What does Hide do? And how to read and understand the rules.

In combat time, Passive Perception is for when someone breaks cover to sneak in for melee (or other, wilder things you might have a shot at spotting/hearing). A Search action isn't really worth the Action in combat, but with Obvservant it could be.

Quote from Jaysburn >>

Quote from SunIsGettingRealLow96589 >>

Yeah, it is. Passive perception is for when the players tell the dm theyre going down a dungeon corridor cautiously, checking for traps and ambushes carefully. 

 
No, that is what an active Wisdom(Perception) check is for.

Quote from SunIsGettingRealLow96589 >>

And then when the players approach the actual ambush point, but the DM doesnt want to give the players a heads up, the dm instead uses Passive Perception to get their average Perception Check when the Players are taking the Search action.

... Dude, what? Player-forward actions - such as the Search action - are things players make; not something the DM makes for them. That's why the wording of them is "when you take the ... action." DM's do not decide you are taking actions for you. Passive Perception does not in any way touch the Search action. 

Passive Perception is for when you have not told the DM that you are actively trying to detect something, as well as what you're trying to detect. This is why the Search action specifically says "The Search table suggests which skills are applicable when you take this action, depending on what you’re trying to detect."
If the party (or a character) says they are actively looking for traps, then that is what they take the action for. If enemies are sneaking up on them at the same time, then the DM would use their Passive Perception.
Rulings as to whether Advantage/Disadvantage would apply can then be taken into consideration based on the situation, but there's no blanket rule for when they do, and you most certainly do not apply Disadvantage (-5) to a character's Passive Perception because they aren't actively taking the Search action. That's not how any of this works. 

Quote from Pantagruel666 >>

Quote from Jaysburn >>

It does indeed make having a high Passive Perception nearly useless in combat. Which I personally have... very mixed feelings about. Outside combat, it's still useful, which I went into some detail about recently in this comment.

It doesn't just make passive nearly useless. It makes perception nearly useless.

Quote from SunIsGettingRealLow96589 >>

Did you ever check out the Observant Feat of 2024?

Now, show me a monster that has the observant feat. 

" It makes perception nearly useless"

Perception is the same as it was. You enter a room and search for traps, secret doors, and loot. You take the Search Action-Perceptoon check, its exactly the same.

Passive Perception has a -5 penalty when in combat. Thats the only difference.

"Now, show me a monster that has the observant feat. "

https://www.aidedd.org/dnd/monstres.php?vo=ancient-black-dragon

Legendary actions: Detect. The dragon makes a Wisdom (Perception) check.

Hide: rogue rolls stealth check dc 15. If succeed, hidden/invisible condition for at least their turn. 

On goblins turn, they can take the search action, dc=whatever rogue rolled to stealth. Or they could try passive perception, with a -5 penalty, and it has to beat whatever the rogue rolled. On success, rogue is found and loses invisible condition.

It gets rid of the opposed check, cause checks are supposed to be for actively doing something and the zero action perception check against a rogues stealth was always a bit weird. 

I dont see the end of the world here. Seems pretty straightforward.

Quote from sabin76 >>

If the players have actively said they are "going cautiously" and "checking for traps and ambushes" and you don't let them roll a perception check... what are you even doing??

The last dungeon i ran was a thousand feet long. Thats 200 squares on a side. Assuming  a quarter of it is tunneled out, thats 10,000 squares.

While sneaking around, the players tell you they are going to be quiet, cautious, and check for traps and ambushes.

So you have them roll every 5 foot square? That dungeon would take ten times as long. Im not doing that.

If they come to a door and listen, they roll. If they come to something that they caught with their passive perception, and they want to roll, then the roll. But im not having then roll every square down every hallway. If they get in a room and want to search, they roll. 

But moving about the halls and between rooms and all that nonsense, YOU can have them roll every grid square, im not.  

One interaction, they were fighting some incorpreal thing, ghost or aomething. Ghost took a lot of damage and flew down an unexplored hallway. One player chased after it, dashing every turn to catch up. Their passive perception wasnt good so they didnt see the pit trap and triggered it. Ghost came back and player killed it. Party showed up and helped player out of pit. 

Player dashes down an unexplored hallway, bolting as fast as they can, they arent taking thr Search action, they are sprinting. You think they should get a passive perception for a trap with a score matching thrir average active Search Action Perception Check?

I dont see the issue.  If players stop and want to focus on a feature like a door or search a room or whatevr, they roll. But im not doing that for all the hallways and tunnels. Hasnt been a problem yet. 

Im not a big fan of lots of hallway traps anyway. The campaign isnt in the hallways. The faster they get into the rooms the better.

Quote from SunIsGettingRealLow96589 >>

Quote from sabin76 >>

If the players have actively said they are "going cautiously" and "checking for traps and ambushes" and you don't let them roll a perception check... what are you even doing??

 

The last dungeon i ran was a thousand feet long. Thats 200 squares on a side. Assuming  a quarter of it is tunneled out, thats 10,000 squares.

While sneaking around, the players tell you they are going to be quiet, cautious, and check for traps and ambushes.

So you have them roll every 5 foot square? That dungeon would take ten times as long. Im not doing that.

If they come to a door and listen, they roll. If they come to something that they caught with their passive perception, and they want to roll, then the roll. But im not having then roll every square down every hallway. If they get in a room and want to search, they roll. 

But moving about the halls and between rooms and all that nonsense, YOU can have them roll every grid square, im not.  

One interaction, they were fighting some incorpreal thing, ghost or aomething. Ghost took a lot of damage and flew down an unexplored hallway. One player chased after it, dashing every turn to catch up. Their passive perception wasnt good so they didnt see the pit trap and triggered it. Ghost came back and player killed it. Party showed up and helped player out of pit. 

Player dashes down an unexplored hallway, bolting as fast as they can, they arent taking thr Search action, they are sprinting. You think they should get a passive perception for a trap with a score matching thrir average active Search Action Perception Check?

I dont see the issue.  If players stop and want to focus on a feature like a door or search a room or whatevr, they roll. But im not doing that for all the hallways and tunnels. Hasnt been a problem yet. 

Im not a big fan of lots of hallway traps anyway. The campaign isnt in the hallways. The faster they get into the rooms the better.

Why would you make them roll every square anyway? That makes no sense. Is there anything to find in this hallway (traps, secret doors, an ambush)? Have them roll once. They've already told you they are moving cautiously, checking for traps, so having them roll doesn't reveal your hand. Depending on their roll they may find the obvious pit trap, but miss the secret staircase and group of piercers on the ceiling.

If there's nothing to find in this hallway, then you have a choice. Follow the rules and simply tell them there's nothing to find or add some deception and have them roll anyway to give the illusion there was something to find.