Sum of roll of N dice

[Allen]

(05-11-2018 09:52 AM)brickviking Wrote:  You guys can have your probability-based solutions. I do have a perfectly working version of the program from the DUP 6. SWAP post that I've extended for n-sided dice. Dies. Dice... eh, whatever:

Your generalized solution (and the base-6 idea from Jim Horn)

(05-02-2018 07:01 AM)Jim Horn Wrote:  If you roll N six sided dice and put them next to each other and write down the values they show *minus 1* each, you'll get an N digit integer in base 6. All such 6^N integers are equally likely for fair dice. So, just find a random number from 0 to (6^N)-1, convert to base 6, add the sum of its digits plus N (to correct the "subtract 1 from each digit") and there you go: the sum of the six rolled dice with only one random number generation.

are beautifully elegant- maybe the best there is! In my own problem solving I do struggle with knowing when is "good enough" and when to keep looking for a more elegant algorithm. Sometimes I learn new and equally cool things when I continue a little further down a path, even if I have a working solution in hand.

We are all explorers, and serendipity is waiting just around the corner.