robus
Lowcountry Low Roller
Surely all that does is make success more likely (or mean there's no need to roll at all)?
The basic gameplay remains the same, the player states their character's goal and approach and the DM resolves it.
D&D 5E Traps, how do you handle them?
- Thread starter Bladecoder
- Start date
Surely all that does is make success more likely (or mean there's no need to roll at all)?
The basic gameplay remains the same, the player states their character's goal and approach and the DM resolves it.
Jester David
Hero
That's tricky...
Right now, most of my table is probably smarter than their characters. I have the advantage of smart people (3/4 of my players are actually engineers, and all have multiple levels of post-secondary education) who are experienced gamers. So they're mostly always "playing dumb" compared to their character.
Often the players have the advantage of time. The difference between a smart person and a dumb one is often the time it takes to think of a solution. In that instance, give your players a couple minutes to consider what their character is doing when the PC might have seconds. Switch the camera to a different player for a moment to let the person think.
I also try to give new players some latitude. I ask some leading questions and describe what they're doing based on what they state their action is, then give them a few possible actions. I don't limit them, but I might offer suggestions.
If they enter a room and make a Perception check I describe them glancing quickly over the entire room. I might repeat elements of the Grey Boxed Text, giving some extra details as needed. Say what catches their eye, and then ask them where they want to check first (or if they want to just continue). I might throw them a bone and give them a few extra details. Clues that could be useful or red herrings and let them choose where to focus their attention. So instead of the entire room they're given a multiple choice question of possible locations or interest.
pming
Legend
Hiya!
This would take a while to explain because there is a LOT of nuances that change based on so many factors. The best description of "how" this all falls into place was written up by Mythmire games called Old School Primer.
The gist of it is this: The actions and decisions of the Player outweigh those of the "character". It's really well explained in the PDF (free) I linked to above.
^_^
Paul L. Ming
This would take a while to explain because there is a LOT of nuances that change based on so many factors. The best description of "how" this all falls into place was written up by Mythmire games called Old School Primer.
The gist of it is this: The actions and decisions of the Player outweigh those of the "character". It's really well explained in the PDF (free) I linked to above.
^_^
Paul L. Ming
AaronOfBarbaria
Adventurer
Step one, for me, is remembering we are playing a game, so the goal is fun rather than accurate simulation of a character's talents, knowledge, or wisdom.
Step two is that the player doesn't need to know anything that their character does, they only need to be able to communicate why they believe their character would know whatever it is that is in question, so that I can then agree, disagree, or decide upon a DC and a check to make if I'm undecided.
Ran into a similar situation just the last session I ran: A player of a knowledge domain cleric was not sure what their character would know about a creature being faced, because the player doesn't know anything at all about the unique creatures of the setting we are playing in other than what he's learned in the few sessions of the campaign so far. I asked him if there were something he felt was an appropriate reason that the character would know about creatures associated with a deity other than his own, and he supplied a reason (that reason being his character having (doubled) proficiency in the religion skill via a feature of his divine domain, meaning his head is filled with vast amounts of knowledge fed directly from his own god) which I fully agreed was appropriate, and so I relayed the information without a check.
I approach the whole game with that same approach. So really, I guess I could do a TL/DR version; Handle it the same way I handle the almost inevitable circumstance where the character is a better swordsman or spell-slinger than the player ever will be.
Imaculata
Hero
It doesn't really change anything about the basic procedure of the DM clearly describing the situation, the player stating an approach, and the DM deciding if this calls for a roll, or not. Nor does it change anything about the outcome of said roll; the DM still presents a situation to the players where they must decide on a course of action.
The knowledge of the character, is merely taken into account by the DM when describing the outcome of an investigation of a trap, or when describing the outcome of disarming the trap. For example, a character highly skilled in disabling traps, may be able to deduce how a complicated trap works, which the DM then relays to the player, so they can state an informed approach to the problem. If the character is unskilled however, then this also affects how much information I relay to the player. As in my earlier example, the player may hear a buzzing coming from inside the trapped chest, but not know what is causing it.
Characters being more knowledgeable than their players is something that often occurs in my campaign. I see it as an excellent opportunity to educate my players on either the lore of the world, or on historical facts. I basically tell them things like:
"Your character knows that this statue represents the goddess of the sun, as is evident by the way in which the figure is depicted, and what she is holding in her hands." -And often this is preceded by a knowledge check.
Or: "Your character knows that setting fire to the spiderwebs will not do much good, since spiderwebs, contrary to popular belief, are not flammable."
And often my players simply ask: "Would my character know anything about this?"
In which case I'm always eager to provide them with extra information on specific subjects.
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Quickleaf
Legend
I am shocked that you would say something counter to years of gaming tradition... Oh, oh I see, you're right.
Quickleaf
Legend
Same way I'd handle that character encountering a monster with the False Appearance trait.
How do you deal with a character that is more charismatic than a player? The same way: use the mechanics while encouraging the player to do more than just rely on a die roll. You included a lot of others, and I'll allow them to answer for their own quotes (many already have) while I answer to mine.
If you allow a player to simply say "I search the room" and use a single die roll to get get information and loot, you aren't doing a service to the player or the game. This is no different that allowing a player to convince the king to abdicate his throne for him simply by rolling a single Charisma check. Players gain experience from playing the game: from learning when something is likely to be a trap, to remembering the lore of the world, to expanding their own social skills in real life. If you don't challenge the players, they never grow and learn, and instead rely on Roll-Playing, where the dice solve everything. Some groups are fine with this, and good luck to them, but many of us feel otherwise.
For my own game, I describe everything in an area and then make a check against the party's passive perception (usually rolled in advance). If anything should be gleaned from that check in a quick glance, I provide that information without the player needing to ask for it. If the party otherwise wants to look for traps, secret doors, hidden enemies, treasure, etc. they must tell me what they're looking for and where. If they don't pay attention and miss out on something (such as a clue or treasure), that's the price they pay for not paying attention.
Imaculata
Hero
I am shocked that you would say something counter to years of gaming tradition... Oh, oh I see, you're right.
My players were like: "What?... Really?... Are you serious?.... Fascinating!"
GMMichael
Guide of Modos
Blasphemer!
A roll without role-playing is like a number without a unit: just math. Sure, a PC can have +30 on his perception checks, but it's not fun to say, "hey super-spotty character, make a roll. Okay, you find this really deadly trap that I spent all night designing." Always add at least some minimum amount of role-playing to die rolls, no matter how good the character is, or you're effectively playing Yahtzee.
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