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<blockquote data-quote="Oofta" data-source="post: 8795494" data-attributes="member: 6801845">Let's say you're running a typical who-done-it.&nbsp; You suspect Chuck the butcher so you question him.&nbsp; One of the PC asks for an insight check and as a DM you tell them that Chuck is telling the truth.&nbsp; We've now eliminated Chuck as a suspect and (barring alter memory or similar magic) the investigation becomes asking everyone &quot;Did you do it?&quot;&nbsp; If the DM asks for a roll you know to put that person at the top of the list, case solved.&nbsp; That would be boring to me.I don't believe the outcome must be uncertain to the DM, the outcome must be uncertain to the PC. If someone asks to jump over a 100 foot gorge with no magic, it's obvious they can't do it and there's no reason to even try.&nbsp; If they attempt to break down a door that's actually an illusion or a steel door disguised to look like a normal door, they don't know until they try.&nbsp; If there's enough time pressure that a couple of rounds makes a difference I may ask for a check or three before they know for certain they can't break it down.&nbsp; If there's no time pressure I'll let them know they try a few times and it's not going to work.&nbsp; Sometimes you can't know something until you try, the check reflects that.Sometimes the outcome of failure is simply that you don't succeed.&nbsp; If you don't know whether Chuck is lying or telling the truth that can have a huge impact for the players even if the DM knows the there was no chance and insight check would indicate a lie.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Oofta, post: 8795494, member: 6801845"] Let's say you're running a typical who-done-it. You suspect Chuck the butcher so you question him. One of the PC asks for an insight check and as a DM you tell them that Chuck is telling the truth. We've now eliminated Chuck as a suspect and (barring alter memory or similar magic) the investigation becomes asking everyone "Did you do it?" If the DM asks for a roll you know to put that person at the top of the list, case solved. That would be boring to me. I don't believe the outcome must be uncertain to the [I]DM[/I], the outcome must be uncertain to the [I]PC[/I]. If someone asks to jump over a 100 foot gorge with no magic, it's obvious they can't do it and there's no reason to even try. If they attempt to break down a door that's actually an illusion or a steel door disguised to look like a normal door, they don't know until they try. If there's enough time pressure that a couple of rounds makes a difference I may ask for a check or three before they know for certain they can't break it down. If there's no time pressure I'll let them know they try a few times and it's not going to work. Sometimes you can't know something until you try, the check reflects that. Sometimes the outcome of failure is simply that you don't succeed. If you don't know whether Chuck is lying or telling the truth that can have a huge impact for the players even if the DM knows the there was no chance and insight check would indicate a lie. [/QUOTE]

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