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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Gradine" data-source="post: 7496703" data-attributes="member: 57112">Well yes, that is essentially a "how to play"... basically any role-playing game, really. Except maybe the really experimental ones, I guess. Of course, while it does not explicitly say to call for a roll, it also doesn't explicitly say not to, which seems to be the contention. I'd say it's ideal, especially with ideal players, but there have been times, many times even, where I've felt it necessary to at least prod a player into declaring an action, if not actually saying "why don't you make a History check to see if you know more about it?"I don't know if it's a style difference or difference between one-shots and long-running campaigns, or just a difference in players, such is the nature of anecdotal evidence. I think that's the significant difference and the source of the misunderstanding then. Part of it is the awkward way in which D&D handles non-active skills. Part of it is a style difference, and in the lack of appreciating (or simply just not liking) passive skill checks, and the way nobody at WotC figured that that might be a good mechanic for knowledge-type skills also. Especially since, in many cases, ability checks that are usually active (particularly in the case of tools, but others as well) might call for a passive check related to knowledge of the craft/field. I personally don't like withholding information that characters should know (or at least have a chance to know) but their players aren't able to make the connections on their character sheets.But there's a pretty big difference between calling for a roll that is essentially passive and declaring a player's action for them, which I think most of us can agree is far from ideal, at best.You see, to me it would make much more sense if it were more of a principle than a quibble with how the rules are presented in one specific game. The former is all about personal preference and playstyle, while the latter just seems... pedantic. But then I guess that too can be part of a personal preference.</blockquote>

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