D&D 5E Climbing a tower rules 5e

[Xetheral]

You're conflating challenge and difficulty here. Getting from the ground through the tower's window is the challenge. The difficulty is low for a group that has at least 2 ropes and a grappling hook. It may be more difficult for a group that doesn't have these resources. And maybe they do, maybe they don't. Perhaps they used them in previous challenges and don't have them available anymore. In this case, the players prepared ahead of time, still had access to the resources, and then employed them - good for them! Will they leave this rope in place so they have a way back down from the tower in a pinch? If so, that's two fewer ropes to use for solutions to subsequent challenges. Play to find out if it matters.

Now, if you're playing in my game, gargoyles are likely going to come out and try to knock you off that rope. Or guards will be throwing down pots of boiling water from the top of the tower. Or something like that. This increases the difficulty of the challenge. But it still doesn't mean there's a roll, provided the players can come up with a means of overcoming these difficult situations while climbing with certainty. If their solution, however, has an uncertain outcome and a meaningful consequence for failure, then they will make a Strength (Athletics) check to accomplish the task of climbing while encountering a difficult situation as the rules state.

Style question: would the party know (or be able to find out) about the gargoyles or the boiling water before deciding to make the climb, or would you introduce those complications after the climb began?

(Just curious, no judgement either way.)

 

[iserith]

Style question: would the party know (or be able to find out) about the gargoyles or the boiling water before deciding to make the climb, or would you introduce those complications after the climb began?

(Just curious, no judgement either way.)

No gotchas in my game. All threats are telegraphed - glowering statues overlooking their efforts to secure the hook or flickering firelight at the top of the tower where the guards boil pots of water. Whether or not the players draw the right conclusions or, having drawn the right conclusions do nothing about them, however, is a different matter.

 

[Charlaquin]

I think the point is that if the five mile wide lake can be swum across by anyone, at will, just as easily as anyone can walk ten miles, then the lake ceases to be an obstacle that the players need to chose how to overcome.

Only if there’s nothing about the scene that would make swimming across the lake challenging. Again, if the scene wouldn’t be tense without a check, the scene isn’t tense.

 

[iserith]

Only if there’s nothing about the scene that would make swimming across the lake challenging. Again, if the scene wouldn’t be tense without a check, the scene isn’t tense.

Yeah, just make the lake full of some fantastical version of green foxtail that makes the swimming difficult. Or a crashed spelljammer ship at the lake's bottom has a huge magnet on it that pulls people in metal armor down like an undertow. In other words, use your imagination!

 

[JimmyG]

Only if there’s nothing about the scene that would make swimming across the lake challenging. Again, if the scene wouldn’t be tense without a check, the scene isn’t tense.

I think there's a big difference between something that is a challenge and needing to have tension. A scene can be challenging without needing to be tense. I know I couldn't swim 5 miles so that certainly would be challenging so I'd probably build a raft if time was important or go around the lack if time wasn't. Not tense, but a challenge. If I could swim and tried it, I would be worried about getting tired and drowning (now adding tension). Of course if I swam I would grab a log to float on so maybe I could get advantage on the check or maybe not have to make one or if I got tired I could have better chance of resting to keep going. That would be the DMs decision to make.

Yeah, just make the lake full of some fantastical version of green foxtail that makes the swimming difficult. Or a crashed spelljammer ship at the lake's bottom has a huge magnet on it that pulls people in metal armor down like an undertow. In other words, use your imagination!

Who wants to deal with all that crap all the time to make a challenge tense? Might be fun for you but sounds annoying to me.

 

[iserith]

Who wants to deal with all that crap all the time to make a challenge tense? Might be fun for you but sounds annoying to me.

It sounds like what the DM is expected to do - present a fantastical world filled with challenges for bold adventurers to confront which creates the stories we look back on after play. Further, it took me longer to type the two ideas than it did to come up with them. I can't see how that would be annoying.

 

[JimmyG]

It sounds like what the DM is expected to do - present a fantastical world filled with challenges for bold adventurers to confront which creates the stories we look back on after play. Further, it took me longer to type the two ideas than it did to come up with them. I can't see how that would be annoying.

Maybe that is what it sounds like to you, but not to me. And I meant it would annoy me to have to deal with that stuff as a player. It would get old really fast. We don't deal with stuff like that and still look back on our games and have fun talking about them. But hey I read your guide. Kudos for writing it but man, no one I've seen online or before in game stores plays like that! Maybe you do and maybe you don't, makes no difference to me since we don't play together.

 

[iserith]

Maybe that is what it sounds like to you, but not to me. And I meant it would annoy me to have to deal with that stuff as a player. It would get old really fast. We don't deal with stuff like that and still look back on our games and have fun talking about them. But hey I read your guide. Kudos for writing it but man, no one I've seen online or before in game stores plays like that! Maybe you do and maybe you don't, makes no difference to me since we don't play together.

It would annoy you to deal with challenges? What is it you do during play? What is the difference between the play illustrated in my guide than what you're seeing?

 

[Charlaquin]

I think there's a big difference between something that is a challenge and needing to have tension. A scene can be challenging without needing to be tense. I know I couldn't swim 5 miles so that certainly would be challenging so I'd probably build a raft if time was important or go around the lack if time wasn't. Not tense, but a challenge.

Well, sure. But a challenge with no dramatic tension sounds pretty boring for a D&D game.

Who wants to deal with all that crap all the time to make a challenge tense? Might be fun for you but sounds annoying to me.

Whatever floats your boat, I guess.

 

[JimmyG]

It would annoy you to deal with challenges? What is it you do during play? What is the difference between the play illustrated in my guide than what you're seeing?

More like the OP. They avoided the climb because it seemed dangerous to them. See how that works? It was dangerous because climbing that high is dangerous. You think it isn't I guess, but I thikn you wouldn't try it.

Otherwise who talks like that?

Well, sure. But a challenge with no dramatic tension sounds pretty boring for a D&D game.

Whatever floats your boat, I guess.

Depends on what is dramatic tension to you. Whatever works for you also.