Extended Dice Chain

d3 – d4 – d5 – d6 – d7 – d8 – d10 – d12 – d14 – d16 – d20 – d24 – d30

I've been thinking a lot about Mercurial Magic lately (and there's certainly more where this post came from - watch this space) and something struck me about a handful of the results, namely 96 and 98 which improve the die used to cast the spell. The Dice Chain is an awesome way to give DCC's equivalent of "advantage" and "disadvantage" and can theoretically stack bonuses, but there is an explicit limit of d30, "the largest die that can be used" -p. 17.

Well, that's kind of a bummer for those with Mercurial Magic result 98 who are already using a d30. Why would they bother using extra spell components, ritual casting, or some other method of improving their cast? This inadvertently locks out (or at least makes less meaningful) some roleplay options for Wizards in the games of those Judges who like to give out +1d bonuses for this sort of extra creativity and preparation. It even stunts Arcane Affinity, which also works on the Dice Chain.

Here's an extended version, and you don't need additional dice beyond the DCC funky dice. The math shouldn't come up frequently enough to significantly slow down your game. Note that I've also included additions to the lower end for stacking penalties - I can't see either extreme coming up often if ever, but hey, that's perfectly on brand here.

0 – 1 – d2 – d3 – d4 – d5 – d6 – d7 – d8 – d10 – d12 – d14 – d16 – d20 – d24 – d30 – d36 – d42 – d50 – d60 – d70 – d80 – d100 – d120

How to roll the other dice:

0, 1: Flat results with no roll. Modifiers still apply.

d2: Three methods, pick your favourite.

1. Coin flip: tails is 1 and heads is 2.

2. Any even-sided die: odds are 1 and evens are 2.

3. Any even-sided die: lower half is 1 and upper half is 2.

d36: Two methods, pick your favourite. It's also worth noting that this die really exists and that inspired this extension.

1. Two d6, what some call the "d66" roll. Acts kind of like a percentile roll, in that the first die counts for multiples of six instead of multiples of ten. 1=0, 2=6, 3=12, 4=18, 5=24, 6=30.

2. A d3 and a d12, where the d3 counts for multiples of 12. 1=0, 2=12, 3=24

d42: A d7 and a d6, where the d7 counts for multiples of six. See the first d36 method, except 7=36.

d50: Two methods, pick your favourite.
1. d100 but subtract 50 if the result is in the upper half.

2. d100 divided by two, round down.

d60 - d80 and d120: A d6/d7/d8/d12 and a d10, the same way you'd roll percentile but with the lower die being the tens digit. It's also worth noting that this die really exists and that's actually the only reason I extended the chain past d100 (but you don't need it).