In-world this is the notecard “8. NeoVictoria Dice Rules” in the prim-givers.

Table of Content

~*~ Philosophy Behind Dice ~*~

~*~ Overview on How Dice Are Used in NeoVictoria ~*~
+ Our Simple Dice Rules +
-Not every action needs to be played with dice.
-Emote the OOC alert ((Rolling DICE for outcome)) if you plan to throw dice.
-The attacker throws dice,
-The defender RPs the outcome of the dice throw.
-When dice are used for combat, the character being attacked always gets the next turn.
-The higher the dice roll number, the greater the probability of success.

~*~ Real World Examples ~*~
+ Risky Undertakings +
+ Randomness in Discovery +
+ Dice in Combat +

~*~ Technical Specs for the JK Role Play Tools Suite ~*~
+ Dice Overview +
-d2, a.k.a. a coin.
-d4, a four-sided die.
-d6, six-sided die.
-d10, a ten-sided die.
-d12, a twelve-sided die.
-d20, a twenty-sided die.
-d100, percentage roll.

~*~ Philosophy Behind Dice ~*~

Most of the popular RPG’s lead the player through a pre-determined flow-chart of actions. As the player, you may have the ability to make simple changes (choose an archetype, take this quest, avoid that NPC), but in the end your character is walking down a path that’s already been built. Free-form roleplay is different. You may have a detailed backstory developed for your character, but when you engage that character with the characters of other people, where the scene goes is the adventure.

The danger of free-form is the player who loves to ‘godmod’; they made their characters invulnerable to attack or too powerful to withstand. This leads to hard feelings and out-of-character (OOC) drama. So the challenge in a roleplay community is to develop technical restrictions which help players work together. Some places use combat meters (NeoVictoria used one for many years), others create restricted race sheets that limit what characters can do, others use random number generators (or dice), still others use combinations of all three.

In NeoVictoria, we use the virtual dice that come with our roleplaying HUD. By providing different virtual random number generators which players can use at will, action and reaction isn’t pre-determined. We learn to really listen to each other and then react organically as the scene unfolds.

~*~ Overview on How Dice are Used in NeoVictoria ~*~

If you’ve played Dungeons & Dragons, you’re familiar with how dice can be used to direct a scene. However, many players have never used dice, so we aim to keep our dice rules simple and direct.

+ Our Simple Dice Rules

1. Not every action needs to be played with dice.

The tool is here to use as needed. However, once a player uses the dice, all the players in the scene are bound by the throw.

2. Emote the OOC alert ((Rolling DICE for outcome)) if you plan to throw dice.

As a player, you want to give the other people in the scene a head’s up that a dice roll is coming.

Example:

[Asil Clockwerk] eyes the toymaker, taking his measure. She loosens the dagger at her side and faces him, “That’s a lovely purse ya got on your belt, spare some change for a poor girl?” She moves close, meaning to cut the leather purse from his belt. ((Rolling DICE for outcome))

3. The attacker throws dice,

Example:

((Asil Clockwerk has rolled a 100 sided die, the result of which is 6))

4. The defender RPs the outcome of the dice throw.

Example:

[Jhaesoph Foxdale] sees the glint of the blade and jumps back, avoiding Asil’s pathetic foray into purse-snatching.

5. When dice are used for combat, the character being attacked always gets the next turn.

Players then trade turns/rolls until the scene concludes.

Example:

[Jhaesoph Foxdale] attempts to kick the knife out of Asil’s hand and into a nearby grate. ((Rolling DICE for outcome.))

((Jhaesoph Foxdale has rolled a 100 sided die, the result of which is 59.))

[Asil Clockwerk] feels the toymaker’s boot connect with the blade as it spun on to the ground.

[Asil Clockwerk] scrambles to her knees, cursing the man and her foul luck. She lunges toward the knife, desperate to pick it back up. ((Rolling DICE for outcome.))

((Asil Clockwerk has rolled a 100 sided die, the result of which is 19))

[Jhaesoph Foxdale] moves quickly and picks up the knife, sliding it into a pocket in his vest. Staring down at the foul-mouthed woman, “Do you really want to continue this, madam? With luck like yours, you are more likely to fall on your own blade than take anything of mine.”

[Asil Clockwerk] weighs her chances of getting her blade back and thinks better of it. “You were the lucky one this time, ducky. Maybe next time, things won’t go your way!” With that, she turns and runs from the ally.

6. The higher the dice roll number, the greater the probability of success.

If you roll below 50% of what the dice can do, its a failed attempt; above 50% is a success. The higher the roll, the greater success the attempt has.

~*~ Real World Examples ~*~

+ Risky Undertakings +

Use the dice, if you wish, to add an element of risk to actions your character undertakes. If you do this while roleplaying with others, emote OOCly before you roll the dice ((Rolling DICE for outcome)) and then roleplay the results.

Example:

Nimbly Pettlefoot sneaking up on an NPC guard:

[Nimbly Pettlefoot] attempts to open the door without waking the sleeping guard across the hall. ((Rolling DICE for outcome.))

((Nimbly Pettlefoot has rolled a 100 sided die, the result of which is 80))

The door opens with only minimal creaking, the guard mumbling something about low oil supplies before resuming his snoring. The renowned jewelry collection of Lady Bustleton glimmers in the dim candlelight.

+ Randomness in Discovery +

You can also use dice to add randomness to roleplayed discoveries, provided the discovery isn’t part of another roleplay. In other words, if someone has already posted a roleplay that established Lady Bustleton’s jewelry collection is in the castle, don’t use the dice to rediscover it in the tavern. You can use results rolls as with our Risky Undertakings examples, or you may wish to make a table, though it is best to do so ahead of any roleplay with others. For things that take time, progress is best done in small steps. If you do so, be sure to keep track of the counter in a text document or similar.

Example with random results:

[Nimbly Pettlefoot] opens the discarded box warily, the smell of trash heavy upon it. He peeks inside, hoping to find treasures. ((Rolling DICE for outcome.))

((Nimbly Pettlefoot has rolled a 100 sided die, the result of which is 35))

The box contains some buttons and string, and upon closer inspection it appears to have once been a fine sewing kit. Time has not been kind to the box however, and it is doubtful that it is worth much.

Example with pre-determined table and progress:

[Nimbly Pettlefoot] probes at the plant in the bottle with analytic devices, trying to isolate whatever it was that causes those who eat it to enter an agitated state. ((Rolling DICE for outcome.))

((Nimbly Pettlefoot has rolled a 6 sided die, the result of which is 4))

Nimbly Pettlefoot sees that the leaves seem to be free of any sort of chemical that could cause the sort of reaction people seem to have to it. So it must be in the root.

-Table-

1. Roll again. If 1 also, plant is destroyed and nothing learned. Otherwise, no progress
2. Slight progress
3. Definite progress
4. Good progress
5. Success progress
6. Roll again. If 6 again, an extraordinary but unrelated aspect of the plant is discovered in addition to success. Otherwise, success.

+ Dice in Combat +

Use dice to add some randomness to your fights! If you’re attacking and make a roll, the roll determines success or failure. If you roleplay your attack, but don’t roll dice, your opponent may still roll dice to determine the outcome. The only way for an attack to be as effective as you imagine for certain is for a consensus to be reached (this usually just means nobody objects), so keep good roleplaying behavior at the forefront and be generous in your RP.

Example: Attacker rolls:

[Nimbly Pettlefoot] attempts to sucker punch Lord Bustleton in the nose. ((Rolling DICE for outcome.))

((Nimbly Pettlefoot has rolled a 100 sided die, the result of which is 87))

[Lord Bustleton] feels the punch connect, leaving a stinging sensation in in his nostrils.

Example: Defender rolls for counterattack:

[Lord Bustleton] attempts to return the favour, moving to punch Nimbly Pettlefoot in the nose. ((Rolling DICE for outcome.))

((Lord Bustleton has rolled a 100 sided die, the result of which is 95))

[Nimbly Pettlefoot] leaps backs, but fails to dodge the blow. Blood begins to flow down Nimbly Pettlefoot’s face, dripping onto his stiff white collar.

~*~ Technical Specs for the JK Role Play Tools Suite ~*~

When wearing the “JK Role Play Tools Suite v1.1 – NeoVictoria Custom” HUD, you can either type /9menu and navigate the resulting pop-up window’s menu or, if you know the type of die you want to roll, type /9[DICE NUMBER], so for a twenty-sided dice, you’d type /9d20 in the local chat window to role that die. The following dice are available: d2, d4, d6, d10, d12, d20 and d100.

+ Dice Overview +

The following kinds of dice are included in the JK Roleplay Suite:

-d2, a.k.a. a coin.

When used, this one will emote the coin flip. A value of 1 means its heads up, a value of 2 means its tails up. Type /9menu into the local chat to use the dialog windows to access the dice, or use the shortcut of “/9d2” in the local chat window to role that die.

Example of this die’s emote:

((Nimbly Pettlefoot has flipped a coin, the result of which is 2))

-d4, a four-sided die.

The D4 is pretty standard to role-playing games, its the pyramid shaped die that you flip. It’s useful for deciding things using 1=failure, 2=nothing, 3=success, and 4= incredible success. Type /9menu into the local chat to use the dialog windows to access the dice, or use the shortcut of “/9d4” in the local chat window to role that die.

Example of this die’s emote:

((Nimbly Pettlefoot has rolled a 4 sided die, the result of which is 2))

-d6, six-sided die.

The D6 is most common die in existence. If you’ve played craps in real life, you were using these dice. Type /9menu into the local chat to use the dialog windows to access the dice, or use the shortcut of “/9d6” in the local chat window to role that die.

Example of this die’s emote:

((Nimbly Pettlefoot has rolled a 6 sided die, the result of which is 5))

-d10, a ten-sided die.

The D10 can be used in place of a percentage roll when only the tens position is needed. Beloved by the D&D crowd. Type /9menu into the local chat to use the dialog windows to access the dice, or use the shortcut of “/9d10” in the local chat window to role that die.

Example of this die’s emote:

((Nimbly Pettlefoot has rolled a 10 sided die, the result of which is 6))

-d12, a twelve-sided die.

The D12 is another dice beloved by the D&D crowd. Type /9menu into the local chat to use the dialog windows to access the dice, or use the shortcut of “/9d12” in the local chat window to role that die.

Example of this die’s emote:

((Nimbly Pettlefoot has rolled a 12 sided die, the result of which is 3))

-d20, a twenty-sided die.

The D20 can be used for more complex results tables. Type /9menu into the local chat to use the dialog windows to access the dice, or use the shortcut of “/9d20” in the local chat window to role that die.

Example of this die’s emote:

((Nimbly Pettlefoot has rolled a 20 sided die, the result of which is 7))

-d100, the percentage roll.

The D100 is best choice for fine-tuned results and super-simple to roll using the HUD. If you were playing this in real life, most often people use two d10s, one for the tens place and another for the ones place, with 00 being 100. If you’ve never seen a real 100 face die, visit this page for a good chuckle: http://www.toplessrobot.com/2009/04/the_10_most_shameful_rpg_dice.php.

Type /9menu into the local chat to use the dialog windows to access the dice, or use the shortcut of “/9d100” in the local chat window to role that die.

Example of this die’s emote:

((Nimbly Pettlefoot has rolled a 100 sided die, the result of which is 75))