"Searching" for an answer [Archive] - Wizards Community

"Searching" for an answer [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Wickid Knight
01-21-04, 04:38 PM Okay this is my first thread, thank you thank you...

It is also my first time playing any of the 3.x (actually just 3E) rules. I started with second/first addition hybrid monstrosity way back in Jr. high, I blame it on youth.

My current DM and long time friend is being very annoying about the Search Skill in the current campaign. Here is the skinny: Each member in the party gets one roll to search a whole room, if we fail the first time then that is it, no other rolls.

He justifies this by saying that if he lets us reroll then we will just spend all day searching the room, and if we try and use the take 20 or 10 action well he is just going to make it take an ungodly amount of time, like 2 hours to search a medium size room.

Usually he is the greatest DM I have ever gamed with, but we have taken on a new style of campaigning for this particular 3E game. Instead of his epic style plot lines and self styled adventures, we are going on a string of modules and Dungeon magazine adventures. Basically going for the standard old style Adventurer.
I understand that the DM's word is final, but this is just silly, not allowing us to search the room but once. Any suggestions?
primemover003
01-21-04, 04:49 PM He should let you take 10 or 20 as a group and just make an ad hoc ruling that it takes 2 minutes per character per 5' square in the room. It's really not that hard. Besides if there's nothing to find, there's nothing to find.
Mitchell
01-22-04, 12:31 AM I don't feel that his one roll per character limit is unreasonable. In my last game session, our first trip into the dungeon, one of our players listened at a door and rolled poorly. Two other players immediately said that they wanted to listen, and I, as a player, discouraged them, because of the meta-gaming factor.
You don't know whether there is anything in the room, so continuously searching because of bad rolls, just as continual attempts to listen at a door, is playing off of a die roll that you don't technically know.
His time may be a little on the long side, I don't have my 3.5 to check this, but I agree with his search ruling.
wdarkk
01-22-04, 06:45 AM I would very strenuously object to this. I've saved myself by "taking 20" in real life searches for my keys more than once this week alone. Search is one of those skills that's meant for taking 20.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Wickid Knight 01-21-04, 04:38 PM	Okay this is my first thread, thank you thank you... It is also my first time playing any of the 3.x (actually just 3E) rules. I started with second/first addition hybrid monstrosity way back in Jr. high, I blame it on youth. My current DM and long time friend is being very annoying about the Search Skill in the current campaign. Here is the skinny: Each member in the party gets one roll to search a whole room, if we fail the first time then that is it, no other rolls. He justifies this by saying that if he lets us reroll then we will just spend all day searching the room, and if we try and use the take 20 or 10 action well he is just going to make it take an ungodly amount of time, like 2 hours to search a medium size room. Usually he is the greatest DM I have ever gamed with, but we have taken on a new style of campaigning for this particular 3E game. Instead of his epic style plot lines and self styled adventures, we are going on a string of modules and Dungeon magazine adventures. Basically going for the standard old style Adventurer. I understand that the DM's word is final, but this is just silly, not allowing us to search the room but once. Any suggestions?
primemover003 01-21-04, 04:49 PM	He should let you take 10 or 20 as a group and just make an ad hoc ruling that it takes 2 minutes per character per 5' square in the room. It's really not that hard. Besides if there's nothing to find, there's nothing to find.
Mitchell 01-22-04, 12:31 AM	I don't feel that his one roll per character limit is unreasonable. In my last game session, our first trip into the dungeon, one of our players listened at a door and rolled poorly. Two other players immediately said that they wanted to listen, and I, as a player, discouraged them, because of the meta-gaming factor. You don't know whether there is anything in the room, so continuously searching because of bad rolls, just as continual attempts to listen at a door, is playing off of a die roll that you don't technically know. His time may be a little on the long side, I don't have my 3.5 to check this, but I agree with his search ruling.
wdarkk 01-22-04, 06:45 AM	I would very strenuously object to this. I've saved myself by "taking 20" in real life searches for my keys more than once this week alone. Search is one of those skills that's meant for taking 20.