I want to generate some skill checks for some encounters I am running for my party that is at level 8. How do I generate (perhaps randomly or specifically chosen) skill checks, knowledge checks and save checks that are level appropriate?
For example, I am going to have my party start sliding down a hill. They have to make 2 or 3 checks to make it down safely. Obviously some of the checks will be agility or acrobatics. But I was thinking that I would allow maybe knowledge geography for the wizard to figure out how to smartly roll his body to safely get down the hill. I might also allow a survival check. But what should the DCs be for these checks?
Thanks for any advice.
I found this discussion.
http://paizo.com/threads/rzs2oqmn?Easy-Skill-DC-Medium-Hard
Any other thoughts?
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A hill can exist in most other types of terrain, but hills can
also dominate the landscape. Hills terrain is divided into
two categories: gentle hills and rugged hills. Hills terrain
often serves as a transition zone between rugged terrain
such as mountains and flat terrain such as plains.
Gradual Slope: This incline isn’t steep enough to affect
movement, but characters gain a +1 bonus on melee attacks
against foes downhill from them.
Steep Slope: Characters moving uphill (to an adjacent
square of higher elevation) must spend 2 squares of
movement to enter each square of steep slope. Characters
running or charging downhill (moving to an adjacent
square of lower elevation) must succeed on a DC 10
Acrobatics check upon entering the first steep slope
square. Mounted characters make a DC 10 Ride check
instead. Characters who fail this check stumble and must
end their movement 1d2 × 5 feet later. Characters who fail
by 5 or more fall prone in the square where they end their
movement. A steep slope increases the DC of Acrobatics
checks by 2.
Cliff: A cliff typically requires a DC 15 Climb check to
scale and is 1d4 × 10 feet tall, although the needs of your map
might mandate a taller cliff. A cliff isn’t perfectly vertical,
taking up 5-foot squares if it’s less than 30 feet tall and 10-
foot squares if it’s 30 feet or taller.
Light Undergrowth: Sagebrush and other scrubby bushes
grow on hills, although they rarely cover the landscape. Light
undergrowth provides concealment and increases the DC
of Acrobatics and Stealth checks by 2.
Other Hills Terrain Elements: Trees aren’t out of place in
hills terrain, and valleys often have active streams (5 to 10 feet
wide and no more than 5 feet deep) or dry streambeds (treat
as a trench 5 to 10 feet across) in them. If you add a stream
or streambed, remember that water always f lows downhill.
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Making the difficulty of sliding down a hill (or skill checks in general) depend on the slider's level is a terrible move. D&D 4e did this and was widely panned for it. Don't make that mistake, it breaks immersion & makes the players feel like going up levels is like walking on a treadmill.
Yeah, higher level's shouldn't make the same challenges harder, it should make the stuff that was a challenge at lower levels, child's play, and bring in wholly NEW challenges.
Instead of coming up with level appropriate skill checks you need to come up with level appropriate challenges. Most skills have a set difficulty instead because they represent basic things anyone can do. The only exception is opposed skills. The DC to climb a cliff does not matter if you are 1st level or 20th it is the same. Where the difference comes in is that the 1st level character may need to climb a natural cliff with lots of hand holds. The 20th level character may need to scale the smooth walls of a magically created glass tower.
Opposed skills are based on the HD or level of the opposing creature and how many skill ranks they have invested. The 10th level bard will be able to bluff the city guard a lot easier than the head of the thieves’ guild. T
Also, I think Knowledge (geography) is used more for things like this:
Identify a creature's ethnicity or accent Geography 10
Recognize regional terrain features Geography 15
Know location of nearest community or noteworthy site Geography 20
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Fantastic locations usually offer unusual challenges(Palace of a Marid Genie in the elemental plane of Water), rare enemies knowledge depend on your world/setting (DC 15+CR instead of the regular DC 10+CR for common monsters) but yeah like people mentioned some stuffs should be easy for level 8 characters and that's fine, it's expected of them to use their abilities and skills to get out of difficult situations.
OK cool. I understand where you guys are coming from.
As a GM it becomes more difficult to keep an adventure exciting as the players get more and more powerful. I was trying to think of a way to make finding the location of a Dragon more fun. If all of the challenges are DC8 then it will be silly.
The PCs were going to start with a reward of 30,000 gold. For each failed encounter, 5,000 was going to be reduced due to the delay of the party and an additional dragon attack on the city.
I trying to use an idea similar to the chase deck and to an idea Dudemeister had for me a couple of weeks ago when I had my party hunt for a Frost Drake.
How can I make searching for a dragon more exciting than 3 survival checks for level 8 PCs without having silly challenges for characters so skilled?
If something is actively trying to trigger an avalanche or landslide the slopes could be a significant risk. The trick would be to take them out fast or sneak up on them.
BTW I'd be surprised if the wizard at least can't fly for few minutes by level 8, which removes the threat of sliding down a slope. In the last but one PF game I played everyone could fly one way or another (by mount, spell or in one case a template) by level 7.
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Cold mountains + Snowy conditions (Heavy snow, Hail etc...) , usually should bump up the dc easily of people trying to track the creature or even brave the mountain hazards. On top of it, the frost drake can see fine in any kind of snowy conditions or even walk on snow like spiderclimb, so he it can afford to be in hard to reach places, even surrounded by a blizzard, as it doesn't bother him at all.
I can abandon the sliding down the hill thing. It seems like a bad idea based on your posts.
Using the hybrid chase cards idea for a dragon hunt kind of railroads the party I guess. If they don't like an encounter, they will be forced to do it anyway or mess up my plan.
I was going to have a social battle for another encounter to try and convince a group to help them out in some way.
I may start another thread and ask for short challenge encounter ideas.
You could create a map with different challenges surrounding the dragon's lair. then the players can decide which path they want to take and you aren't railroading them, even if 2 of 3 challenges are basically the same on every path.
edit: oh, or course only the challenges the players (or the map maker) know about are on the map. so a seemingly easy path could be a nasty surprise.