Is picking a lock harder than it should be? (2e.aonprd.com)

submitted 1 year ago by tempestuousknave@ttrpg.network to c/pf2general@pathfinder.social

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A level 5 rogue will quite probably have a thievery dc of 13, if they invest in it and max dex. The average lock has a dc of 25 and requires 4 successes. It takes a roll of 12 or better to have a single success, and will average about 9 rolls to rack up those 4 successes. With 9 rolls wherein you crit fail on a 2 or lower, the likelihood of breaking a pick is ~61%.

Should a level 5 rogue take a minute to open the average lock, and more likely than not break a pick in the process?

And let's look at a good Lock: DC 30, requiring 5 successes. The level 5 rogue will only succeed on a 17, meaning it will take on average 20 attempts to get those 5 successes. On one attempt in a thousand our Lvl 5 rogue will open this lock before breaking a pick, and will typically break 3 in the process.

Am I missing something?

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[-] Merwyn@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 year ago

To me the time requirement looks fine. There is examples of super skilled people on YouTube who can pick good locks in less time than a round in pf, but they obviously are legendary.

My issue is the chance to break locks. That part seems unrealistic (even for a fantasy world) and it just add something to keep track of in a "video game" style.

My other issue is that from a gameplay perspective, if there is no ongoing fight and we are not in encounter mode, I don't see at all the point to make so many rolls and require several successes. I would be more inclined to a system with a lower DC and where the difference between your roll and a dc determine the time you spend to open it. I am kind of homebrewing it this way in my campaign, but I was not very consistent with my ruling for this ... I should think about it and write it somewhere.

this post was submitted on 28 Aug 2023

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