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Skill Challenges in 5e
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<blockquote data-quote="billd91" data-source="post: 8193958" data-attributes="member: 3400"><p>Honestly, I thought skill challenges, as presented initially in 4e, weren't very good. I think they work best (and really well) to measure degrees of success where multiple degrees actually make sense. The group progresses toward a goal that requires a certain number of successful checks - each failure in those tasks or associated tasks pulls back from the rewards of complete success. As presented in 4e, X successes before Y failures success/failure of a (largely binary success/fail) task with PCs throwing any random skills they don't suck at it is just a recipe for pain because it ultimately makes that success much harder to achieve. That's way too much dice rolling and checks to generate nothing much. If the result is binary - why bother using such a complex tool for checks?</p><p></p><p>Star Wars Saga Edition's Galaxy of Intrigue had a really good example of a skill challenge that generated degrees of success - escaping from Kessel. The PCs are trying to escape and bring along as many other enslaved prisoners as they can. Each failure along the way means some of the prisoners they're try to help are recaptured. If everything goes according to plan, they have a comparatively easy encounter at the end to effect their escape with a lot of prisoners freed. If everything goes to hell in a hand basket, it's just them vs a much tougher encounter (that they could still win - just with no other prisoners in tow and the gnawing feeling that those recaptured prisoners are going to pay a high price in retribution).</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="billd91, post: 8193958, member: 3400"] Honestly, I thought skill challenges, as presented initially in 4e, weren't very good. I think they work best (and really well) to measure degrees of success where multiple degrees actually make sense. The group progresses toward a goal that requires a certain number of successful checks - each failure in those tasks or associated tasks pulls back from the rewards of complete success. As presented in 4e, X successes before Y failures success/failure of a (largely binary success/fail) task with PCs throwing any random skills they don't suck at it is just a recipe for pain because it ultimately makes that success much harder to achieve. That's way too much dice rolling and checks to generate nothing much. If the result is binary - why bother using such a complex tool for checks? Star Wars Saga Edition's Galaxy of Intrigue had a really good example of a skill challenge that generated degrees of success - escaping from Kessel. The PCs are trying to escape and bring along as many other enslaved prisoners as they can. Each failure along the way means some of the prisoners they're try to help are recaptured. If everything goes according to plan, they have a comparatively easy encounter at the end to effect their escape with a lot of prisoners freed. If everything goes to hell in a hand basket, it's just them vs a much tougher encounter (that they could still win - just with no other prisoners in tow and the gnawing feeling that those recaptured prisoners are going to pay a high price in retribution). [/QUOTE]
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