Dark Elf Dice Review: 35mm Giant Oblivion Dice

LOOK AT THOSE WHAMMERS!

But seriously, being a certified dice hoarder – I couldn’t pass up snagging these monsters.

I chatted with Shane, the proprietor of DarkElfDice.Com shortly after I stumbled onto the website, bemused by their selection of odd, harder to find, dice. Crystal Caste is a very small company that barely keeps up with the demand for their more interesting options – and with good reason. Fingers crossed I can highlight all of their stuff, but do yourself a favor – snag Crystal Caste dice from the guys at Dark Elf. In the Special Instructions (bottom of the Checkout page) mention me, get some buzz going. With enough feedback, I’ll happily snag more and more sets for future reviews, and we can get more of these cool dice on Dark Elf Dice’s website. Let’s get this review started!

Packaging

Clear plastic case packaging. There is nothing special here; I’m sure most of you are familiar with this style of packaging. The real problem: these dice are so damn big that they may not fit in a traditional dice bag or even a medium sized dice bag; they’re damn big.

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You can see, the case is about 20% bigger than a traditional Chessex plastic case.

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However, these larger sets fit so snugly inside the case that they don’t move at all, even when shaken violently – which means they will get to you in very good condition. You can also see that, during shipping, the case actually took a great deal of punishment: so I’m pretty glad they didn’t rattle about too much.

Color

The set I picked up, mainly due to the unavailable nature of Crystal Caste dice, is called Oblivion Toxic, a fairly gorgeous color – swirls of black and grey and purple writhing through a pink primary color.

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The gold numbering is just sharp enough to read. I’m unsure if a white lettering would have been easier to read, but it’s a difficult color pallet to work with: very serviceable regardless.

Weight

An average set of plastic dice weighs between 0.8oz and 1.1oz. A very light affair. Just as the photos hint at:

this set of Giant Dice weigh in at a hefty 3.1oz (I’d wager most come in at 2.7-3.3oz!). That puts giant dice firmly between an average set of plastic dice and metal dice such as the Norse Foundry Chainmail set we reviewed forever ago.

In the hand, they don’t feel too bad, honestly. A little heavy, but for their immense size, they’re not overly heavy – just bulky and imposing, which is sincerely fun.

Overall

Coming in at $9 to $12 (US), giant dice are not a huge investment over an average set of dice – luckily experimenting with these isn’t very risky. The colors are decent, but I’d like to see the dice be less rounded and the numbers to be larger on dice with tons of surface area (d20, d8, and d6 are the main culprits.) Having said that, these dice are fun, engaging, eye catching, and make for a great gift. There’s nothing more you can ask for in a set of dice (especially considering there is a METAL 35mm version from other companies that have NOT escaped my notice).

The gents and gentettes of Dark Elf Dice are great, and the masterminds at Crystal Caste are hard at work – but I will say these dice are sold out nearly everywhere you look for them. The truth is, Crystal Caste cannot keep up with the demand for their product. The best way to help them grow and see more product in the future: buy them when they become available. Spread the word, tell people, get people engaged. Support these retailers and manufacturers so we can get more and more goodies to represent the crazy shit we bring to the table!

2017-02-15 12.52.37*Special thanks to Shane for these Blue and White Cirrus Dice. His favorite, and honestly – the perfect dice for my newest D&D character!

I don’t always advocate rolling, but when I do… be sure you have to Drop the Die.
Review by JB Little, Follow me on twitter for more “useful” information.

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