if(isequal([number plays],10,3),000[number plays],if(isequal([number plays],100,3),00[number plays],if(isequal([number plays],1000,3)0[number plays],[number plays])))
untested, but should work as requested in your opening post.
you ask an if() question, then tell MC what to do if the answer is yes, and what to do if the answer is no. In each case above, if the answer is no, we ask another question, right up to the point where [number plays] is not less than 1000, in which case, we stop asking questions, tell MC to just use the [number plays] value, and close the expression.
if(isequal([number plays],10,3),
This says, "if [number plays] is less than 10" and is immediately followed by the instructions to carry out if the answers is yes, the instructions that follow the next comma, in this case, we ask another question, tell MC what to do if the answer is no.
It's wierd, I can follow these things quite well, but glynor caused my eyes to glaze over with his recent windows scripting host posts!!!
-marko.