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