How to Eliminate Extra Dice or Extra Die Rolls in Your Games

 I know that a lot of solitaire players either roll extra six-sided dice, or make extra die rolls, in order to determine things during play. A good example would be the Super-Advanced "Determining Outside / Penetration Shots" rule. The rule suggests that you "roll 1 die" and compare the result to the number of shooting stars in the shooters' Shooting Tendency rating, to determine if the player will shoot from outside or penetrate. Now, why in the world would I want to add an additional 220 die rolls to a game where you're already rolling the dice almost 250 times per game? I know I wouldn't.

So, the first thing that I, and probably others have done, have been to simply add an extra, different colored, die to your rolls, and use the result from that die, from the previous roll of the dice. Problem solved! No extra die rolls, and you're only rolling one extra die, four instead of three. But, what if you're one of those players that prefer not to roll an extra die during play? Maybe you have small hands, or are a purist, who resists adding an additional die to the special black die and two white dice, to your play. What is one to do? 

Well, I've found a little trick, that I've added to my solitaire game play, to eliminate extra die rolls, or adding an extra die to my play, when using rules or play options that require an extra die roll to determine an outcome. What I do, for what I like to call a "decision die," is to simply refer to the white die from the previous dice roll, that came to rest farthest to my left, to determine whatever result I'm trying to get. For example, if I'm using the afore mentioned "Determining Outside / Penetration Shots" rule, I just look at the white die that is left of the other white die to get the needed number, to compare to the shooter's Shooting Tendency rating. Or let's say you're using a rule to determine which 1+ rated shooter gets the pass from "Pass to any 1+ shooter for shot, using a die six result to make the determination (say 1-3 it goes to the 1+ shooter on your left, and 4-6 goes to the 1+ rated shooter that is placed right of the other 1+ rated shooter on the floor), in conjunction with the "Determining Outside / Penetration Shots" rule in conjunction with a rule. Now you need two die six results. No problem! Use the previous result of the white die that that came to rest on your left to determine which 1+ rated shooter gets the pass, and use the previous result of the white die that came to rest on the right to determine if the player will shoot from outside or penetrate.

No extra die rolls, and no extra dice added to your game, while still having the necessary die results to determine whatever action will occur in relation to whatever rules or game play options you happen to be using! Now, you're probably thinking, what to do in those rare circumstances where both white dice land directly above each other? Easy! Use the result from the top white die first, and if necessary, use the result on the bottom die for the second needed number.

Stop making extra die rolls. or rolling extra dice; let the dice you've already rolled do the work for you!