INTRODUCTION
Hello guys, I have just joined the forum and I don't really know how to use the forum that well.
To introduce myself I am a new Dominion player and not very good. I will most likely embarrass myself if I try to talk about expansions because the only ones I have are Dominion (base), Intrigue, Seaside, and the Base Cards accessory. So I will try not to pretend like I know more than I actually do.
I am very fascinated with the Dominion community because it seems that people are very friendly about discussing the game and my favorite part is how Donald X. frequents the forum and answers questions. So I have got an idea about an expansion.
Also, if someone has already suggested an expansion that is pretty much like this, I am very sorry for repeating what has already been said.
And basically my biggest fear is that there already is an expansion like this available for sale. If that is true, just tell me so and I will run away in shame and apologize profusely.
THE EXPANSION
Alright, so as I understand it every expansion has a theme. The theme of this expansion will be dice rolling, so that a player can shrewdly manipulate the probabilities to win, but even an inexperienced player could get lucky and do well. The set itself must come with at least 2 dice. If Rio Grande Games wants to put more dice, maybe 2 dice for each player would allow for wider possibilities.
The dice will be D6 dice as far as I can think up.
As in many other games, the fact that 2 dice are included allows for a probability curve rather than the linear distribution seen on a single D6. For example with two D6s then it is much more likely to roll a 7 than a 2.
Now, some people would protest that this makes Dominion less skillful and more random. However this will be counteracted with the addition of more cards that are going to change the probabilities. I got this idea from the game "Here to Slay" by Unstable Games. Essentially you will be able to increase or decrease the number on the die after rolling by playing cards called Modifiers. For example what you could do is increase the die value by 1 pip (pips referring to the dots on the dice) but not exceed 6 on either die.
So now that I have laid out the theme I want to make up some sample cards. Otherwise it would not be possible to imagine what a game with this type of expansion would look like.
Let me know if the names of the cards have already been used.
SAMPLE CARDS
Untitled RNG Laboratory for $5 {Action}
+1 Action
Roll 2 D6 and add up the number of pips
2-5 pips: +1 card
6-8 pips: +2 cards
9-12 pips: +3 cards
My notes ... in terms of average drawing it is the same as an original Laboratory but just a bit more spicy. Overall, it might need some improvements to the design of this card just to make it different from the Laboratory.
Snake Eyes Hex for $3 {Action/Reaction/Attack}
+1 Action
+1 Card
---OR---
When another player rolls 2 dice, you may first play this, to change their roll to a 1 and a 1. The card goes into your discard pile after playing.
My notes ... this is the attacking modifier and would be one of the most spicy cards in the expansion by allowing you to totally screw over your opponents at will. I added the cantrip so it's not useless when you don't have other RNG cards in your Supply. I hope this card is not overpowered; it will need to be balanced.
Lucky Charm for $2 {Action}
For all future dice rolls on this turn you must either increase each die by 1 pip or increase one die by 2 pips; however, don't exceed 6 pips on either die.
My notes ... this needs a better design so it won't be useless when there aren't other RNG cards in the Supply. It is the most basic modifier you could really have.
Lottery for $4 {Action}
Roll 2 D6 and add up the number of pips
2 pips: gain a Curse
3-11 pips: +1 card +1 action
12 pips: gain a Province to your discard and 3 Golds onto your deck.
My notes ... in Seaside we had the Treasure Map but this is roughly the equivalent of what it does. By calling it the Lottery I put the theme tie-in that it gives you a high yield but with a super low frequency.
Untitled RNG sifter for $5 {Action}
Roll 2 D6. Look at the D6 with the higher value of the two. Draw that many cards. Look at the D6 with the smaller value of the two. Discard that many cards.
My notes ... so this is similar to a Cellar if you roll the same number on both dice, except that you draw before you discard. I think this card might become overpowered if you roll 6s. Then again, on average it's going to be sifting 3.5 cards or so? I'm hoping that because it is a terminal then it won't be too overpowered, but it really needs balancing.
Untitled Underdog Card for $2 {Action}
+1 action
If another player has Snake Eyes Hex they must play one Snake Eyes Hex card.
Roll 2 D6 and add up the number of pips.
2-3 pips: +5 cards
4-6 pips: +3 cards
7-10 pips: +1 card
11-12 pips: Discard 1 card
My notes ... this card needs balancing on the different numbers but the idea is that it's going to be payback if your opponent keeps doing lower Modifiers on you.
Platoon for $4 {Action/Attack/Duration}
+ $2
All other players must discard until they are holding 4 or fewer cards.
--------
Until the beginning of your next turn, if another player rolls two dice for the very first time on their turn, they must decrease the roll by 1 pip on each die or 2 pips on one of the dice, whichever decreases their roll more (but don't go below 1 pip on each die).
My notes ... this is the Militia of my new expansion. You can see how it is mostly like Militia but also interferes with lucky strategies that might be using die rolls. Of course, with Throne Room it would decrease by 2 pips per die.
Four Leaf Clover for $4 or maybe $5 {Action/Reaction/Attack}
When any player (including you) rolls 2 D6 dice, you may first play this from your hand, to increase each die's value by 1 pip, or increase one die's value by 2 pips, or decrease each die's value by 1 pip, or decrease one die's value by 2 pips. Don't let any die's value go below 1 or above 6.
My notes ... this is the other basic modifier. Unlike Lucky Charm it's a one-and-done rather than lasting for the turn. I wanted to make it so you could really spam these if you wanted to tip the balance by a lot. For example, Four Leaf Clover and Lottery would have a very nice synergy. My only worry is that this will be too overpowered. If I had to nerf it I would do it by saying only one Four Leaf Clover can be used on a single roll of the dice. Also, it could be really useless if the Supply has no RNG cards.
War Bonds for $5 {Alternate VP}
At the end of the game, roll a single D6 to determine how much each War Bonds is worth. It gives one VP per pip on this die. There will be no modifiers on this die roll. The same D6 applies to all players; there is no rolling individually for your War Bonds.
My notes ... on average this would be slightly better than a Duchy while costing the same as Duchy. This one I kind of threw in randomly and I think it severely needs balancing because it's one of the most annoyingly random ones here.
CONCLUSION
In the short time I took to write down these ideas, I did not think of that many other cards. That means that so far there are not enough ideas to fill up an entire expansion which typically needs more cards than that. Please let me know what you think of the cards. I know that they are not balanced, so you could add balancing suggestions. You could also suggest more cards.
If you are making some fan cards please feel free to borrow my ideas.
That's all for now,
Village Idiot
P.S. My first post! Yay!
P.P.S. I have edited it so the modifiers are a little bit more clearly defined in what they can do. This edit also included the Four Leaf Clover. This edit happened on May 14 2024.
