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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Xetheral" data-source="post: 7482425" data-attributes="member: 6802765">Because if they're only going for an auto-success, the characters aren't living up to their potential.Sure, in cases where "good enough" is just as beneficial as "oustanding", it's better to autosucceed than to risk failure. But usually, more is better, and you can (potentially) get more by aiming higher than the level of accomplishment you can achieve with an auto-success.For example, let's say a character has 15 minutes, spare lumber, and carpenter's tools, and wants to barricade a rickety door. The more formidable the obstacle the character wants the door to be, the harder it is to plan and construct within the available time. There may be some level of obstacle the DM would rule can be created with an autosuccess, but whatever that level is, the character could alternatively try to make the door into an even better obstacle by trying for a more ambitious design, at the cost of straying out of auto-success territory and into ability check territory. If the character is proficient and has a decent stat, it can make more sense to risk going for the better result than to coast and aim for the guaranteed bare minimum.</blockquote>