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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Charlaquin" data-source="post: 7293419" data-attributes="member: 6779196">I wouldn't really call it a crack in the approach, given that the players don't need to know what mechanics apply if such an approach is being used. If players decide their own roles, it's important for them to know what skills and abilities can be used to achieve what effects, so as not to ask for the wrong thing. Naturally, playing in a game run this way, one will quickly get used to what mechanical elements the DM considers appropriate for what tasks. However, in a game where the DM always tells the players what to roll, there is no need to learn what mechanical elements apply to what tasks. That's not part of the player's job in such a game.It's kind of like saying that players not knowing how to handle a ball with their hands is a flaw of soccer versus American football. Strictly speaking that's true, but handling the ball with your hands isn't a skill a soccer player will ever need.It could equally be said that reliance on one’s familiarity with the skill system is a flaw of the self-selecting rolls style. When players who are used to playing in games where initiating their own rolls is the norm switch to a game where the DM prefers players only to describe their actions and the DM tells them what to roll, it can be difficult for them to adjust; in fact, that is exactly the issue that this thread was initially created to get advice on addressing. Like an American football player switching to soccer, their instinct to catch the ball with their hands can get in the way. The player may have certain expectations about what to roll when that don’t match up with the DM’s style. I occasionally have players who are new to my games (but have played with other DMs who preferred the players to initiate their own rolls) to ask me if they can, for example, make a Perception check to look for something. In such cases, I usually tell them that a check might not even be necessary depending on their approach, and encourage them to tell me what they’re looking for and how. After a brief adjustment period, I’ve found that players often enjoy not having their success be so reliant on random chance. One player in particular often tells me how much he appreciates that I don’t make him roll all the time because he has terrible luck and hates failing checks his character should be good at due to low rolls.I don’t think either style is superior to the other. It’s just a matter of personal preference. Some players, like the one I mentioned above, enjoy the immersion and freedom to succeed or fail by merit of their own creativity over stats and rolls. Some players would rather let the numbers and the dice do the talking and don’t want to come up with descriptions for everything they do. Both are equally valid play styles, and different DMing styles will serve different plauers’ preferences better.</blockquote>

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