Can you quickly rate these riddles, please?

[Dr TPK]

These riddles are not that original. Are they difficult or cheesy or... whatever? I will use these tomorrow. If one of them is really bad, I will only use one. But like I said, not that original ones...

"In time you will bury me and always carry me with you."

Memory or memories

"When I fall, I take control and there's only one that can defeat me."

Darkness (or night). Only light can "win" darkness.

[Honest Tiefling]

I think they need more hints. The first one could easily be guilt, the latter winter for instance, only being defeated by the coming of spring. However, as a start, they sound good, not too forced in terms of the prose.

[AtlasSniperman]

First could easily be guilt too.

The second is a little iffy.
Both night and darkness are valid answers, but I can also see an arguement for depression or winter.

[Dr TPK]

Thank you, excellent feedback!

Corrections:
"You like me or you hate me, but in time you will bury me and always carry me with you."

And... Winter doesn't fall. Depression doesn't fall. I'm not sure, really I'm not, but please quote a source where depression falls or winter falls. The verb is the key here. Even if there's a source, I would say that it's too exotic or poetic to be relevant. What do you think? Because prototypically darkness DOES fall. I can't see anything else falling. But correct me if I'm wrong!

[Rubik]

Thank you, excellent feedback!

Corrections:
"You like me or you hate me, but in time you will bury me and always carry me with you."

And... Winter doesn't fall. Depression doesn't fall. I'm not sure, really I'm not, but please quote a source where depression falls or winter falls. The verb is the key here. Even if there's a source, I would say that it's too exotic or poetic to be relevant. What do you think? Because prototypically darkness DOES fall. I can't see anything else falling. But correct me if I'm wrong!Autumn falls, because it's fall.

[AtlasSniperman]

Winter follows Autumn, Autumn is also called "Fall"
You "fall" into depression.

The thing about riddles is that the choice of words is key. A riddle is a mix of wordplay and twisted logic.

[Dr TPK]

Ok, that makes sense.

[Honest Tiefling]

Corrections:
"You like me or you hate me, but in time you will bury me and always carry me with you."

Ha! I like this one. I think it eliminates a lot of possibilities, and is still punchy.

Darkness does not control. Maybe something something something about covering, concealing or blinding everything? (Make sure this puzzle doesn't have abyssal, infernal or other origins of creatures with darksight.)

Don't look at me. I'm not a writer.

[Dr TPK]

Ha! I like this one. I think it eliminates a lot of possibilities, and is still punchy.

Darkness does not control. Maybe something something something about covering, concealing or blinding everything? (Make sure this puzzle doesn't have abyssal, infernal or other origins of creatures with darksight.)

Don't look at me. I'm not a writer.

Thank you, but it may be that the second riddle has to go. It seems unworkable.

[Honest Tiefling]

Thank you, but it may be that the second riddle has to go. It seems unworkable.

I disagree. I think it needs some help, but I don't think it is unworkable. Do light/darkness have cultural connotations in your setting?

[AtlasSniperman]

While my power rises when I fall,
my brothers break leaves me no-more.

[nyjastul69]

Are these supposed to challenge the playes or the characters?

[Zephonim]

We might need more info is there anything the players have encountered before that might hint at the answers?

[Rainshine]

Just as a note, I prefer the answer, if at all possible, to be somewhat open. It depends on the presentation of the riddle -- a contest with another creature, an old inscription in ruins maybe not so much -- for there to be multiple acceptable answers, or a willingness to consider other answers.
I like atlas's -- the word break does a nice job of suggesting the answer.

[Yahzi]

A lot of people seem to misunderstand the role riddles played in ancient cultures. They were not logic puzzles that could be worked out by clever thinking; they were tests of education and memory. In stories, being able to answer riddles was a signifier of class and erudition, like James Bond sipping a wine and telling you what vineyard it came from. The characters in the story get to cheat, of course; they know the answer if the narrative says they should.

But you wouldn't hand your players a glass of wine and make them guess what year it was. A riddle contest is solved by an INT roll, unless you have specifically given them unambiguous clues to the answer, just like you would give the pieces of a key as part of a quest to unlock a vault.

[atomicwaffle]

My 10 tips for effective riddles.

1. The secret to riddles in sessions is to make them real easy (for you). You know the correct interpretation, so what may seem too easy for you will be a good challenge for a group of players with no foreknowledge.

2. Also, do them in series (like 5 riddles at once) and have one already completed (figured out from an NPC or a dead adventurer that failed to solve the other riddles). This gives them a ballpark for solving the riddles.

3. If it's a riddle in a dungeon crawl, make sure they passed the 'answer' (even subtly) earlier in the crawl.

4. Don't try to be too philosophical. And don't be too open-ended. A riddle is no good if the party comes up with 3 solutions, all of which work, and none of which are the correct answer.

5. Have an NPC or DMPC around that can interact with them and help them troubleshoot over a riddle.

6. DON'T use a ticking clock. If they have to solve it in X minutes or else, they won't solve it. If they're supposed to spend 2 hours RPing the solution, they'll get it first try.

7. DON'T get frustrated if they can't solve it OR if they solve it too quickly.

8. DON'T just 'tell them the answer'.

9. Don't make your riddles a plot roadblock. The best riddles they can figure out later after making some progress (this is why I like riddles in series) or if they get frustrated they can go on without the plot hinging on it.

10. HAVE IT WRITTEN DOWN, IN FULL. BOTH THE RIDDLE AND HAVE A SEPARATE ANSWER KEY. Give them time to copy it down, if they wish or just handout the paper you have ready. This way they can pass it amongst themselves, make copies, or work it out. It also helps if you use worDplay as part of the riddle. Like Intentional lacK of punctuation, Even capItalizing specific leTters

[Oko and Qailee]

Darkness is usually attached to fear or the unknown.

Maybe begin the second with "I am the unknown"?

For less subtle you can say "I am that which you cannot see."

[TheifofZ]

If you add a little more length to each, you can reduce other potential answers.
Riddles don't need to be short; indeed I recall one almost a paragraph long.
Instead, focus on the word-play, twisty logic, and making sure that either there aren't other options, or that the other options that work are also actually possible answers.

Something to keep in mind when using vaguer riddles is to have a sort of theme to the correct answers. That way, you can easily remove other potential answers without coming across as willfully obtuse.
Memories and night time don't have much in common, but if you used a riddle that was based on an answer of 'dreams' instead of 'memories', for example, it becomes thematic, and easier to tell what isn't an acceptable answer.
This feeds into the suggestion earlier to use a set of 5 riddles. It's easy to set a theme with a group of 5.

[Dr TPK]

A lot of people seem to misunderstand the role riddles played in ancient cultures. They were not logic puzzles that could be worked out by clever thinking; they were tests of education and memory. In stories, being able to answer riddles was a signifier of class and erudition, like James Bond sipping a wine and telling you what vineyard it came from. The characters in the story get to cheat, of course; they know the answer if the narrative says they should.

But you wouldn't hand your players a glass of wine and make them guess what year it was. A riddle contest is solved by an INT roll, unless you have specifically given them unambiguous clues to the answer, just like you would give the pieces of a key as part of a quest to unlock a vault.

Thank you, that's good to know, but mainly riddles in D&D are a certain kind of trope that has more to with a certain Sphinx and a certain Greek mythological hero than with actual history.

[Solophoenix]

For the first riddle, my answer before I opened the spoiler was "The/My past", and I haven't seen anything to invalidate it. It's fairly similar to memories, but could end up leading your PCs in entirely the wrong direction depending on what you need the answer of the riddle to do.

[Amphetryon]

"I roll Sense Motive." If Sense Motive isn't the Skill you'd point to for solving riddles, then substitute for whichever Character Skill is the one used at your table.

If you decide not to allow such a roll, you're asking the Players to solve this riddle themselves, rather than challenging the Characters.

[nyjastul69]

"I roll Sense Motive." If Sense Motive isn't the Skill you'd point to for solving riddles, then substitute for whichever Character Skill is the one used at your table.

If you decide not to allow such a roll, you're asking the Players to solve this riddle themselves, rather than challenging the Characters.

I mostly agree. I wouldn't use a sense motive check to determine the success though, more likely a knowledge skill. It would depend on the actual riddle.

That being said, are you testing the players or the characters? I love when my character is tested, I hate when I am.