Dice towers and dice trays are among the most printed tabletop accessories on every major STL platform because they solve a real problem elegantly: rolling dice consistently on a table without them flying onto the floor, knocking over terrain, or being questioned for fairness. FDM handles both formats well. This guide covers the full spectrum from quick-print functional trays to showpiece castle towers.
Dice Trays
A dice tray is a flat-sided container with low walls that keep dice from rolling off the table. The design is simple: a square or rectangular base with 20-25mm walls. The interior can be plain or textured. A diagonal cross-hatch texture embossed into the tray floor prevents dice from sliding across a smooth surface after the roll.
Print at 0.2mm layer height, 3 walls, 10% infill. The tray doesn’t need structural strength; it just needs to hold its shape. Total print time: 60-90 minutes for a 150x150mm tray. Use eSUN Matte PLA in dark green or dark brown for a classic felt-tray appearance without needing any felt lining.
Felt-lined version: print with smooth interior walls and glue 1mm felt sheet to the interior base and walls after printing. The felt absorbs dice impact noise and prevents dice scratching.
Dice Towers
A dice tower is a vertical channel with internal baffles that randomize dice as they fall from the top opening to the output tray at the base. The baffle geometry is the key design element: angled platforms that deflect dice in alternating directions produce more randomization than a straight channel.
Minimum internal channel width: 30mm for standard 16mm dice with comfortable clearance. Baffle angle: 30-45 degrees from horizontal. Minimum 3 baffles for adequate randomization. The output tray extends forward from the base and has 15-20mm walls to contain the emerging dice.
The internal baffles print as overhangs. At 30-45 degrees they print without supports. At steeper angles they need internal support structures. Design baffles at 45 degrees maximum for support-free printing.
Showpiece Tower Designs
The most popular dice tower designs on Printables and Cults3D are thematic: a ruined castle with a working drawbridge, a wizard’s tower with a spiral staircase exterior, a dungeon entrance with skull motifs. These showpiece towers are primarily decorative with a functional dice channel embedded in the structure.
For large thematic towers: print sections separately and assemble. A full 300mm tower prints as 3-4 sections on a 256mm bed. The section joins follow natural architectural boundaries (tower base, mid section, top parapets). Assemble with CA glue.
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