GMforPowergamers
Legend
but is there a way to read it (without house ruling or adding more stuff) that does make sense? because I can make up my own stuff... but I can't make heads or tails of what they actually are trying to say...My post at the beginning was to point out that the literal interpretation cannot actually be what they meant.
You have to put the effort in. There's a minimum amount of effort you have to put in, to complete the project.
being that every time I (real me) tries to do anything to build or improve a home I make HUGE errors I find that idea funny... If I want to complete the project I have to hire people who know what they are doing...
right, but no where does that make sense... why is my theif in anyway able to supervie construction?To get a fort built, you have to put in a minimum of 100 days of personal effort (= downtime e days) supervising the construction. Okay, it's not very heroic and you'd rather be doing something more exciting but how badly do you want this fort?
can I just have rules for hireing people that know what they are doing...If you start a build and then take your eye off the ball, things will start to go wrong. In a single day, so much will go wrong that it will take you two days extra work just to haul the project back on track. Then you still have to finish the project. The more you let things slide, the worse it gets.
Let's take an example. Suppose today is the day the masons are going to put the windows into your castle. The carpenters made all the windows yesterday while the masons were preparing the apertures, and now the masons can put them in, today, while the carpenters are working on the roof. Now, you decide to take the day off carousing and leave them to it. What's going to happen? Murphy's Law applies. The masons will put in the windows upside down (so the rain runs in instead of running off) then cement them in.
ok, but what would make a cleric with no knowledge of carpentry or windows catch a mistake that the foreman can not?
You come back tomorrow and it's all gone pear-shaped. You tell them to rip out the windows (which takes a day) then the carpenters have to make a new set of windows (which takes another day, and you'd better be there to see they do it right) while the masons have nothing to do, then the day after that, the masons can fit the new windows (and you'd better be there to see they don't put them in back to front this time) while the carpenters go back to making pieces of roof, which they have to start all over again because it's been raining. Net result? Two extra days of your time spent getting the mistakes ironed out, just so you can get back to where you would have been several days ago if you hadn't been carousing.
so in this world, is there 0% chance of them getting the job done right?!?!?
as an outside chance horror story it is perfect, as an average (happens more often then not) it is beyond absurd...If you think the windows example is absurd,
ok, but what makes you better then the experts you hire...You can't just order a fort and come back when it's finished. You have to be there all the time making sure it's done right, otherwise it won't be.
Imagine if the real world worked like this? Right now I need work on my bathroom (no really) the toilet leaked and I need a new floor, because it is wet and rotting. I have no idea how to do it. I have a carpenter, a plumber and an electrician all coming out to give me an estimate... if I had to supervise them, it would never be done... infact using the DMG rules it would be worked on for ever, because I have 0 ablility to supervise it...