Dice pool
Term applied to two similar game mechanics:1) The player has a finite 'pool' of dice to use for his character's or unit's actions.
Any dice used in rolls are removed from the pool.
Dice may be restored to the pool by 'resting' the character or unit for one or more game turns.
Example: 2-Hour-Wargames' gladiatorial rules, "Red Sand, Blue Sky". 2) A unit or character rolls multiple dice at a time – the result is determined by how many of those dice meet or exceed the required score.
Example: most 'West End Games' and 'White Wolf' rulesets. The second mechanism is often cited as being superior to a single-dice-roll method, in that it produces a greater proportion of 'middling' results, with exceptionally high and exceptionally low results being relatively rare.
In comparison, an unmodified single dice roll has an equal chance of scoring it's minimum, it's maximum, or anything in between, making abject failures and spectacular successes relatively common.
Original definition 16 January 2015 9:14 AM by Norman D Landings.
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