D&D General Perception vs Investigation

[billd91]

There are times I think that 3e had the better approach to having two different skills that have this particular conceptual overlap. Spot was for being aware enough of your surroundings to spot lurking and probably imminent threats while Search was for a focused effort to examine things to find traps, secret doors, etc.
I think 5e is trying to separate the two in a somewhat different way, but at the cost of encumbering an already multi-task event with an additional step - searching to find a trap (Perception), studying to analyze the trap (Investigation), and then disarming the trap (maybe Sleight of Hand). That's almost as bad as AD&D/3e's bifurcation of the concept of stealth and foiling stealth into two separate skill oppositions - Hide and Move Silently vs Spot and Listen.

 

[Distracted DM]

This thread is marked DnD2024, but I think folk are sharing their opinions in general so I'll happily share how much LU A5E helped me out with this:

I look at the skills' specialties, and that guides me.

 

[DragonLancer]

This thread is marked DnD2024, but I think folk are sharing their opinions in general so I'll happily share how much LU A5E helped me out with this:

I've changed it to General now. I put it as 2024 because that's the edition I'm running and I wasn't sure if the skill use might have been different in 2014.

 

[aco175]

One other issue I have always had with using Investigation only for deducing things is that most of the time if there is something I want figured out, I want the players to be the ones to figure it out. That's the point of me putting in some mystery-type moment in the adventure in the first place. I am wanting to challenge the players and not just give another target number to roll against.

Now I don't have an issue with letting the players roll Investigation if they just aren't wanting to spend their time trying to figure the stuff out... but it does reduce the number of times Investigation would be rolled, and thus my desire to use it elsewhere as well. Using it to find traps and doors has been a lovely compromise.

I tend to use a sliding DC scale if the players are more engaged or it they just want to make a check. If the players can use their words to make me think they are doing something better than I think 'searching a room' is, then I lower the DC a couple.

I might also lower the DC if I think finding something would make a better game night than not finding it. If In my mind the DC is 15 and the PC rolls a 13- it might be just good enough. Although I tend to tell them the DC before rolling.

But sometimes I fudge. Is admitting the first step.