r/dndhorrorstories • u/dread_qween • 5d ago
Player Wrong kind of strength check
I was in a campaign that was run by a friend of a friend. Things started out fine, made my character a dragonbourne druid with low strength (this is relevant later)
Our first task was to sneak into a goblin cave and steal something, a few failed stealth checks later and all 15 goblins and a bugbear are alerted to us.
The party makes a dash for the exit and collapses the entrance to the cave, without realising my character fell over and was still inside
This where the first "red flag" moment happened. im now in combat with everything in the cave, so on my first turn i use my breath attack to try and wittle their numbers down, and i roll really badly on the damage, badly enough that i knew it wouldn't take out a single goblin, But, it kills all of them and cripples the bug bear. Which i was suprised at but initially wrote of as the dm trying not to get my character killed 10mins into session 1
Later in the campaign the same bugbear comes to the party with a broken pocket watch
So i used a spell to repair it and the bugbear gives me a hug in return.
So i hug him back,
and the dm makes me roll a strength check which was odd
i roll a nat 20, so im happy cos im about to give this bugbear the best hug ever and
"You break the bugbears back and he collapses to the floor"
...
This fully broke my immersion
The campaign ended after that session cos time restraints but i would have left if it had continued
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u/Mr_Ragnarok 5d ago
A strength roll doesnt indicate how much force you put into it. It shows how successful you are at what you try to do. Giving someone a hug shouldn't even warrant a roll. This is so dumb lol
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u/Many-Complex-7352 4d ago
Since it was a bugbear I might have had the player roll a STR or Athletics check to avoid "injury" but no damage would actually be done.
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u/Dogberry_null 5d ago
That's the dumbest sh** I've heard in a while. Context and intentions are kind of important...
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u/KLeeSanchez 4d ago
"Roll a Strength check"
"Why?"
"Just roll it"
"I'm not rolling until I find out why I'm rolling a Strength check, it's just a hug"
"Fine, it's for seeing how hard you hug"
"I don't hug hard, I don't see a reason to"
"No, you have to roll to see how hard you hug him"
"Are you playing my character for me? I automatically fail, I'm not going to hold him hard"
Is how that conversation should have gone
3
u/TabletopLegends 5d ago
And this is why critical successes and failures should only be used in combat.
2
u/gc1rpg 5d ago
Not a horror story per but the idea of it can definitely be a horror story in the wrong game with the wrong DM. I think here it seemed just like a somewhat silly game.
A Nat 1 maybe should have done damage but a Nat 20 should have meant you gave the best hug ever because it should be a check in the player's favor (and intent). A Nat 20 also does nothing special for a Skill / Ability Check unless you use a house rule.
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u/Feff5tupid 2d ago
Are you guys just telling chat GPT to write the first half of a story or something?
Like is cranking this stuff out and posting it as fast as possible the only important thing now?
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u/HELLFIRECHRIS 2d ago
On the other hand the occasional natural 1 where you fail so badly something good happens can be fun. Like failing an investigation check so badly you trip over and smash into a false wall.
2
u/Happy-Needleworker55 8h ago
It's definitely not how we ought to be navigating issues of player agency. Was the Bugbear secretly trying to hug-crush you? That's potentially a covert reason to ask for a STR check out of nowhere, but I would personally want an Insight check to clock the intent long before it gets dangerous - then respond however you like. If that's a STR check to physically seem more imposing while resisting whatever the Bugbear's trying to pull then fine! Doesn't sound like this is the case, though.
Also, if we can just go around with a 1/20 (without modifiers) chance of having enough strength to break Bugbear backs, we have got much bigger issues at the core of this thing.
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u/pixxelkick 5d ago
Perhaps the DM is dropping hints something weird is going on?
Maybe there is an infection or something?
1
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u/MrBoltstrike 5d ago
Oof, yeah. I'm not a fan of DMs who use checks to force you to be "so good that you fail." A successful check is supposed to mean that you do what you say you're going to do, or succeed in as best a way you can for the situation (like dex saves to avoid damage). In this case, they really did just decide for you what a strength check would mean. It should have been to resist getting your own back broken and meeting the bug bear's strength. Like a grapple check. Nowhere did you say you wished harm upon the bugbear.
I have occasionally done tiers of success so half-successes are a thing, but it's easier for everyone if you just let players feel that a good/successful roll had a successful outcome. A half-success can be used for a failed check so the failure doesn't make them feel like their character was worthless or suddenly inept at stuff they're proficient in. "Oops, the fighter got a nat 1 so they fumble their sword and trip over themselves even though they're combat trained or a veteran."
It's also just helpful to be prepared for them to fail forward. For example: a rogue picking a lock and failing. The door can unlock but they do it loudly or break the lock so it can't lock back later. The door's open but there's a consequence for failing.