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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ovinomancer" data-source="post: 8270628" data-attributes="member: 16814">I do not use the skill system.  I ask the GM.  You have right there, but then pretend it's not there.  How do I bribe a guard?  I ask the GM how it works.  The GM has many ways they can choose to do this, from saying yes, to saying no, to saying that's not even possible right now and denying the action altogether, to engaging the ability systems.  Engaging the ability system is just another series of prompts for the GM to make decision ad hoc -- which ability, which proficiency, what's the DC?  And, after all of this, it still comes back to the GM to narrate the outcome, which isn't strongly constrained by the rolls -- a GM can decide that the guard might take a large bribe, but then later change their mind and report it.  There's nothing in the 5e system that actually provides support for bribing a guard -- it's, at best, a skill system you can maybe use (or not, up to you), but that still leaves the majority of the task resolution up to the GM.And, I'm saying this is both an intentional design thing AND a good thing.  It leverages the GM, who can be quite versatile and good, but who can also be terrible.  It's a very table dependent way of encouraging play.Gosh, how can anyone say I'm ignoring this, when my point is even stronger -- D&D never bothers to get in the way because it doesn't even provide support that needs to move out of the way!No, it isn't a lack, it's an intentional design choice -- to make the GM the one that decides how things work.  There's no support from the system, because the entire system is to make the GM decide.  This is the actual strength you're reaching for when you claim you can do whatever in 5e.  The odd thing is that you also insist that the system supports doing anything with it's rules, when it's the very lack of those that allows what you claim to want!  Such a strange argument!</blockquote>

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