<snip> One example is one of our PC's was sneaking around a hospital trying to avoid detection. When he went to leave from a side/service exit, I would use it there so if he failed the roll an alarm would sound.<snip>
One method I have used with great effect is to make a bargain with the players, suggesting an outcome as the result of an open dice roll on terms I set. I can adjust the likelihood of it happening better that way than a static roll and it conveniently builds tension at the table since none of us -- me included -- know what will happen.
In this situation, I might have done something like the following:
Ref (Me): "As you lay your hand on the door, the thought ocurrs to you that it might be alarmed."
(As an Aside: Now technically, I don't have to do this, but I'm setting the conditions for the bargain I want to make)
PC: "I check the doorframe, and the panel, any of those warnings like they have in public restaurants that an alarm will sound?"
Ref (Me): "No, but this is a hospital, it might not be clearly labelled for security purposes. Tell you what," dramatic pause "There's a pretty fair chance it should be wired that way. On a 5 or 6 on d6, the door is not wired with an alarm, fair?"
(Aside: I could just as easily have claimed that this is a more-or-less public thoroughfare and thus less likely to be wired and gone in the other direction, or whatever. Slant it however you think appropriate for the dramatic needs of the story at this point. Also, if I wanted there to be a silent alarm I wouldn't make the bargain at all, this is just for one of those building tension through random chance exercises that keeps both of us, Ref and player, on our toes. Sometimes a player will make a logical argument to increase their odds, and I genuinely consider them. I personally not only allow but welcome this because it invests the player further into the game and the scene.)
PC: "Okay."
He grabs the dice and rolls.
The agreement is essential for me. The player knows the stakes and makes a choice. The die roll is an open drop so there is no unfairness claim. If they like, I let them make the roll, then the "failure" (insert negative consequences) is that much more their choice in their minds. Good players actually
want to have the fertilizer hit the rotary oscillator a lot of the time (depending on the pace of the game at this point).
Of course like anything, it depends on the crowd in which you run. It works for me, some groups might find it more difficult to use. Some Refs might not want to haggle with players, especially if there are strong personalities involved. But I've found that it suits my style and the folks I tend to play with in tabletop games. I agree with an earlier poster that prep and design are a factor, and if I wanted the door to be alarmed -- or better yet have a silent alarm -- I'd not bother with this. But in cases where I don't care, haven't planned something specifically (especially when players go off the reservation) or it suddenly occurs to me that the door probably
should be wired when they tell me their action (no matter how well planned, there are always a few oversights), then I make the bargain a part of the game. It helps me build tension, it helps draw the players into the scene, and it keeps me on my toes as a Ref.
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