[RPG] What are the objective issues with dice sharing

dicednd-5esocial

Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything, page 141 says the following (emphasis mine):

Common in-game limits include – but are not limited to – […]
Common out-of-game limits include unwanted physical contact, dice-sharing, dice-throwing, shouting, vulgarity, […].

All of these make sense to me, except for dice sharing. What are the objective issues to dice sharing? Why would people find dice sharing offensive? What about it would be offensive? Would it be forcing a player to use your dice, or forcing a player to share their dice? Or would it just be someone would be offended by you sharing your dice with someone?

Best Answer

Various Reasons

The reasons people have expressed for offense about dice sharing are varied and often personal. Common (three or more instances) reasons I have heard are:

  • Dice luck: the superstitious belief that using other players' dice, or allowing others to use your dice, causes those dice to roll poorly.
  • Dice loss: the players borrowing dice do not properly care for or keep track of the borrowed property.
  • Power Play: borrowing dice from others is a kind of social dominance move, a kind of bullying, especially if the lenders are not enthusiastic or trusting of the borrowers.
  • Time Concern: in the rare case of "not enough dice", passing the dice around takes a surprising amount of time and can disrupt the narrative flow of a session.

There have been a dozen or so other reasons given but those were rare enough that they were probably personal opinions rather than common reasons.

Bonus answer: It probably made the list because it seems to be a relatively common concern - around 40% of the 300+ players that I have personally gamed with have expressed a similar issue. Not a majority frustration but common, and severe, enough to justify inclusion.

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