Tabletop Review: Ice Cream Dice Grab Bags

I first became a tabletop role-playing gamer almost two decades ago when I was still in high school, and I’ve been obsessed with “shiny math rocks” ever since I first stepped into a local gaming store to pick up my starter set. Whenever we start a new campaign, I like to go through my dice and pick out a selection of dice to represent my character. While I’ve been familiar with the better known brands for awhile, in the last few months, social media has exposed me to a new array of dice artists and their amazing offerings. Ice Cream Dice based out of Edmonton is one of those indie companies I’ve recently learned about.

Ice Cream Dice sells a selection of its own original dice in 11-pieces sets (they contain 2 d20s and 4 d6s compared to standard 7-piece sets) like “The Soda Shoppe” series and a “Halloween Horrors” series, as well as HD Dice. Every so often they also release a limited amount of grab bags, and I was able to snag two of them last week when they released.

Grab Bags are $10 each and contain a full 7-piece set of HD Dice. This last round there were two options: a matched set or a mixed set. I purchased one of each. I will also note that a few lucky buyers got not a full 7-piece set of HD Dice, but an Ice Cream Dice Original Set. With my dice ordered, I eagerly awaited to see what came in while Twitter posts from @IScreamDice, the company’s Twitter, teased some pictures of sets that were going out.

Finally, my sets arrived and I got see which new dice were going to be mine. First up is my matched set. I did not get one of the Ice Cream Dice Originals, but I did get a fantastic glittery set called “Ro Chrome” by HD Dice. They have a iridescent glitter to them with cloudy swirls of a pinkish color. I absolutely love them and since HD Dice sell for about $12 each, I did get a small discount this way.

Now for the mixed set. The break down of the bag as best as I can match up seems to be a combination of the following:

• d4 – “Neon Sunrise,” a 3-layer design with dark blue, purple, and light green.
• d6 –  “Purple Gradient,” a shimmery pearl with varying shades of purple to pink.
• d8 – Unmatchable.  I could not quite match this one, but the iridescent glitter and dark purple cloud are stunning.
• d10 (1-10) “Green Iridescent,” a translucent green with iridescent glitter.
• d10 (00-09) “Metallic Ruby,” flakes of red in a clear base with silvery glitter.
• d12 “Ro Chrome,” matches my full set.
• d20 “Luminous Koi” has iridescent glitter with cloudy swirls of green and orange.

I’m not certain my photos did the dice proper justice (photographing dice might be harder than taking pictures of dogs and children). Of the mixed batch, my favorites might be the Metallic Ruby and the Luminous Koi. I certainly wouldn’t mind getting my hands on full sets later.

I really enjoyed the grab bags. They pop up periodically, so I recommend following Ice Cream Dice on social media if you want to see when they turn up again. In the meantime, check out their selection of current HD Dice offerings or the Ice Cream Dice Originals.