RPG Evolution: Dice Alternatives

As much as I love dice, I'm always open to trying other randomizers. Enter these spinners.

Dice Tower Spinner​

The concept is definitely intriguing. It's essentially a spinning tower that houses all six standard RPG dice (D4, D6, D8, D10, D12, and D20) in one place. The idea is to spin the tower and let fate decide your roll. The tower is crafted from zinc alloy, giving it a heavy and durable feel. The intricate dragon carvings (the top has a 20-sided polyhedral surrounded by a bone-like serpent, the bottom features a dragon) add a touch of fantasy flair, which is fitting for D&D.

One problem endemic to this design is you can't just spin this thing easily while it sits on a table; you have to pick it up, spin it, then put it down. As I often say, randomizers are only as good as your ability to see the results, and the nature of this is you're going to be placing it back on a table after you spin it. This means it has to spin for a bit, so you have time to place it back down on the table, and also so you don't interrupt the spinning as you move it around.

The most frequent spin will likely be the 20-sided, but that's at the bottom where it's least visible (and there is indeed a bottom, as the numbers face one way). For some reason the order is D12 > D6 > D8 > D4 > D10 > D20. It would have been great to list them from top to bottom by frequency of use or at least from highest to lowest. As it is, you need to do a mental calculation each time you look at the spinner to figure out which spinner you need.

Dice Pencils​

I'm always looking for gifts for my gamer friends and these certainly fit the bill. They're a two-for-one combo of a pencil plus a six-sided die (that is, the pencil has six sides and you can roll it). You get two of each phrase, six phrases in all. The phrases are:

• Choose your weapon
• Just keep rolling
• Don't worry I have a plan
• Roll for initiative
• How do you want to do this
• You can certainly try

Given those phrases, these seem more like gifts for game masters than for players. While I appreciate the gimmick, black pencils are just begging to get lost. I'd prefer brighter colors and even different phrases that line up with Dungeons & Dragons classes or species, just so you can identify which pencil is for whom. Or to put it another way, your DM probably doesn't need 12 pencils but your entire group probably will.

Call of Cthulhu Spinners​

I love the idea of a dice spinner. As a long-time Call of Cthulhu fan, I thought a dice spinner was a great spin (haha!) on your traditional dice. In practice, it's not that easy to use.

This set consists of two spinners, with a smaller one "rolling" a D4, D6, and D8, and the larger one "rolling" a D10, D12 and D20.

The larger spinner has a winged and horned figure at the center (a Hound of Tindalos?), with a clear arrow pointing behind and above it. This doubles as both a magical symbol and is really important to determining what number you "rolled." There's a font that seems to be Masonic font (with a line instead of a dot), spelling clockwise from the arrow: GNYFIIUDAZGMBTIUDQZ. Which is to say, nothing.

The smaller spinner reads "Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn." which translates to "In his house at R'lyeh, dead Cthulhu waits dreaming." Unlike the larger spinner, the smaller spinner has the Necronomicon Gate sigil created by Khem Caigan for the Simon Necronomicon in 1977. I suppose the top is supposed to be the pointer, but since there's a pentagram and triangle in the design, it's got at least six points that could double as the pointer.

Species Coasters​

I reviewed these coasters previously. The set of twelve round wooden coasters features laser-engraved icons representing a diverse array of D&D species – from the celestial Aasimar to the fiendish Tiefling, and even a special one for the Dungeon Master themselves. It’s a neat way to subtly showcase your character’s species while keeping your tabletop protected from those inevitable drink spills during an intense campaign, and a good way to identify who gets which coaster.

But they also have an underrated feature: each one is labeled 1 through 20 on the perimeter. You can spin these (they do spin, depending on the surface) and, as long as you identify where the counter will stop, you can technically roll d20 rolls (attacks, skill checks, saving throws) this way.

It's probably impractical and might be something you consider after a one too many drinks (on the coaster, natch). But it's a fun little additional feature. Note: make sure you don't have a drink on the coaster when you spin it!

Choose Your Not-Dice Wisely​

Using something besides dice as a randomizer can be a fun and thematic way to change things up in your game, but there's plenty of other considerations: if your DM or players will accept alternatives to dice, if it's legible at the table, and how easy it is to spin or roll something when there might be limited space. As much as I love all these alternatives, I don't think any of them are going to replace my trusty dice ... but I might use them for special occasions.

You can purchase each of these products on Amazon:

• Dice Tower Spinner
• Dice Pencils
• Call of Cthulhu Spinners
• Species Coasters

Please note that I'm a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

 

[Von Ether]

While the dice spinner is pretty, I found the triangle shaped bands a bit too vague to discern the result. On the rectangle, you have a clear line of demarcation, with the triangles, you are trying to decide where on a diagonal you need to make your judgement call.

 

[Sossij]

Dice are honestly pretty portable and very good at what they do. I've never found the idea of replacements all that appealing, but kudos to people for trying.