Kids and Skill Challenges

Today my kids had their first taste of skill challenges. MCDM has a great video tutorial on skill challenges here. But I will give a quick explanation.

Skill challenges are a way to have heroes do things that would require a short time to complete. Things like chases are great examples, but I think they would also work well for navigation.

Basically, each hero can use each skill only once but they need to describe how that skill will further them toward their set goal, like catching the fleeing NPC. The DM makes up some DC for each check or a standard for the entire challenge for each skill to attempt. I went with the standard of DC11

MCDM says that only proficient heroes can attempt the skill, but with my kids (only two of them) I just let them choose whichever they want. They are certainly going to choose the ones with a higher bonus to success which, in most cases, is what they are proficient in anyways.

The DM sets the number of successes needed to complete the challenge and gives them the “three strikes your out” limit of failures. Failure in a chase usually means the fleeing NPC flees successfully.

So let’s look at what my kids did, and how it might differ for kids.

The Context

Zolana and Ziza (my kids’ druid and ranger) just handed a spear back to a routed bullywug they tracked into the long grass. They need to press it for info on how to get into the secret temple.

The bullywug takes the spear, then bounds off into the long grass. Max, (Ziza’s player) says, my speed is 35. So I chase him and I catch him no problem.

The DM (me) replies, “well let’s see.” I give a quick intro to skill challenges. (it was faster to explain to a 10- and 6-year-old then it was to type it out for you.) and we are off

The Exchange

Ziza starts with “I run after him in the grass."

DM "Do you just press through the growth or do you try to dodge it.”

Ziza “I dodge through it”

DM “Roll acrobatics” PASS

DM "What do you do Zolana?”

Zolana “I run too”

DM “Dodgingly or just push your way?”

Zolana “I push”

DM “Roll Athletics" PASS

Ziza“I run again. Acrobatics."

DM "No, you have to use a new skill."

Ziza "Oh. Ok.. I push"

DM "Athletics." PASS

DM "Zolana?"

Zolana "I run fast"

DM "Acrobatics." FAIL

Ziza "I uhhh.. Can I use Stealth?"

DM "You can try. How do you use it?

Ziza "I sneak up on him.”

DM “It’s a chase. He’s going fast.”

Ziza “I ignore difficult terrain. I sneak fast”

DM “ Sure ok Roll.” PASS

Zolana: “Um.. Can I use ...uhh.. Medicine?”

DM "How do you use it?”

Zolana “Heh,, I don’t know.”

DM “I don’t know either. It more for helping people that are hurt or maybe finding medicine. Try something else, maybe.”

Zolana “Animal handling"

Zolana is the younger one so I threw her a bone.

DM “Sure Roll” FAIL

Ziza “I use Perception to see which way he goes”

DM “Sure Roll” PASS

Zolana “Oh no.. 2 Xs, We can have 6 Xs because we need 6 stars" (I am using stars to track successes)

DM “Sorry no way. 3 Xs and the frogman is gone into the forest.”

Zolana. “I uh try Survival”

DM “survival will let you track him, follow his footprints, Ok?”

Zolana “that is perfect” PASS

Now, I did spoon them a few ideas on how to use the skills, but I think they did pretty well as it was. It was a great exchange, fast and choppy and pretty exciting. But my wrap up is what set it apart.

The Wrap Up

Before getting into the roleplaying of the encounter with the caught bullywug. I did a recap of what happened during the chase. I had kept track of each players’ checks and the result on a whiteboard like this.

• Ziza Zolana

• Acrobatic PASS Athletics PASS

• Atheletics PASS Acrobatics FAIL

• Stealth PASS Animal Handling FAIL

• Perception PASS Survival PASS

It went something like this.

DM “The frogman bounds off into the long grass. Ziza immediately takes off, dekeing and ducking the long grass and the branches of the trees and bushes. Zolana, barrels through the growth and the grass parts for her easy enough. Ziza comes to a dead branch hanging across his path and with a flying knee smashes through it easily. Zolana tries to duck the branch but gets it with the falling debris and is slowed. Ziza is gaining on the frogman and he sees it turn. Ziza takes of sneakingly to try to cut it off and get out in front of it. Zolana hear a bird take flight and pauses to consider if the frogman went that way or not. Ziza checks the growth carefully and see broken plants clearly showing the passes of the frogman not far ahead. After the pause to consider the bird, Zolana sees the tracks and is back on track. The frogman comes to a stop with Ziza standing ready. The frogman turns to flee back as Zolana catches back up. The frogman is surrounded. Zog (an NPC follower) catches up. The frogman croaks out. “Kills me no! Grraag. Me no fight… Wants you is?”

The kids really enjoyed this encounter and loved that their decisions turned into a lengthy narrative. As a kids’ DM sometime you need to help them along. And there were times where I had to pick up their sheets and help them to find skills that they might be able to use. There were a few questions about how to read the skills. But I think this session not only was fun for them, but they got a better understanding of some of the skills of 5e.

Give it a try with your kids.