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Old 01-20-2019, 10:20 PM   #6
hal
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Buffalo, New York
Default Re: Sincere belief and desire to help is required - how I handled it

Quote:
Originally Posted by malloyd View Post
I think I might set the zero a little lower. Most people do desire to help others, or to do a good job, as long doesn't actually cost them anything. So it seems to me Neutral is probably good enough for 1 point.
Part of the problem if you will - is why is it a -5 penalty for energy when someone actively wants the spell to fail?

The phrase "because we said so" comes to mind. Ironically, that answer works for me either way! But if this is going to be an "alternative methodology" - it might be good to have a reasoning behind why things are as they are.

If we went strictly with a three state set up - if you resist, you offset energy by your own PERSONAL resistance (worth -1). If you don't care either way, then you don't help either way. If you care, then your personal energy goes into the pot (so to speak) worth +1.

The people off the street who don't care, aren't helping, but not hindering either. They may make the noises, mutter the words, but their hearts just aren't in it.

Now, were we to go the route of "You have your HEART set on the result" then we might go to a five state set up...

-2 (absolutely hate it)
-1 (resisting it, but no passion)
-0 (don't care either way)
+1 (want it to succeed, but no real passion)
+2 (want it to succeed passionately)

We could go the route of specifying that a critical failure will affect those who are passionate?

In any event, that's why I had a "General Disposition value" for the spreadsheet. If it is planting time, and the people genuinely love the land, genuinely want to help their neighbors, a +1 bonus might apply on the reaction table. If they are really of a mind to help others (selfless perhaps?) then perhaps a +2 bonus on the General Disposition.

Now for the other thing...

Suppose you have a small village - with a mage who is beloved (charisma) but the spell being cast is on the Village Reeve, whom people dislike because he collects the Lord's taxes AND he's brutal about it. Whose "charisma" applies in this case?

If the spell caster is trying to cast Rain - largely because the fields are wilting and people are desperate - as the GM, you might assess a +5 bonus.

Note: Rolling 3d6, the lowest roll possible is a 3. The lowest "Bad result" possible is a 9. I can't help but wonder if the General Disposition of the crowd should never be set above a +6? Likewise, 18-6 = 12, which is the lowest good reaction possible.

Part of me is of a mind to see if I can tinker with the spreadsheet to permit the GM to set specific reactions ahead of time for "known" NPC's and such. Reaction rolls are supposed to be for those NPC's the GM hasn't predetermined the mindset for.
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