How percentile dice work
A d100 roll uses two ten-sided dice. One is the tens die, marked 00, 10, 20 … 90; the other is the units die, marked 0 to 9. Add them together. The only special case is 00 with 0, which is 100 rather than zero. That gives every whole number from 1 to 100 exactly a 1% chance.
| Tens die | Units die | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 70 | 3 | 73 |
| 00 | 7 | 7 |
| 10 | 0 | 10 |
| 90 | 9 | 99 |
| 00 | 0 | 100 |
What percentile dice are used for
- Percentile skill systems: in Call of Cthulhu and Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay you succeed by rolling equal to or under your skill — a 60% skill succeeds on 1 to 60.
- Random tables: treasure, encounters, weather, and D&D's Wild Magic Surge table are rolled on a d100.
- Any percentage: "there is a 30% chance of rain" becomes "roll 30 or under".
What about a 100-sided die?
True 100-sided dice exist — the best known is the Zocchihedron, a golf-ball-like die introduced by game designer Lou Zocchi in 1985, with a weighted core inside a sphere of 100 small flats. It is fun, but hard to read and slow to settle, so a pair of d10s remains the standard. The 3D roller here throws the classic pair.