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Message: <blockquote data-quote="5ekyu" data-source="post: 7296540" data-attributes="member: 6919838">your example is EXACTLY what i am pointing out... thank you for listing it so i can point out...In your example, the altar trap as presented is keyed on "does the player say they touch it".you see it as, and they often portray it as a binary option - either the Gm assumes and the player gets got or the GM waits to see if the player makes a key statement and then the player gets got.Compare that to a previous example of how i said i would use the SKILL OF THE CHARACTER as opposed to the WORDS OF THE PLAYER to adjudicate this same event.PLAYER: I roll investigation on that altar. Umm ... 11.DM: Hmmm... your investigation gets going and you seem some runes, obscured, hard to make out and as you work around the altar an infernal effect manifests and...PLAYER: uh oh.and proceed with the effects.Now again, within the context of the campaign they have alrerady seen cases where they made that check and we got scenes like this...PLAYER: I roll investigation on that altar. Umm ... 19.DM: You see the altar is covered in dust and ash with plenty of various runes, some giving you a bad feeling. you notice a lot of dead bugs on the altar and even some bones and skeletons of small varmints that look like they died right there at the base of the altar, the bones piled against it. You see other bits of debris on the altar and resting against the altar too, seemingly unblemished. It has a smell about it, like you have seen at poisoned waterholes or plague houses.PLAYER: Definitely going to not get up close and personal. Hey, Lou, you recognize these symbols and runes?See, in this case, its not "you said you touched it" or "you didn't say you touched it" or any key player speak catch phrase or condition that determines whether the good or bad happens, its the skill of the character at doing what was asked - examining the altar and making good choices about how that is done.If a player has seen both of those outcomes, the fail and zap and the succeed and avoid, they are taught to not get focused on "wish-proofing" their casual play time dialog with the Gm and other players but on making sure their character is being driven in the right directions.</blockquote>

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