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People often use dice in a variety of tabletop games. They might be used to count how many times you can move, or maybe how much damage you might inflict on an opponent. Sometimes they might even be the game itself.
They are usually identified by the number of sides they have. For example, a d8 has 8 sides. There are variations of die such as a d2 (which is usually in the shape of a coin), and polyhedral dice like the d3, d5, d7, d14, d16, and d24. However, these are the most commonly used ones:
Notation | Sides | Shape | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
d4 | 4 sides | Tetrahedron | This die looks like a pyramid and has three numbers on each side. |
d6 | 6 sides | Cube | The standard die often used in games. |
d8 | 8 sides | Octahedron | Imagine two pyramids connected at the base. |
d10 | 10 sides | Pentagonal trapezohedron | Each of the sides on this die look like kites. |
d12 | 12 sides | Dodecahedron | The sides of this die are all pentagon shaped. |
d20 | 20 sides | Icosahedron | This die’s sides are all triangles. |
d100 | 100 sides | Pentagonal trapezohedron | These sides look like kites. |
There are also percentile dice, which are a type of d10 dice. The first number is 00 and increases in 10 increments. For instance, 00, 10, 20, and 30%. Sometimes they are called a d100. A lot of role-playing games will use percentile dice.
A d6 is the most commonly used type of die in many different board games, as mentioned in the table comments. It’s a standard cube-shaped die that normally comes with a game. You’ll see it in games like Yahtzee and Monopoly.
Many of these other dice must be purchased separately or as part of a set. People who often play Dungeons & Dragons, for example, will purchase a 7-dice set that includes a d4, d6, d8, d10, d12, d20, and a percentile die. These dice sets are available in a range of colors, so many D&D players will buy dice in their favorite colors and sometimes have more than one set.
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