Casinos in D&D [Archive] - Wizards Community

Casinos in D&D [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
SOPI
05-29-06, 04:41 PM In a game I will soon be running, the PCs are relaxing at a casino when they are attacked by mass forces. I want to give them a chance to explore the casino ahead of time, and possibly gamble a bit, but I was thinking about the idea.
If casinos even exist in D&D, what do they have? I can imagine that card and dice gambling would be there, but would there be other things? And what about slot machines? Slot machines could be basic or magical in D&D.
Ideas and help would be appreciated.
fefnir
05-29-06, 05:32 PM Sounds like you have just created a pretty hard problem. I would stay away from games of chance. Its just to hard to creat and keep rules. for slot machines you might try rolling multiple dice like 4d6s and trying to get a numbers of matches to win coins. And it would be best to make them machines, because they could try to cheat, or just really mess with them, and any other people there.
Dag
05-29-06, 05:54 PM Firstly, I wouldn't call them casinos, that just sounds too modern in my opinion. Gambling halls, gambling dens, a Gambler's guild hall maybe, or even a temple dedicated to some God or Goddess of trickery, luck or fortune...

As for the slot machines I'm at a loss. Roulette wouldn't be a problem, obviously you can get creative with different forms of dice games, card games. Maybe little mouse racing on a laid out track. If you want to go magical you can certainly go well beyond these basics, even to slot machines I suppose. A Tenser's floating disc could make an interesting roulette wheel if altered, or an interesting surface for tossing dice onto...not too many ideas really, just thought I'd chime in.
Trippinskip
05-29-06, 08:19 PM I recently did a session just like this, where the group got back to town after an adventure, and there was a picnic. To raise town funds, they hade various gambling games. We did it a bit different, and actually played the various games around the table though, Blackjack, Poker, Dice, Craps, and a few others. Instead of actually playing them in game, play them around the actual table, with your players playing the part of their characters. It's a bit of a change of pace, fun, and shows the other's just how bad you suck at poker (in my case anyway :P ).
SOPI
05-29-06, 09:37 PM I'm thinking that card games will be out of the gambling hall. (I agree that casino is too modern.)
I'll just come up with some dice games and the slot machine aspect. This way, the PCs can play out any of the games without having to worry about a deck of playing cards beyond their own dice.

Thanks for the help so far.

*Oh, and as for the slot machine, I'm figuring that I'll have a slot machine being a slightly less advanced version of a modern one. I'll roll 3d6, and then base the results as such:

1=Skull
2=Apple
3=Sword
4=Coin
5=Symbol of Olidammara
6=Star

No Matches=No Prize
3 Skulls=5 cp
3 Apples=20 gp
3 Swords=500 gp
3 Coins=200 pp
3 Symbols of Olidammara=500 pp
3 Stars=Jackpot (Jackpot is equivalent to 10d20+amount of money spent on machine by PC so far pp.)
Lyinginbedmon
05-29-06, 10:23 PM Maybe as a roulette-esque game, gamblers could place bets on what animal comes out of a Bag of Tricks, which is held within a separate bag so as to conceal it's colour, and there are 3 different bags.

That way, there's no way of telling what will come out of the bags.
Valthonis
05-29-06, 11:57 PM I'm thinking that card games will be out of the gambling hall. (I agree that casino is too modern.)
I'll just come up with some dice games and the slot machine aspect. This way, the PCs can play out any of the games without having to worry about a deck of playing cards beyond their own dice.

Thanks for the help so far.

*Oh, and as for the slot machine, I'm figuring that I'll have a slot machine being a slightly less advanced version of a modern one. I'll roll 3d6, and then base the results as such:

1=Skull
2=Apple
3=Sword
4=Coin
5=Symbol of Olidammara
6=Star

No Matches=No Prize
3 Skulls=5 cp
3 Apples=20 gp
3 Swords=500 gp
3 Coins=200 pp
3 Symbols of Olidammara=500 pp
3 Stars=Jackpot (Jackpot is equivalent to 10d20+amount of money spent on machine by PC so far pp.)

The only problem with your system is that it's just as likely to roll thress 6s as it is to roll three 1s. Also i think the values of your prizes jump a little to high (and go way higher then the average gambeling hall could pay out).I'd go with something more like this:

bet cost of 1 silver. roll 3d20

1-6 = skull
7-11 = apple
12-15 = sword
16-18 = coin
19-20 = star
----------------
3 skulls = 1sp
3 apples = 5sp
3 swords = 1gp
3 coins = 5gp
3 stars = 10gp
-------------------
this formula gives the player a chance of winning no more than 100 times what they originally invested (a good haul :D ), but at a low chance of getting it. where their most likely chance of winning gets them only their starting cash back. This seems more likely to be making money for the gambeling den then your method.
Amon_WinterfallIV
05-30-06, 02:09 AM AW's Dragon Slot Machine:

Insert 1 cp(come on, commoners would play here too) Roll 3d20.

1-5 Fruit
4-7 Tree
8-10 Nymph
11-12 Gold Bar
13,14,15,16,17,18,19 Different types of dragons
20 the number seven

If you get a fruit, you get a free spin
If you get 2 fruits, you win 2 cp
If you get 3 fruits, you win 4 cp
if you get 3 trees, or 2 trees and one seven, you get 1 sp
if you get 3 nymphs, or 2 nymphs and one seven, you get 1 sp, 5 cp
if you get 3 gold bars, or 2 gold bars and one seven, you get 2 sp
if you get 3 of the same type of dragon, you get 5 sp
If you get 3 7s, you get 1 gp.

This way, the odds are not so horribly against the PCs that they wouldn't play, but still rigged heavily in favor of the casino.

AW's Four dragons card game:
Played with normal deck of cards.

Every player gets 5 cards. The way to win, is to have a better hand than all of your opponents.
On a players turn, he gets to bet, and he can draw or discard a single card, or he can knock. If he knocks, everyone else has one last chance to draw and discard (no more betting) and cards are revealed.

Multiples of a card are the only thing that matters.
The best possible hand is four of a kind (which is valued at 5x the face value of the card + 20 points)
Three of a kind is valued at 3x the value of the cards, + 10 points
A pair is valued at 2x the face value of the cards, +5 points
High cards are valued at simply their face value.

The values of the cards are rather familiar, but with one exception--Ace is valued at one for singles and pairs, but 15 for triples and quads. The game is named four dragons, because the deck has four dragons as the aces.

The top value in this game is 75, anyone who gets a 75 is probably the subject of loud cheering. The strategy is going to involve a balance between grabbing high cards and trying to win early with a better hand.

Also, the game is cheatable (you could use hide + slieght of hand) to get another draw or some such.

Just a few thoughts.
UndeadMouse
05-30-06, 10:30 AM get the Book of Challenges. in there is a encounter called Medusa's Travelling Casino, which has a couple of gamboling games in it.
Decepticons
05-30-06, 10:50 AM Here's a straight dice game that is in the first big adventure path thingy from Dungeon. In the mag, it is depicted as a "Nobles" dice game. If you wanted your PC to meet someone in the gambling hall or if they needed to get some information, this might be a good game to play.

Each player starts with a set of standard dice (one of each). Each player rolls their die, with the objective of rolling a 1. When a 1 is rolled, that player switches to the next die up (start with d4, then d6, and so on). After each round, one of the players should tell an interesting short story, give an anecdote...something like that. The player who rolls a 1 on their d12 first is the winner. He then rolls a d20, and that is the number of coins that each other player at the table must pay him. You could have a "high rollers" table that pays platinum, a middle of the road table that pays gold and a commoners table that pays copper.

To make it more of a "gambling hall" environment, allow the house to rake 10% of the winnings.
TheRedRobedWizard
05-30-06, 11:52 AM As a casino employee in real life, I've got some insight into how these things work.

Each player decides an amount they want to wager over the course of the night (say 100gp). Roll a d100. If the die comes up 1-50, they walk out with nothing, 50-92 they walk out with that percentage of their original gold. If the d100 comes up 93-99 they walk out with 100% + (90 - rolled result) of their orginial stake. If it comes up 100, rereoll. Add the second roll to 100 to determine their winnings. If they keep rolling hundreds, keep adding up.

That's honestly about your odds of winning at a casino in real life.

The games themselves are just flavor. Describe the dealers and attendants and such in detail. Have fun.

-TRRW

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
SOPI 05-29-06, 04:41 PM	In a game I will soon be running, the PCs are relaxing at a casino when they are attacked by mass forces. I want to give them a chance to explore the casino ahead of time, and possibly gamble a bit, but I was thinking about the idea. If casinos even exist in D&D, what do they have? I can imagine that card and dice gambling would be there, but would there be other things? And what about slot machines? Slot machines could be basic or magical in D&D. Ideas and help would be appreciated.
fefnir 05-29-06, 05:32 PM	Sounds like you have just created a pretty hard problem. I would stay away from games of chance. Its just to hard to creat and keep rules. for slot machines you might try rolling multiple dice like 4d6s and trying to get a numbers of matches to win coins. And it would be best to make them machines, because they could try to cheat, or just really mess with them, and any other people there.
Dag 05-29-06, 05:54 PM	Firstly, I wouldn't call them casinos, that just sounds too modern in my opinion. Gambling halls, gambling dens, a Gambler's guild hall maybe, or even a temple dedicated to some God or Goddess of trickery, luck or fortune... As for the slot machines I'm at a loss. Roulette wouldn't be a problem, obviously you can get creative with different forms of dice games, card games. Maybe little mouse racing on a laid out track. If you want to go magical you can certainly go well beyond these basics, even to slot machines I suppose. A Tenser's floating disc could make an interesting roulette wheel if altered, or an interesting surface for tossing dice onto...not too many ideas really, just thought I'd chime in.
Trippinskip 05-29-06, 08:19 PM	I recently did a session just like this, where the group got back to town after an adventure, and there was a picnic. To raise town funds, they hade various gambling games. We did it a bit different, and actually played the various games around the table though, Blackjack, Poker, Dice, Craps, and a few others. Instead of actually playing them in game, play them around the actual table, with your players playing the part of their characters. It's a bit of a change of pace, fun, and shows the other's just how bad you suck at poker (in my case anyway :P ).
SOPI 05-29-06, 09:37 PM	I'm thinking that card games will be out of the gambling hall. (I agree that casino is too modern.) I'll just come up with some dice games and the slot machine aspect. This way, the PCs can play out any of the games without having to worry about a deck of playing cards beyond their own dice. Thanks for the help so far. *Oh, and as for the slot machine, I'm figuring that I'll have a slot machine being a slightly less advanced version of a modern one. I'll roll 3d6, and then base the results as such: 1=Skull 2=Apple 3=Sword 4=Coin 5=Symbol of Olidammara 6=Star No Matches=No Prize 3 Skulls=5 cp 3 Apples=20 gp 3 Swords=500 gp 3 Coins=200 pp 3 Symbols of Olidammara=500 pp 3 Stars=Jackpot (Jackpot is equivalent to 10d20+amount of money spent on machine by PC so far pp.)
Lyinginbedmon 05-29-06, 10:23 PM	Maybe as a roulette-esque game, gamblers could place bets on what animal comes out of a Bag of Tricks, which is held within a separate bag so as to conceal it's colour, and there are 3 different bags. That way, there's no way of telling what will come out of the bags.
Valthonis 05-29-06, 11:57 PM	I'm thinking that card games will be out of the gambling hall. (I agree that casino is too modern.) I'll just come up with some dice games and the slot machine aspect. This way, the PCs can play out any of the games without having to worry about a deck of playing cards beyond their own dice. Thanks for the help so far. *Oh, and as for the slot machine, I'm figuring that I'll have a slot machine being a slightly less advanced version of a modern one. I'll roll 3d6, and then base the results as such: 1=Skull 2=Apple 3=Sword 4=Coin 5=Symbol of Olidammara 6=Star No Matches=No Prize 3 Skulls=5 cp 3 Apples=20 gp 3 Swords=500 gp 3 Coins=200 pp 3 Symbols of Olidammara=500 pp 3 Stars=Jackpot (Jackpot is equivalent to 10d20+amount of money spent on machine by PC so far pp.) The only problem with your system is that it's just as likely to roll thress 6s as it is to roll three 1s. Also i think the values of your prizes jump a little to high (and go way higher then the average gambeling hall could pay out).I'd go with something more like this: bet cost of 1 silver. roll 3d20 1-6 = skull 7-11 = apple 12-15 = sword 16-18 = coin 19-20 = star ---------------- 3 skulls = 1sp 3 apples = 5sp 3 swords = 1gp 3 coins = 5gp 3 stars = 10gp ------------------- this formula gives the player a chance of winning no more than 100 times what they originally invested (a good haul :D ), but at a low chance of getting it. where their most likely chance of winning gets them only their starting cash back. This seems more likely to be making money for the gambeling den then your method.
Amon_WinterfallIV 05-30-06, 02:09 AM	AW's Dragon Slot Machine: Insert 1 cp(come on, commoners would play here too) Roll 3d20. 1-5 Fruit 4-7 Tree 8-10 Nymph 11-12 Gold Bar 13,14,15,16,17,18,19 Different types of dragons 20 the number seven If you get a fruit, you get a free spin If you get 2 fruits, you win 2 cp If you get 3 fruits, you win 4 cp if you get 3 trees, or 2 trees and one seven, you get 1 sp if you get 3 nymphs, or 2 nymphs and one seven, you get 1 sp, 5 cp if you get 3 gold bars, or 2 gold bars and one seven, you get 2 sp if you get 3 of the same type of dragon, you get 5 sp If you get 3 7s, you get 1 gp. This way, the odds are not so horribly against the PCs that they wouldn't play, but still rigged heavily in favor of the casino. AW's Four dragons card game: Played with normal deck of cards. Every player gets 5 cards. The way to win, is to have a better hand than all of your opponents. On a players turn, he gets to bet, and he can draw or discard a single card, or he can knock. If he knocks, everyone else has one last chance to draw and discard (no more betting) and cards are revealed. Multiples of a card are the only thing that matters. The best possible hand is four of a kind (which is valued at 5x the face value of the card + 20 points) Three of a kind is valued at 3x the value of the cards, + 10 points A pair is valued at 2x the face value of the cards, +5 points High cards are valued at simply their face value. The values of the cards are rather familiar, but with one exception--Ace is valued at one for singles and pairs, but 15 for triples and quads. The game is named four dragons, because the deck has four dragons as the aces. The top value in this game is 75, anyone who gets a 75 is probably the subject of loud cheering. The strategy is going to involve a balance between grabbing high cards and trying to win early with a better hand. Also, the game is cheatable (you could use hide + slieght of hand) to get another draw or some such. Just a few thoughts.
UndeadMouse 05-30-06, 10:30 AM	get the Book of Challenges. in there is a encounter called Medusa's Travelling Casino, which has a couple of gamboling games in it.
Decepticons 05-30-06, 10:50 AM	Here's a straight dice game that is in the first big adventure path thingy from Dungeon. In the mag, it is depicted as a "Nobles" dice game. If you wanted your PC to meet someone in the gambling hall or if they needed to get some information, this might be a good game to play. Each player starts with a set of standard dice (one of each). Each player rolls their die, with the objective of rolling a 1. When a 1 is rolled, that player switches to the next die up (start with d4, then d6, and so on). After each round, one of the players should tell an interesting short story, give an anecdote...something like that. The player who rolls a 1 on their d12 first is the winner. He then rolls a d20, and that is the number of coins that each other player at the table must pay him. You could have a "high rollers" table that pays platinum, a middle of the road table that pays gold and a commoners table that pays copper. To make it more of a "gambling hall" environment, allow the house to rake 10% of the winnings.
TheRedRobedWizard 05-30-06, 11:52 AM	As a casino employee in real life, I've got some insight into how these things work. Each player decides an amount they want to wager over the course of the night (say 100gp). Roll a d100. If the die comes up 1-50, they walk out with nothing, 50-92 they walk out with that percentage of their original gold. If the d100 comes up 93-99 they walk out with 100% + (90 - rolled result) of their orginial stake. If it comes up 100, rereoll. Add the second roll to 100 to determine their winnings. If they keep rolling hundreds, keep adding up. That's honestly about your odds of winning at a casino in real life. The games themselves are just flavor. Describe the dealers and attendants and such in detail. Have fun. -TRRW