I’ve enjoyed polyhedral dice for as long as I’ve been playing RPGs, and tend to prefer systems that make good use of the full range of dice from the caltrop-like d4 to the skitter off the table and onto the floor d20s. The “Funny Dice” always made playing RPGs feel that little bit more special than other tabletop games, and even though there are easy to use online randomizers, I still prefer rolling real dice whenever possible.

Despite that I’ve never had a *really* nice set of dice… until now.  Q-Workshop sent over their new Deadlands Dice for Savage Worlds for us, and they are gorgeous. I’d seen some photos online, but I don’t think they do them enough justice.

The dice feature western themed decorations such as cattle skulls, six-shooters, long-horns, and tomahawks. What I didn’t realize from seeing them online is that this isn’t painted onto the top of each face — it’s engraved into surface of the dice. I’m not sure why that doesn’t show up in most of the photos I’ve seen online but it really makes them much nicer in real life.

As a designer I also appreciate that they picked a western themed font for the actual numbers as well as choosing a western / deadlands appropriate yellow-orange color scheme. Even though I don’t own the Deadlands game these dice have me thinking about adding some weird west elements to the next RPG night I’m planning for early in the New Year.

One thing about the dice that’s a bit different from some other customized dice I’ve seen for boardgames is that the number for the highest value on each die is replaced with an illustration. This could take some getting used to if you have other dice that replace the ’1′ with a skull or other custom graphic, but it’s perfect for Savage Worlds where the highest result on a die means you get to roll the dice again!

In addition to the full set of Deadlands themed dice (d4, d6, d8. d10. d12, d20), Q-Workshop also includes a special Savage World’s “Wild Dice” which is a white d6 with playing card themed illustrations. I bought a copy of the Savage Worlds Explorer’s Edition and now owning a set of Savage Worlds Dice including the Wild Dice makes me more interested in giving it a shot.

When I play boardgames I really appreciate having a nice board, playing pieces and dice. They really help set the right feel for the game, and I think it’s why I enjoy Fantasy Flight Game’s products as much as I do.  Knowing that I could get a set of glow-in-the-dark Call of Cthulhu dice or Steampunk themed dice from Q-Workshop if I wanted to run those style of RPGs makes me very pleased. Add in a custom GM screen and you’ve set the mood as soon as the players sit down at the table!