East Meets West: Nationality Series

Our newest line of precision BattleDice have arrived. There are five dice in the basic set. The set includes American, Chinese, German, Japanese, and Russian dice. The dice are not much bigger than those that came with ASL Starter Kit 1, or Beyond Valor. However, our BattleDice are prettier. Helen told me so. 

We were not sure what to call this first set. It is something of a cross between stars and suns. We finally settled on East meets West. 

Quite a few people have asked us why we have not produced a ½” (12.5mm) series of dice. When I designed the first set of BattleSchool dice, my thinking was that a larger die was easier for grey-haired folks like me to eyeball. I also reasoned that a larger die allowed for more elaborate and interesting designs.

The wee red die came with Beyond Valor. See my post Sniper! for details of the 14mm Sniper! Effects die. The large Soviet die is part of the BudaPack. It is paired with a dark-red die.

Well it turns out that a lot ASL players can see just fine. Moreover, many players prefer smaller dice for some very sensible reasons. If you use a dice cup, or a compact dicetower, smaller dice make sense. Smaller dice provide more “action” in a cup than larger dice do. Smaller dice are also less prone to getting stuck inside a dicetower than larger dice—less prone, because even small dice occasionally become hung up in a tower.   

Back to the drawing board

I really want our dice to be attractive, not just functional. The smaller canvas of a ½” die invariably puts limits on what I can do from a design perspective. From the start I decided to keep things as simple as possible. Unfortunately, this can lead to uninspiring designs such as the Japanese “meatball,” or sun disc. But this very simplicity has its own benefit. The red orb looks like an enlarged pip. Doing sums should be a snap with this die. In fact, several of the designs mimic the shape of a pip. So in one respect these simplistic designs improve functionality. Nevertheless, the American and Chinese dice demonstrate that even a simple design can be striking. 

Nationalist Chinese Dice

I also wanted to design an economical line of BattleDice. In order to keep costs down, I decided to dispense with a matching coloured die. That is not exactly true. You still need a coloured die. But what you do not need is a custom, coloured die designed to match each white die in the series. Because there is a substantial set-up fee associated with each new design, I opted for a generic approach. Let me explain. 

The nationality series of dice are all white except for one black die. I will come back to the black die in a moment. The “matching” die for a white die is whatever you want it to be. There are limits. This is not Baskin Robbins. We carry eight colours of transparent precision dice. (Note that amber is no longer available.) You can use the same coloured die for each white die, or use specific colours for specific nationalities. 

There are some obvious advantages to this system. If you already own some ½” precision dice, you are set. Just pair them up with our white BattleDice and you are in business. Another advantage is that you can use the same coloured die for any number of different white dice. In a pinch, one coloured die is all you need to make our nationality series work for you. 

You can go with our recommended colours above or DYO

The choice is yours. Buy one coloured die, or buy a “matching” set of five. We have discounted the price of our coloured dice to make this more attractive. However, there is no requirement for more than one coloured die. In truth, you may decide that a single black die is all that you will ever need. 

Black goes with everything

There are more than 35 (white) "nationality" dice in our 12.5mm series. However, there is only one black die.

These are the schematics for the Baby ROF. The green foil is the same colour of foil used for the American die in the East meets West Pack.

The black die is essentially a "color" die with rate-of-fire reminders on three faces. Moreover, it retains pips on all faces. Although this die can also be used as a third, rate-of-fire only die—in conjunction with another coloured die, we now have a dedicated white die with colour pips, dubbed The Heretic, for this purpose. (See our 12.5mm page for details.) The biggest advantage of the Mini ROF is that you can own any number of white dice in the nationality series, but need only the Mini ROF (or another coloured die) to make the set work for you. The black die is available with lavender, light-green, teal, or pink foil ROF reminders.

Use one of these Baby Tears as your "colored die."

How to order

You may order direct by emailing us at battleschool at rogers dot com.

Greek and Yugoslav dice

Currently, some “nationalities” are available for purchase as singles. Just want a British die? Or how about a French one? See KitShop page for details.

Commonwealth Pack includes the following combatants: British, Australian, New Zealand, Gurkha, and Canadian

Axis and Allies Pack includes four "switch-hitters" that fought on both sides: Finland, France, Italy, and Sweden. Cross of Lorraine represents French French (and maquis)

Axis Minors are available in our Axes to Grind Pack. Each belligerent in the pack had an axe to grind, and sought to regain lost territories. Most switched sides during the war, and in several cases fought each other.

The Axes to Grind Pack includes dice for the five nationalities found in chapter H of the ASL Rule Book: Croatia, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, and Slovakia

The Allied Minors are available in two packs. The First to Fight Pack includes five nationalites found in chapter H of the ASL Rule Book. Two additional nations are included in our Balkan Blues Pack, coming Easter 2013.

First to Fight Pack includes the first five of the Allied Minors: Poland, Norway, Denmark, Netherlands, and Belgium

More “nationalities” are in the works, including dice for the Korean War. 

Most Chinese communists regard the Nanchang Uprising of 1 August 1927 as the founding point of the PLA.

The first die in the Partizan Pack represents Josip Tito's Partizan Army in Yugoslavia. (The Russian-coloured vehicles found in the Yugoslav chapter H notes, for example, are for use with Tito's Partizans.) The second die is a symbol of the Armia Krajowa (AK), the Polish underground army. This set gives players flexibility to represent communist, and non-communist partisans during play. The Free French (Cross of Lorraine) die can also serve as a generic “Western” partisan die, in addition to the French Forces of the Interieur (FFI), a.k.a. the French Resistance.

The "Eastern" Partizans

Collect them all, or only what you need. Just be sure to find time to use them. Except for our forthcoming Dust Devils, BattleDice are not meant to collect dust. Roll more, and play more! Roll 'em often.

Shooting stars