D&D General 1s and 20s: D&D's Narrative Mechanics

[Older Beholder]

The discussion of Daggerheart and Hope and Fear got me thinking: D&D sort of has a unofficial "narrative mechanic" in the way that many tables deal with 1 and 20 results on the d20 when rolling for checks. This is especially visible in memes online, of course (Bards seducing liches on a nat 20, etc) but even jokes aside I think a lot of tables give those results extra weight in the emerging narrative. In these two specific, relatively uncommon (but 5% is not that low) outcomes, the die roll is no longer binary pass/fail. Many GMs and players want those results to have a more powerful impact on the fiction of the game.

And yet, many, many D&D players are uncomfortable with "narrative mechanics." It seems strange when I think of it that way.

What do you think? Are 1s and 20s unofficial "narrative mechanics" in D&D (especially 5e)? Do you give those results extra weight (beyond critical hits in combat)? How does it square with how you perceive games with explicit "narrative mechanics"?

I don't think it's just 1's and 20's.
I agree with John in the post above, you can narrate any roll.
You might narrate the scene if a player only just makes a successful skill check, as an example:

Athletics check DC 15 to jump across a pit:

Player rolls a 16
You leap across the pit and just make it, landing right on the edge. Your heart pounds a as few rocks disturbed by your landing fall into the chasm behind you.

Player rolls a 15
You leap across the pit, just reaching the other side. You lose your footing as you stretch out to almost a dive to make it. You are now prone until the next round.

Player rolls a 14
You leap across the pit, you think you're about to fall short but you slam into the other side of the chasm, you take a point of damage but manage to hold on. Make another athletics check to pull yourself up.

 

[Reynard]

I don't think it's just 1's and 20's.
I agree with John in the post above, you can narrate any roll.
You might narrate the scene if a player only just makes a successful skill check, as an example:

Athletics check DC 15 to jump across a pit:

Player rolls a 16
You leap across the pit and just make it, landing right on the edge. Your heart pounds a as few rocks disturbed by your landing fall into the chasm behind you.

Player rolls a 15
You leap across the pit, just reaching the other side. You lose your footing as you stretch out to almost a dive to make it. You are now prone until the next round.

Player rolls a 14
You leap across the pit, you think you're about to fall short but you slam into the other side of the chasm, you take a point of damage but manage to hold on. Make another athletics check to pull yourself up.

"Narration" is not what "narrative" means in this context.

 

[John R Davis]

Hmn ok
Yes, a bit because rolling a 1 sometimes means something in 5th ed, and a 20 sometimes means something a little bit more in 5th ed

Loads other games where a big roll / small rolls have a bigger narrative effect, mechanical effect and psychological effects when you stare at your dice in despair due to their treachery.

I think that answers the OP question.

 

[Reynard]

Hmn ok
Yes, a bit because rolling a 1 sometimes means something in 5th ed, and a 20 sometimes means something a little bit more in 5th ed

Loads other games where a big roll / small rolls have a bigger narrative effect, mechanical effect and psychological effects when you stare at your dice in despair due to their treachery.

I think that answers the OP question.

Well, the question was do YOU treat 1s and 20s as "narrative" results by giving them more weight on events in the fiction than the rules call for?

 

[Older Beholder]

Well, the question was do YOU treat 1s and 20s as "narrative" results by giving them more weight on events in the fiction than the rules call for?

Yeah, I do for the most part, but not always. Like, sometimes a 1 is a miss or a 20 is a success.
It depends on the situation, it’s a ruling, not a rule.