Rolling the dice

About this model

This diagram models a gameplay scenario where a player attempts an action with a chance-based outcome. Initially, resources (represented as "Black" tokens) are generated by a Source node labeled "Action". These tokens are then directed towards a "Chance to succeed" gate, which simulates the probabilistic nature of the attempt. The success of each action is determined by a dice roll, with a 5% chance for the token to move to the "Success" pool and a 95% chance to end up in the "Fail" pool. Resources that reach the "Fail" pool are then automatically processed through a series of gates and connections that lead to an opportunity to "Try again,” looping back to the "Chance to succeed" gate. This represents the player's ability to attempt the action multiple times until success is achieved or attempts are ceased.

The diagram includes a specific path for reviving attempts through the "Revive" pool, indicating a mechanism whereby failed attempts can be retried. This creates a cyclic flow where resources circulate between attempting the action, failing, and retrying, highlighting the persistence aspect of gameplay where a player can continually engage with a challenging scenario until it is overcome. This setup also includes descriptive text that suggests the intended experience of facing low odds but having unlimited attempts, allowing for a brute-force approach to achieving success in a game setting.

“Rolling the dice” is a public Machinations diagram by Cezar Cocias, shared in the Machinations Community.

You can open the original diagram in the Machinations app, press Play to watch how resources move through it, and change its values to see how the system responds. Machinations is a visual tool for designing, simulating and balancing game economies and other systems, where resources flow through sources, pools, drains, converters and gates.