Question about dice rolls

Frakas

Hello,

I have a questions about multiple dice rolls, like 2d4. Is the probability distribution of a 2d4 roll uniform, meaning that there is the same chance of getting a 2 or a 5 ? Or is it the actual "bell shaped" distribution with more chances of rolling a 5 ?

Thanks in advance

dunbar

2D4 means that you roll a four-sided di(c)e twice and add the results of both rolls together, so you have an equal chance of getting a minimum score of 2 (1+1) or a maximum of 8 (4+4) and of course everything in between.
Note that the difference between 2D4 and 1D8 is that the latter has a lower possible outcome (one roll of one = 1, two rolls of 1 = 2).

Frakas

It is well known that when you roll 2d6, you have a higher chance of getting a 7 than a 12. Or when you roll 2d4, you are more likely to get a 5. What you say is that it is not the case in the game ?

dunbar

Yes you're quite right. I had in fact over-thought myself into tangle on that one - it goes back to PnP days and discussions on whether a 2D4 Bastard sword was 'better' than a 1D8 weapon.

deltago

It's a bell curve.
You have an equal chance to roll the numbers 3 to 7, but half of that chance to roll a 2 or 8.

Frakas

I agree, I did some testing and the results looked like a bell curve. Which means a bastard sword is more consistent than a long sword ! Plus that +1 minimal damage.
Thanks for your input !