In a 2012 gathering at a gaming convention, board game designer challenged mathematician Eric Harshbarger to devise dice for determining the starting player with no chance of a tie. The main aim was to expedite the game setup process and get players into the game swiftly.
Harshbarger, a senior lecturer and mathematician at Auburn University, found the puzzle intriguing due to its lack of an evident solution, a common draw for mathematicians. After years of collaboration with computer scientists and mathematicians globally, Harshbarger and his team successfully crafted a set of unique dice known as the Go First Dice, designed for five players to fairly determine the starting player in a board game with a guaranteed winner from a single roll.
Initially, a set of four 12-sided dice was developed, enabling a fair outcome for two, three, or four players. However, the challenge intensified when attempting to design dice for five players. Despite the mathematical feasibility, creating physically viable dice posed a significant hurdle. Various iterations led to the development of a set of five 120-sided dice, a breakthrough solution proposed by an Australian researcher, followed by a Canadian software engineer, Paul Meyer, who devised a solution using five 60-sided dice.
Meyer’s computational approach, leveraging mathematical patterns and extensive computer searches, culminated in a successful solution. The golf-ball-sized Go First Dice are now commercially available, designed to ensure fairness, with any potential imperfections attributed to manufacturing processes rather than mathematical flaws.
Ongoing research aims to explore the feasibility of fewer sides for a five-player set, considering 30 sides as a minimum requirement, and the potential expansion to accommodate six players. Harshbarger acknowledges the possibility of new theoretical approaches, emphasizing the allure of unresolved mathematical challenges that drive mathematicians to persist in pursuit of solutions.