Using a skill check to find a hidden forest trail

One of my players has a part of a quest he's going on where he has to find a hidden forest trail. The character in question is a 5th level Wood Elf Druid so the Find The path spell is out of the equation and Know Direction couldn't be used because all that would do is allow him to know which direction is north. So, a skill check seems to be the only way to go in solving this problem.

But, what I'm wondering is what skill check I should have him make to find said trail? Would it be a Search check in combination with a Track or Survival or just a Search check flat out or all three?

Also, what would the DC be I'm thinking somewhere between 20-30?

Trails are relatively passable/unobstructed ways that lead someplace, in this case through a forest.

"finding" the trail by crossing it is relatively easy. That's a straight Survival check, as normally used for Tracking.

If it's a question of finding a hidden trail head, that would depend on whether they know the area where it's supposed to be. If they do, Search would seem about right.

If they don't, Knowledge History or Knowledge Local might tell them where to begin their search.

D&D doesn't handle combined skill checks very well.

Greenfield said:

Trails are relatively passable/unobstructed ways that lead someplace, in this case through a forest.

"finding" the trail by crossing it is relatively easy. That's a straight Survival check, as normally used for Tracking.

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You'd actually be surprised how difficult trails can be to spot -- even marked trails such as the GR network in Europe. My brother-in-law and I in fact have a rule: if you can't spot the trail, take whichever option seems the most difficult. So far we've never been wrong.

The problem becomes even worse when you're not actually on the trail, just walking around trying to find it. You're likely to see all sorts of half-defined animal trails, while the path itself could be very overgrown or poorly defined in many places.

Personally I'd use a Spot check to reveal a number of possible trails, followed by a Survival check to identify which one is the actual trail. This could represent the character looking further ahead, understanding where the trail is heading, perhaps spotting older human/demi-human tracks, etc.

@OP:
If you want to make it a dice encounter, go ahead and require three different checks.
If you want to quickly make the call and move the game along, just roll spot/perception/whathaveyou.
If you want to roleplay, tell the PC he can gather information about the forest trail from the local hunters, the elusive ranger, or the ornery troll. And add three more decision points at each information source...
[MENTION=21843]Dioltach[/MENTION]'s signature: I'm pretty sure we say "not today!" But, remind me how I know that?

DMMike said:

[MENTION=21843]Dioltach[/MENTION]'s signature: I'm pretty sure we say "not today!" But, remind me how I know that?

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Game of Thrones water dancing mentor instructing Arya.