Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="eriktheguy" data-source="post: 5493193" data-attributes="member: 83662">I don't see the problem with the 30 foot jump issue. I would actually consider that the jumper in the Olympic competition is under very controlled circumstances and is considered to be taking 10. So in reality they could cross a 40 ft chasm. So how does a d20 roll make up those extra feet?- tailwinds have been brought up- the edges that you jump between aren't straight, you could have found a spot where the distance is only about 35 ft- the edges are not necessarily at the same height, maybe you found a spot where you are jumping towards lower ground- adrenaline (cheap, I know)- angle at pushoff (a foothold angled in the direction of the jump might be better than the flat foothold that a long jumper uses)- springiness of the ground (because you never know)With ability checks one of the big problems is the range of the die roll. In real life repeated attempts at skills like jumping often yield consistent results, while in game they vary by 20 feet. I explain this by saying "the real world results were instances of taking 10. The variation of the real world results is a fine detail that the 4e system does not capture. The variation in 4e represents variation in the situation as well as variation in the quality of your attempt".That is a helpful technique by the way; use the die roll to describe the details of the challenge, rather than the details of the player's attempt. Failed jump? "You underestimated the width of the chasm by some feet". Picking a lock? "This is not a design you've ever seen before". Moving a rock? "It's far heavier than you expected". This is a great tool when you don't want to allow the players to make retries, or to allow consecutive players to make ability checks. It was elaborated on in a recent Dungeon article, in which the 'heavier rock' example was used to prevent the wizard from trying to move the rock after the fighter failed. Notice that the DM in this case was saying "No". Sometimes that's okay!So you see, the fighter cannot jump 30 feet, he can only jump about 20! Now if you throw in a background bonus, a few more levels, a bonus from a class or power, and a situational modifier for having a good day, 30 feet is achievable. You can bet that the Olympic record holder had quite a few of these things!Finally, if you want to simulate a 'controlled' skill check (like a long jump across a flat surface with strict rules) you could try a system with a little less variation: use 1d6+7 instead of 1d20.</blockquote>

Verification