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Monte Cook On Fumble Mechanics
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<blockquote data-quote="Celebrim" data-source="post: 7695163" data-attributes="member: 4937"><p>I normally see the results of a failed check as 'nothing happens'. For example, when you make an attack roll to hit a target, if you fail then you do no damage. When you try to open a lock with a skill check, the lock remains locked. Sometimes there are consequences to 'nothing happens', such as failing to make a Hide check to evade a hunting monster - in which case the thing that doesn't happen is that you are not seen and so the ordinary result (you are seen) happens instead. But in general, failure refers to the case when things don't happen. If failure normally referred to the case where something happened, we wouldn't need a concept like "fail forward". </p><p></p><p>Additional complication is not normally the expectation of simple failure, at least if we are discussing most older 'traditional' game systems. </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>I don't understand why a fumble should be silly. It sounds like you are speaking from experience, but making fumbles be silly is more a matter of choice than a necessity (unless the system outright encodes for silliness, which is a valid choice if that's what you are going for).</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>But even more than I don't understand why a fumble should be silly, I don't understand why Wicket using the sling is in a different class of failure than R2D2 plugging his 'modem' into a power socket and frying himself, or Han Solo snapping a stick as he's sneaking up on Scout Trooper, or Han Solo's attempt to fast talk his way out of problems in the Death Star Detention center and failing so miserably he himself winces listening to himself and ultimately decides to just blast the microphone. They are all potentially comic moments revolving around a protagonist majorly screwing up. Whether you find them silly or not though is a bit subjective.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Celebrim, post: 7695163, member: 4937"] I normally see the results of a failed check as 'nothing happens'. For example, when you make an attack roll to hit a target, if you fail then you do no damage. When you try to open a lock with a skill check, the lock remains locked. Sometimes there are consequences to 'nothing happens', such as failing to make a Hide check to evade a hunting monster - in which case the thing that doesn't happen is that you are not seen and so the ordinary result (you are seen) happens instead. But in general, failure refers to the case when things don't happen. If failure normally referred to the case where something happened, we wouldn't need a concept like "fail forward". Additional complication is not normally the expectation of simple failure, at least if we are discussing most older 'traditional' game systems. I don't understand why a fumble should be silly. It sounds like you are speaking from experience, but making fumbles be silly is more a matter of choice than a necessity (unless the system outright encodes for silliness, which is a valid choice if that's what you are going for). But even more than I don't understand why a fumble should be silly, I don't understand why Wicket using the sling is in a different class of failure than R2D2 plugging his 'modem' into a power socket and frying himself, or Han Solo snapping a stick as he's sneaking up on Scout Trooper, or Han Solo's attempt to fast talk his way out of problems in the Death Star Detention center and failing so miserably he himself winces listening to himself and ultimately decides to just blast the microphone. They are all potentially comic moments revolving around a protagonist majorly screwing up. Whether you find them silly or not though is a bit subjective. [/QUOTE]
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