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Post by Vile Traveller on Nov 19, 2012 0:05:13 GMT -6
I have to admit I only recently (okay, about 10 years ago) noticed the ranges instead of d# notation in B/X, so I'm not sure if that in itself would be a deciding factor in whether or not I would use a game. It's essentially a relatively minor decision in the game writing process.
That said, I still prefer to use d#. It's simply much clearer, and in all honesty I don't think anyone can claim there are any real benefits to not using it other than faithfulness to the original expression of the rules. I also like to stick to one type of way of doing things, and a lot of the old rules mixed d# and ranges freely to no real purpose that I can see, unless it was to give the GM the option to simply make up the number from within a defined range.
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Post by waysoftheearth on Nov 19, 2012 1:16:22 GMT -6
I don't think anyone can claim there are any real benefits to not using it other than faithfulness to the original expression of the rules. Faithfulness to the original material was the motivation in the case of DD. The other benefit, as I pointed out above, is that ranges don't dictate to the referee how random numbers should be produced. Therefore (as a random example off the top of my head) when the game states that 2-20 orcs are encountered, the referee could decide to roll: 1. One twenty-sided die, rerolling 1s, 2. Two ten-sided dice, summing the result, 3. Six four-sided dice, summed (6-24), minus 4 (2-20), 4. Etc. The point is that number ranges allow the ref to get the necessary result in whatever way, whereas the d notation specifies exactly one way. In practical terms, I sometimes find it convenient to use whatever dice are immediately on hand rather then delaying play while I go looking for exactly four dice of whatever kind just because it "says so" in a rule book. If the rules says I need "2-20", but there's a twenty-sider sitting right in front of me, that will do thank you very much! I think it's probably is easier to make an "impromptu near match" when you're given a range rather than a d notation -- especially if it's a non-trivial one. In truth, I don't mind either method. D notion is the convenient "no nonsense" approach, and I use it just like everyone else, especially as it is so prevalent. But number ranges are a quirky little sub-game that are a unique feature of the original rules, and it would be a crying shame if they were not a feature of DD.
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