Dragon Dice
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Dragon Dice is a collectible dice game originally made by TSR, Inc. It is one of only a handful of collectible dice games produced in the early 1990's. In 1995, Dragon Dice won the Origins Award for Best Fantasy or Science-Fiction Board Game 1995. The races and monsters in Dragon Dice were created by Lester Smith and include some creatures unique to a fantasy setting and others familiar to the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.
The game classifies magical power by element: air, earth, fire, water, and death. Nearly every race in the game is composed of two of these elements. Dragons and dragon-related dice (Dragonkin), are all composed of a single element each.
TSR produced the starter races and several expansion packs, printing a total of eight races and several promotional dice for the game. After TSR's purchase by Wizards of the Coast, one additional race was created.
The game was then sold to SFR, Inc. - before almost being discontinued and having large numbers of unsold dice dumped into a landfill[1]. SFR produced a tenth race and also completed two sets of promotional dice.
Contents |
[edit] Overview
While this is by no means a complete accounting of the game, it should explain the basics of play.
[edit] Types of dice
[edit] Units
UNITS are six- and ten-sided (see Monsters, below) dice, and have two colors showing the elements of which their race is comprised. They come in three sizes, each corresponding to a particular amount of "health" from 1 to 3 points. One side on each unit die has an ID icon, which counts as whatever action is being rolled for. The remaining sides have some number of either melee, missile, maneuver, magic, save, or special icons. Generally, the more health a unit has, the more icons it will have. Units are also divided by type as well as size. Some are melee (combat) dice, others are proficient in missile attacks, and others are skilled with magic. Before the start of the game, units are divided into three separate armies, Home, Horde and Campaign. The Home army defends your Home terrain, the Horde army is placed at an opponent's Home terrain, and the Campaign army is placed at the Frontier. Before the start of the game, players roll their Horde armies, and the player with the most maneuver points may choose the Frontier terrain, or to go first.
MONSTERS are ten-sided units and have a single icon on each face which can count for 1 to 4 points. Monsters are part of a player's army and each one counts as four points of health.
Players build armies to a predetermined amount of health. The standard game is 36 points of health, but smaller and even larger games are not uncommon.
[edit] Terrains
TERRAINS are eight-sided and have two colors that indicate of what elements the terrain is composed. For example, a Swampland terrain is green and gold, showing it is made of earth and water. Each face of a terrain die is numbered and has an icon for missile, melee, or magic. The number and the icon shown indicate how far apart armies at that terrain are. If a Magic icon (starburst) is showing, then the armies are so far apart they can only cast spells. A Missile face (arrow) means they are close enough to shoot at each other, and a Melee icon (sword) means they are close enough for hand-to-hand combat to take place. Each player brings two terrains to the game, one Home terrain and one proposed Frontier terrain. Some races gain benefits such as extra maneuvers or saves if they are at a certain terrain. The goal of the game is to control two such terrains by "turning" them to the 8th face. An army capturing an 8th face also gains double maneuvers and double saves. The eighth face of terrains has one of four special icons: City, Temple, Tower and Standing Stones. Each gives an additional bonus to the army that possesses them.
EXAMPLES: An army with a Temple is immune to the effects of Death (black) magic, a City allows for the recruiting or promoting of units, a Tower allows for a Missile action to any other terrain, and Standing Stones allow that army to cast magic of that terrains color, even if the army is not made up of those colors.
[edit] Dragons
DRAGONS are twelve-sided and of a single color. Each face has the image of a dragon part that will show what action the dragon takes when rolled against an army. Dragons must be summoned to a terrain through the use of magic. Players do not control dragons they summon, so bringing one into play can be risky since the possibility exists that it may attack the very player that summoned it! One dragon is brought to the game for every 24 health of units in your armies. Thus, in a 48 health game you would bring two dragons.
[edit] Magestorm
MAGESTORM dice are magical items, artifacts and dragonkin. Most are four-sided magical items that can count as 1 to 3 health, replacing units. They are single-colored and may be carried by any army. Again, the larger items will have more icons and are thus more powerful. Armies carry these items to aid them in certain actions such as maneuvers, magic, missile or melee when rolled for that action. Larger magical items, called Artifacts, are ten-sided dice and count as four health of units. Dragonkin are 6-sided one-color units that can be summoned to a terrain and fight with the army there. Dragonkin will not fight against a dragon of the same color. For every full three points of other units a player brings to a game, he is allowed (but not required), to bring one point of dragonkin.
EXAMPLE: In a 24-point game, a player can bring 8 points of dragonkin.
[edit] Gameplay
On a player's turn, one is allowed two marches, or actions, with their armies. What action they may take depends on what icon is showing on the terrain face. However, a single army may not take two marches in the same turn.
EXAMPLE: A player has pulled all of their units into a single army at one terrain. On their turn they get only one march with that army.
[edit] Maneuver
Before taking an action with their army, a player may choose to attempt to move the terrain face up or down. They announce this, and if unopposed, change the terrain. If an opponent at the same terrain wishes to oppose the move, then both players roll their army, counting maneuver and ID icons for the total number of points rolled. If the acting player's total is equal to or exceeds the opposing player's total, then they win and may turn the terrain die one face up or down.
EXAMPLE: The terrain is a missile face and the player has a mostly melee army. Turning it to a melee face allows them to skirmish their opponent.
[edit] Magic
If the terrain face is a Magic icon, a player may attempt to cast magic and roll their army, counting magic icons and IDs. Those dice on which an ID is rolled may double their magic total if they match at least one color of the terrain. After tallying points, the acting player may cast spells to help their own armies or hinder an opponent's. Spells are assorted by color, and have varying effects such as inflicting damage, adding protection, or even summoning a dragon.
[edit] Missile
While at a terrain with a Missile face, the acting player can choose to shoot at an army at the same terrain or at the frontier. The army is rolled and all missile and ID icons are counted for the total number of hits. The targeted army is rolled for saves, and if enough saves are not generated, units are removed from the army and sent to the Dead Unit Area (DUA). The targeted player does not get to roll a return shot.
EXAMPLE: the acting player rolls 5 missile icons and 2 IDs for 7 hits. The targeted player rolls only 4 saves, so would send a total of 3 health of units to the DUA.
[edit] Melee
At a terrain with a melee (sword) icon showing, the acting player can choose to engage their opponent in a skirmish. The army is rolled, and all melee and ID icons are counted for the total number of hits on the targeted army. That army is then rolled for saves (like in a missile attack), and if enough saves are not rolled, the appropriate number of units are sent to the DUA. The targeted army then rolls for a counter-attack against the acting player's army, who must then save against the attack or send units to the DUA as well.
[edit] Reinforce and reserves
When a player has taken both marches, they may withdraw any number of units from terrains into the Reserves area. These units may then be sent to any terrain at the end of the player's next turn during the Reinforcement phase, but before others are withdrawn into the Reserves. Units in the Reserves may take a march, but they may not maneuver a terrain and are limited to attempting friendly magic (they cannot target an opposing army or affect a terrain). The one exception to this is Amazons, which may take a missile action to their Home terrain or the Frontier while in reserves.
Some units and monsters have SAIs (Special Action Icons). For example, a CANTRIP icon allows for up to 4 points of magic during any action other than maneuvers that can be used immediately. A BULLSEYE icon rolled during a missile action targets an individual unit that must for saves before the targeted army does. The SMITE icon inflicts up to 4 hits on a target army, who cannot save against them and must remove that many health from the army before rolling for saves.
A player wins by maneuvering two terrains to the 8th face, or through attrition by removing all of an opponent's pieces from the game.
