Ok well unlike the seacrh options presented where there is a clear "say it this way and fail" vs "say it this way and succeed" your examples above tend to just list words with no real connection between the success and failure that shows a clear alternative failure.
What would be the failure words for the arcana "I'm going to study the scratched in runes on the altar and **not** see if I've come across them before in my studies of the arcane."
"Hi, I'm Bob the Arcanist, and I'd like to look at those runes using my training in arcana and see if I've never seen them before."
"Could you rephrase that in a way that wasn't utterly bewildering, Bob? Thanks."
Would the failure for the disease check be "I try to treat them by ignoring the symptoms?"
Um, what?
Or do *all* such arcana checks succeed as long as they say that choice of phrase?
Which choice of phrase? You asked for examples of what an auto-success arcana check and an auto-success medicine check might look like. I provided. Now you're accusing me of requiring the specific form and fit of my examples as 'push this phrase button to win?' Are you trying to be a jerk about it?
Or do you actually have a list of all the runes a character studied and which days in class they skipped and all diseases they know and dont know?
Why would I? Seriously, if Bob the Arcanist, who has studied arcana, cannot decipher arcane runes, what was the purpose of his training?
Or, is this a weird way of asking how a similar situation might be treated as uncertain instead of autosuccess?
If that, and that's me taking an extremely charitable take on your word salad there, if the runes or archaic or of a significantly more powerful effect than what poor Bob could do. However, since Glyph of Warding is a 3rd level spell, and roughly the effect that the altar used in earlier examples would be, I'd give that a free pass to most any group, as at 5th it's in the baliwick.
But let's imagine an archway covered in runes that evoke a gate spell for a specific class of demon if activated using the proper ritual and the party being only in the second tier, so not able to cast similar magics. That might go as follows:
Bob the Arcanist: 'I rely on my training in arcane writing at Mage College to see if I can decipher the markings on that archway."
Me, DM: "Sure thing! You get a vague impression that it might have something to do with teleport magics, but you're uncertain. Bob, make me an Arcana Check, DC 20, to decipher the runes."
Bob (success): A 22!
DM: "Cool! You figure out it's a powerful summoning effect that attracts (specific demon type) from the Abyss. It's powered by a ritual, you figure, but how that works the writings don't say. You'll have to look for that information elsewhere."
Bob (failure): A 17. Shucks.
DM: "Unfortunately, you talents aren't up to fully decrypting the writings."
For the disease, a similar event might take place for a rarer or magically induced disease. As you just asked for an example of an autosuccess, I showed one with the assumption that Swamp Pox was a common and easily treatable disease.
See, most folks i know of, would treat "did my character see this rune in class..." or "do i know this disease and how to treat it " as a case of a skill check not just a fiat and do not have or maintain master lists of every disease and rune cross referenced to classes and teachings.
Well, that's not surprising as you likely play with most folks you know of and they share your preferred style. However, when I'm trying to explain my style, which differs from you, perhaps you shouldn't try to evaluate it based on what other people that use your style might say. You might find you learn something, even if you choose to continue on your current pathway.
I don't have a master list of diseases or runes either, but I can, very easily, determine if
this disease or
those runes are common or rare and adjudicate based on that. It's really that simple -- instead of not caring whether this set of runes or that disease is common or rare and letting dice and an arbitrarily selected DC determine if players know what it is, I figure if that piece of information is something I want to be a challenge to determine or if its something that's better off as knowledge the players should have. If the former, it's rare or special and requires a check. If the latter, proficiency in the skill will usually be enough -- although I'll often allow someone not proficient to make a check on common things, or even no check if they tie it into their backgrounds well enough. "My mom died of Swamp Pox, does this look like the same disease?" will get an automatic 'Yes, it does!" from me. That detail is now set for that character, and the game moves forward for it. If the nature of the disease wasn't critical to the rest of the adventure, I'd rewrite the scene on the spot to accommodate that, even.
