What does 1d10, 2d8 etc mean??
Jarkko H.
what in the world do these terms mean? I gather it measures the amount of
damage a weapon makes, but what exactly?
Eg. is a 1d10 sword better than a 2d8 sword, and if so, why?
Any help is GREATLY appreciated, as this has bugged me for a long time.
Thanks,
Jarkko
DIGTLRANGR
specific type of roll, in this case damage. The first number is the number of
dice rolled and the second number is the number of sides on the die/dice.
i.e., 1d10 simply denotes that one ten-sided die be rolled. 2d8 would be
generated by rolling 2 eight-sided dice.
As for which is better, well 2d8 is, in theory. You could do 2-16 points of
damage, as opposed to simply 1-10.
But, of course, it depends on the luck of the dice. >:-)
Micheal
Niall Litchfield
I believe the answer to this is in Jonathon K's FAQ, however here goes
1d10 = one roll of a ten sided die
2d8 = two rolls of an eight sided die. etc
as to which is better, in general it is best to look at the range of damage
you are doing, in these two examples 1-10 or 2-16 hp of damage. take the
second one every time. However there can be situations where you also have
to take into account the mean of each die, for example suppose you had to
choose between 1d8 and 2d4. In this case the 2d4 would be a better option.
same max damage but a better likelihood of getting a high score
Jarkko H. <j.he...@pp.inet.fi> wrote in message
news:9hSX2.51$Mh....@read2.inet.fi...
DarkHalf
[SNIP]
>As for which is better, well 2d8 is, in theory. You could do 2-16 points of
>damage, as opposed to simply 1-10.
In theory, even 2d5 or, say, 2d4 would be better than 1d10. In the
case of the 2d4, the max damage is lower, but the average rolls will
be higher. The 2d8, there's no question about it.
--
Darkhalf at Mindspring dot com
-----------------------------------------------------
| Doing my part to piss off |
| the religious right... |
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Arthur Hagen
In article <373055a3...@news.mindspring.com>, not...@nomail.com writes:
> On 5 May 1999 08:08:03 GMT, digtl...@aol.com (DIGTLRANGR) wrote:
> [SNIP]
>
> >As for which is better, well 2d8 is, in theory. You could do 2-16 points of
> >damage, as opposed to simply 1-10.
>
> In theory, even 2d5 or, say, 2d4 would be better than 1d10.
d5? A sylinder-style "die", or a d20 with the numbers 1-5 repeated
four times?
Yes, there even exists a d2. Most people call it a coin.
Regards,
--
*Art
Eric Plante
:>As for which is better, well 2d8 is, in theory. You could do 2-16 points of
:>damage, as opposed to simply 1-10.
: In theory, even 2d5 or, say, 2d4 would be better than 1d10. In the
: case of the 2d4, the max damage is lower, but the average rolls will
: be higher. The 2d8, there's no question about it.
Well, the median(average roll) of 2d4 is 5 when it's 5.5 for 1d10 so,
you'll do more damage on a long run with 1d10 than with 2d4. 1d10 is
better but less consistent than 2d4.
Of course, if you also consider the speed factor and possibility of
wearing a shield with a bastard sword(sf:6, 2d4 dmg), it's far better than
a 2H sword(sf:10, 1d10 dmg) which can't be use with a shield. In AD&D, a
2H sword using a 2Hsword is pointless.
Eric Plante
--
Eric Plante(pla...@cam.org)
http://www.cam.org/~plantee/Home.HTM
(Dragon Dice, Guardian & Dicemaster)
Eric Plante
: In article <373055a3...@news.mindspring.com>, not...@nomail.com writes:
:> On 5 May 1999 08:08:03 GMT, digtl...@aol.com (DIGTLRANGR) wrote:
:> [SNIP]
:>
:> >As for which is better, well 2d8 is, in theory. You could do 2-16 points of
:> >damage, as opposed to simply 1-10.
:>
:> In theory, even 2d5 or, say, 2d4 would be better than 1d10.
: d5? A sylinder-style "die", or a d20 with the numbers 1-5 repeated
: four times?
it can be done with d20 but with a d10 it's easier: 1-2 = 1, 3-4 = 2, etc.
: Yes, there even exists a d2. Most people call it a coin.
Or a d4 using the same process as above.
Rich C. Velay
Jarkko H. wrote:
> I have looked trhough the manual but couldn't find a clear explanation as to
> what in the world do these terms mean? I gather it measures the amount of
> damage a weapon makes, but what exactly?
RCV: They are simply ranges of numbers, expressed as a die roll. So 1d10 is
simply 1-10, 1d6 is 1-6, etc, etc.
> Eg. is a 1d10 sword better than a 2d8 sword, and if so, why?
RCV: There is no such thing [in BG] as a 2d8 sword, although the Bastard
Sword does 2-8 points of damage. 2-8 however, is 2d4...
The average damage of a 1d10 sword is 5.5 HPs [1+2+3+4... /10] while that of
a 2d4 sword is two rolls of a d4 summed, i.e. 2.5 + 2.5 = 5 HPs. So the 1d10
sword does fractionally more damage, but if it is slower, it might be better to
use the 2d4 sword if it is faster by a reasonable amount [And it is, since the
2d4 sword is the Bastard sword, and the 1d10 sword is the Two Handed sword...].
For example, a Bastard Sword does 2d4 damage, i.e. 2-8 HPs but its speed is
a crummy "8", slower by far than most spells and even slower than a Comp L Bow
or Short bow, i.e. YOU will get hit first in the round, everything else being
equal.
The long sword has "only" 1d8 damage potential, so 4.5 average damage, BUT
it has a speed factor of "5", making it faster than all Bows, X-Bows and slings,
some spells and most of the "big damage" melee weapons, i.e. YOU hit faster and
someone killed in a round doesn't get to strike at you....
So, for the lousy .5 damage difference, ALWAYS take the Long Sword over the
Bastard Sword, and don't even consider a 2-Hand swd or Halberd unless it comes
with a special ability [and not just your basic +1 or +2] In fact, a Morning
Star is better than a Bastard sword, since they have the same damage potential,
but the MS is marginally faster, at speed 7 compared to the BS's speed of 8...
It is also a bashing weapon, as opposed to slashing, and the better armors are
more "proof" against slashes than they are versus
bashing...
Rich
Rich C. Velay
DarkHalf wrote:
> On 5 May 1999 08:08:03 GMT, digtl...@aol.com (DIGTLRANGR) wrote:
> [SNIP]
>
> >As for which is better, well 2d8 is, in theory. You could do 2-16 points of
> >damage, as opposed to simply 1-10.
>
> In theory, even 2d5 or, say, 2d4 would be better than 1d10. In the
> case of the 2d4, the max damage is lower, but the average rolls will
> be higher. The 2d8, there's no question about it.
RCV: How so? The average damage of 1d10 is 5.5, the average damage of 2d4 is
2x 2.5, or 5. 5.5 is better than 5, is it not? Take the 1d10 over the 2d4,
everytime... :) While the 1d10 CAN roll a 1, which the 2d4 can not, the 1d10 can
also roll a 9 or 10, which the 2d4 can not.
The 2d5 would be better, since it's average HP of damage is 2x 3, or 6 points
of damage, fractionally better than the 1d10's
5.5 Rich
Rich C. Velay
Arthur Hagen wrote:
> In article <373055a3...@news.mindspring.com>, not...@nomail.com writes:
> > On 5 May 1999 08:08:03 GMT, digtl...@aol.com (DIGTLRANGR) wrote:
> > [SNIP]
> >
> > >As for which is better, well 2d8 is, in theory. You could do 2-16 points of
> > >damage, as opposed to simply 1-10.
> >
> > In theory, even 2d5 or, say, 2d4 would be better than 1d10.
>
> d5? A sylinder-style "die", or a d20 with the numbers 1-5 repeated
> four times?
RCV: 1d10 halved [count rolls of 6 as 1, 7 as 2, etc]
> Yes, there even exists a d2. Most people call it a coin.
RCV: Roll 1d4, as above, or colour half the faces on a d4. Colouring half the
faces of a d6 gives you a d3, etc,
etc Rich
DarkHalf
<paul....@virgin.net> wrote:
>Niall Litchfield wrote in message <7gp352$576$1...@flex.pipex.net>...
><snip>
>>However there can be situations where you also have
>>to take into account the mean of each die, for example suppose you had to
>>choose between 1d8 and 2d4. In this case the 2d4 would be a better option.
>>same max damage but a better likelihood of getting a high score
>-----------------------------
>
>Actually that statement isn't correct, although I think I know what you
>meant. The chance of getting a high score on 1d8 is the same as rolling any
>other number, 12.5%. The average score is 4.5. On 2d4 the chance of a high
>score (8) is 25% of 25%, which is 6.25%, half the chance of the same score
>on 1d8. However, on 2d4 you have a higher likelihood of getting an AVERAGE
>score, and the average is 5, slightly higher than on 1d8. The chance of
>getting any particular score on more than 1 die is the sum of all the
>chances of rolling the various combinations. In this example, 1+4, 2+3, 3+2
>and 4+1 all score 5. There is a 6.25% chance of rolling each combination,
>so the chance of an average roll is 25%, twice as likely as rolling 5 on
>1d8. It's a bell curve, with a high chance of average rolls and a low
>chance of scoring high or low.
>
>Basically (for those that aren't asleep yet), you pays your money and takes
>your choice. Do you want to be consistently average or wildly
>unpredictable? (Lawful or Chaotic?)
Err, you realize, of course, "average" score for a 1d8 and 2d4 are
different. We're checking which number will statisticly be hit more
often for each set individually, not finding the stats of hitting a
specific roll. 2d4 *will* average higher than 1d8, period.
Paul Catley
<snip>
>However there can be situations where you also have
>to take into account the mean of each die, for example suppose you had to
>choose between 1d8 and 2d4. In this case the 2d4 would be a better option.
>same max damage but a better likelihood of getting a high score
-----------------------------
Actually that statement isn't correct, although I think I know what you
meant. The chance of getting a high score on 1d8 is the same as rolling any
other number, 12.5%. The average score is 4.5. On 2d4 the chance of a high
score (8) is 25% of 25%, which is 6.25%, half the chance of the same score
on 1d8. However, on 2d4 you have a higher likelihood of getting an AVERAGE
score, and the average is 5, slightly higher than on 1d8. The chance of
getting any particular score on more than 1 die is the sum of all the
chances of rolling the various combinations. In this example, 1+4, 2+3, 3+2
and 4+1 all score 5. There is a 6.25% chance of rolling each combination,
so the chance of an average roll is 25%, twice as likely as rolling 5 on
1d8. It's a bell curve, with a high chance of average rolls and a low
chance of scoring high or low.
Basically (for those that aren't asleep yet), you pays your money and takes
your choice. Do you want to be consistently average or wildly
unpredictable? (Lawful or Chaotic?)
Paul
WGGDROW
2d8=up to 16(two hits of eight)