Hi all, I've been having quite a bit of fun in early access but I have noticed some things are missing from Dungeons and Dragons that is making certain actions feel a little empty. That feeling that something is missing. I'm talking about ability checks. I believe the game would be more fun, with more ability checks.

In this post I'll be writing about where I feel they are missing and where ability checks should be added. I will write about which should be passive or active. I'm a fan of DnD and Divinity 2 so I've been looking for changes that could make BG3 more fun and engaging. For DnD, a lot of fun/hilarious moments involve ability checks. I would love to hear feedback from other fans of Dungeons and Dragons. So feel free to post your thoughts on the subject (ability checks) and my feedback.

Breaking down doors (Strength, Active):
In BG3: I have to manually tell the character to attack the door for each attack. It’s sluggish and time-consuming.
In Tabletop: The DM asks the player for a strength check to see if they can break down the door.

Recommended:
Replace door health with a DC (5-20). Player sends a character to attack the door and a strength check is rolled.
> If the roll fails the character swings their weapon... it does zero damage and the character acknowledges that they can’t do it.
> If the roll succeeds, the character breaks down the door in one swing and is excited about breaking down the door.

This would have the benefit of making the game more fluid (less time spent hitting a door and more time spent exploring, looting, and fighting). And new players would get more acclimated to how Dice Rolls impact the game. A lot of players could get a laugh out of seeing Gale break down a door. It’s a great opportunity to keep the player engaged.

Shove (Strength, Passive):
In BG3: Shove is a mechanic that becomes situationally OP. It’s low cost and can deal with enemies quicker than spells.
In tabletop: Anything similar is a strength contest where both parties have to roll.

Recommended:
Roll a strength contest between both characters.
> If the player wins the contest the opponent falls prone.
> If the player loses the contest a struggle animation will play.
> If a contestant rolls a natural 1, that character falls prone.
> If a contestant rolls a natural 20, the opponent is shoved 4 meters and falls prone.

This change will add risk in using the shove mechanic. Adding more strategic diversity and engagement for the player. Also, having multiple outcomes makes shove more interesting to see in combat. It'd be hilarious if a shove contest results in two natural 20s and both characters shove each other 4 meters.

Using a Spell Scroll (Intelligence, Passive):
In BG3: Any character can use a spell scroll making fighters/rogues/rangers more valuable than they are in Dungeons and Dragons. Why bring a wizard when the fighter can cast the spells and has better armor/weapons/HP?
In Tabletop: Only magic users can use scrolls to help manage spells in between long rests. There are variants where the character has to pass a DC Intelligence saving throw.

Recommended:

Using a spell scroll requires an intelligence DC equal to 10+spell level OR already knowing the spell.
> If the roll fails there will be a poof around the character as the scroll turns to ash.
> If the roll succeeds the spell can be cast.

This would benefit the game by keeping respective classes to their role and still enabling the player to take on strategic risk. If the player feels a rogue using a spell scroll is their best option, they will have to take it with calculated risk. Giving the player more meaningful choices as they manage the party.

(Ideal change involving Long Rest)
Spell Scroll drops could have a drop rate tied to spells the party knows, so that the groundwork can be in the game to allow for long rests to only occur in “safe zones”. Spell management in dungeons would be about considering what spells you got scrolls for. Adding in more engaging choices to make as the player cannot take a long rest in the middle of a dungeon.

Dip (Intelligence, Active):
In BG3: dip is a mechanic that allows characters to get an easy d4 to their weapon damage. I do see dip as a nice mechanic. In early access, dip is a buff to fighters, rangers, and rogues. However it is too accessible
In tabletop: this does not exist as far as I know.

Recommended:
Outside of combat the player will have to make a DC 5 (intelligence)
> If the roll fails, the character will take 1d4 damage.
> If the roll succeeds, the character gets 1d4 bonus damage on their next hit with that weapon.
Inside of combat the player will have to make a DC 10 (intelligence)
> If the roll fails, the character will take 1d4 damage.
> If the roll succeeds, the character gets 1d4 bonus damage on their next hit with that weapon.

The benefit of this change is that dip will give new players a clear indication of how DC works, it’s situational and will help acclimate players better to dice rolls.

Backstab (Stealth, Passive):
In BG3: backstab is a low-cost mechanic to get advantage on an opponent by moving into their backstab zone. If you compare backstab to flanking, it’s very similar but you only need one character to do so (provided they are facing the correct side of their opponent). From a game design perspective, backstab is low-cost flanking.
In Tabletop: combat doesn’t work this way. This is something that comes from a transition to a 3D (PvE) game.

Recommended:
The character will have to make a stealth check versus the opponent’s passive perception.
> If the character jumped during the turn the roll is a 1.
> If the roll fails the character will not get advantage on their next attack.
> If the roll succeeds the character gets advantage on their next attack against that opponent.

This benefits the game by making the advantage a one-time bonus and giving the player more meaningful choices to make during combat. The player would have to move the character away, provoking an attack of opportunity, and move back into the “backstab zone” to roll for advantage again. Stealth versus passive perception is already in BG3, so I really feel this could be a quick remedy for the issues with backstab.