Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
The
VOIDRUNNER'S CODEX
is coming! Explore new worlds, fight oppressive empires, fend off fearsome aliens, and wield deadly psionics with this comprehensive boxed set expansion for 5E and A5E!
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
Paralyzation rules tweak
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Rod Staffwand" data-source="post: 6877675" data-attributes="member: 6776279"><p>Contests are only contests if contestants are contesting. Ability checks, including those used for contests, require action or effort on the part of the PC. If you're contesting a grapple, you're actively trying to resist it. The section on ability checks is explicit on when ability checks should be made: "When a character attempts an action (other than an attack) that has a chance of failure." Contests and Passive Checks fall under this same intention of an active character. Passive Checks aren't even used for when a character does nothing. They're called out for secret checks and average results over time.</p><p></p><p>The exception is saving throws which are tellingly placed in their own section and not under Ability Checks. You are entitled to make a saving throw whenever you are subjected to an effect that calls for one, though some conditions (like paralyzed) and circumstances may alter or prevent this and are distinctly note the change. </p><p></p><p>The chance of failure for attacking a naked, paralyzed target is a result of 5E's simplifications and abstractions. The roll is assumed to be taking place in a tense combat situation in which the attacker has to worry about multiple combatants, defending themselves, positioning, errant missile fire and assorted other chaos. Maybe they misjudge their swing. Maybe their arrow goes wide. Anything might happen in the tumult when you're making split-second decisions. The game gives DMs leeway to give out an auto-hit, an auto-crit or even an auto-kill if they think the situation is advantageous enough to warrant it.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Rod Staffwand, post: 6877675, member: 6776279"] Contests are only contests if contestants are contesting. Ability checks, including those used for contests, require action or effort on the part of the PC. If you're contesting a grapple, you're actively trying to resist it. The section on ability checks is explicit on when ability checks should be made: "When a character attempts an action (other than an attack) that has a chance of failure." Contests and Passive Checks fall under this same intention of an active character. Passive Checks aren't even used for when a character does nothing. They're called out for secret checks and average results over time. The exception is saving throws which are tellingly placed in their own section and not under Ability Checks. You are entitled to make a saving throw whenever you are subjected to an effect that calls for one, though some conditions (like paralyzed) and circumstances may alter or prevent this and are distinctly note the change. The chance of failure for attacking a naked, paralyzed target is a result of 5E's simplifications and abstractions. The roll is assumed to be taking place in a tense combat situation in which the attacker has to worry about multiple combatants, defending themselves, positioning, errant missile fire and assorted other chaos. Maybe they misjudge their swing. Maybe their arrow goes wide. Anything might happen in the tumult when you're making split-second decisions. The game gives DMs leeway to give out an auto-hit, an auto-crit or even an auto-kill if they think the situation is advantageous enough to warrant it. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
Paralyzation rules tweak
Top