Guild Wars 2

What it is:

A dice slash command is a slash command which gives you immediate access to a random number generator, whose parameters are set by the user initiating the roll.

When utilized it would roll a die of your selection in the public chat channel, generating a random number.

What it is for:

Traditionally, random number generators have found their use in gambling, statistical sampling, cryptography, and computer simulations.

Tabletop RPG gamers recognize them as the bane to any action carried out by our PC. We live in fear of our dice gods, and do our utmost to appease them before we toss them on the table.

The suggestion for this command is primarily being made for the sake roleplayers, like myself, to make use of it within the game for inter-character drama which occurs either by happenstance (random encounters) or prearranged scenes and events which may involve combat or some form of non-combat interaction which requires a neutral judge to determine the outcome.

What it looks like:

My suggestion for the Dice Slash Command would be the following:

/xDy

Where:

x = the # of dice
y = the # of sides per die

Example:

/1d6
Roll a 6 sided die, display the result in the currently selected chat channel.

Modifiers:
Modifiers are numerical adjustments to the total result of /xDy, and would be applied to the dice roll as a suffix.

If you wanted to roll a die, or dice, with a positive or negative modifier, the following could be done:
/xDy+/-z

+/- = The optional positive or negative numerical modifier to the total result of xDy
z = the modifying numeral of the numerical modifier to the total rolled result

Example:

/1d6+2
Roll a 6 sided die, adding 2 to the total result.

Or for a negative modifier

/1d6-2
Roll a 6 sided die, subtracting 2 from the total result.

Why am I suggesting this?

In the real world, I have been a Game Master for a variety of different Tabletop RPGs, with my experience somewhere going on three or four years now. I have also personally designed a Tabletop RPG proper, which was met with interest and amusement by those who played it. As such, I am comfortably familiar with the usefulness of a random number generator, and its use as a neutral mediator to roleplaying activities.

The roleplaying community in Guild Wars 2 is a very strong one, with groups of players going out of their way to even found guilds named after the orders, organizations, and companies that exist as part of the game world. Their activities and interactions often bring them into dramatic conflict with each other, for which currently the only way to resolve this drama is through careful understanding and often meticulous pre-planning between all the actors involved.

But beyond these planned events, there are also plenty of chance encounters that at times result in combat between the characters involved. I’ve witnessed bar brawls, rough housing, back alley beatings, gladiatorial contests, shoot-out standoffs, and many other such examples of inter-character brutality. All entertaining to watch, but I have witnessed these often conclude in two manners; either they conclude with the conflicting parties making quick and fair judgements concerning the victors, or they quickly devolve into a multi-hour long godmodding marathon.

Each time I witnessed the latter, I often found myself thinking a few dice rolls may have shortened the encounter. That may just be the twitching GM in me though.

I would not seek to replace how planned events or random encounters are carried out with a random number generation system. My intent is but to provide something to supplement the roleplaying experience on Guild Wars 2.

Whether you share my views or do not, please do not hesitate to leave questions and comments. I will be more than happy to talk to you about it.

While you can use outside programs for this…it would be really useful for RP’ers.

The trouble is getting everyone onboard for the outside program and agreeing to use it. Putting it in game makes it easily accessible and thus more acceptable to the common player.

Might I also add that a random number generator code script is TINY and extremely easy to add? There’s really no reason not to have this and a lot of us would really appreciate it.

/roll mechanics were in GW1 so I am honestly baffled as to why they have not been included in GW2. It’s a mechanic that I’ve always used for many different things. I’ve been hoping that it’d be added.

+1; this is good not just for RPers but also for parties and guilds who have limited resources and want to distribute them in a non-judgmental manner.

/rock /paper /scissors is also a good one to have to settle arguments, if it’s not already implemented.

Supporting this thread. I miss being able to /roll for blame.

This is definitely something I have missed, would love to have it. ^^

I am on board with this idea 100%. Even if it were just a super simple /roll between 1 – 100 like in WoW (but I’m SURE ArenaNet can do one better, heh heh).

Interesting, but as you describe it, it seems a little complicated. While I have always supported a random number generator, I think something simpler would fit the spirit of GW2 better.

To use EverQuest 2 for example, there is the /random command. By default it produces a number from 1-100.

Add a number after the command, it will now use that as the maximum. For example – /random 20 would produce a number from 1-20.

Also, when generating numbers, they are only visible to people who are grouped together. This makes it impossible to spam general chat with random numbers. Of course, in EQ2 you can have raids of a couple dozen people whereas in GW2 the largest group possible is 5. But I think it would still be a good idea to limit a /random or /roll command to only be seen by people in a group.

Courtesy of my roommate:

int main() { srand((unsigned)time(0)); int random_integer;
int lowest=1, highest=100; int range=(highest-lowest)1; for(int index=0; index<20; index){ random_integer = lowestint(range*rand()/(RAND_MAX + 1.0)); cout << random_integer << endl; } }

That’ll be $200.

Kidding but that’s just an example of how a simple line of code can really help out a large mass of your player base.

^ it’s missing the user input. add one more line :P

but seriously, do RPers actually use rulesets now in game? since when? and how many of them would use it? and most importantly, FOR WHAT?

if you need it that badly, just run GW2 on windowed mode.

Drat, I’ll go swat him upside the head.

It’s not that we “use rulesets” it’s just a very convenient means of conflict resolution or adding a bit of random chance when we do events and so on and so forth. As in any work of fiction, when two characters get into a conflict and sometimes combat is the only resolution both players want to win, most likely, but also want a way to win that will be fair to both. So a random number generator will often be used to determine whose attack succeeded and whose failed, for instance. It’s an extremely useful tool, all around.

Another use is doing some turn-based “D&D” style events for guild members where your members are in conflict with imaginary NPC’s and are using the RNG to determine the success and failure of their attacks and actions (this could also be player characters). It just depends but the possibilities for its use far outweigh the effort of implementing… five? lines of code.

Oh and there’s always roll for blame. Can’t forget that lol.

Still think this is a good idea, not hard to implement and not too much to ask for, Anet. =)

Kaemrys.5320:

Still think this is a good idea, not hard to implement and not too much to ask for, Anet. =)

implementing it would still require testing to make sure it doesn’t accidentally bring in any unwanted bugs to already existing features, and quite honestly, ANet’s time is better spent on doing useful things right now.

I suggested that dice equipment might be sold in the gem shop, but that message was deleted as it came off as a joke.

What I had in mind, which I tried to explain a little too subtly, was:

• dice rolls could be implemented as a game feature
• you could then buy cosmetic dice-related equipment which would improve the feature

The difference would be:

• typing /roll would make a dice roll appear in chat
• clicking on a dice item would make the dice roll appear in chat, but also your character would make a cute dice rolling animation, and roll a die on the game world map for all to see!

I’d like to add for the moderator and all viewing that suggestions for real money purchases in the gem store are important. It helps to show developers that there is real worth in listening to requests for cosmetic improvements, beyond appealing to a personal fancy!

And likewise, we participators must realize that real time, sweat and money goes into the content we are continually gifted with!

Thanks for listening!

i’m sorry if i’m upping a very old thread, but yeah! i’d like anet make this available!

I would support this

I know this is a necro, but I would really, really like to support this.