RNG can be frustrating in general, but the core die mechanic and skill values of low level D&D don't help matters.

A single d20 has a flat distribution of results. If you start with 20 in a skill's stat and Proficiency, you've shifted the results by 5+2 = 7*5 = 35%. Whoopie. https://twitter.com/IGN/status/1326381908062851072

The difference between a character with Proficiency and without is 2, a measly 10% on the d20. With rogue expertise (for example) it's doubled, but that's not usually where these checks come up. A good or bad attribute can easily overshadow that.

So it's not just that it's random, it's that the range of the die and the distribution of results is wider than the typical range of bonuses for starting characters, which means that the die result is more consequential than how you build your character.

Feels bad man.

Cf. Disco Elysium, which uses 2d6 (bell curve, not flat distribution) for its skill checks and adds to it a range of values that are comparable to (if slightly lower than) D&D's.

The dice are generally less important than how you built the character. Feels better man.

I understand that the d20 has such an iconic position at the heart of D&D that they effectively can never change it but... this is what it sounds like / when the dice cry.

(FWIW, the Pillars TTRPG uses 2d10 for most rolls. A d20 is used for Advantage/Disadvantage.)

While we're here, I might as well note that a lot of people have asked why we didn't make a D&D-based game instead using our own ruleset for Pillars.

It's mostly so I didn't have to deal with stuff like this.

Like, we still had to deal with the general legacy of the IE games, but the ruleset just had to be spiritually similar, not mechanically the same.

Whether you think the Pillars system is better or worse than D&D, the problems with the Pillars system are entirely my doing.

Which also means that when I make a mistake and get feedback, I can address it on my own terms instead of needing to try to do a torturous end run around a licensed ruleset.

My galaxy brain idea for addressing this 𝖜𝖍𝖎𝖑𝖘𝖙 retaining the d20: establish a minimum bonus threshold that auto-passes. If you don't meet that, then you roll a d20 to try to pass it.

I've thought about this for 15s. I will not be taking critical feedback at this time.

BTW this is really just a variation of "take 10" in 3E. You're a specialist, you're confident you can make the check with an (almost) average roll, so you waive the die roll.