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Message: <blockquote data-quote="5ekyu" data-source="post: 7290626" data-attributes="member: 6919838">I tend to approach this in 5e by adapting the death save three way into a broader general use for almost any non-combat time scale effort - and for quite a few of those.Example in play - character has a new mystery macguffin with ties to distant past. Wants to find out more about it.However, as always, asking questions can be problematic, doing searches can be problematic and as always others will want the item to and may take notice...So it works like this.Assign difficultyFirst roll is LORE (or equivalent) to represent what the character knows or can remember. this roll may have advantage if it ties directly to their family race etc. That one is usually quick.Subsequent rolls are for different skills depending on options chosen... persuasion for "consult experts" investigation for "do my own research"  those will have significant time elements.As always, you accumulate failures and successes and first to three finishes the challenge. When appropriate i add in a story element for each, particularly failure.A big flavor thing i tend to do is this - if appropriate, when you gain a fail in a given "skill" you get disadvantage until you change the circumstances.So, say your first investigate roll in "Thistown Library" fails... to continue to roll investigate research there is at disadvantage. You have hit a wall, exhausted their resources... But if you change the task by going "OK so i guess i do have to go talk to Sage Knowsits" and you travel to him and switch to persuasion checks - disadvantage goes away. OR if you decide "We're gonna need a bigger library." and head off to "Amity City" to visit their "Grand Hall of Known Stuff" then again, after gaining permission (or not - where did i put that Rogue) you get a new set of Investigate checks that are disadvamtage free free.So, not only do failures move you closer to "failure" they add story challenge to you.Obviously, only used when it is a good flavor thing for the game and moves around the plots.  But i find it useful for social combat, knowledge research in general as well as for crafting anything beyond mundane gear or maybe sometimes even then "nope nope nope these hides are just not up to snuff... sure you can likely work through it anyway... or you can go bring in your own hides or maybe go to "KillVille Station" and talk to Uma who knows how to treat these hides."Expansive use of the death save "three wins dance" was a no-brainer as soon as i saw it.</blockquote>

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