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Message: <blockquote data-quote="prabe" data-source="post: 7940812" data-attributes="member: 7016699">I'm not [USER=6779196]@Charlaquin[/USER] but I'll chime in (and she can answer for herself if she wishes). I know you're using the online/free 5E documents, but I have the 5E DMG next to me, so I'll use that."The players describing what they want to do" (or what they want their characters to do) isn't the same thing as "The PCs do [thing]." In 5E, before the PCs do [thing] there are two questions the DM needs to answer (DMG, p. 237): Is the task so easy and so free of conflict and stress that there should be no chance of failure? Is the task so inappropriate or impossible that it can't work?If the answer to both questions is "no," then you can roll, maybe (I personally use a lot of passive scores, rather than interrupt, e.g., a social interaction). Once you've rolled (or decided you won't), then the PCs do [thing], or maybe [other thing] happens, depending.It doesn't feel to me as though the DM in 5E is as unconstrained as you think, nor am I sure how you've come to think the table doesn't get to see the conflict resolved. PC wants to talk down the seller of a river boat, and makes Charisma (Persuasion) roll (and rolls high, because the character is a bard and built to be good at this); DM knows how low the seller can go, and reduces the price to that. It's not super conflicty, I'll grant, but I think there's resolution there. I know 4E had Skill Challenges, but not having played that, I don't have that as a point of comparison.I think I don't understand what you mean by "non-explanatory, point-serving play." I also don't understand why you think there's no finality or closure in ... non-combat encounters (might be too broad; feel free to narrow). It's not unusual for me to have a session with no combat, and nothing but interacting with the world and people, and doing research, and all-a-that; any of which can move the relevant story thread/s along at least as much as fighting can. To me, it feels as though moving the story thread/s along is the point of the play, and 5E at least seems to be working well for that.It is, of course, possible-shading-to-probable that between your not having played 5E and my not having played 4E, conversation is ... more difficult.</blockquote>

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