First Time DM - need advice

[EmceeLadyHammer]

I'm a new-ish player to D&D. I've been playing a campaign for over a year now. Some friends asked me to start running my own table and I am. In my game I have a player who doesn't play the table with the rest of the people, he's like his own custom class side guild thing that finds information, tools, etc and supplies it to the other players. So he currently has a person trying to sneak onto a boat using invisibility. I get to roll for his characters to see if they succeed or not. Well... I rolled a 6 for this guy. Initially I was going to allow him to sneak on the boat, but then trip over a rope making a loud noise making everyone aware of his presence. But then I'm wondering, with a 6 he really shouldn't make it onto the boat at all, like he should turn invisible then stub his toe on a rock in the middle of town or something right? I'd like to know what others would do in this case. I appreciate the feedback!

[StoicLeaf]

It depends on the player.

If he can take a joke, then having him stub his toe on the ship, cursing, and, as a result, alert the guards to his presence is a fine idea.
Some players, however, cannot take a joke, and making the cause of their failure them themselves will result in excessive pouting.

The alternative route is to shift the failure to happenstance; a bag of flour falls out of a net full of supplies for the ship, covering him and revealing his position. Or perhaps the wind is blowing fiercely and sea mist clings to him.

[EmceeLadyHammer]

It depends on the player.

If he can take a joke, then having him stub his toe on the ship, cursing, and, as a result, alert the guards to his presence is a fine idea.
Some players, however, cannot take a joke, and making the cause of their failure them themselves will result in excessive pouting.

The alternative route is to shift the failure to happenstance; a bag of flour falls out of a net full of supplies for the ship, covering him and revealing his position. Or perhaps the wind is blowing fiercely and sea mist clings to him.

THANK YOU! That's great advice!!! :smallbiggrin:

[Man_Over_Game]

It's worth noting that a 6 isn't terrible. It's bad, but it's not the worst.

Generally, difficulty is on a scale of 1-30, with 1 being nearly impossible to fail, and 30 only being occasionally possible by the likes of godlike super humans. Most people perform actions between 1-10. Heroes perform on a scale of 10-20.

How difficult SHOULD it be to remain hidden while invisible? Is there a decent amount of noise to distract those nearby? The 6 shouldn't necessarily be a reflection of bad luck, but an event of a error in skill. There are many circumstances that specify that the "worst case scenario" only occurs on a 5 or less.

I guess what I'm saying is, whatever happens shouldn't be great, but it can't be something so bad that a 4 couldn't be worse.

[EmceeLadyHammer]

It's worth noting that a 6 isn't terrible. It's bad, but it's not the worst.

Generally, difficulty is on a scale of 1-30, with 1 being nearly impossible to fail, and 30 only being occasionally possible by the likes of godlike super humans. Most people perform actions between 1-10. Heroes perform on a scale of 10-20.

How difficult SHOULD it be to remain hidden while invisible? Is there a decent amount of noise to distract those nearby? The 6 shouldn't necessarily be a reflection of bad luck, but an event of a error in skill. There are many circumstances that specify that the "worst case scenario" only occurs on a 5 or less.

I guess what I'm saying is, whatever happens shouldn't be great, but it can't be something so bad that a 4 couldn't be worse.

Thank you for sharing! Still being new to the game, I never thought of it that way. I'll keep this in mind moving forward. :smallcool:

[guachi]

Han Solo stepping on a twig in Return of the Jedi is about like rolling a 6.

[EmceeLadyHammer]

Han Solo stepping on a twig in Return of the Jedi is about like rolling a 6.
Thank you for the feedback! I feel like a young Jedi trying to run a board for Master Yoda. This gives me perspective.

[iTreeby]

It comes down to a question of tone. If the ship is rundown, the board could break under his foot for example. The important thing to remember is that the character should feel like a total bad a**. They aren't clumsy. You could use the low result of the sneak check to justify including a complication like... There is an extra man on the deck that couldn't be seen from below, he hops the rail and finds himself face to face with a sailor.. . Mid bite in a juicy apple. Give the character a suprise round in the combat that opens. If they take out the sailor in the suprise round, give them a new stealth role to go back to hiding.I wouldn't make the Mook too tough just have a quick little fight and see. It creates an opportunity for role playing and it let's you add details about the crew.