Dice

In The 9th Age: Fantasy Battles, dice are often used to determine random outcomes. The most commonly used type is the six-sided dice, referred to as a D6, with a range from 1 to 6. The effects of a dice roll are often dependent on whether the rolled value is equal to or higher than a set value (such as a dice roll that is successful if the dice rolls ‘3’ or higher). This is often referred to as a 3+ (or 2+, 4+, 6+, etc.).

Multiple Dice

Sometimes you need to roll more than one of these dice at the same time. This is represented by a number before the type of dice rolled, such as 3D6, which means to roll 3 six-sided dice and add the results together.

Modified Dice Rolls

On other occasions, a dice roll may be modified by adding or subtracting a number, such as D6+1. In such cases, simply add the relevant number to, or subtract it from, the result of the roll. It may also be multiplied by a number, such as D6×2: multiply the result of the roll by this number.

Natural Roll

A natural roll on a D6 refers to the value of the dice, before any modifiers are applied.

Rerolling Dice

Lastly, some effects in the game call for rerolling certain dice, such as failed to-wound rolls, or Aegis Save rolls of ‘1’. When you encounter such situations, reroll the relevant dice. Dice can only be rerolled once. The second result is final, no matter the cause, source, or result, and the initial result is ignored for all rules purposes, unless specifically stated otherwise. Note that rerolling a dice is not considered a modifier.

Rolling a D3

The game sometimes requires the roll of a D3. This is performed by rolling a D6 and then halving the result, rounding up, so that the result can only be 1, 2, or 3. If the game requires a natural ‘1’ or a natural ‘6’ when rolling a D3, it always refers to the value of the D6 before halving.

Maximised Roll and Minimised Roll

For dice rolls subject to Maximised Roll, roll one additional D6 and discard the lowest D6 rolled. For dice rolls subject to Minimised Roll, roll one additional D6 and discard the highest D6 rolled. These rules are cumulative (e.g. for a roll affected by two instances of Maximised Roll, you roll two additional D6 and discard the two lowest D6 rolled). The results of the discarded D6 are ignored for all intents and purposes.

The Direction Dice is a special six-sided dice with all sides marked with an arrow. Certain rules may ask the player to determine a random direction. In such cases, roll the Direction Dice and then use the direction in which the arrow points.

Representing the Direction Dice with a Standard D6

Alternatively, the Direction Dice can be represented by rolling a standard six-sided dice and using the side with a single dot (i.e. the ‘1’) to represent the direction of an arrow as depicted in figure figure/deviation_dice. If rolling a result of ‘1’ or ‘6’ (‘1’ and ‘6’ are on opposite faces on a standard dice), use the central dot in the ‘5’ to represent the direction of the arrow instead.


Representing the Direction Dice with a standard D6.