D&D 5E Rolling Without a Chance of Failure (I love it)

[Maxperson]

Please describe a way to click on a pixel on a screen other than moving your mouse cursor over it and clicking the left mouse button.

Please re-read what I said, because this isn't response to it.

There are absolutely infinitely many ways. That’s why D&D has a human running the game. If there was a finite number of ways we could program a computer to do it.

No, there are not. There area finite number of ways to try and find a poison needle lock. Not every set is infinite just because you can't think of all the ways.

 

[Charlaquin]

No. Tisn't.

It absolutely is. You suggested an approach that could not possibly have resulted in achieving your goal, and then cried pixel hunting when you didn’t get to make a check anyway. This is not meaningfully different than if the approach had been to shove a sandwich in the lock.

 

[Charlaquin]

Please re-read what I said, because this isn't response to it.

You said there are multiple ways to find a pixel. If this is true, you can tell me a way other than moving your mouse cursor over it and clicking the left mouse button. If it’s not true, then your analogy doesn’t hold up.

No, there are not. There area finite number of ways to try and find a poison needle lock. Not every set is infinite just because you can't think of all the ways.

This is pointless.

 

[Maxperson]

It absolutely is. You suggested an approach that could not possibly have resulted in achieving your goal, and then cried pixel hunting when you didn’t get to make a check anyway. This is not meaningfully different than if the approach had been to shove a sandwich in the lock.

I'm not the one who requires players to keep going until they describe the pixel that finds the trap. What you described and what I am saying is very different than what @soviet described.

 

[Charlaquin]

I'm not the one who requires players to keep going until they describe the pixel that finds the trap.

Me either

What you described and what I am saying is very different than what @soviet described.

It’s not meaningfully different.

 

[Maxperson]

You said there are multiple ways to find a pixel. If this is true, you can tell me a way other than moving your mouse cursor over it and clicking the left mouse button. If it’s not true, then your analogy doesn’t hold up.

1. The pixel is a slightly different color.
2. The pixel is a slightly different shape.
3. The pixel flashes every once in a while.
4+ more ways.

All of those are ways to find the one pixel you need to click on.

With your coated handle, I could click on 20 other pixels(different parts of the drawer/dresser) and fail to find the trap if I fail to click on the correct pixel(the coated handle).

 

[Charlaquin]

1. The pixel is a slightly different color.
2. The pixel is a slightly different shape.
3. The pixel flashes every once in a while.
4+ more ways.

All of those are ways to find the one pixel you need to click on.

These are ways that might indicate which pixel to click on, analogous to the telegraphs I use to indicate the presence of a trap, or whatever. But the implication of the term pixel hunting is that you have to click on exactly the right pixel, analogous to describing exactly the right approach, which is not the case in my games, therefore the analogy doesn’t hold up.

With your coated handle, I could click on 20 other pixels(different parts of the drawer/dresser) and fail to find the trap if I fail to click on the correct pixel(the coated handle).

With your coated handle, you mean. You laid out the terms of this example and then demanded I answer. But no, there are infinitely many ways you might find the trap, you just happened to suggest one that would not.

 

[CleverNickName]

Do you ever do this? Rolling even without a chance of failure?

(Sorry I'm late to the thread)

Yep, I do this all the time. But I don't inform the player that there is no chance for failure...I ask for the roll same as always, and then tell them the result they get. I'll tailor the description of the result to match the quality of the roll, even if failure was never really an option.

I think that suspense and anticipation are important elements of the game, and I don't want to ignore or waive them just because of numbers on a character sheet.

 

[Charlaquin]

(Sorry I'm late to the thread)

Yep, I do this all the time. But I don't inform the player that there is no chance for failure...I ask for the roll same as always, and then tell them the result they get. If failure was never really an option, I'll tailor the description of the result to match the quality of the roll, even if failure was never really an option.

I think that suspense and anticipation are important elements of the game, and I don't want to ignore or waive them just because of numbers on a character sheet.

I find calling for rolls only when there is a chance and consequence for failure helps preserve the tension, because the players know that when a roll is happening, it’s always a big deal. Whereas, if some rolls can’t fail or nothing bad happens if you do fail them, it reduces the tension of all rolls because for any given roll you don’t know if it actually matters or not.

But that’s just me. Different strokes for different folks and all.

 

[Weiley31]

Okay okay okay: I'll admit that I have done something like this occasionally......ish. I've had moments where if it was something that was easily known by the pcs, they had to beat a DC of 5. Triggering a Flashback sequence that is roleplayed out have been done by a History DC 5 check. A pc easily recognizing their mentor's foot prints because they trained under them so long that they know how they walk and stuff would be a Investigation DC check of 5. Etc, etc, etc. It's really stupid trivial stuff that is easily known that gets such a low DC check. Ya I guess in a way it spits in the face of "don't roll if its not needed" and believe me, I've had plenty of moments where a passive score beat a DC check or I said "Well your a Ranger/Fighter/Wizard/insert class so this is stuff you basically already know/got drilled in your head in boot camp, whatever stuff" and no rolled happened as well.

So I guess I do a mixish of it. Yes a roll of 1 or 3 has happened before, but then the modifiers for the skill rounded it out to about exactly the "5" to hit the DC 5 check or a point above.

Look I know deep down inside, there's a dice rolling quota that players like and I try to fill said monthly quota.