D&D 5E "The so-called '5-Minute Workday' is Something I've Seen Regularly Playing 5E D&D" (a poll)

[AngryTiger]

Has never happened in my games. My player's try to keep going as long as possible, saving spells and other resources to when they feel like they get most use out of them. Only if they feel like the resources they have left won't be enough to finish the dungeon or whatever place they are at, they will retreat so rest.

 

[ad_hoc]

I don't see it.

If I was ever in a situation where the PCs could just take their time and there wasn't tension I would just narrate that they are victorious at whatever it is they want to do. And then actually play out the adventures that are exciting.

 

[Oofta]

Happens a lot when it comes to overland encounters, I generally tweak those encounters so they remain challenging if its the only one for the day.

In “dungeons”, I haven’t encountered this and have to sometimes suggest that the party might want to take a (short) rest before rushing into the next encounter.

If I do overland travel I generally narrate it until they hit something that's more than 1 fight. Of course I also use the alternate rules for resting, so it's easier.

But if you're travelling through dangerous territory it's not hard to set up what is basically a "mini dungeon". You get spotted by a patrol and then not only do you have to fight that patrol but (potentially based on a couple of checks) you didn't know they sent a runner or message back to the main group that is now tracking you. Or you stumble across a fight and people need your help for more than just this fight, or you literally fall into a small underground complex, find yourself in a cursed valley.

 

[pukunui]

Not something that has happened much in my 5e games, but I do recall it being an issue in the 3.x days.

 

[Oofta]

If you're running RAW, it happens all the time. I've had players insist on a long rest after every fight. That the RAW supports the idea that you have to have an hour-long combat before it interrupts a long rest is also a problem. If you have a wizard in the party, once they reach 5th level they will take Leomund's Tiny Hut and they will long rest at their leisure. So yes, 5-minute workday exceedingly common in RAW 5E.

Time to pull in some of those infinite dragons you have at your disposal. The rules have little to do with how often your PCs are attacked or whether they have someplace safe to rest.

 

[Oofta]

The 5 minute workday happens when players can dictate the pace of play. 5e RAW may have a bit to do with it because the default "recharge" mechanics (healing, ability recovery) are so fast, but IMO not really. If the DM doesn't let the PCs always dictate the pace - 5 minute workday goes away.

As for Tiny Hut? It's annoying, but without it, players would just take different precautions. If the hut is "in the open" it's not like baddies can't wait for it to drop (plus if the group has pack animals, mounts etc. - those are expressly not protected).

When it comes to tiny hut, I rule that you can't attack anything outside of the hut from the inside which I believe has been clarified as the intent even though I can't find the quote right now. Or maybe it was just hallucinating after too much (or too little?) caffeine and it's just a house rule. In any case, giving the enemy 8 hours to prepare defenses generally wouldn't be a good idea in my campaign, if they didn't just figure out some other way to deal with it.

 

[overgeeked]

Time to pull in some of those infinite dragons you have at your disposal. The rules have little to do with how often your PCs are attacked or whether they have someplace safe to rest.

I've had players rage quit because their long rest was interrupted. I've also had players rage quit over taking one point of damage. I've had players rage quit when LTH was banned. I've had players rage quit when enemies gathered forces outside the LTH. My infinite dragons are, apparently, many players' line that the referee shall not cross.

 

[Mort]

I've had players rage quit because their long rest was interrupted. I've also had players rage quit over taking one point of damage. I've had players rage quit when LTH was banned. I've had players rage quit when enemies gathered forces outside the LTH. My infinite dragons are, apparently, many players' line that the referee shall not cross.

Wow, I've never had anything like that not even DMing for 12-14 year olds!

I'd say those players were probably not a good fit for a game that has any challenge?

 

[Oofta]

I've had players rage quit because their long rest was interrupted. I've also had players rage quit over taking one point of damage. I've had players rage quit when LTH was banned. I've had players rage quit when enemies gathered forces outside the LTH. My infinite dragons are, apparently, many players' line that the referee shall not cross.

Honestly? If someone rage quits because they want to run the game, I would discuss it with them and if they don't accept how I run a game happily show them the door. I try to accommodate players when I can, but the game has to make sense to me. Playing the game on easy mode and assuming you can rest whenever you want because you can in some video games doesn't make sense to me.

I can't be the right DM for everyone, there have always been plenty of people willing to play.

 

[Charlaquin]

Have I seen it? Yes. Have I seen it regularly? No. Do I use any special rules that prevent it from happening regularly? Yes. Are they house rules? No. So, I guess false is the “correct” answer for me, but I think that answer would be misleading.