The D20 Test

How to Roll With It When the World Doesn’t Cooperate!

So. You’ve declared your action with the confidence of a bard in a duel. The Storyteller raises an eyebrow. The table goes quiet. Someone mutters, “Roll for it.”

Welcome to the D20 Test. This is the bit where fate gets a vote—and the dice get loud.

What Is a D20 Test?

Whenever the outcome of an action is uncertain (and narratively spicy), you’ll roll a twenty-sided die—also known as the d20—and see what reality thinks of your idea.

There are three main types:

• Ability Check – “Can I do this?” (Climbing, persuading, deciphering...)
• Saving Throw – “Can I avoid this?” (Fireballs, poison, existential dread...)
• Attack Roll – “Can I hit it?” (Preferably before it hits me.)

The process is always the same. Well. Mostly.

The Three-Step Shuffle

Step 1: Roll 1d20

Grab your die. Roll it across the table with style.

• High numbers are good. Unless you’re the one being attacked.
• If you have Advantage, roll two d20s and take the higher result.
• If you have Disadvantage, roll two and take the lower result.
• If you have both? They cancel out. (Yes, even if you have five reasons for Advantage and only one for Disadvantage. The dice do not care.)

Step 2: Add Modifiers

Add anything relevant:

• The ability modifier the test is based on (Strength, Wisdom, etc.)
• Your Proficiency Bonus, if you’re good at this kind of nonsense
• Any magical boosts, penalties, buffs, heroic inspiration, or Storyteller-approved chaos

“A well-timed +1 can mean the difference between ‘I gracefully flip over the altar’ and ‘I am now wedged in a torch sconce, on fire.’”

Step 3: Compare It to a Target Number

Every D20 Test has a target number—a Difficulty Class (DC) or Armour Class (AC).

• If your total equals or beats it? You succeed.
• If not? Something interesting probably happens.

The number itself depends on what you're trying to do—or who (or what) you’re trying to hit.

Advantage & Disadvantage (The Dice Pick Sides)

Sometimes things are going well. Sometimes you’ve angered a table deity.

These effects come from spells, class features, conditions, or particularly dramatic entrances. The Storyteller will tell you when either applies—or you’ll know, because you’re currently on fire and upside-down.

When to Roll

Don’t roll just because you can. Roll because something matters.

In The Last Home, a D20 Test isn’t a rule check—it’s a narrative beat. It’s tension, drama, and the glimmering hope that today might be the day you land that triple somersault throat punch.

Roll bravely. Roll often. And above all—

Roll like someone’s watching.

Typical Difficulty Classes

Difficulty	DC	Example
Very Easy	5	Remembering your name. Or where you put your sandwich. Again.
Easy	10	Climbing a fence. Assuming the fence isn’t haunted.
Medium	15	Convincing a stubborn door to open. Or a sentient kettle to stop screaming.
Hard	20	Out-drinking a dwarf, out-bluffing a fae, or unjamming a cursed loot table.
Very Hard	25	Solving a puzzle while on fire, while being judged by your ancestors.
Nearly Impossible	30	Convincing reality it made a mistake. Or winning a bet with Freya.

Example Ability Checks

Ability	Used For...
Strength	Lifting, smashing, dragging, hurling large cheeses
Dexterity	Sneaking, dodging, staying upright during plot twists
Constitution	Holding your breath, or Keeping your lunch down
Intelligence	Recalling lore, solving puzzles, identifying nonsense
Wisdom	Spotting danger, noticing lies, side-eyeing the obvious
Charisma	Persuading, performing, bluffing like your life depends on it