D&D 5E Beast master wants to use pet to get +5 to passive perception

[eyeheartawk]

I'd allow it.

Also,

First, to gain the benefits of a high PP

Nice.

 

[Lyxen]

Oh no! A bonus to passive perception actually using the existing rules that some people don't want to allow! What an abuse.
Seriously?

Yes, seriously, it's not using the existing rules, and it's on the most valued skill in the game. So yes, I confirm, seriously.

 

[JiffyPopTart]

If you want to get technical, RAW the wolf couldn't "Work Together" with the Ranger because the wolf isn't a character.

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EDIT: of course, if the player or another one was using the Sidekick classes and playing the Wolf as a PC, that would be different.

If you really want to get techical, the GM can assign advantage to a skill for any reason...like having a wild companion helping you to keep watch.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Yes, seriously, it's not using the existing rules, and it's on the most valued skill in the game. So yes, I confirm, seriously.

You could have passive perception 50 and it would still be inferior to spells...

 

[JiffyPopTart]

From a practical perspective, Fluffy gets tired of being ever vigilant. I'd have them perform an animal handling role to determine how long they can keep Fluffy focused and providing advantage. DC 20 would make it continuous until they next rest, 15 would get you an hour, 10 would be 10 minutes and 5 would be Fluffy sniffing your butt.

I dont know if you own a pet, but I can tell you every pet (minus the fish but including the ferret) I have ever owned has woken from a deep sleep and instantly appeared at my feet at the instant a bag crinkled or a cabinet opened anywhere in my house.

 

[Lyxen]

Two different contexts - my game versus this other DM's game. In my game, it's likely the player never asks to do this in the first place and, if they did, I wouldn't bother to ask why. I'd just make a ruling per my first post: Sometimes yes, sometimes no.

Again, please contrast the above with "Players will tend to do what is advantageous to them". Do your players do this or not ?

1Ultimately, if the DM is using the rules, the ranger is going to have to focus on keeping watch which means noticing hidden monsters to avoid surprise and perhaps noticing traps while in the front rank of the marching order. When in favored terrain, they can do one additional task like navigating, mapping, foraging, or tracking. (Most often that's navigating in my games so they have no chance of getting lost.) There's no other benefit. If the ranger instead wants to search for secret doors while traveling the dungeon (and not in their favored terrain), then the DM can say that is at least as distracting as navigating, mapping, foraging, or tracking in which case they can't also notice traps and are automatically surprised if a stealthy monster comes calling.
There's not much room for abuse in the above in my view.

You mean, apart from never being surprised and noticing every single trap and hidden thing that can be noticed in the game ? I find this very uninteresting, for once, and second, as you mentioned in a previous post, I think it's revealing about what is happening in the game and the advantages that this confers. Otherwise, as what happens in our games, players are usually happy about having a high score because it makes sense for their characters, and don't seek to over-optimise something.

I just don't see it as abuse. Players will tend to do what is advantageous to them because we're playing a game and how the game is run incentivizes certain behaviors. I see nothing wrong with that.

No, in my view SOME players will do this because they are gaming the world rather than trying to have their character live in there. It's a different style, nothing wrong with this, but we all have our preferences. At our tables, players are encouraged to play in the world and not try to (ab)use the rules for technical effects "just because they think the rules say so". To each his own.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

I dont know if you own a pet, but I can tell you every pet (minus the fish but including the ferret) I have ever owned has woken from a deep sleep and instantly appeared at my feet at the instant a bag crinkled or a cabinet opened anywhere in my house.

My cats can tell the difference between a cat treat packet/food cupboard and any other packet/cupboard. Cats don't move for false alarms.

 

[JiffyPopTart]

My cats can tell the difference between a cat treat packet/food cupboard and any other packet/cupboard. Cats don't move for false alarms.

This was true for the cabinet door, they knew the exact noise the food cabinet made and only were summoned by that one door.

Bags, on the other hand, had to be investigated. I had a barn cat rescue who would eat almost anything...with a particular fondness for lettuce and peanuts.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

This was true for the cabinet door, they knew the exact noise the food cabinet made and only were summoned by that one door.

Bags, on the other hand, had to be investigated. I had a barn cat rescue who would eat almost anything...with a particular fondness for lettuce and peanuts.

Yeah, my cats are spoiled domestics and are fussy about what they will eat.

 

[Seramus]

You mean, apart from never being surprised and noticing every single trap and hidden thing that can be noticed in the game ? I find this very uninteresting

Out of curiosity, are you allowing your players who are watching for monsters to also search for traps and secret doors? What about navigation and foraging? Are you keeping track of which rank in the marching order they are in, or allowing them to watch all ranks simultaneously?