up to the orc and make an attack roll."</p><p>Ned rolls a 1d20 again (the dice used to determine success or failure) and gets an 8. Since Ned is a warrior, he is pretty well trained to use his sword, and has a +5 bonus. Since he is charging up on the orc, he has some added momentum and gets another +1 bonus. </p><p></p><p>Ned's total is 8 + 5 (attack bonus) + 1 (charging bonus) = 14. </p><p>Ned: "I got a 14 total with the charge."</p><p>The DM compares Ned's roll of 14 with the orc's Armor Class (AC) which is basically how hard he is to hit. This number is typically static, and is modified by different things like the orc's armor, his skill in battle, and how quick he is on his feet. </p><p></p><p>In the DM's notes, he sees that the orc only has an AC of 12. Since 14 beats 12, Ned's attack is successful. </p><p></p><p>DM: "You hit, go ahead and roll damage."</p><p>Ned: "Sweet!" </p><p>Now Ned gets to roll the second dice mechanic for his sword. Since he is using a longsword, according to the rules of D&D, he gets to roll 1d8 to determine how much damage is done. Since Ned is pretty strong and skilled with a blade, he gets to add +3 damage to whatever he rolls.</p><p></p><p>Ned rolls a 5 on his d8, adds his +3, and gets a final damage result of 8. </p><p></p><p>Ned: "I got 8 total damage."</p><p>DM: "Ned charges forward with a look of grim determination, shifts his weight at the last moment, and uses his forward momentum to bring his longsword with a slice up to the larger orc's exposed chest. The orc bellows in pain and rage as blood splashes across Ned's shield." </p><p>Ned: "Yeah!"</p><p></p><p>And then it would be the orc's turn, and things would continue. Does that make more sense?</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="[OMENRPG]Ben, post: 5969700, member: 6677983"] You're getting the gist of it [MENTION=6696935]Heartofvalor[/MENTION] , but I think you're missing out on some of the more typical uses. Generally a game system uses as few different dice mechanics as possible (there are exceptions) to help simplify things mathematically. As a system designer myself, I know that ideally a truly "simple" or "streamlined" system uses a single dice mechanic. In D&D, there are two major dice mechanics as listed by the Jester. The first is the 1d20, the second is all of the other dice. I'll give you a contextual example: Ned the warrior is locked in battle against an ugly orc. The Dungeon Master (DM) wants to determine who goes first in this battle, as D&D is a turn-based game. The DM asks for Ned to roll 1d20 for his "Initiative", and add a few modifiers based upon Ned's speed and quick reflexes. Ned is pretty good at stuff like this, so he gets to add +4 to his Initiative roll. He rolls his 1d20, rolls an 11, adds +4, and gets a final result of 15. "Cool, I got 15" Ned's player would say. The DM rolls for the Orc (typically in secret). The orc is strong but isn't quite as quick as Ned, and only gets a +2 to his Initiative roll. The DM also rolls an 11, but with his +2 bonus, only ends up with a 13. Since 13 is less than 15, Ned gets to act first. "Okay, what does Ned do?" The DM asks. Ned: "I want to charge up to the orc and try to slash him with my sword" DM: "Okay, you can charge 30 feet up to the orc and make an attack roll." Ned rolls a 1d20 again (the dice used to determine success or failure) and gets an 8. Since Ned is a warrior, he is pretty well trained to use his sword, and has a +5 bonus. Since he is charging up on the orc, he has some added momentum and gets another +1 bonus. Ned's total is 8 + 5 (attack bonus) + 1 (charging bonus) = 14. Ned: "I got a 14 total with the charge." The DM compares Ned's roll of 14 with the orc's Armor Class (AC) which is basically how hard he is to hit. This number is typically static, and is modified by different things like the orc's armor, his skill in battle, and how quick he is on his feet. In the DM's notes, he sees that the orc only has an AC of 12. Since 14 beats 12, Ned's attack is successful. DM: "You hit, go ahead and roll damage." Ned: "Sweet!" Now Ned gets to roll the second dice mechanic for his sword. Since he is using a longsword, according to the rules of D&D, he gets to roll 1d8 to determine how much damage is done. Since Ned is pretty strong and skilled with a blade, he gets to add +3 damage to whatever he rolls. Ned rolls a 5 on his d8, adds his +3, and gets a final damage result of 8. Ned: "I got 8 total damage." DM: "Ned charges forward with a look of grim determination, shifts his weight at the last moment, and uses his forward momentum to bring his longsword with a slice up to the larger orc's exposed chest. The orc bellows in pain and rage as blood splashes across Ned's shield." Ned: "Yeah!" And then it would be the orc's turn, and things would continue. Does that make more sense? [/QUOTE]
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