Re: Probability of Success, and Critical Success

Roger Connor <night-hunter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> writes:

A success roll must be equal to or greater than the target number.
[…]
No. You're neglecting the point that the roll must be EQUAL to or
UNDER the target number, therefore if skill level is 3, a roll of 4
is NOT under the skill level and is therefore NOT a success.

(Info in previous paragraph B347.) " Extremely High or low rolls
have a special effects -beyond those of for normal success or
failure - regardless of your exact margin of success or failure."

That interpretation is, as I see it, overridden by the unequivocal
language at the start of the chapter, B343: “Regardless of the score
you are rolling against, a roll of 3 or 4 is *always* a success, while
a roll of 17 or 18 is *always* a failure.”

I didn't think of this reference when writing the original post; it
would have helped clarify the discussion if I had.

I don't see this as a contradiction. And the same rules have been in
place since version 1, actually. You first MUST roll equal to or
under the target number in order to succeed. Then, if your roll is a
3 or 4 it is a critical success. And a 3 is a critical success if
rolling a defense where your defense is less than 3.

By the same token, rolling over the target number is a failure, and
rolling 17 or 18 are always failures. A roll of 18 is always a
critical failure and depending on the target number, a 17 may be a
critical failure.

That would be inconsistent (either criticals override comparison
against the target number, or they don't), as well as contradicting
what the clear language on p. B343 says.

PS- House rules, however vary. WE play that a 3 is always a critical
(ie spectacular) success regardless of target number. An 18 is
always a critical (ie spectacular) failure, regardless of target
number. A 17 is a failure, but never critical.

By my reading of p. B343, your play is closer to the RAW than your
interpretation of the RAW :-)

--
\ “A free society is one where it is safe to be unpopular.” |
`\ —Adlai Ewing Stevenson |
_o__) |
Ben Finney
.

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