Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
White Dwarf Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Nest
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions, OSR, & D&D Variants
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
EN Publishing
Twitter
BlueSky
Facebook
Instagram
EN World
BlueSky
YouTube
Facebook
Twitter
Twitch
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions, OSR, & D&D Variants
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
NOW LIVE! Today's the day you meet your new best friend. You don’t have to leave Wolfy behind... In 'Pets & Sidekicks' your companions level up with you!
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
Ability Check origins at your table
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Swarmkeeper" data-source="post: 9059973" data-attributes="member: 6921763"><p>I'm not sure I follow on the "extra step" bit. The DM describes that the door is locked (presumably among several other details in the room) and the player decides whether their rogue may or may not try to pick it. That's not my job as DM to describe what the PC wants to do. Not at our table, anyway. </p><p></p><p>Based on what the PC wants to do, a check might be called. The possible subsequent roll doesn't affect what they want to do, the roll determines the <em>outcom</em>e of what they are trying to do. If the player describes their Rogue as trying to pick a lock with their lockpicks, and they fail a called check, I'm not going to narrate anything to do with a hammer and chisel. Ever. Is there something I've written that makes you think that could be a possibility?</p><p></p><p></p><p>Sounds good.</p><p></p><p></p><p>At our table, the player isn't asking for checks so they don't have to worry about what they would "add for description" for any particular skill. The player just describes what their character is doing in the fiction: "My character is thinking back to their training as a wizard's apprentice/smuggler/folk hero/whatever, does she recognize any of the symbology in the mural?"</p><p></p><p>If the outcome is uncertain and there is a meaningful consequence for failure, "the DM decides which of the six abilities is relevant to the task at hand and the difficulty of the task" (PHB p 174) and calls for a check.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Swarmkeeper, post: 9059973, member: 6921763"] I'm not sure I follow on the "extra step" bit. The DM describes that the door is locked (presumably among several other details in the room) and the player decides whether their rogue may or may not try to pick it. That's not my job as DM to describe what the PC wants to do. Not at our table, anyway. Based on what the PC wants to do, a check might be called. The possible subsequent roll doesn't affect what they want to do, the roll determines the [I]outcom[/I]e[I] [/I]of what they are trying to do. If the player describes their Rogue as trying to pick a lock with their lockpicks, and they fail a called check, I'm not going to narrate anything to do with a hammer and chisel. Ever. Is there something I've written that makes you think that could be a possibility? Sounds good. At our table, the player isn't asking for checks so they don't have to worry about what they would "add for description" for any particular skill. The player just describes what their character is doing in the fiction: "My character is thinking back to their training as a wizard's apprentice/smuggler/folk hero/whatever, does she recognize any of the symbology in the mural?" If the outcome is uncertain and there is a meaningful consequence for failure, "the DM decides which of the six abilities is relevant to the task at hand and the difficulty of the task" (PHB p 174) and calls for a check. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
Ability Check origins at your table
Top