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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Hriston" data-source="post: 6739802" data-attributes="member: 6787503">An ability check tells you how successful you are in what you are trying to accomplish. If I'm trying to get help from an Orc, it matters how my approach, as [MENTION=97077]iserith[/MENTION] would call it, touches upon the Orc's traits, bonds, and flaws. If my approach of crying and pleading with the Orc interacts unfavorably with the Orc's trait of respecting only displays of strength, then you, as DM, can decide that my attempt to obtain aid has no chance of success. No roll is required to see how well I cry. Similarly, no roll is needed to see how intimidating the Orc seems, because I decide if my PC feels intimidated by him. By telling me my PC is intimidated you're limiting my choices to acting out of fear and terror. My character must feel timid, and the actions I choose must be consistent with that feeling if I am to fully play the role you have decided for my character. You said your character always acted intimidated. That sounds like a choice. What's the difference? Why can't the player just say, "I know the Orc is putting on a good show of being intimidating, but I'm tough adventurer and I'm not impressed."I have some DM PCs that I use, and when I do they are subject to die rolls that determine their choices because I believe as DM I am responsible for the environment and the PCs should have the spotlight in terms of agency. My DM run PC is part of that environment and so I let the players interact with and influence that character's choices just as they influence the environment. If I were to play that same character in a game where I am not the DM, however, I would expect to have full control over how he thinks and acts. A player who gets to decide whether his or her PC is persuaded by the arguments of an NPC is not controlling how persuasive that NPC is. The player is simply deciding what his or her character does after hearing those arguments. The player is deciding if the PC is persuaded.That's play-acting or acting out a scripted outcome. There's no meaningful decision involved in receiving a critical hit. You just take damage. You have no choice. Role-playing is authoring your character by making the meaningful choices your character faces. You can't do that if someone else is telling you how your character feels inside. If I get to choose it would make more sense if you said, "The Orc tries to intimidate you. How do you react?" Then I would have a choice. The way you say it I have no choice but to act intimidated. How often do you see players rolling to see what their characters do? If you have, they probably weren't too invested in the game.</blockquote>

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