Low but safe for now -- is that good enough?

I think it's clear that I must take his 18-sided die -- but does it make more sense to
take it with my 6-,20-,and X9- dice, thus rerolling the very low 20-sided die [but leaving
my own 18-sided die to be taken in a skill attack that will reroll HIS 20 sided die] -- or should I reroll the 18-sided die, leaving the 20-sided die quite low (but safe for the next turn, since he has no way to take a die with value 7 at the moment.] and risk him being able to reroll his 20 sided die to be the largest die on the board?

Button Men Game #684849
This game is 'for fun' and does not count for player rankings.
Arena Game: Random TL BM from 2002 Rare-Promo

Skills in this game: X Swing
Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: MAX(p) (4 6 18 20 X) Score: 28.5 (1 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 1 / 0 / 0 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: None

4-sided die	6-sided die	18-sided die	20-sided die	X Swing (with 9 sides)
1	6	13	7	4
4-sided die	6-sided die	18-sided die	20-sided die	X Swing (with 6 sides)
4	5	17	4	4

Opponent: SliderDF *slider*
Button Man: MAX(p) (4 6 18 20 X) Score: 27 (-1 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 1 / 0
Captured Dice: None

My beloved Crab (but I'm not playing her)

Is it worth it for alaric to take the initiative? Any suggestions of what he should do with the focus dice?

Viewing Game #682752
Tournament Legal challenge, copying communication from game 682408
This game was last modified on Mon Nov 2, 2009 12:06:57

* Next Turn * Player: alaric *Sci-Fied* *Silver Medal in Men's Boxing* *Silver Medal in Men's Marathon* *Silver Medal in Men's Synchronized Swimming* *Gold Medal in Men's Wrestling* * Next Turn *
Button Man: Crab Score: 35 (10.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 0 / 0 (out of 3 round(s))
Captured Dice: None

Dice	8-sided die	10-sided die	12-sided die	Focus 20-sided die	Focus 20-sided die
Value	3	8	12	10	5
Dice	2-sided die	4-sided die	6-sided die	10-sided die	X Swing (with 17 sides)
Value	2	2	2	4	10

Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Button Man: Uncle Scratchy Score: 19.5 (-10.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 0 / 0
Captured Dice: None

is this a tough choice?

L. is forced to capture my 8-sided die, and he only need capture one of my 10 sided
die after that to draw, assuming I don't manage to reroll my poison. He definitely wants to avoid rolling into a speed attack (how can he best do this?) -- but does he also need to consider the risk of rolling low, since I have a reasonable chance of capturing all three of his dice without losing any 10 sided die?

Viewing Game #682143
Tournament Legal challenge, copying communication from game 681973
This game was last modified on Wed Oct 28, 2009 08:01:52

* Next Turn * Player: Limax *Wombat* *Is a MAN* *Fanatic* * Next Turn *
Button Man: Von Pinn Score: 22.5 (3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 1 / 0 (out of 3 round(s))
Captured Dice: 12-sided die

Dice	4-sided die	10-sided die	W Swing (with 7 sides)
Value	3	3	3
Dice	8-sided die	10-sided die	10-sided die	Poison Shadow Speed V Turbo Swing (with 10 sides)
Value	1	10	10	10

Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Button Man: Werner Score: 18 (-3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 1 / 0 / 0
Captured Dice: 20-sided die, Poison Twin Die (both with 6 sides)

I've probably lost this round

but what maximizes my chances? taking the 1-sided die with my 6 sided die? or taking the 20-sided die with the 12-sided die?

OK, maybe that's too easy. But what if I was only behind by 20 sides instead of 25 [i.e. keep everything the same

in the game except pretend the 2-sided die I've captured already was actually a 9-and-a-half sided die. ok a 10 sided die,

it doesn't change the argument -- just keep the dice in play the same, but somehow give me another 7.5 or 8 points]. Would that

change anything?

Skills in this game: Focus, Reserve

Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: Kakita (6 f6 10 f12 20) Score: 15 (-25 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 0 / 0 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: 4-sided die, 2-sided die

Focus 6-sided die	Focus 12-sided die		10-sided die
3	12		3 Captured last turn
1-sided die	10-sided die	20-sided die	2-sided die
1	8	11	2

Opponent: McCulloch *Professor* *Bronze Medal in Men's Archery* *Gold Medal in Men's Balance Beam* *Birthday Boy*
Button Man: Luna and Artemis (1 4 10 20 2 2 r8 r8) Score: 52.5 (25 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 2 / 0
Captured Dice: 20-sided die, 6-sided die, 10-sided die

not really a problem, but an observation about null dice

I didn't want to make this one a puzzle -- it's too easy! isn't it? But it's a perfect illustration of a point that's worth making about the utility of null dice. Where they really shine is in protecting your large dice -- disrupting skill attacks against them or keeping them from having to be rerolled.

TheUniverse here will probably win no matter what, but the instinctive "avoid using null dice whenever possible" idea is wrong: 1/12 of the time it will result in a tie -- if he (or she) instead attacks with the null die first, he (or she) is certain to win.

Viewing Game #680455

Tournament #13749: Revenge on the Stats- lephantman13 Current Round: Round 4. (organized by lephantman13)

Everyone but me must choose randomly, please.

This game was last modified on Sat Sep 26, 2009 19:15:28

* Next Turn * Player: TheUniverse *My Birthday* * Next Turn *
Button Man: inundator Score: 42 (0.6 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 0 / 0 (out of 3 round(s))
Captured Dice: Fire Shadow 20-sided die, Morphing Trip 6-sided die, Speed 10-sided die

Dice	Plasma {Chance} 12-sided die	Plasma {Null} 12-sided die
Value	9	3
Dice	Focus 8-sided die	Stinger 10-sided die
Value	7	1

Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Button Man: BlackOmega Score: 41 (-0.6 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 0 / 0
Captured Dice: Plasma {Trip} 12-sided die, Plasma {Focus} 12-sided die, Plasma {} X Swing 8-sided die

playing it safe (pretty easy)

One plausible move will is certain not to lose, but might draw; another move has a better chance of winning, but could lose. Which should you chose? or is there another option?

Yes, I know this is actually not that tricky. I still like how the choices present themselves in this example.

Button Men Game #680299
Tournament Legal challenge, copying communication from game 679964

Skills in this game: Option, Morphing, X Swing
Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: Jingjing (m4 8 10 20 X) Score: 45 (-2 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 1 / 1 / 0 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: Option 20/24 20-sided die, 8-sided die, Option 8/16 8-sided die

Morphing 8-sided die	10-sided die
7	10
8-sided die	Option 2/12 (with 2 sides)
5	1

Opponent: alaric *Sci-Fied* *Silver Medal in Men's Boxing* *Silver Medal in Men's Marathon* *Silver Medal in Men's Synchronized Swimming* *Gold Medal in Men's Wrestling*
Button Man: Apples (8 8 2/12 8/16 20/24) Score: 48 (2 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 1 / 1 / 0
Captured Dice: 20-sided die, X Swing 15-sided die, 8-sided die

the SECOND largest number?

We always know that the goal in these circumstances is to maximize the SECOND largest number, i.e.

what will be left to attempt the recapture after the opponent captures your largest die and rerolls.

On the other hand, if he will have to make TWO attacks, maybe the THIRD largest number matters.

(though in this case, maybe that isn't true, since R. only needs to capture the 10 and 12 sided dice in order to win.

Oh, but wait -- does that mean R. should ignore the 6 sided die? That's not true in ALL circumstances, is it?)

In any case, the question isn't what R. should do, but what *I* should do. If the goal is to maximize the expected value of my SECOND largest die, I might be better off rerolling the 12 sided die. But doesn't rerolling the 10 sided die make more sense?

Doesn't it?

Button Men Game #679774 [some values tweaked to make the question more interesting]
Tournament Legal challenge, copying communication from game 679239

Skills in this game: Focus, V Swing, X Swing, Speed

Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: Ken (8 10 z12 20 V) Score: 38 (-0.6 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 0 / 0 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: 10-sided die, 10-sided die, X Swing 4-sided die

10-sided die	Speed 12-sided die	V Swing (with 6 sides)		8-sided die
2	3	5		1 Captured last turn
Focus 6-sided die	16-sided die
2	16

Opponent: Russian *2^12th game cookie* *Ngozi's Disciple*
Button Man: Tsusuko (f6 10 10 16 X) Score: 39 (0.6 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 0 / 0
Captured Dice: 20-sided die, 8-sided die

eat the poison?

This one may be more subtle than it appears to be!

What do you think? I have to take either the 10-sided die or the 20-sided die.
which should I take? and should I do a skill attack or a power attack?

Button Men Game #679217
Tournament Legal challenge, copying communication from game 679082

Skills in this game: Poison, X Swing
Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: Ngozi (4 6 8 10 X) Score: 52 (22 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 2 / 0 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: 20-sided die, 20-sided die

6-sided die	8-sided die	10-sided die		4-sided die
1	2	5		1 Captured last turn
10-sided die	Poison 20-sided die	X Swing (with 20 sides)
3	3	17

Opponent: alaric *Sci-Fied* *Silver Medal in Men's Boxing* *Silver Medal in Men's Marathon* *Silver Medal in Men's Synchronized Swimming* *Gold Medal in Men's Wrestling*
Button Man: Crusher (10 p20 20 20 X) Score: 19 (-22 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 2 / 0
Captured Dice: X Swing 20-sided die, 4-sided die alaric's Response

I don't know why I'm posting so much lately

but odd little decisions keep cropping up. Like this one! I could just try to take
all his dice with my 10-sided die (in which case, I'm better off taking the 8-sided
die first). But wouldn't it be so cool to force him to take the 24 sides of poison?
I do increase the risk I'll get my 10-sided die captured, though. Is it worth it?


Button Men Game #678400
Tournament Legal challenge, copying communication from game 678360

Skills in this game: Twin, Poison, Shadow, X Swing
Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: Abe Caine (p(4,4) p(8,8) 10 ps24 X) Score: -3 (-11.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 1 / 2 / 0 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: 12-sided die, X Swing 4-sided die

10-sided die	Poison Shadow 24-sided die		Poison Twin Die (both with 4 sides)
7	5		6 Captured last turn
2-sided die	2-sided die	8-sided die
2	2	3

Opponent: alaric *Sci-Fied* *Silver Medal in Men's Boxing* *Silver Medal in Men's Marathon* *Silver Medal in Men's Synchronized Swimming* *Gold Medal in Men's Wrestling*
Button Man: Patience (2 2 8 12 X) Score: 14 (11.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 1 / 0
Captured Dice: X Swing 20-sided die, Poison Twin Die (both with 8 sides), Poison Twin Die (both with 4 sides)

another quick one

I don't think this is particularly deep, but it's an interesting choice
I have to trip one of them, but which one?


Button Men Game #673483

Tournament #13753: Chastity! Current Round: Round 3. (organized by alaric)

Skills in this game: Trip, X Swing
Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: Chastity (t6 6 10 10 X) Score: 29 (-9.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 1 / 0 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: 10-sided die, 10-sided die, Trip 6-sided die

Trip 6-sided die		6-sided die
3		6 Captured last turn
6-sided die	X Swing (with 4 sides)
5	4

Opponent: Russian *2^12th game cookie* *Ngozi's Disciple*
Button Man: Chastity (t6 6 10 10 X) Score: 43 (9.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 1 / 2 / 0
Captured Dice: 10-sided die, X Swing 12-sided die, 10-sided die, 6-sided die

quick! answer without doing the computation!

which die should alaric capture?

Viewing Game #678360
Tournament Legal challenge, copying communication from game 678187
This game was last modified on Tue Aug 25, 2009 18:40:47

* Next Turn * Player: alaric *Sci-Fied* *Silver Medal in Men's Boxing* *Silver Medal in Men's Marathon* *Silver Medal in Men's Synchronized Swimming* *Gold Medal in Men's Wrestling* * Next Turn *
Button Man: Paul Erdos Score: 48 (11.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 1 / 0 (out of 3 round(s))
Captured Dice: 8-sided die, 20-sided die

Dice	4-sided die	Konstant 6-sided die	U Swing (with 30 sides)
Value	4	5	23
Dice	12-sided die	20-sided die
Value	11	5

Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Button Man: Malachite Score: 31 (-11.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 1 / 0 / 0
Captured Dice: 3-sided die, 12-sided die

There are two plausible moves, and maybe more:

(1) capture the 4-sided Xswing with value 1 and don't reroll the 20 sided die. This way

the 20-sided die is safe for at least one more turn and it can be rerolled later, when the opponent will have fewer dice.

(2) use the 20-sided die and capture the 10-sided die with value 4; you're rerolling it when the opponent's

dice can only sum to 5,10,15 and 6,11,16. It might not be so good in the future, and you capture a bigger die this turn.

(3) any other bright ideas?

Button Men Game #678131
Tournament Legal challenge, copying communication from game 678019

Skills in this game: Focus, X Swing

Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: Phoenix (4 6 f8 10 f20) Score: 24 (2 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 0 / 0 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: None

4-sided die	6-sided die	Focus 8-sided die	10-sided die	Focus 20-sided die
1	6	4	2	6
6-sided die	10-sided die	10-sided die	12-sided die	X Swing (with 4 sides)
5	5	4	5	1

Opponent: alaric *Sci-Fied* *Silver Medal in Men's Boxing* *Silver Medal in Men's Marathon* *Silver Medal in Men's Synchronized Swimming* *Gold Medal in Men's Wrestling*
Button Man: Niles (6 10 10 12 X) Score: 21 (-2 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 2 / 0
Captured Dice: None

Which is the Angel?

Angel/Devil in one ear: take his 10-sided die! you need to capture all his dice anyway, and if you don't roll above a 6, you're dead.

Angel/Devil in the other ear: no, take his 6-sided die with value 5! You get to reroll both your dice, you get rid of one die that is clearly showing a large value, and maybe you can get the 4-sided die above 3.

Which is the angel, and which is the devil?

Gad, I'm starting to sound like Paul Halmos would sound if he wrote about buttonmen and made lots of mathematical errors.



Button Men Game #678019
Tournament Legal challenge, copying communication from game 677944

Skills in this game: Twin, Shadow, X Swing
Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: Ginzu (8 8 s(12,12) 20 X) Score: 46 (-11.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 0 / 1 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: Shadow X Swing 20-sided die, 20-sided die

8-sided die	X Swing (with 4 sides)		8-sided die
4	1		4 Captured last turn
6-sided die	6-sided die	10-sided die
6	5	3

Opponent: alaric *Sci-Fied* *Silver Medal in Men's Boxing* *Silver Medal in Men's Marathon* *Silver Medal in Men's Synchronized Swimming* *Gold Medal in Men's Wrestling*
Button Man: Dunkirk (6 6 10 20 sX) Score: 63 (11.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 2 / 1
Captured Dice: Shadow Twin Die (both with 12 sides), 20-sided die, 8-sided die

Select an attack: Power Attack Skill Attack

a common type of decision

I must reroll the 24-sided die -- but is it better to capture his 10 sided die, with value 6 -- which is both his highest die, and reduce significantly the number of valid skill attacks he can make -- or should I take his 20-sided die, to minimize the chances that it rerolls higher than I can capture?

(Wait -- must I reroll the 24-sided die? I could take his 10-sided die with other dice. That looks bad, but at least my 24-sided die would be 100% safe for the next turn.)

Button Men Game #677987
Tournament Legal challenge, copying communication from game 677915

Skills in this game: Option
Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: Apples (8 8 2/12 8/16 20/24) Score: 21 (-12 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 1 / 0 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: None

8-sided die	8-sided die	Option 2/12 (with 2 sides)	Option 20/24 (with 24 sides)		Option 8/16 (with 16 sides)
6	4	2	6		16 Captured last turn
Option 4/20 (with 4 sides)	6-sided die	Option 6/8 (with 6 sides)	Option 10/12 (with 10 sides)	20-sided die
2	5	5	6	5

Opponent: alaric *Sci-Fied* *Silver Medal in Men's Boxing* *Silver Medal in Men's Marathon* *Silver Medal in Men's Synchronized Swimming* *Gold Medal in Men's Wrestling*
Button Man: Riff (4/20 6 6/8 10/12 20) Score: 39 (12 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 1 / 2 / 0
Captured Dice: Option 8/16 16-sided die

OK, there's no doubt about WHICH die to capture

But should I use the 6-sided die or the 5-sided die? Normally, this would be a no-brainer -- why not reroll the larger die, especially since it currently shows the lower value? -- but note that the 5-sided die has a 40% chance of rolling a number that can't be captured, whereas the 6-sided die only has a 33.3% chance. Also, if it DOES roll a 6, glassonion gets to reroll two dice (wait, is that a good thing or a bad thing?)


Button Men Game #677436

Tournament #13122: My favorite tournament! Again! Current Round: Round 4. (organized by SkyTwo)

I coulda been a contender.

Skills in this game: X Swing
Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: Carson(p) (4 5 6 7 X) Score: 25.5 (0.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 1 / 0 / 0 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: X Swing 14-sided die, 4-sided die

4-sided die	5-sided die	6-sided die		7-sided die
1	5	4		1 Captured last turn
5-sided die	6-sided die	7-sided die
3	3	3

Opponent: glassonion *Delicate Vegetable* *Bronze Medal in Women's Bars* *Gold Medal in Women's Boxing* *Silver Medal in Women's Cycling* *Silver Medal in Women's Fencing* *Gold Medal in Women's High Jump* *Gold Medal in Women's Synchronized Swimming* *Silver Medal in Women's Table Tennis*
Button Man: Carson(p) (4 5 6 7 X) Score: 25 (-0.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 1 / 0
Captured Dice: X Swing 9-sided die, 7-sided die

I love playing Max!

But not, in general, against Sailor Moon style buttons -- getting that first win can be very tough, since they're only going to capture 4 dice at best (and maybe only 3 if they don't get the initiative, which is a distinct possibility.) [And, of course, even if you GET that first win, some people are clever enough to avoid taking any reserve dice.]

I think I picked the right swing die to maximize my chances of winning a round -- and here, on the second try, I think I have a pretty good shot at it. What should I do to maximize the chances of winning this round -- and what are those chances, approximately?


Button Men Game #677915
Tournament Legal challenge, copying communication from game 677673

Skills in this game: Poison, Reserve, X Swing
Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: Max (p12 p12 p20 p20 p30 p30 pX pX) Score: -104 (-67.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 1 / 0 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: 20-sided die

Poison 12-sided die	Poison 20-sided die	Poison 30-sided die	Poison 30-sided die	Poison X Swing (with 16 sides)	Poison X Swing (with 16 sides)		Poison 20-sided die
7	13	26	5	14	12		3 Captured last turn
8-sided die	8-sided die	10-sided die
1	5	10

Opponent: alaric *Sci-Fied* *Silver Medal in Men's Boxing* *Silver Medal in Men's Marathon* *Silver Medal in Men's Synchronized Swimming* *Gold Medal in Men's Wrestling*
Button Man: Sailor Moon (8 8 10 20 r6 r10 r20 r20) Score: -3 (67.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 1 / 0 / 0
Captured Dice: Poison 12-sided die, Poison 20-sided die

Beginner's puzzle

What's tabby's best move?

Viewing Game #675464
This game is 'for fun' and does not count for player rankings.
All BM challenge, copying communication from game 541012
This game was last modified on Mon Aug 3, 2009 01:55:32

* Next Turn * Player: tabby * Next Turn *
Button Man: Kith Score: 22 (-11.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 1 / 2 / 0 (out of 3 round(s))
Captured Dice: 6-sided die, 6-sided die

Dice	8-sided die	12-sided die
Value	7	7
Dice	6-sided die	6-sided die	6-sided die
Value	3	4	5

Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Button Man: Rold Score: 39 (11.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 1 / 0
Captured Dice: 12-sided die, X Swing 12-sided die, 6-sided die

uses of the trip die

one thing that's striking about the trip die skill is how infrequently one uses it -- about the only time you see trip attacks made is when there's no other possible attack available. There are, however, rare occasions when a trip attack might be better than other possible attacks.

Is this such an exception? If i. doesn't force my 10-sided die with value 10 to reroll, he's *almost* certain to lose.

Viewing Game #669808 

Tournament #13753: Chastity! Current Round: Round 2. (organized by alaric)

This game was last modified on Mon Jun 1, 2009 06:28:34

* Next Turn * Player: irilyth *Poisonous Turtle* *Silver Medal in Men's 100 Meter Dash* * Next Turn *
Button Man: Chastity    Score: 24 (-15.3 sides)   Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 2 / 0 (out of 3 round(s))
Captured Dice: 10-sided die, 6-sided die

Dice	Trip 6-sided die	10-sided die
Value	4	8
Dice	Trip 6-sided die	10-sided die	X Swing (with 10 sides)
Value	5	10	5

Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic* 
Button Man: Chastity    Score: 47 (15.3 sides)   Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 2 / 0
Captured Dice: X Swing 18-sided die, 10-sided die, 6-sided die

Has it really been a month?

What do you think? Should I take the poison, and keep my 12-sided button safe for another turn; or should I take the Plasma{Chance} and reroll my 12-sided die? you can even make a case for taking the Place{Focus} with a six-sided die. What about the morphing die -- is there a case for taking that?



Button Men Game #671344

Tournament #13739: revenge on the stats tournament for lephantman13 Current Round: Round 2. (organized by glassonion)

Lephantman13's ten worst buttons using which he has played at least 4 games. If you are lephantman13, join this tournament immediately and choose your button as you like. Other players: please hold off on joining until Monday night (U.S. Eastern) so the named player has a chance to join. When you do join, you *must* choose your button randomly.

Skills in this game: Twin, Option, Mood Swing, Chance, Stealth, Focus, Stinger, Morphing, Null, Plasma, Poison, Trip, X Swing, Speed
Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: Farrell (10 12 6/20 6/20 8/12) Score: 24 (-1.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 1 / 0 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: Plasma {Trip} 12-sided die

12-sided die	Option 6/20 (with 6 sides)	Option 6/20 (with 6 sides)		10-sided die
10	6	6		7 Captured last turn
Plasma {Chance} 12-sided die	Plasma {Focus} 12-sided die	Plasma {Poison} 12-sided die	Plasma {Morphing} X Swing (with 4 and 4 sides)
7	5	3	4

Opponent: Dribbleflop *Kernel Panic'd*
Button Man: inundator (P{c,d}12 P{f,z}12 P{t,g}12 P{p,n}12 P{m,?}X) Score: 26 (1.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 1 / 0 / 0
Captured Dice: Option 8/12 12-sided die, 10-sided die

Select an attack: Power Attack Skill Attack

what should jocke do first?

If I had more on the ball, I would have saved the position before my last focus die maneuver -- it was one of the Crab positions that I love so well, where one has the option of either getting initiative or leaving the 20-sided die safe [at least for the first turn]. Do you think I did the right thing?

But the question now is what Jocke should do. Do you think he should take my die with value 10? or should he go for the 20-sider with value 1 right now?


Viewing Game #666572

Tournament #13584: L5R vs Samurai Bash Current Round: Round 2. (organized by Jocke)

8-player single-elimination tourney

This game was last modified on Tue Mar 24, 2009 01:06:46

Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Button Man: Crab Score: 35 (2 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 1 / 0 / 0 (out of 3 round(s))
Captured Dice: None

Dice	8-sided die	10-sided die	12-sided die	Focus 20-sided die	Focus 20-sided die
Value	2	2	10	16	1
Dice	6-sided die	Focus 8-sided die (dizzy)	Focus 10-sided die (dizzy)	20-sided die	20-sided die
Value	5	1	1	5	13

* Next Turn * Player: Jocke * Next Turn *
Button Man: Mantis Score: 32 (-2 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 1 / 0
Captured Dice: None

Results from last turn:
The Focus 10-sided die showing 10 is turned down to 1.
Jocke turned down his focus dice.
Jocke gained the initative with his Focus Dice.

didn't we do one like this a year ago?

Again, it's not too hard to do the math explicitly here, but the intuition is what I'm after.

irilyth has a choice; he can take my 4-sided die, or my 12-sided die. Which is better? If they both were showing the same value, it would be a no-brainer,but since the 4-sided die has a slightly higher value, there's some tradeoff here. is it enough? What if the 12-sided die had value 2, instead?


Viewing Game #662681

Tournament #13769: Scorpion! Current Round: Round 1. (organized by alaric)

This game was last modified on Mon Mar 2, 2009 14:01:06

Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Button Man: Scorpion Score: 28 (-8 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 1 / 2 / 0 (out of 3 round(s))
Captured Dice: Focus 12-sided die, Focus 4-sided die, 4-sided die

Dice	4-sided die	Focus 12-sided die
Value	4	3
Dice	4-sided die	20-sided die
Value	1	20

* Next Turn * Player: irilyth *Poisonous Turtle* *Silver Medal in Men's 100 Meter Dash* * Next Turn *
Button Man: Scorpion Score: 40 (8 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 1 / 0
Captured Dice: 20-sided die, Focus 4-sided die, 4-sided die

Results from last turn:
ElihuRoot is performing a power attack with a Focus 12-sided die showing 4,
targeting irilyth's 4-sided die showing 4.

The Focus 12-sided die is rerolled and the new value is 3.

ElihuRoot takes irilyth's die.

Is the answer obvious? [fighting rikachu]

We all know -- or at least should know -- that, in most situations in which you can't afford to lose anyANY more dice, (and all your dice are safe before the reroll, there's no shadow dice involved, etc,) you're best off rerolling the largest one -- i.e. the probability it will roll high enough to be safe is best.

But what if you can afford to lose ONE die and still win. This just came up for me today in the game below. If I lose any one die, I win, but if I lose any two dice, I lose.

option 1: roll the 10-sided die first. its chance of survival is best, and if it does get captured,
the smaller die (the 8-sided die, no doubt) will at least be rerolling in a safer environment with fewer 1-sided dice to capture it.

option 2: roll the 8-sided die first. it's more likely to get captured, but at least then, the 10-sided die will be left for the last roll or two, with relatively the best chance of survivial.

option 3: it doesn't matter, the chance of success is the same either way. [of course, assuming you aren't so foolish as to reroll the 6 sided die]

it's actually not too hard to do the math on this -- but it's worthwhile to try to intuit the answer first, and THEN do the math (if you think it's necessary) .

Tournament #13739: revenge on the stats tournament for lephantman13 Current Round: Round 1. (organized by glassonion)

Lephantman13's ten worst buttons using which he has played at least 4 games. If you are lephantman13, join this tournament immediately and choose your button as you like. Other players: please hold off on joining until Monday night (U.S. Eastern) so the named player has a chance to join. When you do join, you *must* choose your button randomly.

Skills in this game: Option, Y Swing
Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: Farrell (10 12 6/20 6/20 8/12) Score: 32 (8 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 0 / 0 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: Y Swing 20-sided die

10-sided die	Option 6/20 (with 6 sides)	Option 8/12 (with 8 sides)		Option 6/20 (with 6 sides)
8	6	7		3 Captured last turn
1-sided die	1-sided die	1-sided die	1-sided die
1	1	1	1

Opponent: irilyth *Poisonous Turtle* *Silver Medal in Men's 100 Meter Dash*
Button Man: Rikachu (1 1 1 1 Y) Score: 20 (-8 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 0 / 0
Captured Dice: 12-sided die, Option 6/20 6-sided die

Select an attack: Power Attack Skill Attack

Use the space below to include a message.

does alaric lower the boom on me now? or should he wait?

he needs to keep the 20-sided die to win. so he shouldn't reroll it, right?

but if he doesn't, MY 20 sided die has the chance to reroll above him. which is better?

Tournament Legal challenge, copying communication from game 663835
This game was last modified on Thu Feb 12, 2009 13:49:43

* Next Turn * Player: alaric *Sci-Fied* *Silver Medal in Men's Boxing* *Silver Medal in Men's Marathon* *Silver Medal in Men's Synchronized Swimming* *Gold Medal in Men's Wrestling* * Next Turn *
Button Man: Sven Score: 19 (-22 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 2 / 1 (out of 3 round(s))
Captured Dice: 4-sided die

Dice	4-sided die	Option 6/10 (with 6 sides)	Queer 20-sided die
Value	4	2	14
Dice	6-sided die	Speed 10-sided die	20-sided die	X Swing (with 4 sides)
Value	2	7	8	2

Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Button Man: Darwin Score: 52 (22 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 2 / 1
Captured Dice: Queer 20-sided die, Option 8/12 12-sided die

2 options, writ small

Should I take his 6-sided die with mine, or should I reroll my 8 sided die?
can you see the arguments either way? the dice are small enough in this case and we're close enough to the end, that it's not too hard to do the full calculation, but the basic decision between these two sorts of options seems to come up again and again.

Tournament #13750: revenge of the stats -- tasha Current Round: Round 1. (organized by tasha)

I took too long to log in to join the tournament glassonion created, but she was kind enough to tell me what to do! Choose randomly from the buttons below and have fun!

Skills in this game: Focus, Reserve
Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: Jedite (6 6 12 12 4 r6 r6 8) Score: 41 (2.6 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 0 / 2 / 0 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: 20-sided die, Focus 12-sided die

6-sided die	4-sided die	8-sided die		6-sided die
5	2	4		1 Captured last turn
4-sided die	4-sided die	Focus 6-sided die
1	3	5

Opponent: mbs808
Button Man: Unicorn (4 4 f6 f12 20) Score: 37 (-2.6 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 0 / 0
Captured Dice: 12-sided die, 12-sided die, 6-sided die

what's more urgent?

The 12-sided die showing 11? or the 20-sided die showing 4? Which should I take now to maximize the chance I'll end up in a winning position?

Tournament #13728: revenge on the stats tournament for scodi Current Round: Round 1. (organized by glassonion)

Scodi's ten worst buttons with which he has played at least 6 games. If you are scodi, you may choose your button. Everyone else *must* select randomly.

Skills in this game: Poison, V Swing, X Swing
Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic*
Your Button Man: Clare (6 8 8 20 X) Score: 13 (-1.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 1 / 0 (Out of 3 wins)
Your Captured Dice: None

6-sided die	8-sided die	8-sided die	X Swing (with 4 sides)		20-sided die
3	4	3	1		10 Captured last turn
Poison 4-sided die	12-sided die	Poison 20-sided die	20-sided die	V Swing (with 6 sides)
2	11	1	4	1

Opponent: shadowshade *Father of Pearl* *Bronze Medal in Men's Synchronized Swimming*
Button Man: Coil (p4 12 p20 20 V) Score: 15 (1.3 sides) Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 1 / 2 / 0
Captured Dice: 20-sided die

to trip or not to trip?

Trip dice -- at least small trip dice -- have almost never seemed very useful. Is there ever a situation when you'd rather use a trip attack when another attack is possible?

Is this a time when a trip attack might better than the alternatives?

Viewing Game #660792 
Play the AI! You will be assimilated and stuff.
This game was last modified on Tue Jan 6, 2009 09:05:55

* Next Turn * Player: bmai *AI* *111111101001000001100 as of 9-22-03* * Next Turn *
Button Man: Prudence    Score: 17.5 (-7 sides)   Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 2 / 0 (out of 3 round(s))
Captured Dice: 12-sided die

Dice	1-sided die	Trip 4-sided die	6-sided die
Value	1	4	5
Dice	2-sided die	2-sided die	8-sided die	X Swing (with 4 sides)
Value	2	2	7	4

Player: ElihuRoot *Dead Dude* *Fanatic* 
Button Man: Patience    Score: 28 (7 sides)   Rounds Won/Lost/Tied: 2 / 2 / 0
Captured Dice: 12-sided die, X Swing 8-sided die

Game Communication
bmai Sun Jan 4, 2009 02:56:10	I am 46.4% in 56 games against you. I am 66.1% in 59 games when playing Prudence. I am 39.1% in 46 games when playing against Patience.