So, I've been looking to get some dice with an older-school asthetic. The pretty, polished ones you get in most game stores are fine, but I've got a hankering for something a little more... funky.
My first stop was Gamescience's "Ugly Dice" starter set.
http://www.gamescience.com/Gamescience%E2%84%A2-Starter-Set-Ugly-Dice-_p_16.html
(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/b1/17/c2/b117c231476d8d1c7413b22b123d249d.jpg)
Nice, sharp edges, and random colors. A good start.
But I really wanted to get something reminicent of the 1980's pastel blue Dragon Dice (https://www.picclickimg.com/d/l400/pict/323189228255_/TSR-DRAGON-DICE-RARE-Vintage-ADVANCED-DUNGEONS.jpg).
The best I've come up with, is a shop called Zucati, and their single polish blue dice.
https://www.zucaticorp.com/listing/582426285/perfect-plastic-dice-single-polish-blue
(https://i.etsystatic.com/10160925/d/il/3faa83/1386814468/il_340x270.1386814468_6f30.jpg?version=0)
Both sets should arrive this coming weekend.
Nice selections, and highly old school. :D
For me, nostalgia comes from the unmatched sets you could get from TSR in the really early days -- the ones with yellow d4, orange d6, green d8, blue d12, and white d20. Those were my OD&D dice, as they were the only ones I could find anywhere at the time. The old soft ones that wore out so quickly. I bought a combo of these from Gamescience, but the colors were off. Then I bought a mix of Chessex dice and the colors were better plus they were the harder plastic so they should last a lot longer. Just this spring I found the special GaryCon dice tube of those same colors with a GC logo on each.
I never really owned any of those matched sets from the Basic or Expert sets back in the day, so those aren't as special to me.
If you're not playing D&D with chits from a cup, you're not old school!!
Quote from: Ratman_tf;1099214My first stop was Gamescience's "Ugly Dice" starter set. Nice, sharp edges, and random colors. A good start.
I'm curious if their D10 dice are numbered 0-9 or 1-10?
Quote from: Shawn Driscoll;1099251I'm curious if their D10 dice are numbered 0-9 or 1-10?
I'll let you know when I get mine.
Old school D20's were numbered 0 to 9 twice, and you had to color in one sequence with a crayon, to indicate it was 10+ the number.
I still have my old BX and Star Frontiers dice. The BX dice were marbled blue with streaks of white. The white tended to crumble for some. The Star Frontiers d10s were one blue and one red.
When I bought the GW Cthulhu 3rd edition, there was a coupon in the book to get a free (pay shipping) set of dice. Those were like the blue Zucati dice but in all different colours .
Gamescience d10s are marked 0-9. They still sell d20s that are 0-9 twice and some that are 0-9 and 0+-9+.
Nostalgia for the old dice? That bug hasn't bitten me. I like the newer dice better. But having different colors for each die type, was a great idea; especially once you have several sets of dice out together.
Oh hey! I own both of these dice types (Gamescience Ugly, and Zucati single polish).
Zucati are way more readable unpainted. I love the Gamescience dice, but their paint comes off, and their dice are hard to read without paint. Maybe it's all BS, but I like the way my Gamescience dice roll the best. I've been playing more with Zucati, though, because of ease of reading.
I wish I could figure out how to make the Gamescience durably readable. That Zucati single polish is very nice.
I will say, showing up to a table with Gamescience Ugly dice caused other players to show up next time with a set of their own. :D They probably have the nostalgia edge (badum-kssh).
Gamescience dice came in today.
(https://i.imgur.com/aJcGrQM.jpg)
Quote from: insubordinate polyhedral;1099575Zucati are way more readable unpainted. I love the Gamescience dice, but their paint comes off, and their dice are hard to read without paint.
That's unfortunate. I'll have to see how they hold up over time.
Ok. I didn't buy these dice for their "fairness", but one thing I noticed right away, was they tumble very differently from polished dice. They tend to "jerk" around more, as they roll over the sharp edges. Interesting.
I ink my own GS dice (it's cheaper), and I've never had a problem. Well, I have re-inked some that I've had for decades, but that hardly matters. They are hardish to read uninked, but as GM I find that to be a bonus.
Roll Like It's 1979 (https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Windmill-Hobbies-dice-Never-Played-with-Roll-like-its-1979/202657226783?_trkparms=ispr%3D1&hash=item2f2f4fe01f:g:u9AAAOSwKF1ckAVJ&enc=AQAEAAAB4BPxNw%2BVj6nta7CKEs3N0qWGmsG0fDDaPDXLkoqnPfpOED7px5KvA977VmktD4YKPD%2BWryRr1HgXz%2BQCFwxZijbPQgk0eQD3u%2F19F87Km1DqCdL%2BB9M8a0FvxoM08%2B9VpKgxh9UvT6sasAuoIem4Gha44C2gPPPDPGgMpa6OOFcoyIoAiGXbwZkfdRqklyWSLkMO%2BcLYit6Hdz9hRbF4NOXGtuSrNcAr9T4o8VfKpgiRLqd5YANR46Fx%2BJYOLmC34V2y6i7Y6gdEnHXbE9M7QcSkVShscx1pJ9g5Wh3odSNzWw1hlloCKzlrHcLJgH4HMV5bdsfdqcoXyd3OrWxOvtHujJnHrjFIi0ROk%2BWnMchOWZQLBhudxPuzOTijlQEq25FxrjUl1P6i0l%2FTph%2BPvmJbbewZkcJhBFqrioCQm%2BN4GYCwVidWdj2MpS8CvNK9%2BxCAtnC%2BYsUJ3ejsPlvSfd86kHYnR%2FPy7tkGpHF9JvMtvx41JwTPBOxYrjwS9E88FraSPIjiFoWnWi2GWAI%2BabbZRktVyf6NNP2rBTplWGRvmx2QAsSXaiJiR3jZfH92XpP3CRDUQqWFR6AekqXt%2F%2BxqHtPRkBsaA44ICSpwjsYdcfEX4d6g%2FX7iHFmdm5x7wg%3D%3D&checksum=202657226783b7e6a1dbb5184a2a836e2a05f3771307)
I like the matching dice sets, but I also dig them all being different colors too. Whatever makes die identification quick and simple, and also has easy to read numbers; is good in my opinion.
IIRC, a hack for the gamescience dice is to use nail polish to ink in the numbers, wiping off the excess. This is only a hazy memory though.
Quote from: KingofElfland;1099623I ink my own GS dice (it's cheaper), and I've never had a problem. Well, I have re-inked some that I've had for decades, but that hardly matters. They are hardish to read uninked, but as GM I find that to be a bonus.
What do you ink with? I really love my Gamescience dice and would love to ink them in a way that doesn't smear and come off.
I been using red sharpies.
Zucati dice came in today. I went ahead and crayoned them. They started out with a bit of a matte finish, that buffed off while I was using a paper towel in the crayoning.
(https://scontent.fslc2-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/68825270_10218682732716013_6977892284725460992_n.jpg?_nc_cat=103&_nc_oc=AQlxz3tTrVy45ipZM-nzJH_b_9Jjn6rEkv9c3WDib0Kan9F2BkFKl4dmHSu9-lKk9kw&_nc_ht=scontent.fslc2-1.fna&oh=621c9fc2c4a69ba0d1682c7f5f10269a&oe=5DD9CF35)
(https://scontent.fslc2-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/68424683_10218682733556034_8832650770219270144_n.jpg?_nc_cat=102&_nc_oc=AQm09fXAldSn4d5fEAAT-0Zv3SXRsjWlM4dckkE6OVL1GYqwkFY7HkcUvixFcfpNPwM&_nc_ht=scontent.fslc2-1.fna&oh=6d6acb6366360e87d7609a25c5a7bb93&oe=5DD4CD1E)
Quote from: Ratman_tf;1099593Gamescience dice came in today.
(https://i.imgur.com/aJcGrQM.jpg)
Those are beautifully grotesque!
the dice I got with my original copy of Basic red box D&D were red and green plastic (some were red others were green) and the numbers had to be filled in with the included white crayon. (the d20 was numbered 1-20)
they started chipping the first time I rolled them.
one of my friends gave me a bunch of old dice, that he got at a con where it was $1 for a handful. His hands were huge and he ended up getting like 2 pounds of dice by reaching into the bucket and palming them just right. They are about as good a quality as you can imagine, and many have obvious indentations on the faces of the dice from where the plastic warped during cooling. Some of them roll pretty well actually.
Quote from: smcc360;1099751Those are beautifully grotesque!
:D I can't wait to whip them out at the next game session.
Quote from: insubordinate polyhedral;1099701What do you ink with? I really love my Gamescience dice and would love to ink them in a way that doesn't smear and come off.
Paint pens, the ones I use are made by Sharpie. I like the big tip; I just scrape off the excess with my fingernail. White works best for me, even on light colors.
I wonder if all gamers have a some kind of dice fetish?
Quote from: Spinachcat;1099846I wonder if all gamers have a some kind of dice fetish?
I am assuming that is just a rhetorical question...:)
...and now I am feeling nostalgic and need to get some of those dice.
Quote from: Spinachcat;1099846I wonder if all gamers have a some kind of dice fetish?
D20 much?
Quote from: Spinachcat;1099846I wonder if all gamers have a some kind of dice fetish?
If you only knew.......
I have a few different gaming setups, which each include multiple sets of dice. Unless i play DCC, it doesn't matter which setup I grab and use. DCC doubles the types of dice required, necessitating a different dice bag just for DCC
Quote from: Spinachcat;1099846I wonder if all gamers have a some kind of dice fetish?
You'll get my mottled Torg d20 when you pry it from my cold, dead fingers. It's been rolling well for me since 1990...
Dice quest continues!
I've done quite a bit of research at this point. The best site for old dice info so far is Athenopolis.net.
http://www.athenopolis.net/2016/11/buying-dice.html
It looks like the odds of me getting any Dragon Dice in decent shape is remote. I'm going to keep an eye out for anyone casting replicas. (https://www.retroist.com/2018/08/09/reproductions-original-dungeons-dragons-dice/)
In a similar situation, any of the Creative Publications dice that came in the Holmes Basic set are likely to be in terrible shape nowadays. And if I found a good set, I wouldn't want to play with them for fear of their soft plastic.
In the meantime, I think I've found a set of dice reminicent of the early 80's Dragon Dice. (http://dicecollector.com/images/large/e1/38043c0fbc12d670adc4f3853a0777.jpg)
https://www.exodusbooks.com/polyhedral-dice-set-of-7/32639/
(https://www.exodusbooks.com/images/item-large/32639.jpg)
Threshold Dice (https://www.etsy.com/shop/ThresholdDiceworks?ref=seller-platform-mcnav) works looks like a promising lead on getting replica Holmes dice.
(https://i.imgur.com/oPH4uQl.jpg)
*Bumping a 3 year old thread for an update.*
https://www.zucaticorp.com/listing/1006974370/holmage-dice-boxed-set-limited-edition
(https://i.etsystatic.com/10160925/r/il/2e701d/3136207159/il_794xN.3136207159_9flz.jpg)
35 bucks is kinda steep, but that comes to 5 bucks per dice, and will make a nice addition to my old school replica collection.
I really want some gem dice with sharp edges, but Gamescience hasn't put up anything I really like. I may pull the trigger on the colorburst (random) set.
About 10 years ago I bought two sets of Gamescience dice, which were stolen and later replaced. I used Testors white enamel paint to "ink" them. They look fantastic and roll very average, which is exactly what I need as the perennial DM.
I'm convinced. I'm going to add ugly d6 dice to my Traveller calculator.
Quote from: Ratman_tf on August 23, 2019, 12:34:06 PM
Threshold Dice (https://www.etsy.com/shop/ThresholdDiceworks?ref=seller-platform-mcnav) works looks like a promising lead on getting replica Holmes dice.
(https://i.imgur.com/oPH4uQl.jpg)
Damnit. I have resisted buying more dice for a while (kind of) and you had to go post a link to someone that made them in the "right" colors. Damn you!
I bought a couple of those sets from Threshold Dice. Really good product and the guy seems pretty friendly. My only complaint is that the d20 is marked 0-9 twice and well inked so that it's hard to mark one of the number sets red. (I see folks coloring half of the dice faces red, but I never did that. I re-inked my older dice 0-9 black for the 1-10 numbers, and 0-9 red for the 11-20 numbers. My red pen won't show over top the black ink.) :o
Quote from: Spinachcat on August 12, 2019, 08:53:43 PM
If you're not playing D&D with chits from a cup, you're not old school!!
this right here!
In fact - it might be cool to have 3-d printed chits!
HMMMMMM. Think of the designs? This might dovetail with the Rune Casting thread idea. Man... I might actually buy that.
My Holmage dice came in the mail today. I figured I'd do the crayon thing to fill in the numbers.
The surface of the dice in some areas is coarse enough to take a crayon "stain". This results in a semi-permanent smudge on the face of the die.
I'm a bit miffed. It seems to be happening with the black crayon, but not the white crayon.
I ordered some white and black paint pens. If I can't get the crayons to work well, I'll scrub the crayon out and use the paint pens.
Quote from: Spinachcat on August 18, 2019, 12:42:41 AM
I wonder if all gamers have a some kind of dice fetish?
Hmmmm...... Well, maybe?
You start out just wanting some dice of your own, so you can play. Then you see dice that look better, or different; and you want some of those too. Again , and again, and again....
My favorites are a gold plated d6 my wife bought me, and my 1-sided die, which is a superball with a "1" written on the side in pen, used for sarcasm. "So you try to batter down the castle wall with your bare hands. Let's see if you succeed ... (bounce) (bounce) (bounce) (bounce) ... no, I'm sorry, you needed a two!"
If you like Chessex you can order the original color scheme from their website.
Here are the exact product codes I used:
PQ0402 - Opaque Polyhedral Yellow/black d4
PQ0603 - Opaque Polyhedral Orange/black d6
PQ0805 - Opaque Polyhedral Green/white d8
PQ1216 - Opaque Polyhedral Light Blue/white d12
PQ2001 - Opaque Polyhedral White/black d20
Couple of things for you persnickety types... First, some of the ink for the numbers is white, some is black. That works for me but would probably make some of you pop an eyeball. Second, using a standard d20 as a d10 takes a little time to adjust. 0-9 and 0-9+ would likely be better, but at this point I have adjusted.