DCC RPG Part 1: The Funky Dice and Plethora of Tables

Make no mistake, I am enamored with the Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG! Sure, I will be publishing support material for DCC RPG (I am a publisher after all), but even if I wasn't, I would still be playing the game.

In fact, I have already been playing it for nearly a year now at home with my boys. Each and every time I play DCC RPG, it feels like I am back with a bunch of buddies in high school, staying up all night on a Friday playing 1E in somebody's kitchen or basement and where every unexplored dungeon passageway or room holds unknown monsters, wonders and excitement!I suspect I may have been one of the first (if not the first) third party publisher to sign up to support the DCC RPG back in early 2011. One of the perks of doing so is that I got to see much more of the text of the game as it was being developed than most other folks. I enjoyed reading the text, even in those early stages, but I loved actually playing the game - and especially with Joseph, Harley and Doug! I was honored (okay, geeked-out) when Harley introduced me to Doug as, "you know, the halfling guy." But I was even more touched when they invited me to be present as they worked out the rules for Spell Duels and Counter Spells.

In this first installment, I want to talk about the "Funky Dice" and plethora of tables that DCC RPG uses.I love the way it uses "funky dice" (the technical term Joseph uses in the text) and its plethora of tables. The DCC RPG is a very simple game with quick and intuitive mechanical resolution that old and new gamers pick up on in no time all. If it was not so simple, I would not be playing it - PERIOD. Complicated rpgs hurt my head. In my opinion, DCC RPG's funky dice and plethora of tables do not add any complication to playing the game at all. Instead, they spice up the dice action and only add to the fun of playing the game. Indeed, most of the time the funky dice and tables are only used to help add a bit of fantastic, Appendix N flavor to typical character actions like attacking a monster, casting a spell or when when one rolls a natural "1" or "20" on a d20. These kinds of funky dice rolls and the accompanying tables really make gaming with DCC RPG so special.

Sure, a good imagination can add atmosphere and flavor to any game, but the funky dice and tables of the DCC RPG are a key tool in helping evoke an overflow of that inspiration right at the game table - one roll at a time!Next, I will offer some examples of exactly how the funky dice and tables of DCC RPG add Appendix N flavor and atmosphere to actual game play. :)


You can download a free Beta copy of the rules or even place your pre-order for the hard cover version of the rules and the first several official modules here.