Dice notation explained
Dice notation is the shorthand in every RPG rulebook: 2d6+3 means "roll two six-sided dice, add them, add three". Here is every piece RollPick understands, and a builder to try them.
Build an expression
4d6kh3Roll 4 6-sided dice, keep the highest 3.
Range 3 to 18
Reference
| Syntax | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
NdX | 2d6 | N dice with X sides, added together |
dX | d20 | One die (the 1 is optional) |
+ / − | 1d8+3, 1d20−1 | Add or subtract a number or more dice |
d% | d% | Percentile die, 1–100 |
khN / kN | 4d6kh3 | Keep the N highest dice |
klN | 2d20kl1 | Keep the N lowest dice |
dlN / dN | 4d6dl1 | Drop the N lowest (same as keeping the rest highest) |
dhN | 5d10dh2 | Drop the N highest |
! | 8d6! | Exploding: a maximum roll adds another die |
rN / roN | 2d6r2 | Reroll once any die at or below N |
dF | 4dF | Fudge/FATE die: −1, 0 or +1 |
Order of operations
RollPick applies modifiers to each die term in a fixed order: roll, reroll once, explode, then keep or drop. Terms are then added or subtracted left to right. So 4d6r1kh3 rerolls any 1s once before choosing the best three.
Where the notation came from
The "d" shorthand grew up with Dungeons & Dragons in the 1970s, when polyhedral dice were new to most players and rulebooks needed a compact way to say "three six-sided dice". Keep/drop and exploding syntax came later from online dice bots and virtual tabletops such as Roll20 and Foundry, which is why small spelling differences exist between tools. The forms above are the common core.
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Questions people ask
What does 2d6 mean?
Roll two six-sided dice and add them. The number before the d is how many dice; the number after is how many sides each has. A missing first number means one die, so d20 is the same as 1d20.
What does 4d6kh3 mean?
Roll four d6 and keep the highest three (kh = keep highest). It is the same as 4d6dl1, drop the lowest one. It is the standard way to roll D&D ability scores.
How do I write advantage in dice notation?
2d20kh1 for advantage and 2d20kl1 for disadvantage, followed by any modifier: 2d20kh1+5.
What does the ! mean in dice notation?
Exploding dice: whenever a die rolls its maximum, roll it again and add the new result, repeating as long as it keeps rolling maximum. Savage Worlds and some other games use this.
What is dF?
A Fudge (FATE) die with two minus faces, two blank faces and two plus faces, so it rolls −1, 0 or +1. FATE uses 4dF.