Rolling Ability Checks as a Group

Very often as a Game Master, you will find yourself saying “Roll a Perception Check as you enter the room” or “Roll a Stealth Check to get past the guards.” But who rolls, and how do you resolve the check when it’s an entire party of adventurers?

Quick Method

If the entire party is doing something together, the easiest way to resolve an ability check is to pick one player to roll. Choose the player who is leading the plan, even if they aren’t the best character to make the roll. Sometimes the Paladin in clunky metal armor will want to sneak down a hallway. That’s where fun roleplaying comes in! If multiple characters are helping in a way that makes sense, give the roll Advantage. For instance, a player says, “I help by showing the party where to step to keep quiet!”

Dramatic Method

For important rolls, like deciding whether a giant trap affects the entire party, use the more theatrical method. Have each player in the adventuring party roll a separate check and add their appropriate bonus. Find the average by adding up all the numbers and dividing by the number of players. Use that number to determine the result. For this method, if any single player rolls a natural “20” the check automatically succeeds. But if any player rolls a “1”, the result of the check should fail in some sort of spectacular fashion.