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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Crazy Jerome" data-source="post: 5880065" data-attributes="member: 54877">Here's a free idea that I haven't done much with, that I thought I'd throw out and see if others have better applications for it. Mechanical change:  Ability mods do not add directly to skill rolls, attack rolls, saving throws, and other such checks.  (Or if you prefer, they do add but in a restricted way. The numbers are the same either way.  It's all how you look at it.)  Instead, ability mods determine the range of possible partial success. Example:  Felipe wants to do a moderately difficult climb, say DC 18.  He has Str mod +2.  His climb check is +7 (from skill training, level, feats, whatever makes sense).  This check does not include the Str mod.  If the d20+7 roll is 18 or better, Felipe makes the climb.  If not, he doesn't.  So far, that is standard.  However, if Felipe gets a 16 or 17, he can then add his Str mod to the roll to get a partial success.  This means something like he makes it halfway up, almost slips, and has to cling there for a bit to catch his breath, get his pounding heart back under control, etc.  If he rolled less than that, he actually fails, and whether falls or not, has to start over.  A partial success, however, means another partial or two will get the job done.   Meanwhile, his friend Jasper is trying the same climb with his Str mod of -1 and climb check of +2.  If Jasper can manage an 18 or better, he has at least some success.  Anything below that is failure.  To get full success, Jasper has to beat the DC and his penalty--in this case, get a 19 or better. A roll that beats the DC, but doesn't compensate for the penalty, is only a partial success. There is probably a better way to present that, but I hope the examples convey the main idea:  An ability score mod that is positive turns some of the "failure" range against the DC into "partial success".  An ability score mod that is negative turns some of the "success" range against the DC into a "partial success."  In the process, checks become a bit flatter, and are thus not subject to wild swings from ability scores. Note also that this is in no way opposed to the 5E reported direction of basing so much on straight ability checks.  Actually, it works with that better than some things, because the nature of the ability check becomes more standard.  The key to whether it would be worth it or not is defining "partial success" in ways that make sense.</blockquote>

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