Editing Warmachine/Tactics/Differences between Warmachine and 40k (section)

===Rolling===
One of the biggest differences between the two games is the dice system. In Warhammer, almost all rolls use a 1d6 system, which is an even distribution on each individual roll. This can cause crippling clusters of random number generation when very few dice are being rolled. The system works well with units that have large numbers of dice rolls, such as Ork or Tau rank and file, but becomes risky at best when rolling important things for expensive models - such as losing the blast from a Riptide on the Gets Hot roll, or needing to connect with a single character model's best attack. 

Warmahordes has somewhat mitigated this risk (thus enabling less infuriating gameplay with a low model count) by utilizing a 2d6 system on almost all dice rolls, and often having the option to "boost" rolls by adding an extra d6. Using the cumulative total from multiple dice on each roll gives a rough approximation of a normal distribution, making tactics in general more reliable and less vulnerable to bouts of horrible luck. It can still happen, but it's not nearly as common.

Additionally, in Warmahordes, all rolls (ranged and melee) to hit are made against the target's defense (DEF). This is contrast to Warhammer, where the to-hit roll in shooting was made despite the target's stats, taking only the shooter's BS and terrain effects like cover into account. The end result is that, in Warmahordes, a model's survivability is not purely dependent on its heath boxes or armor. Units with high DEF scores can be quite resilient, and require varied tactics to take down; heavy ARM units can generally be taken down by massed fire, but for a high-DEF model, it might be more expedient to find a way to inflict knockdown and remove their DEF entirely.