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D&D 5E Bounded accurancy and skills

It is actually possible for a weaker participant to win an arm wrestling match. I have accomplished as much. There is a small degree of skill and a large degree of timing, in addition to brute strength.

If the arm wrestling contest is supposed to be a long and nearly inevitable result of the stronger person winning, then it should either be:
(1) no roll here
(2) indefinite number of contests, the first to have a two win lead takes the victory

There is room in the rules for the DM to allow a PC to Take 5, Take 10, Take 15, or Take 20, under some circumstances. So that will tease away Dausuul's case #4.
 

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Jumping is a good example in the PHB, I'd say - you can always jump your strength in feet because it would be lame to risk falling down a 3-foot-wide chasm because you flubbed a roll, but if you want to try a risky jump you roll on it.

Jumping's also a good example of something that unexpectedly broke something that's been in the game for years. A standard 10' x 10' wide pit. Now anybody with at least a 10 Strength (or 11, depending on your interpretation) can automatically jump over it. Hidden pits are fine, but an open pit has to be at least 15' to 20' long now.

The first session we ran had a 10' pit and the players asked if they could try to jump over it. That was kind of the point, looking for the typical Indiana Jones moment where somebody fails and they're hanging on the side of the pit. Instead we looked up the rule and it was like, oh, yeah. You just take a running long jump.

Ilbranteloth
 

Jumping's also a good example of something that unexpectedly broke something that's been in the game for years. A standard 10' x 10' wide pit. Now anybody with at least a 10 Strength (or 11, depending on your interpretation) can automatically jump over it. Hidden pits are fine, but an open pit has to be at least 15' to 20' long now.
You can also put them around a corner, with not enough room for a running start. Depending on how you lay it out, you could even make it one-way passable if there's ten feet of clearance on one side and only five feet on the other side.

Of course, it still vastly incentivizes Strength 10 over Strength 9.
 
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You're only supposed to roll when the outcome is uncertain. In a direct contest of Strength (like an arm-wrestling match), the outcome is certain and no roll is necessary. If time isn't a factor, then you can do the equivalent of taking 20, and the stronger character will succeed first.

The only time you roll is when the outcome is uncertain, which means there's some sort of random element that could muck it up.

This brings up another question: how does one determine when the outcome is uncertain? If an ogre grapples a STR 8 wizard, is it a forgone conclusion that the wizard can't escape? What if it's a dragon? or the Tarrasque?

I'm not sure if there's an answer to this question in the rules; if not, I think that's interesting - it means groups will have to answer that question for themselves.
 

This brings up another question: how does one determine when the outcome is uncertain? If an ogre grapples a STR 8 wizard, is it a forgone conclusion that the wizard can't escape? What if it's a dragon? or the Tarrasque?
The die roll represents uncertainty, and combat is pretty much always uncertain. That's not to say that the wizard could ever possibly overpower an ogre or the Tarrasque, but only that it is possible for someone to escape the grasps of a stronger monster, and smaller Strength differentials make it more likely for someone to do so.
 

The number of scenarios where this leads to wonky results is very small. Who here has seen a single in-game arm-wrestling match within the last year? In the rare event that it does happen, I'd just rule that it isn't a check at all and use a straight-up comparison of Strength mods. If your Strength mods are equal, flip a coin. You can add your proficiency bonus if you can justify being proficient in arm-wrestling.

There is actually a call for them as part of Chapter four of HotDQ... no rules given for them, but they're one of the suggested activities at the Tavern. And I used them. My solution in the future will be to roll them with disadvantage, unless someone's cheating.
 

The die roll represents uncertainty, and combat is pretty much always uncertain. That's not to say that the wizard could ever possibly overpower an ogre or the Tarrasque, but only that it is possible for someone to escape the grasps of a stronger monster, and smaller Strength differentials make it more likely for someone to do so.

Cool, but isn't it possible for the STR 8 halfling with no athletics training to "out-muscle" the ST 16 fighter with training? What's the difference?
 

Jumping's also a good example of something that unexpectedly broke something that's been in the game for years. A standard 10' x 10' wide pit. Now anybody with at least a 10 Strength (or 11, depending on your interpretation) can automatically jump over it. Hidden pits are fine, but an open pit has to be at least 15' to 20' long now.

The first session we ran had a 10' pit and the players asked if they could try to jump over it. That was kind of the point, looking for the typical Indiana Jones moment where somebody fails and they're hanging on the side of the pit. Instead we looked up the rule and it was like, oh, yeah. You just take a running long jump.

Ilbranteloth

Seriously, who has ever used an obvious 10' x 10' pit? That was never a challange in any edition. Heck, even greater pits are just minor nuisances in mobility, unless you're trying to run away from something. The real threat were always covered pits, pits you can't see, slippery floor in front of the pit, and the things that live in a pit.
 

Cool, but isn't it possible for the STR 8 halfling with no athletics training to "out-muscle" the ST 16 fighter with training? What's the difference?
I don't know. I don't think so. If it's just a pure contest, like arm-wrestling or tug-of-war, I can't imagine what the random factor would be.

I see how it could get fuzzy, though. Is there any uncertainty? Is the uncertainty enough to matter? At some point, it's going to be a judgment call.
 
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This brings up another question: how does one determine when the outcome is uncertain? If an ogre grapples a STR 8 wizard, is it a forgone conclusion that the wizard can't escape? What if it's a dragon? or the Tarrasque?
No, no, and no.

IMO, there should be no consideration of who is attempting the task when determining which approach to use. If it is possible that someone--anyone--could succeed, and chance and circumstance are important factors, make the check. Can anyone escape a grapple with the tarrasque? Another tarrasque certainly could. That's enough. Roll dem dice.

Setting aside the rules and thinking about what's going on in the game world, I see no problem with this. Just because a humongous monster grabs you doesn't mean it's got a good grip. Ever tried to hang onto a cat that doesn't want to be hung onto? You're much bigger than the cat and vastly stronger, but sometimes it still wiggles free. Same goes for the wizard, particularly in the heat of combat.

The die roll represents uncertainty, and combat is pretty much always uncertain. That's not to say that the wizard could ever possibly overpower an ogre or the Tarrasque, but only that it is possible for someone to escape the grasps of a stronger monster, and smaller Strength differentials make it more likely for someone to do so.
It's very tough to "overpower" a strong foe when grappling. According to the grapple rules, you can push or drag the other person (presumably using the encumbrance rules) while grappled. If the other person is 2 size categories smaller than you, this movement is at normal speed; otherwise, it's half speed.

So, a wizard could conceivably slow down an ogre by grappling it, but couldn't prevent it from moving, since the ogre is strong enough to physically carry the wizard. The wizard can't even slow down the tarrasque. All she can do is grab its ankle and hang on while it does whatever it's gonna do.
 
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