Skip to content

Ability scores not random

duke5of5duke5of5 Member Posts: 10
edited March 2013 in Not An Issue
This may not be a bug - it may be intentional - but this seems as good a place as any to ask about it. I am glad that it was decided to put the total of the ability points "rolled" at the bottom. That makes it faster to figure out if you got the roll you wanted. But it also makes it clear that the numbers rolled are skewed. Even with the minimums, there should statistically be roughly an equal chance of getting numbers in the 40's, 50's, 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's, and 100's. But even after trying witrh several new characters, it is clear that about 80% of the numbers generated are between 75-79, with most of the rest of the numbers being between 80-89. There may be 1-2% chance of getting numbers in the 90's, and I have never seen any numbers in any of the other ranges. Is this a bug or is this intentional?

It seems like there should be equal chances to get any number between the minimum and maximum scores.
Post edited by Jalily on

Comments

  • JaceJace Member Posts: 193
    That is because the game rolls three 6-sided dice, resulting in a number between 3 and 18. That means that although there are twenty-four combinations that can result in 10 (the average number), there is only one combination that results in 18 (6-6-6). Likewise, there is only one combination that results in 3 (1-1-1). It's easy to see then how easy it is to roll 75 total, if you take into account class minimums.
    [Deleted User]TJ_Hooker
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 3,675
    The user and all related content has been deleted.
  • duke5of5duke5of5 Member Posts: 10
    I understand what you are saying about the odds using three 6-sided dice, but even with that, shouldn't you at least occasionally get a score in the 50's 60's or other ranges? I have literally spent hours generating scores for different characters, and have yet to see a score less than 75.
  • aldainaldain Member Posts: 303
    Attributes are automatically rerolled if they total up to <75.
    atcDaveTJ_Hooker
  • atcDaveatcDave Member Posts: 2,146
    You also choose class before you roll, and die rolls will guarantee the minimum for your chosen class. For many, like say fighter, the requirement is pretty basic (a 9 strength) so that would skew results only slightly by not allowing a strength result below 9. But for others, like say Paladin, those results are much more stringent (a 9 constitution, 12 strength, 13 wisdom and 17 charisma). That means your "random" die rolls for a Paladin can't go any lower than that, with is a huge step up from average.
    And as others noted, any total result below 75 is thrown out automatically by the computer.
    TJ_Hooker
  • BJMJDBJMJD Member Posts: 192
    The probability table of a characteristic roll is:

    3 -> 0.46%
    4 -> 1.38%
    5 -> 2.77%
    6 -> 4.63%
    7 -> 6.94%
    8 -> 9.72%
    9 -> 11.57
    10 -> 12.5%
    11 -> 12.5%
    12 -> 11.57%
    13 -> 9.72%
    14 -> 6.94%
    15 -> 4.63%
    16 -> 2.77%
    17 -> 1.38%
    18 -> 0.46%
    TJ_Hooker
  • Vonbek777Vonbek777 Member Posts: 135
    I've spent the last three days rolling a berserker off and on about 30 minutes at time. Trying to get a 92 or better. Wasn't having much luck, several 90s but nothing better, but this morning, I rolled a 97 on the twentieth click or so. Very nice. My brave berserker just died resting in an inn while berserk however with 27 out of 29 life. I rerolled, and waited for berserk to wear off, and my picture turned all the way red before resetting to a tiny fraction. Don't rest while berserked!
  • duke5of5duke5of5 Member Posts: 10
    I didn't know that rolls under 75 were automatically tossed out. That explains a lot. Thanks.
Sign In or Register to comment.