Craft/Profession

[keterys]

And how IS your Amber game going?

Just for verification, do you roll for:

* Correct tying of shoelaces
* Walking without tripping
* Not putting clothes on inside out
* Proper grooming of facial (or other) hair

If not... why on earth do you need to roll for brewing?

 

[Dormain1]

It's basically saying, if your players take the time to write a character background, try and read it
and then if you have time try and incorporate some ideas from it into the campaign

oh and don't concentrate on only one PC's story

 

[ProfessorCirno]

Just for verification, do you roll for:

* Correct tying of shoelaces
* Walking without tripping
* Not putting clothes on inside out
* Proper grooming of facial (or other) hair

If not... why on earth do you need to roll for brewing?

Because brewing is a wee bit more difficult then putting clothing on?

Seriously, I know people who brew, and it took them years to get it down right. That's something that uses a dice roll.

 

[Tenebras]

Seriously, I know people who brew, and it took them years to get it down right. That's something that uses a dice roll.

Except if you require rolls and skill points you have people becoming expert brewers overnight. After all, they used all their skill points. That's a big sacrifice. Are you saying that having made that sacrifice they aren't now good brewers?

 

[Lizard]

Just for verification, do you roll for:

* Correct tying of shoelaces
* Walking without tripping
* Not putting clothes on inside out
* Proper grooming of facial (or other) hair

If a plot point hinged on any of them....sure.

Or if it would be fun to know the result, for whatever reason. "OK, you successfully foraged for food. Anyone have Craft (Cooking)? No? Roll an untrained check, then...a 1? Well, you don't DIE, but you might wish you had. You go to sleep after a meal of charred rabbit and raw potatoes. Yum." That, to my mind, adds flavor (pun intended) to an adventure.

I can already tell you that, as a house rule if I play 4e, each PC will get one trained "background" skill of their choice and pick a stat to base it on. Anytime it comes up and it might matter how well they did, either for a plot point or just because it would be nice to know, they can roll for it.

 

[Fallen Seraph]

Right and as such, you use a skill/ability roll that fits and give bonuses/more chances to succeed in a skill challenge based on a persons background.

That way you don't have the annoyance, of "well... I am extremely well trained in blacksmithing" but... I don't have enough skill-points to represent that.

This allows much more flexibility and actually be able to have character concepts that aren't hampered by needing to have certain skills.

 

[Majoru Oakheart]

Because brewing is a wee bit more difficult then putting clothing on?

Seriously, I know people who brew, and it took them years to get it down right. That's something that uses a dice roll.

Once again, why? Yes, it's hard...but is it important? The dwarf has a history of brewing, the king likes his beer. Unless it is important to the story somehow that the King not like it...in which case he doesn't.

I mean, the focus should always be on the storyline that the adventure is going through. If the reason the PCs are visiting the King is because you intend the King to be assassinated and the PCs need to figure out who did it, then the minor fact of which beer he liked isn't important to the storyline.

 

[ProfessorCirno]

Right and as such, you use a skill/ability roll that fits and give bonuses/more chances to succeed in a skill challenge based on a persons background.

That way you don't have the annoyance, of "well... I am extremely well trained in blacksmithing" but... I don't have enough skill-points to represent that.

This allows much more flexibility and actually be able to have character concepts that aren't hampered by needing to have certain skills.

"I'm extremely well trained in blacksmithing, I just don't have enough skill-points" can also be translated as "I'm not well trained in blacksmithing, but I like to say I am."

Honestly, if your skill points don't back it up, it's not there. This isn't a 3e issue. Would you see it as a legitimate gripe with 4e that a level one wizard can't cast meteor shower despite their character sheet CLEARLY stating they're the best wizard ever?

Except if you require rolls and skill points you have people becoming expert brewers overnight. After all, they used all their skill points. That's a big sacrifice. Are you saying that having made that sacrifice they aren't now good brewers?

I'd say they went to a near inhuman effort to learn everything there is about brewing, as putting ALL their skill points into it means they didn't learn about anything else. People do this all the time. It's called studying. Also known as, why grognards generally can't also surf and kickbox.

 

[ProfessorCirno]

Once again, why? Yes, it's hard...but is it important? The dwarf has a history of brewing, the king likes his beer. Unless it is important to the story somehow that the King not like it...in which case he doesn't.

I mean, the focus should always be on the storyline that the adventure is going through. If the reason the PCs are visiting the King is because you intend the King to be assassinated and the PCs need to figure out who did it, then the minor fact of which beer he liked isn't important to the storyline.

Sure it is. Or at least, it CAN be if you're open to not railroading absolutely everything about the game.

Maybe the king calls the PC who made the beer in later to share his secrets? Or maybe it unintentionally dishonors the dwarf, causing him to oppose you? Does everything have to be set in stone so that NOTHING the players do can alter it?

 

[Lizard]

Once again, why? Yes, it's hard...but is it important? The dwarf has a history of brewing, the king likes his beer. Unless it is important to the story somehow that the King not like it...in which case he doesn't.

I can't speak for anyone else, but I find the best plot twists come from the dice.

If I want to tell a story which goes precisely how I want it to go, I'll write a novel. As a DM, I want to be entertained, too, and there's nothing as entertaining as the jaw dropping "You do WHAT?" moments. Random rolls can help bring these on. We still talk about the time, three campaigns ago, when one PC almost killed another (his cousin) by rolling a 1 while shooting at a worm or something which had landed on her, so that he impaled her instead of the worm, when she was already a very low hit points.

In the case of the beer, sure, 9 times out of 10, it will be fine, even great...but roll the dice anyway. Maybe it's a 1, and you seriously screwed up and have to scramble to salvage the mess you made. Maybe it's a 20, and the king likes it so much he appoints you Royal Brewmaster...whether you wanted to be or not, and refusing him could be...difficult. High or low rolls on seemingly mundane tasks can spark sudden inspiration. The fact is, when the campaign is over and the character sheets are retired, things like "remember when you nearly poisoned the dwarf king with that beer?" will be talked about long after "Remember when you killed your seven hundred and second orc?" have been forgotten.