Precision Dice Required in Tournaments

Robin Reeve

The Swiss Moron
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Messages
19,597
Reaction score
5,557
Location
St-Légier
First name
Robin
Country
llSwitzerland
I use precision dice occasionally, just because they are aesthetically nice.
At the level of ASL the potential difference between precision and non precision dice is infinitesimal - but some people need to believe that they don't lose because they are less skilled than their opponent...
 

Sparafucil3

Forum Guru
Joined
Oct 7, 2004
Messages
11,335
Reaction score
5,071
Location
USA
First name
Jim
Country
llUnited States
I'd like to see people accept normal dice in tournaments. There seems to be a trend to insist in the use of precision dice (at least in Scandinavia this is the case). So far no one has shown me convincing proof that precision dice are superior to normal dice in creating random numbers.
You do you. Having said that, you've spent hundreds of dollars/Euro on a game system and play with 10 cent dice. Seems kind of crazy to me personally. JMO, YMMV. -- jim
 

Philippe D.

Elder Member
Joined
Jul 1, 2016
Messages
2,132
Reaction score
1,393
Location
Bordeaux
Country
llFrance
Well, the game comes with dice that are perfectly functional; additional, typically much more expensive dice don't expand the game's possibilities at all. At least when I spend money on scenarios and other game components, that increases my options.
 

hongkongwargamer

Forum Guru
Joined
Apr 4, 2013
Messages
7,180
Reaction score
5,569
Location
Lantern Waste
Country
llUnited Kingdom
I don’t think the issue is about what kind of dice you yourself chose to use (nobody’s business). It’s about insisting on the dice that your opponent has to use at a tournament.

I’d say switch tournaments.
 

Pitman

Forum Guru
Joined
Jan 27, 2003
Messages
14,104
Reaction score
2,371
Location
Columbus, OH
Country
llUnited States
I'd like to see people accept normal dice in tournaments. There seems to be a trend to insist in the use of precision dice (at least in Scandinavia this is the case). So far no one has shown me convincing proof that precision dice are superior to normal dice in creating random numbers.
Even though I use Battleschool dice, which are precision dice, I would refuse to play in any tournament that required precision dice. That's crazy.
 

RandyT0001

Elder Member
Staff member
Administrator
Moderator
Joined
Dec 5, 2016
Messages
1,055
Reaction score
1,272
Location
Memphis, TN
First name
Cary
Country
llUnited States
I use precision dice and a dice tower to demonstrate to my opponent that I strife to be as fair as possible during play. Statistically, the probability differences between regular dice and precision dice are insignificant but measurable.
 

Vinnie

See Dummies in the index
Joined
Feb 9, 2005
Messages
17,427
Reaction score
3,365
Location
Aberdeen , Scotland
Country
llUnited Kingdom
I have onky ever had one player request I not use the dice I had, he did not like the decal instead of the pip on the one. No biggie, i just used hiis dice instead.
I cannot imagine a tournament insisting on the use of precision dice. If it did, it woukd also have to insist on the dice being new out of the wrapper as well to ensure they had not been tampered with.

I do have a set of dice that I break out for new opponents. They are balanced but just horrible!

 
Reactions: MTL

Steven Pleva

Elder Member
Joined
Jun 28, 2007
Messages
3,425
Reaction score
1,080
Location
Connecticut
Country
llUnited States
The Albany dice rule is simply this: "If someone does not use precision dice you can ask to share." Therefore, if you don't want to share, bring precision dice. Nobody is forced to buy or use precision dice...
Steve
 

lluis61

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 9, 2017
Messages
463
Reaction score
522
Location
Barcelona
First name
Luis
Country
llSpain
I use precision dice. And a dice tower. And for one motive: I use dice not tampered, and I don't manipulate the dice (indeed, I just deposit in the dice tower, don't even shake'em). I'm always willful to let my opponent throw my dice. It's not a question of luck: it's demonstrating my opponent that I want a game as neat as I can afford. It's showing your oppnent that you want to play neat: precision dice, dice tower, not shaking, pure fate . If I play at my opponent house, I use his rules: use of the same dice (precision; I sold'em to him, and he broke the shrinkwrap and shake'em) and take the result. If he comes my place, He brings his own dice but use my dice tower, and I use my own precision dice (same as he bought).
 

Pitman

Forum Guru
Joined
Jan 27, 2003
Messages
14,104
Reaction score
2,371
Location
Columbus, OH
Country
llUnited States
The Albany dice rule is simply this: "If someone does not use precision dice you can ask to share." Therefore, if you don't want to share, bring precision dice. Nobody is forced to buy or use precision dice...
Steve
To me, that still seems extreme.
 

zgrose

Elder Member
Joined
Jun 13, 2004
Messages
4,235
Reaction score
948
Location
Kingwood, TX
First name
Zoltan
Country
llUnited States
I use precision dice and a dice tower to demonstrate to my opponent that I strife to be as fair as possible during play. Statistically, the probability differences between regular dice and precision dice are insignificant but measurable.
does anyone have said measurements around here?
 

Tuomo

Keeper of the Funk
Joined
Feb 10, 2003
Messages
4,652
Reaction score
5,537
Location
Rock Bottom
Country
llUnited States
This may be heresy, but I don't like precision dice, especially when coupled with dice towers that have felt or other sound-absorbing covering. There's not enough tumbling action to satisfy my inherent sense of randomness. Me, I drop the classic dice into a pilsner glass; they tumble and kick around quite gratifyingly before they break my heart.
 

RandyT0001

Elder Member
Staff member
Administrator
Moderator
Joined
Dec 5, 2016
Messages
1,055
Reaction score
1,272
Location
Memphis, TN
First name
Cary
Country
llUnited States
Then our definitions of "extreme" are not the same...
Steve
'Extreme' would be:

"Only the 12.5mm Nationality Series of dice are usable and the player must use the dice set that represent the nationality played. The dice must be randomized glass, cup or tower with matching nationality symbols. "
 

jrv

Forum Guru
Joined
May 25, 2005
Messages
21,998
Reaction score
6,206
Location
Teutoburger Wald
Country
llIceland
I once took a die that looked (by my eyeball) to be unbalanced. I rolled it hundreds of times and recorded the results. I was hoping I could demonstrate that the die was biased. The results were not exactly evenly distributed, but getting exactly evenly distributed results is itself not statistically likely. I could never get the differences I saw to be statistically significant. I gave up.

JR
 

STAVKA

Elder Member
Joined
Oct 20, 2004
Messages
831
Reaction score
553
Location
East Front
Country
llFinland
Have seen non-precision die crack into two parts, by a Danish player in the Arnhem Tournament. Seen several non-precision where corners have eroded or fallen of (original AH dice). Seen several other dice where the symbol have eroded slightly to vanished. Have seen a die that mostly only rolled 1, 2, 3.
None of these issues have ever happend with my Backgammon Precision Dice, despite being bought 20+ years ago.
 

STAVKA

Elder Member
Joined
Oct 20, 2004
Messages
831
Reaction score
553
Location
East Front
Country
llFinland
If the large Backgammon community require Backgammon Precision Dice at tournaments, all very understandable when looking at the top dollars you can earn.
Pictures of what is required at tournaments [URLunfurl="true"]https://duckduckgo.com/?q=backgammon precision dice&ia=images[/URL]
Simply put, if anyone should call backgammon players 'extreme' , then in all fairness, I believe they would regard ASL players more extreme when investing so much time and effort into a game and then only play with other than Backgammon Precision Dice at Tournaments.
 
Top