Savage Worlds: Question for Ari

[ValhallaGH]

For d4, it's 1 in 16 (6.25%); d6 is 5 in 36 (13.89%).

Of course, with a d8 it's 1 in 8 (12.5%) -- little wonkiness.

Yeah, but when you're a Wild Card, you get to roll both the d6 and the d8.

Statistically, bigger dice are better. Acing is awesome, but your odds of success are just so much higher on larger dice.

If you're lazy and want to check your odds in any Savage game, check it out.

 

[thatdarnedbob]

Yeah, but when you're a Wild Card, you get to roll both the d6 and the d8.

Statistically, bigger dice are better. Acing is awesome, but your odds of success are just so much higher on larger dice.

Your target number is 8. You are a wild card. Your chance of succeeding with two d6's:

2*(5/36) - (5/36)^2 = 25.84%

With a d6 and a d8:

(5/36) + (1/8) - (5/36)*(1/8) = 24.65%

When your target number is a die size, you are better off rolling the dice just under that size than you are rolling that size, no matter how many dice you get to roll. Keep in mind that this is a corner case, and not generally applicable.

edit: Also, the target number that I'm referencing here isn't the TN in the SW rules, it's the number you, the player, deem most advantageous to you. So if you want to get 2 raises on a TN 2 test, then use 10 as your target number here, and roll d8s.

 

[AngryMojo]

There's a lot of other factors to take into account as well. A higher Trait die decreases the chances of a critical failure, always, and this is a big deal when dealing with spellcasting, friendly fire, or most any other roll if you have a particularly vicious GM.

 

[TheNovaLord]

We're not. In fact, we're deliberately avoiding it.

erm

what you doing then, cos the PP campaign is based on the aftermath of the SK stories?

 

[Mouseferatu]

erm

what you doing then, cos the PP campaign is based on the aftermath of the SK stories?

We're using the rules and the setting to play a game in the world of SK, but ignoring the details of that specific campaign concept.

 

[TheClone]

We did calculate that too and there where some complaints on a German blog. I think the nastiest target number for a die roll is the highest number on the die minus 1 (so 7 for a d8). There the odds with a die one category smaller (so a d6 instead of a d8) are always slightly better. Don't know if that really is the point where the odds are strangest, but it's somewhere around there. That affects wildcards rolls just as normal rolls. But the "strangeness" is always 1 or 2%, so who cares? You have to hit certain target numbers and even than it's just a few percent. Won't cause any harm to the game, it's just interesting by means of statistics.

SW is - concerning the system - very much non-combat focused. You may even build character's that won't hit anybody stating still with buckshot at 5 ft. Surely you can ruin that by having a combat heavy adventure. But SW is a nice system for designing diverse adventures, focusing one time on combat, the other time on social interaction or anything else. And it also works as well when leaving out combat at all (but who wants that? ).

 

[lkjopajdowma]

Chances are, if you're rolling that d4 (which has a better chance to "explode"), you're also untrained and taking a -2 to your roll. Assuming the TN is 4 (the standard) or higher, even if you roll a 4, you still have to roll it again and get enough to beat the TN.

Of course, as a Wild Card, you're also getting that d6 to roll, too, giving you even more chance to succeed.

 

[Matchstick]

Chances are, if you're rolling that d4 (which has a better chance to "explode"), you're also untrained and taking a -2 to your roll. Assuming the TN is 4 (the standard) or higher, even if you roll a 4, you still have to roll it again and get enough to beat the TN.

Of course, as a Wild Card, you're also getting that d6 to roll, too, giving you even more chance to succeed.

Also, with the arcane skills, the higher your skill dice the less chance you have for backlash. So if you have a d12 in Weird Science you're going to have fewer exploded dice than a d4, but you'll also have fewer explosions (rolling a 1 on the skill dice).

 

[ValhallaGH]

Your target number is 8.

We are still talking about Savage Worlds, aren't we? Because the target number in Savage Worlds for everything, except melee attacks and damage, is always 4.
Sure, bonuses and penalties can shift the number you need on your dice, and maybe you actually want a Raise (or two, or more) for the particular instance you're rolling for, but the TN is 4.

Maybe you're in a Deadland, facing a critter with Terror (-4), and zero Grit. Your Guts TN is 4, with a -10 penalty.
Or maybe you're in a firefight, at long range (-4), with critical wounds (-3) and deadly dehydration (-2), in a pitch black cave (-6), but you saw his muzzle flash and at least know where to shoot at. The TN to hit your target is 4, though you do take a -15 on the shot.
Or maybe you're the best-looking, slickest-talking, best-connected, rich socialite in the Big Easy. You're trying to convince a local politician to do you and your friends a favor. The TN is 4, even though you have a +10 to the roll.

Yes, in particular instances, there is a small (2% or less) oddity in favor of a smaller die type. However, the basics of the system mean that bigger dice are better. Those particular exceptions are aberrations, not the commonly-encountered elements around which characters should be built and advanced.

If you wish to continue this discussion I'm willing to do so (though another thread is probably a good idea at this point).

 

[Templeton580]

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