Dice Roll System
During your adventures in the world of Defenders of the Cross you may come across the message of “A Die has been Cast”. This is an announcement you will see when a dice roll has been done in relation to your character. The concept of a dice roll is similar to that of Tabletop Role Playing Games where a 20 sided dice is rolled to determine the nature or effectiveness of some sort of result (be it an action, a reward, an improvement, damage, etc.). As for what events count as “in relation to your character,” there can be various examples:
You character tried to force an action that did not have a guaranteed chance of success, such as breaking a wall or picking a lock, so a Die will be rolled for your chance at success. You helped an NPC and they will receive some sort of improvement or promotion, so a Die will be rolled to determine how much of an improvement they receive. You are trying to salvage materials from a wreck, so a Die will be rolled to see how much you get. You are trying to demoralize an opponent, so a Die will be rolled to see the effectiveness of that attempt. Your actions or words are making a M.O.B. entity reconsider their stance on something, a die will be rolled to determine if you convinced them or not. These are just some examples of a variety of situations in which a dice roll can get involved.
You may notice that sometimes you will receive experience when a die is cast, and sometimes you will not. This is an indicator if your roll was successful or not. If you received experience, it was successful, if you did not receive it, it was not. To what degree you succeeded, will not be revealed to the player, as keeping the interpretation of the results is intended to be in character and spoiling how good or bad the result would break the flow of story-line and gameplay.
Dice rolls can happen regardless of your presence in the interaction that triggers it, for example if you successfully convince an NPC to do something for you some time after you originally tried to do so, you may see a dice roll come out of seemingly nowhere. Just keep in mind that the message might not have to do with your immediate surroundings, but instead something you’ve influenced elsewhere.
There are situations where a dice roll will not be needed, and your character can be given an automatic success. There are many factors that can go into this, such as proper preparation, or meeting storyline prerequisites. Be aware of any assets you or your fellow Defenders may have which can make succeeding at a task easier. Some things, such as NPC contacts or abilities of a character via story line, can either guarantee a success or provide bonuses to rolls, increasing the chances of success. Be aware of this, and use it to your advantage!