D&D 5E How Do You Handle Group Skill Challenges?

[Charlaquin]

I'm curious how you (or your DM) handle group skill challenges. You know, situations in the game where success or failure depends on the entire group contributing.

Depends if the task succeeds if anyone succeeds, or if it fails if anyone fails. In the former case I ask the character with the highest bonus to make the check. If anyone in the group would have advantage on the check, the character making the roll has advantage. In the latter case, I ask the character with the lowest bonus to make the check. If anyone in the group would have disadvantage on the check, the character making the roll has disadvantage. In either case, other players can help by giving the active player buffs like Bless, Guidance, Bardic Inspiration, or whatever other abilities they have at their disposal.

• Everyone trying to sneak past a sleeping monster (Stealth).

That’s a case where the whole group fails if anyone fails, so the character with the lowest bonus rolls.

• The group trying to hunt and forage for nearby food and fresh water (Survival).

That’s a case where the whole group succeeds if anyone succeeds, so the character with the highest bonus rolls.

• The party spending an afternoon at the market, listening for rumors (Investigation).

Highest bonus rolls.

• Everyone hanging out at the docks, on the lookout for a wanted criminal (Perception).

Highest bonus rolls.

 

[Charlaquin]

On a related note, I'd love to know more about Matt Mercer's group checks for the Raise Dead spell. It's obviously some kind of ritual, and some kind of challenge, but that's all that I can really say about it without seeing his notes.

Oh, he has published them. Use Critical Role’s Resurrection Rules in Your Own Campaign | Geek and Sundry

In brief, when you use a resurrection spell with a casting time of 1 action (so, Revivify) the caster rolls 1d20 + their spellcasting ability modifier against a DC of 10 + the number of times the character has previously been resurrected. On a success, it works, on a failure, the character isn’t resurrected but the DC of all future resurrection rolls increases by 1 as if they were, and they can only be resurrected by a spell with a casting time greater than 1 action.

When you use a resurrection spell with a casting time greater than 1 action, the caster still rolls against a DC of 10 + the number of times the character has previously been resurrected (or had Revivify cast on them unsuccessfully), but the caster doesn’t add their spellcasting ability modifier to the roll. Instead, up to three other characters can try to help. The player describes what their character does to try to help, and makes a check against a DC set by the DM based on how helpful they think the action will be - for example, a character who prays to the dead character’s deity to send them back might need to make a moderate Intelligence (Religion) check, a character who yells “don’t you dare die on us!” might need ro make a hard Charisma (Intimidation) check, etc. Each successful check to help decreades the DC of the caster’s resurrection check by 1. Each failed check to help increases it by 1.

 

[CleverNickName]

I really like the rules Mercer uses for resurrection, and I've been using those rules in my home game for a while. They add tension to the scene, allow your PCs to contribute in both a storytelling and mechanics way, and take some of the pressure off your cleric.

You can find an article which details how they work here.

Oh, he has published them. Use Critical Role’s Resurrection Rules in Your Own Campaign | Geek and Sundry

In brief....

You folks rule. Thanks for the links!

 

[Shiroiken]

I think the skill system in and of itself just doesn't work in some cases. What I happen to see is, one player tries to intimidate an NPC, then after the first check fails every other player wants to try. If I weren't too lazy Id develop an initiative system of some sorts for skills but many times they're so spontaneous its hard to adjudicate.

The simple solution to "I wanna try too" is simply using the Working Together rule. If someone tries, and anyone else wants to help, you now allow another roll as advantage for the first one. If you're permissive, you can allow someone else to make the second roll, assuming they're better.

 

[ad_hoc]

Everyone makes the check. In a party of 3-4 the group's check result is the 2nd lowest roll. In a party of 5 it is the 3rd lowest.

I make group checks for anything that everyone is involved in. This includes all charisma checks as long as the entire party is present.

 

[Plaguescarred]

The thing with group checks is that it rest entirely on the premise that 50% is enought for success.

For Stealth checks, if any they should be made by all party members and a single failure means the enemy detected a threat, which can make or break Surprise. If the DM determine that enemies are distracted Stealth could be automatically successful. Afterall the Surprise rules require that we compare the Dexterity (Stealth) checks of anyone hiding with the passive Wisdom (Perception) score of each creature on the opposing side and any creature that doesn’t notice a threat is surprised at the start of the encounter.

So i don't use group Stealth check for this reason.

 

[R_J_K75]

The simple solution to "I wanna try too" is simply using the Working Together rule. If someone tries, and anyone else wants to help, you now allow another roll as advantage for the first one. If you're permissive, you can allow someone else to make the second roll, assuming they're better.

Honestly, and Im sure theres a book out there, "When the only DM in Your Neighborhood Took Crib Notes From Time-Life Books - The West", you know the one, "He once shot a man for snoring too loud". So as a DM I just dont build skill challenges into my games unless they really count. And even then they seem clunky.

 

[R_J_K75]

The simple solution to "I wanna try too" is simply using the Working Together rule. If someone tries, and anyone else wants to help, you now allow another roll as advantage for the first one. If you're permissive, you can allow someone else to make the second roll, assuming they're better.

I do use the working together rule sometimes. But I think the skill system, although great in its day, needs an update and is antiquated. But to be honest, I dont have a solution or a suggestion but just a "complaint", (and I use complaint loosely), I like w;ere the skill system came from, where it is now, just needs someone to look under the hood and give it a tune up.

 

[MarkB]

The thing with group checks is that it rest entirely on the premise that 50% is enought for success.

The premise is that they're working together to achieve a better result than they would if each of them made the attempt unsupported, the more proficient providing assistance to those who are less skilled. Thus, the successes of some compensate for the failures of others.

 

[Sword of Spirit]

for our table, I prefer to let the players roll their own ability checks.

I actually do have the players roll (I was a bit unclear), usually the one or two who are best at the task, but since anyone else trying it is getting the same d20 result to add their mods to, it doesn’t really matter who does the rolling mechanically.