A dice roll in a
Dungeons and Dragons game percipitated by the lack of any sort of productive action (generally during a non-combat roll playing scene)in which a D-20 is rolled and the score added to the charachters charisma modifier. The resulting score determines the nature of a seemingly random event to be
experienced by the character. The exact nature of the event, and the range of the scores corilation to its outcome is generally at the discretion of the DM (
Dungeon Master). Generally the following guideline is used.
1 Something very very bad happens.
2-7 Something bad happens.
8-15 Nothing happens.
16-19 Something good happens.
20 Something very good happens.
21+ Something insanely good happens.
Example 1.
DM: You make it to a town, what do you do?
Player:
I go to the local tavern and get drunk.
DM: Roll me a loitering check.
Player: 1
DM: A great wyrm red dragon rips the roof off of the tavern that your sitting in, reaches down, picks you up, looks at you for a second, and then decides that you are the perfect snack, tosses you
up in the air, catches you in her mouth, and swallows you whole. You suddenly find yourself standing
on the banks of the river stycks faced by the god of
the underworld... and he doesn't look happy.
Example 2
DM: You make it to a town, what do you do?
Player: I find the local tavern and go get drunk.
DM: Roll me a loitering check
Player: 23
DM: A man walks up to you and hands you a sword, says nothing, and then turns and walks away suddenly vanishing in a brilliant flash of light. When you look at the sword, you instanly recognize it as the fabled sword of destiny, which as legend has it, is capable of changing the very course of destiny itself.
