Origin of the term d#

[Eternalknight]

Where was the term 'd#' first used? By this, I mean d4, d6, d8 etc.

 

[MerricB]

Where was the term 'd#' first used? By this, I mean d4, d6, d8 etc.

Good question.

They weren't used in oD&D and the first three supplements (1974-76)
They aren't used in the AD&D Monster Manual (77)
There's a reference in my "Holmes" Basic to "2d6", but it's pretty much the only one (1977)
They are used in the AD&D Player's Handbook (1978)

Cheers!

 

[Mark]

It might be worth looking beyond D&D to wargames for this.

 

[WayneLigon]

The first place I can think of seeing it is in GURPS, though not in that precise form. Since there's only one die type in GURPS, the notation was #d or #d+#.

 

[diaglo]

i think you can find it in The Dragon also around late 1977/early 1978

 

[Staffan]

The first place I can think of seeing it is in GURPS, though not in that precise form. Since there's only one die type in GURPS, the notation was #d or #d+#.

Actually, the first edition of GURPS (well, at least the second edition) didn't use the d notation. It just used a number. So if a weapon did "2+1" damage, that meant 2d6+1 in D&D terms. Highly annoying.

 

[diaglo]

Actually, the first edition of GURPS (well, at least the second edition) didn't use the d notation. It just used a number. So if a weapon did "2+1" damage, that meant 2d6+1 in D&D terms. Highly annoying.

Chainmail was similar..

1 die meant 1d6
2 dice meants 2d6
3 dice meant 3d6

and so on...

it went wonky with the switch to the stranger shaped dice. and then OD&D really made it weird.

 

[RFisher]

The first place I can think of seeing it is in GURPS, though not in that precise form. Since there's only one die type in GURPS, the notation was #d or #d+#.

Traveller was using #D to notate the number of dice to roll in 1977. At least I assume so. I don't think I've ever actually seen 1st edition, though. It was used on the JG ref screen that was based on 1st edition.

I suspect that the #D notation, however, might have been a "back port" of the #d# notation.

 

[Eternalknight]

I actually thought that it might have been in a wargame. I checked Chainmail but it didn't use it, and that is the earliest wargame I have...

 

[Glyfair]

I actually thought that it might have been in a wargame. I checked Chainmail but it didn't use it, and that is the earliest wargame I have...

Well, where ever it first appeared, it certainly was a game that used different types of dice. Otherwise, notating the type of die would have been silly.

My copy of Runequest 2 uses the notations 2d6+3, etc. I understand RQ2 was very close to RQ1, which was published in 1978 (IIRC, it was published slightly before the Player's Handbook).