Tag Archives: dice mechanisms

Rules Articles

Rewarding Play Styles with Different Dice Games

I keep thinking about D6 Legend, how it traded dice totals for counting successes. I find myself wondering if it would be practical and interesting to use both systems within the same game. I want to do this for several reasons: I want more ways to use the dice, I want to differentiate action applications within the dice game, and I want to vary the game experience to reward different types of players. I want every type of role-player to have a dice game that rewards them.

The prompt for considering this is a game I ran in which one of the players commented that the con and persuasion checks were “like punching people with words”. Both fighting and arguing worked exactly the same way. The player did not feel his efforts to play a social game were being rewarded by the dice when his con check was essentially a one-hit KO.

To illustrate by thoughts in application: melee and ranged combat would use the dice total system to resolve hits and damage. This allows players to total up big numbers.

In contrast: picking a lock or hacking a computer system would count successes. This allows players to succeed with a very slim margin of error.

The result is 1) for a narrative situation that is overcome by force, the players must generate dice totals of 5, 10, or 15 points above the difficulty – which is already set at 10, 15, or 20. The margins of differentiation have a broad (5-point) tolerance. Psychologically, any number above 5 (larger than one hand) is “significant” number, anything over 10 (larger than two hands) is a “big” number, and anything over 20 is “very big”. Success has psychological weight by virtue of large numbers both in the success margin and the total value of the dice. Large numbers emphasize force and imply power.

And 2) for a narrative situation that is overcome by skill, the players must generate 3, 4, or 5 successes out of a dice pool that will on average contain 6-9 dice. The margins of differentiation are very small (1-point) and any single die could be the difference between success and failure. Psychologically, this feeds the gambler’s fallacy – that a near success in a discrete event places you closer to success in successive events. Success has psychological weight due to leveraging the perception bias of the single-point margins. Small margins emphasize fragility and imply skill.

I also want to introduce a third mechanism that will further differentiate social encounters with a system emphasizes variability and implies cleverness. I don’t have that one all the way worked out yet.

FreeD6, Game Mechanisms, Rules Articles

Boost and Penalty Dice

Some abilities, powers, or effects add boost dice or penalty dice to an ability check. This is written as “Boost-“, “B”, or “Penalty-“, “P”, followed by the number of dice. For example, Boost-1 (B1) adds a single boost die, and Penalty-2 (P2) adds a two penalty dice.

Boost and penalty dice directly cancel each other out. If an effect adds B2 and another effect adds P3, the final effect is P1 (3 penalty dice minus 2 boost dice equals 1 penalty die).

Boost and penalty dice should always be a different color or design from the dice rolled for an ability check so they can be easily identified.

Boost Dice

When using boost dice, roll the boost dice alongside the regular dice. Then discard the same number of dice from the roll, removing the lowest values from the roll.

Penalty Dice

When using penalty dice, roll the penalty dice alongside the regular dice. Then discard the same number of dice from the roll, removing the highest values from the roll.

Other Dice and Boost or Penalty Dice

Not all dice are six-sided; a standard set of role-playing dice include four-sided, six-sided, eight-sided, ten-sided, twelve-sided, and twenty-sided dice. Other dice used as boost or penalty dice behave in exactly the same way, replacing the lowest or highest value regular die rolled.

Character Options, FreeD6, Game Mechanisms, Powers and Abilities

Luck Points

Luck is an extranormal ability. A character must be a Dynamic character to have the Luck ability. Luck is a ranked ability; for every rank of Luck, the character begins a play session with one luck point. Normal: a Stock character does not have the luck ability.

Before making a skill check, a character may spend a luck point to double the number of dice in the die code rolled for the skill check. If the character has Wild Dice, they replace normal dice after the luck point doubles the die code. Only skill and ability dice may be doubled by a luck point. Only one luck point may be spent to affect dice during a single turn, regardless of the number of characters with the Luck ability participating in the action.

When a character spends a luck point, it is used up for the session.

Game Masters may award bonus luck points to players who engage in memorable role-playing that entertains the entire table. Trash talking opponents and witty banter between allies are two ways to earn bonus luck points.

The Game Master has the option of vetoing a player’s use of a luck point and narrative influence if he feels it is not justified.

Character Options, FreeD6, Game Mechanisms, Powers and Abilities

Wild Die

The Wild Die is an extranormal ability. A character must be a Dynamic character in order to have the Wild Die ability. All player characters are automatically Dynamic. Normal: a Stock character does not have the Wild Die ability.

A character with the Wild Die ability designates one of his dice as a Wild Die. This die should be a different color or design than the regular skill dice.

Whenever he makes a skill check, a character with the Wild Die ability rolls the Wild Die in place of a skill die. If the Wild Die rolls a 6, the die explodes and another Wild Die is rolled to add to the total of the skill check. If that Wild Die explodes, another is rolled, until a Wild Die rolls a number other than 6.

If the skill check succeeds, and the Wild Die rolled a 6, the result is a critical success. A fortunate narrative event occurs in addition to the success of the skill check.

If the skill check fails, and the Wild Die rolled a 1, the result is a critical failure. An unfortunate narrative event occurs in addition to the failure of the skill check.

Using Other Dice

A standard set of role-playing dice includes four-sided, six-sided, eight-sided, ten-sided, twelve-sided, and twenty-sided dice. If an effect causes another type of die to be substituted for the Wild Die, the die only explodes on a roll of 7 or greater. For example, if an effect changes the Wild Die to an eight-sided die (WD8), the die would only explode if it rolled a 7 or 8; a WD10 would explode on a roll of 7, 8, 9, or 10.

FreeD6, Game Mechanisms, Rules Articles

Dice Flip

Some abilities, powers, or effects call for a dice flip when a certain number is rolled during a skill check. A dice flip is also called a difference flip. This is written as “Flip-6” or “F6”, meaning that if any die on a roll shows a 6, it should be flipped to a 1 before being totaled to figure result points.

There are six different values for a difference flip: Flip-1 / F1, Flip-2 / F2, Flip-3 / F3, Flip-4 / F4, Flip-5 / F5, Flip-6 / F6.

With standard casino dice, the opposite sides of a six-sided die always add up to 7. When the die is flipped, the final number will be the difference between 7 and the original number. The number pairs are 1:6, 2:5, and 3:4.

Other Dice and the Difference Flip

Not all dice are six-sided; a standard set of role-playing dice include four-sided, six-sided, eight-sided, ten-sided, twelve-sided, and twenty-sided dice. When the difference flip is applied to any die, the result must always equal the difference between the number rolled and a value one greater than the highest value of the die. Not all dice are designed with the same rotational symmetry or value distribution pattern, so that physically flipping a die does not yield consistent results between manufacturers. “Flipping” mathematically is the only way to get a consistent result.

d4d6d8d10d12d20
1:41:61:81:101:121:20
2:32:52:72:92:112:19
3:43:63:83:103:18
4:54:74:94:17
5:65:85:16
6:76:15
7:14
8:13
9:12
10:11
Difference Flip Table
FreeD6, Game Mechanisms, Rules Articles

Advantage and Disadvantage

Status conditions, abilities, and effects can give a character Advantage or Disadvantage on a roll.

Advantage

When a character has Advantage on a roll, after the dice are rolled for the skill check, roll the dice a second time and use the higher of the two values to figure result points.

Disadvantage

When a character has Disadvantage on a roll, after the dice are rolled for the skill check, roll the dice a second time and use the lower of the two values to figure result points.

If more than one condition, ability, or effect gives Advantage or Disadvantage, the effect is not applied multiple times. If both Advantage and Disadvantage are applied at the same time, the two effects cancel each other out and neither effect is applied. Every instance of Advantage or Disadvantage must be removed or canceled to remove the effect.