NPCs Don't Deserve d20s

I was going to go with a different title, like Certain NPCs Don't Deserve the chance to roll d20s Because Story Trumps Randomness and NPCs Shouldn't Be Any Good Against Monsters Unless the DM Thinks the NPC Should Get a Chance for Story Reasons... but that's a lot less punchy. On a side note, when I say NPCs, I mean the farmers, peasants and to a lesser extent, guards of whatever world you set them in. This does not include monsters, important NPCs or powerful humanoids.

I'm listening to a podcast, thinking about NPCs, and it has occured to me that a lot of DMs will roll for NPCs to resist spells like Hold Person or Fireball or any type of Monster Effect like the Basilisk's petrification. I've done it myself, and I really shouldn't. NPCs aren't special and a d20 is way too swingy. 

When you are reading monster flavor and descriptions in the Monster Manual it talks about how this monster can control humans for years and years. The problem is, if you read the monster stat block this effect provides a saving throw every day. Taking that too its logical conclusion, with say a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw, people, normal people, are going to get a chance to break that save and will do it 35% of the time due to how chaotic and swingy the d20 is. 

That 35% of the time winning for a normal, unremarkable farmer annoys me. A farmer has no way to break that, and the fact that mechanically they will break that every 2 weeks must be incredibly annoying for that creature. They would never get anything done if they have 14 slaves and each one is breaking out every day trying to escape them. 

A normal person has 0 to +1 in an Ability, they aren't supposed to be good like your players, and I think some players forget that. They'll want to know what this random farmer can do, what his stats are like or what he got on a saving throw. For me, NPCs should always be assumed to have gotten a 10 on the d20 roll no matter what situation we are talking about. If they have a modifier, apply it to the 10 but don't roll for them. Monsters have adapted so that their abilities are nigh-impossible to overcome... for normal people.

PCs are not normal people, they are the protégés, the ones who might become future gods or liches, who have the drive and motivation (and lets face it, a shit ton of luck) to go out into the wilderness and dungeons and risk everything. Only they and a few, select NPCs should ever get the chance to roll that saving throw to resist becoming the Aboleths slave. Only they should get a chance to not become a beautiful statue for the local medusa because those farmers and peasants and guards are not special. Those lesser mortals are the red shirts of the D&D world, and you should use them as such. 

Now, for story reasons, you can always say Farmer Jim once looked into the eyes of a basilisk but made it out alive, though those types shouldn't be prevalent. Farmer Jim only succeeded to be a quest giver, Farmer Joe and Farmer James all were turned to stone because of course they were, its a BASILISK! They are mean and love to eat people. 

All this to say, PCs are special and they should get special treatment. Their special treatment is that they get to roll a d20 when the Aboleth tries to make them their slaves... also, PCs survive to lichdom or godhood because they have a god that helps them through everything by giving them appropriate challenges. NPCs don't get that, NPCs get a mean and horrible god that puts a farmer against an Aboleth and they don't get to roll d20s because there is nothing special about NPCs. 

Next time you are in a combat and there are a few NPCs that are nobodies, don't roll for them, just assume they fail and not only will it speed up combat, but will make your PCs feel special.... and it gives your Basilisks a chance to show off how dangerous they can be. 

-Stephen