3d10

A 3d10 refers to a roll of three ten-sided dice. In tabletop role-playing games and other contexts involving chance, dice are often used to generate random numbers within a specified range. A ten-sided die, typically marked with numbers from 0 to 9 or 1 to 10, produces a result from one of its faces. When three such dice are rolled, the results are usually summed together.

The minimum possible result from rolling three 0-9 ten-sided dice is 0 (0+0+0), and the maximum is 27 (9+9+9). If the dice are numbered 1-10, the minimum result is 3 (1+1+1) and the maximum is 30 (10+10+10). The distribution of possible sums is bell-shaped, meaning the most frequent results will be close to the average, and extreme results are less likely. The average result for 0-9 dice is 13.5, and for 1-10 dice is 16.5.

The 3d10 mechanic is sometimes used to provide a wider range of results than a single die or a small number of dice, while offering a more granular distribution than larger dice pools. This can be useful for simulating varied outcomes in combat, skill checks, or other randomized events where a nuanced spectrum of success or failure is desired. The use of two different colors of dice is common to distinguish between them for specific game mechanics, such as one die representing tens and others representing units for a d100 roll, though 3d10 typically implies a sum of three individual results.