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Message: <blockquote data-quote="clearstream" data-source="post: 9717448" data-attributes="member: 71699">I've been wondering if one can arrive at the same result using D&D mechanics. Here is some relevant text1. The Dungeon Master Describes a Scene. 2. The Players Describe What Their Characters Do. 3. The DM Narrates the Results of the Adventurers’ Actions. the DM might ask the player to roll a die to help determine what happens The DM has the ultimate say on whether a skill is relevant in a situation.An ability check represents a creature using talent and training to try to overcome a challenge, such as forcing open a stuck door, picking a lock, entertaining a crowd, or deciphering a cipher. The DM and the rules often call for an ability check when a creature attempts something other than an attack that has a chance of meaningful failure. When the outcome is uncertain and narratively interesting, the dice determine the result. Athletics    Strength    Jump farther than normal, stay afloat in rough water, or break something. Strength    Physical might History    Intelligence    Recall lore about historical events, people, nations, and cultures. Intelligence    Reasoning and memory Skills here are those words I bolded. I want to compare a character breaking something with a character conjecturing some ancient runes show the way out.Player 1 "We have to get through that trapdoor. I believe I can break it with a bit of effort" Player 2 "The sand is pouring in fast! Can I help?" DM "The crawlspace is too narrow for more than one person to get at the trapdoor" Player 1 "We have to get through! Can I apply Athletics to force it?" DM "Yes, the trapdoor is made of stone so Strength (Athletics) against a DC of 20." DM (continuing) "But working in the crawlspace makes it hard to apply your strength, so make that with disadvantage" Player 1 (rolling) "13 on the lowest die plus 4 for Strength and 3 from proficiency Athletics, it takes all my skill to manage it" DM "The thick stone of the trapdoor resists your efforts to break it, but then the rods that close it suddenly give way and it falls into a void... with you nearly following" Player 1 "We have to find our way out. I believe those runes could indicate the right way out" Player 2 "If we're still here after sunset, those things awaken! Can I help?" DM "Only someone skilled in History has any chance of reading these runes to see if they do" Player 1 "We've got to get moving! I'm trained in History so...?" DM "Yes, they're from the Founding Time so Intelligence (History) against a DC of 20." DM (continuing) "But the chance of them helping you find the right way out is slimmer, so make that with disadvantage" Player 1 (rolling) "13 on the lowest die plus 4 for Intelligence and 3 from proficiency History, it takes all my skill to manage it" DM "The runes seem at first hopelessly obscure but then you make out symbols for warning and undeath... and for light! It's got to be the tunnels going East that you should follow." I don't think the DM in the second imagined sample of play has broken any rule in D&D. In both cases the outcome was uncertain and narratively interesting. Characters didn't do anything non-diegetic. DM is as empowered to say the stone trapdoor can be forced as they are to say the ancient runes indicate that the tunnels going East will lead to light (indicating the way out).Some approaches to play would have DM work out what the runes indicate in prep, but the D&D game text does not mandate that.An encounter centered on exploration might involve the characters trying to disarm a trap, find a secret door, or discover something about the adventure location. An exploration encounter could also involve the characters spending a day crossing a rolling plain or traversing vast caverns. The DM’s Role. If the characters can’t figure out how to solve an encounter or aren’t sure what to do next, you can remind the players of things their characters have already learned or call for Intelligence (Investigation) or similar checks to see if their characters can remember and connect things that the players might be missing. Surely a virtuous instance of "call for Intelligence (Investigation) or similar checks to see if their characters can remember and connect things that the players might be missing" would be when something a player says prompts DM to do so![USER=42582]@pemerton[/USER] for vis.</blockquote>

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