The Mini-d20 is numbered 0-9 twice...a configuration that some old-schoolers prefer. I like having some in my pile, but I would just as soon grab a 1-20 numbered d20 when I need one. It's all personal vibe, though.
I'm not sure what game these mini versions are from. I don't think I've ever seen them before. Maybe some googling is in order...hmmnnnn.
Anyway, I filtered thru a fishbowl of dice at one vendor's booth, and a box-o-dice at another booth, and ended up with several to add to my collection. Here's the gang:
Several of those mini-d20s, an old (I'm presuming) Basic or Expert D&D Box Set light blue d6 (probably Moldvay or Mentzer set), that normal-sized sucky d20 referenced above in the 1st pic, and three Gamescience d4s of various colors Again I'm presuming these d4s are Gamescience, cuz I have a full purple set and these are identical to the d4 that Colonel Lou Zocchi made in that set (those dice rock, BTW):
Ah well, kinda boring I guess, but I like finding these treats in a mound of modern/regular dice. These folks probably think I'm nuts for wanting the crappy ones, but I dig 'em, and that counts too!
11 comments:
Gah. Those mini-d20s look familiar; I'm sure I've got some in one of my RPGs somewhere. Old, quite old they are. Maybe it was Villains & Vigilantes? I'll dig around, see what I can find.
Oh, and Gamescience dice rock. I bought two sets (purple as you have and blue with white) plus the "Ugly Dice" set at this last Gen Gon, the Colonel's last show. Wish I coulda bought more from the guy; we all owe him so much for what we have...
I'm currently using exclusively Zocchi's dice in my Greyhawk Game (save for the d30, which is Armory, IIRC). I have a stock if Gamescience dice from years of buying one set every Gen Con. Guess from now on I'll just have to buy more Chessex dice...
Ahhh, V&V? Cool, I'll have to poke around on that tip. I thought they (the mini d20s) were pretty cool, but not sure on how usable they will be.
And the "ugly dice" are certainly that...hehe...ugly. But they are Lou's and thus they rock. That purple set of mine is a fave for sure.
If you haven't tried the roll test that Col. Lou demoed for folks at his booths, try it. You will see his dice stop much sooner than the polished ones. According to him in a lengthy discussion on it, that means that his dice are more likely to give all sides/numbers a fair shake. Right or wrong, I like 'em, so I use 'em.
Thanks again James, for the heads up on the V&V dice. I will have to have a look.
I remember a friend's old Pendragon box (not sure what edition, but this was ~15-18 years ago) came with a tiny d20.
I got a pair of those miniature d20s, one green, and one that same orange, in the MERP red box.
Hey I still have some of those dices. They are cool!
A horribly late comment here, but the mini dice are by Gamescience. I have dozens of them, not least because they were included with every TWERPS product as well as the likes of "Chivalry & Sorcery 2nd Edition."
@ Big Jack Brass:
Thanks for the reference on the mini dice. I've heard now from a few different folks on where else they've seen them, and which products they were released with.
I love Gamescience dice. I a bunch in my collection, but theses little mini dice, seem less "crisp." I'm not sure if that's the best adjective, but I think you know what I mean. Maybe it's just because they are smaller dice, and maybe the molds/etc are different.
Here's a cool site I found on dice, and a page that helps to determine a manufacturer of a certain die/dice:
http://www.dicecollector.com/d20face.html
Pretty cool site. I have a bunch of 0-9 twice d20's (normal and mini) and several of them have different numbering configurations. This site helped me figure out which ones where which.
Anyway, thanks for the comment, bud!
@ KenHR, Cole, and LEon:
Thanks for the other references too guys. It's interesting that these little dice came with so many different game systems. Sadly, I have little to no experience with any of those other games. But I'm glad to hear about them, so thanks!
the small d20's are also GameSceince ... they are called Microhedra
http://www.dicecollector.com/D20_OPAQUE_SHARP_SOLID_MICROHEDRA.jpg
Sorry for the poor quality of this photo ... it was taken nearly 10 years ago ...
@DiceCollector: Hey thanks for the info and pic! I pimped your site a comment or two earlier. I hope you saw that. Your site (www.dicecollector.com) is freakin awesome!
I have seen the pic you referenced (when I was browsing the site looking for info on normal size 0-9 twice d20's in my collection), but I never put it together that those in the pic were the mini d20s...cool!
Thanks for the info.
What a thrilling post. It is extremely chock-full of useful information. Thanks for such a great info. Malachite Dice
Post a Comment