---
title: Thrice RPG and Dice
subtitle: Some thoughts on the dice used for Thrice RPG
date: 2024-02-14
keywords: [rpg, ttrpg, roleplay, dice, thricerpg, thrice, dthrice, d6]
img: 2024-02-14.thrice_rpg_and_dice.webp
alt: d-thrice dice distribution for 5d³
abstract: Here are some thoughts about the dice used in the the Thrice RPG
---
*Thrice* is an RPG game that recently lauched on Kickstarter. I won't
post the whole Kickstarter detail, but I thought the custom dice are
interesting.
> A light engine TTRPG with a solid structure, using only
> d3s.
>
> Thrice Fantasy is a flexible and comprehensive TTRPG, with a fresh and
> flowing gameplay. The rulebook allows you to play in fantasy settings.
> Thrice Fantasy is the first product to use the Thrice engine, a rule
> system that will be employed in various styles and genres, as we'll
> explore in upcoming Thrice-based releases.
You can find more detail at the [Thrice RPG kickstarter](http://kck.st/42HroaX).
## Thrice Dice
> Thrice uses special six-sided dice on which the number 1 appears
> on one face, 2 on two, 3 on three. These dice are d3,
> pronounced "d-thrice". One d-thrice is referred to as 1d3,
> two dice as 2d3, and so on.
>
> Each die rolled in the game aims to obtain a target number, which can
> be 1, 2 or 3. If the result of a die is equal to the target number,
> that die scores a success. The target is indicated in round brackets
> after the number of dice. If a trap inflicts 5d3(3), the
> Master rolls 5 dice: each result of 3 represents one damage inflicted.
>
> As an alternative to d3, you can use ordinary six-sided
> dice (d6). In that case, if the result of a die is equal to or less
> than the target number, that die scores a success.
This breaks down to:
```
need a 1: 16.6% (1 in 6 chance)
need a 2: 33.3% (1 in 3 chance)
need a 3: 50% (1 in 2 chance)
```
Using a d6 as suggested would be:
```
need a 1: (roll a 1) : 16.6%
need a 2: (roll a 1, 2) : 33.3%
need a 3: (roll a 1, 2, 3): 50%
```
Rolls of 4-6 are ignored. I don't really like the idea of ignoring dice
like this, as the tend to clutter up the dice pools when rolling.
If you want to play around with [anydice.com], this formula is for the
example given 5d3(3)
[anydice.com]: https://anydice.com
``` anydice formula for d-thrice
output [count 3 in 5d{1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3}]
```
Chances of each result (counting how many 3s you get):
```
0 "3s": 3.125%
1 "3s": 15.625%
2 "3s": 31.25%
3 "3s": 31.25%
4 "3s": 15.625%
5 "3s": 3.125%
```
The below is a distribution showing 8d3(3). As the rules
haven't been published yet it's hard to tell how many dice are actually
needed during a normal session.
Given that needing a result of (3) is just a 50% distribution this graph
makes intuative sense.
