Quickleaf
Legend
My thought process is... what's the point of rolling to perceive something? Why does that mechanic exist?I'm thinking of trying out something strange as a DM regarding Passive Perception.
As it is, I use Passive Perception in two ways:
1) When a character enters a setting, they perceived everything their Passive Perception would allow: hidden creatures, treasures, etc. Usually for secret doors and traps I give big clues and invite the character to look closer.
2) When a character rolls a Perception check, their Passive Perception is their floor- the lowest result they can get. If they roll below their Passive Perception, I just use their Passive Perception.
This does, however, make adventure design a little weird. In a way, I have to think of what a realistic DC would be for spotting something, but at the same time I just know flat out some of the characters are going to be able to beat it with their Passive Perceptions.
For example, in next week's adventure the characters are going to enter a dungeon room with a trap: a net will fall, and two flying swords will attack.
If I set the DC of spotting the net at, say, 14, I just know two characters will see the net. Why put a net there at all in that case? If I set it at 18 then no one will see it, but is that realistic? And why use Passive Perception at all if I'm just going to juice all the DCs?
So what I've decided to do is to roll during the session to set the Perception DC. Rather than preplanning a DC of 11 or 14 or 16, I'll write down +1 or +4 or +6. Then, when the characters enter the room, I'll roll for it and note the DC. Maybe I'll roll super low and everyone will see it. Maybe I'll roll super high and no one will. But either way it reduces my own meta-game thinking when planning the adventure.
Plus it's fun to roll dice, and I love random elements in adventure design.
So what do you think? Am I crazy? Do you do something similar, or is this just not a problem for you?
I think the answer is... as a form of threat detection and/or mitigation.
I DO NOT think the answer is... to have a mechanic that acts as a buffer between the player and the narrative.
In other words, players should not be chomping at the bit with "I want to make a Perception check." Because once you need to ask, things are already on the cusp of going pear-shaped. Because it's about threat.
So for my own house rules, I prefer to use Perception as a saving throw in response to an ambush happening or a trap being triggered. It's the "do I notice something at the last second to avoid being surprised by this?" That's the purpose of the mechanic.
This approach also involves less rolling (which is the point of Passive Perception), but it's a paradigm shift. For example, this means I can't settle for assigning DCs to detect traps and secret doors. Instead, I have to engage the fiction as a GM.