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A die (plural dice) is a polyhedral object, usually 1 or 2 cm along each edge, which is rolled along a flat surface to generate random numbers in a game. Dice are often used for gambling games such as craps, for board games and other family games such as Yahtzee, and for role-playing games (RPGs). They have also sometimes been used in numerology and divination.
The dice used for gambling and for family games are generally cubical, with numbers on each side represented by either written numerals (1-6) or small arranged dots called "pips." The numbers on opposite sides always add to seven. Some games, however, such as "poker dice," use dice with special symbols marked on the sides. In either case, the number or symbol showing on top when the die is rolled is said to be the result of the roll.
The dice used for RPGs often have more or fewer sides than the standard count of six; it is common in some games to see dice with four, eight, ten, twelve, or twenty sides, and these dice nearly always sport numerals rather than pips. Nearly spherical dice with one hundred sides have been manufactured, but are not used much since the same random numbers can be generated with two ten-sided dice (one die representing the tens digit, the other the ones). The standard abbreviation for referring to dice in RPG circles is to use the letter "d" followed by the number of sides; for example, an eight-sided die would be called a "d8." Also, another number is often prefixed to denote the number of dice to be rolled (for instance, "2d10" indicates a roll of two 10-sided dice).
RPGs use such non-standard polyhedral dice as a method of simulating event probabilities that can't be easily simulated on standard (d6) dice. For instance, if an event has a 1 in 12 chance of happening, a d12 can be used with the hopes of rolling a 12 (or, alternatively, a 1). In contrast, a roll with a total of 12 (6 + 6) on two d6 dice has only a 1 in 36 chance of occurring — and, of course, a total of 1 can't be rolled at all.
Many games are structured around the predominant use of one type of die; these games are sometimes called "system games." Wizards of the Coast manufactures the popular "d20 System" which includes Dungeons & Dragons; other games are built entirely around standard d6 dice; and at least one, Tri-Stat dX, is built to be scalable to different dice sizes depending on the genre that the game master and players choose to share.
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