Core D&D part 4

One of the most beautiful mechanics in d&d is also one that has been deprecated the most as the editions stack up, that of the reaction roll.

The reaction roll in its standard form is rolling 2d6 and comparing the result to a table, usually to test the loyalty of your followers or to see how an enemy views you when you first meet. If taken out of the social context, its a very simple degrees-of-success mechanic, WAY before those got super popular.

To stay with our simplicity theme, we are going to change it to be 3d6 (just for ease of remembrance, as all the other checks so far had been the same) and apply it to all of the ability scores in the same way that our roll-under mechanic worked.

The question, then, is to figure out where a reaction roll us warranted instead of the simoler skill test. If the skill test is a measure of a PCs prowess at completing a task, then it seems like the reaction roll is the way that PCs (and other characters) interact with concepts that are out of their control; things like prices, friendliness, and quest rewards come to mind, but it could also cover things like exp gain, item degradation, spellcasting/spell effects, amd even weather.

You could even combine skill rolls and reaction rolls into a single check for combat, with whether you roll under your ability score designating what amount of ho damage you did, and the reaction expressing what damage you took in return (negative reaction) or if you are allowed to use any combat maneuvers on top of the extra damage you deal (very positive).