Guildmaster's Guide to Ravnica Dice Review

Review copy courtesy of Wizards of the Coast.

Pros:

• They’re a complete set of dice.
• The smokey aesthetic looks nice.

Could Go Either Way:

• D&D 5^th edition has the great new mechanic of advantage (where you roll 2d20 and take the highest) and disadvantage (where you roll 2d20 and take the lowest). Why not include 2d20 in a set aimed at the new edition?
• The guild dice will probably not see much use.

Cons:

• The set can be a bit pricey out of the box, especially compared to other dice manufacturers. Now, the Wizards of the Coast sets often go on sale making them more affordable, but the MSRP is rather high when you can buy sets for 5 bucks at your local game store.

* Denotes nitpicking.

Very nice looking tin, ain't it? 

Introduction

Another set of new books, another set of dice. This time the dice set is released to go with the release of the Ravnica settings. The set features 4 d6s, 1 d20, 1d12, 1d10, 1d8, 1d6, 1d4, and one guild dice in a decorated box. But how is it? Let’s jump into the specifics.

The Specifics

The dice set looks nice. The best way I can describe the appearance is like strands of smoke trapped inside the translucent dice. See the images below, though they don’t quite do them justice. If you prefer solid colours though, or just don’t like the aesthetic, you’ll think differently.

It comes in a rather nice tin with foam that holds the dice. For the tin see above and for the inside see below. 

The dice in all their glory in the tin. 

I think a big missed opportunity is to include a second d20. Advantage and disadvantage are quite frequently used in D&D 5^th edition, and it would be extremely convenient and speed things up to be able to roll both dice at once. Things such as damage rolls can already be handled by rolling the d20 with the damage dice to save time. Since prices have been going up in general, the addition would go over well I think.

The main issue I can see is that the dice are rather pricey. You can get the starter set for around the same, and get an adventure along with your dice. Now, it’s been my experience that these sorts of products often go on sale both online and in store, so it’s possible to find at a reduced price. However at MSRP I think it can be a hard sell, especially when you can buy dice for $5 bucks at local game stores. If you are a collector, or just like the aesthetics and the box, that’s a different story. But in that case you aren’t buying it as just another set of dice, but are after that particular set.

A bit of a closer view on the dice themselves.