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<blockquote data-quote="Radiating Gnome" data-source="post: 4576059" data-attributes="member: 150">This has really been coming home to me lately -- especially reading Mike's excellent series of articles on skill challenges, and this thread and others like it, etc.&nbsp; I imagine that the challenge of writing rules for skill challenges is very, very difficult if you really want to do them well.&nbsp; To really get the most out of writing your own challenges, you're going to have to be really, really flexible -- and approach the system as if everything is negotiable, which is a hard thing to get used to.&nbsp; For instance, in the most recent article on skill challenges (second in the series), Mike writes about some of the secondary skill options and some of the things that can be accomplished with them -- including things like removing a failure from the skill challenge tally, for example.&nbsp; When I read that, I had to stop and kick back for a second.&nbsp; It looks like a little thing, but at least from where I'm sitting that's a huge idea, and once again it speaks of a very free-wheeling approach to the game that I really like.&nbsp; But, if your system is freeform and wide open, how do you write solid, black and white rules for it that the rules junkies can chew on?&nbsp; For me, each skill challenge is different depending upon the scene I'm trying to create -- and I try not to consider any part of the mechanic as gospel.&nbsp; Obviously, though, that's easier to say than do -- after all, I was surprised by the idea of a secondary skill check removing a failure.&nbsp; I think we're going to see some interesting evolution in skill challenges in the future -- maybe there will be some optional alternatives in the DMG2, or some more developed advice on creating them.&nbsp; -j</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Radiating Gnome, post: 4576059, member: 150"] This has really been coming home to me lately -- especially reading Mike's excellent series of articles on skill challenges, and this thread and others like it, etc. I imagine that the challenge of writing rules for skill challenges is very, very difficult if you really want to do them well. To really get the most out of writing your own challenges, you're going to have to be really, really flexible -- and approach the system as if everything is negotiable, which is a hard thing to get used to. For instance, in the most recent article on skill challenges (second in the series), Mike writes about some of the secondary skill options and some of the things that can be accomplished with them -- including things like removing a failure from the skill challenge tally, for example. When I read that, I had to stop and kick back for a second. It looks like a little thing, but at least from where I'm sitting that's a huge idea, and once again it speaks of a very free-wheeling approach to the game that I really like. But, if your system is freeform and wide open, how do you write solid, black and white rules for it that the rules junkies can chew on? For me, each skill challenge is different depending upon the scene I'm trying to create -- and I try not to consider any part of the mechanic as gospel. Obviously, though, that's easier to say than do -- after all, I was surprised by the idea of a secondary skill check removing a failure. I think we're going to see some interesting evolution in skill challenges in the future -- maybe there will be some optional alternatives in the DMG2, or some more developed advice on creating them. -j [/QUOTE]

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