D&D 5E Using social skills on other PCs

[Bill Zebub]

If an NPC is attempting to woo a PC, then the PC should get to make the call. I might still call for a check at various points to indicate how compelling the wooing was. Stochastically informing the emerging narrative.

I meant, who gets to make the determination if an attempt to influence a character is an "extreme emotional ask"?

 

[HammerMan]

[EDIT I just had a horrible picture of me as DM having to act out the wooing. It's beyond the Pale: no player can ask that of me!]

I can joke about Cha 8 me trying to rp any social skill till I am blue in the face... but there is a worse end to look at. The Poor woman DM having to have any guy playing try to woo her NPC... there is not enough Cringe.

but I will raise you one better (and thank god this is something that could come up but with rolling it never has) when a Guy player is playing a woman character, and the woman DM is playing a guy NPC and THEN the guy player tried to RP his woman character wooing the NPC... oh god that is so much cringe it might break the world...

and I say that having had multi players in my games (and I in others) play other genders or orientations


edit: again a great reason to go with rolls and very much abstractions not details...

 

[clearstream]

I meant, who gets to make the determination if an attempt to influence a character is an "extreme emotional ask"?

DM decides how it is resolved and narrates result. Player decides as usual how they feel consequently.

DM: With that result they might not seem entirely repellent.
PC: I remain unmoved.
DM: They see things are hopeless and back down.

 

[Swarmkeeper]

DM decides how it is resolved and narrates result. Player decides as usual how they feel consequently.

DM: With that result they might not seem entirely repellent.
PC: I remain unmoved.
DM: They see things are hopeless and back down.

What is the roll for if no result is attached to it? The player just decided failure.

 

[Charlaquin]

DM decides how it is resolved and narrates result. Player decides as usual how they feel consequently.

DM: With that result they might not seem entirely repellent.
PC: I remain unmoved.
DM: They see things are hopeless and back down.

The dice roll seems unnecessary to me in this exchange. I mean, if you want to roll the dice to inspire your description, by all means. But to me it seems like an unnecessary break from the narrative action to execute a mechanical procedure with no meaningful consequence (and here I am using “meaningful consequence” to refer to the ensuing gameplay effects). If the result of the die roll doesn’t impose any mechanical effect, and it doesn’t restrict the player’s ability to roleplay however they want in response… What the heck is the point of it?

 

[Bill Zebub]

...If the result of the die roll doesn’t impose any mechanical effect, and it doesn’t restrict the player’s ability to roleplay however they want in response… What the heck is the point of it?

My sentiment exactly. If there's no mechanical enforcement, why doesn't the DM just narrate as they see fit?

I do have one quibble with the dialog, though:

DM: With that result they might not seem entirely repellent.

I would not narrate that way, because it is telling the player what their character's experience is. I would just narrate what the NPC actually does.

I try really hard to keep the character's experience out of the narrative, and restrict myself to describing the environment.

Instead of "You see..." I try to say, "There is..."
Instead of "You feel the sun shine on your face" I try to say, "The warm sun shines down"
Instead of "He startles you with his sudden appearance" I say "He springs out of nowhere"

I still slip up a lot...it's hard to remember to do this. But I'm still practicing.

 

[Swarmkeeper]

My sentiment exactly. If there's no mechanical enforcement, why doesn't the DM just narrate as they see fit?

I do have one quibble with the dialog, though:


I would not narrate that way, because it is telling the player what their character's experience is. I would just narrate what the NPC actually does.

I try really hard to keep the character's experience out of the narrative, and restrict myself to describing the environment.

Instead of "You see..." I try to say, "There is..."
Instead of "You feel the sun shine on your face" I try to say, "The warm sun shines down"
Instead of "He startles you with his sudden appearance" I say "He springs out of nowhere"

I still slip up a lot...it's hard to remember to do this. But I'm still practicing.

It really is a challenging but satisfying endeavor to remove the word “you” from one’s DM narration.

 

[Bill Zebub]

It really is a challenging but satisfying endeavor to remove the word “you” from one’s DM narration.

And also "seems".

 

[Lanefan]

And also "seems".

Why remove "seems"?

What would you replace it with, to provide the same degree of never-quite-certainty?

 

[Charlaquin]

Why remove "seems"?

What would you replace it with, to provide the same degree of never-quite-certainty?

Well, refraining from telling the players what their characters are or aren’t certain of is kind of the point.