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<blockquote data-quote="Celebrim" data-source="post: 4719569" data-attributes="member: 4937">I am aware of the 3.0 rules.&nbsp; Let's discuss them for a bit.Various characters are having a jumping contest, just to see how far they can jump.&nbsp; None of the characters know the skill bonus the other characters have in jump, so none dare risk taking 10 on the skill check.&nbsp; After all, the idea is to see how much distance you can cover.The first character has no jump skill bonus.&nbsp; He's minimum jump on a roll of a 1(1+0 &lt; 10) is 5'.&nbsp;&nbsp; His maximum jump on a roll of 20 is 15' (5+(20+0-10)).&nbsp; This is a variation of 10', and so we might expect that we've dealt with the problem of too much variation.But the second character has 4 ranks in jump, and a str of 12 (+5 bonus).&nbsp; His minimum jump is still 5', (1+5 &lt; 10) but his maximum jump is 20' (5 + (20+5-10)).&nbsp; This is a variation of 15'.&nbsp;&nbsp; The problem of too much variation has raised its head again.The third character has 4 ranks in jump, a str of 17, and skill focus (jump), for a total bonus of +10.&nbsp; His mimimum jump is 6' (1+10 &gt; 10!) and his maximum jump is 25' (5+ 20+10-10).&nbsp; At this skill level, the rule about minimum jump length no longer applies to the character, so we are back to the full variation of the fortune mechanic (1-20).&nbsp; Moreover, if the characters decide to resolve their contest with a single jump, there is a nontrivial chance the weakest most unatheletic jumper will win because his maximum jump is well beyond the distance of the minimum jobs of the other two jumpers.&nbsp; The random variation induced by using a d20 as the fortune mechanic overwhelms the variation in skill ranks.&nbsp; But this does not accord with everyone's playground experience of atheletic ability and atheletic contests.&nbsp; Generally speaking, unless the competitors are very equally matched, the more atheletic character should win every time - the first jump, the second jump, the third jump and the twentieth.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Celebrim, post: 4719569, member: 4937"] I am aware of the 3.0 rules. Let's discuss them for a bit. Various characters are having a jumping contest, just to see how far they can jump. None of the characters know the skill bonus the other characters have in jump, so none dare risk taking 10 on the skill check. After all, the idea is to see how much distance you can cover. The first character has no jump skill bonus. He's minimum jump on a roll of a 1(1+0 < 10) is 5'. His maximum jump on a roll of 20 is 15' (5+(20+0-10)). This is a variation of 10', and so we might expect that we've dealt with the problem of too much variation. But the second character has 4 ranks in jump, and a str of 12 (+5 bonus). His minimum jump is still 5', (1+5 < 10) but his maximum jump is 20' (5 + (20+5-10)). This is a variation of 15'. The problem of too much variation has raised its head again. The third character has 4 ranks in jump, a str of 17, and skill focus (jump), for a total bonus of +10. His mimimum jump is 6' (1+10 > 10!) and his maximum jump is 25' (5+ 20+10-10). At this skill level, the rule about minimum jump length no longer applies to the character, so we are back to the full variation of the fortune mechanic (1-20). Moreover, if the characters decide to resolve their contest with a single jump, there is a nontrivial chance the weakest most unatheletic jumper will win because his maximum jump is well beyond the distance of the minimum jobs of the other two jumpers. The random variation induced by using a d20 as the fortune mechanic overwhelms the variation in skill ranks. But this does not accord with everyone's playground experience of atheletic ability and atheletic contests. Generally speaking, unless the competitors are very equally matched, the more atheletic character should win every time - the first jump, the second jump, the third jump and the twentieth. [/QUOTE]

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