Unfazeable and Leadership

[magnafix]

My current character in a medieval/fantasy/samurai campaign uses Leadership several times each session -- but very rarely trying to get the PCs to do anything.

For example, I was sent to investigate a rogue commander (who outranks me). We rode into their war camp, parleyed a while, and then I started trying to turn the soldier underlings to my side. So, after a few Diplomacy rolls to rhetorically jockey with the other commander, I called him out.

The underlings reacted variously (with my Appearance+2, Charisma+2, Voice, and Social Chameleon advantages helping), and when the other commander challenged me, I used Leadership in an attempt to gather some underlings to help protect me.

The soldiers were split, scuffles broke out, but in the end I had turned enough to my side that we were victorious and captured the rogue commander. Not bad for having just ridden into camp a few hours earlier, out-manned, out-gunned, and out-ranked.

As for Fright Checks -- this is totally campaign specific in our group. We rarely use them unless the campaign has been characterized as having a Horror component, or we're playing lower-point characters.

[Kromm]

Originally Posted by Phoenix_Dragon

Don't think of it so much as a confident soldier hitting stronger and more accurately, but more as a scared or shaken soldier hitting weaker and less accurately. The later soldier is putting far more value on defense, and letting his offense slack because of it.

Yes. What's going on here is that the leader is inspiring fighters who would normally elect to do a Move (away from the action!), All-Out Defense, or Defensive Attack to try something like an Attack, Move and Attack, Committed Attack, or All-Out Attack. While players get to choose these actions freely, believable NPC cannon fodder prefer not to get killed by giving up defense for movement and offense. Changing their mind requires some effort. Realistic warriors trained to operate as part of a large unit will only charge, take ground, and bring the fight to the enemy if inspired to do so. A Leadership roll might let a PC warrior manage this.

Fighters trained as individual combatants don't work the same way. They tend to be too strong-willed and proud to have a leader telling them what to do. Frequently, they're impetuous and suffer from the opposite of the problem above: they tend to advance even when this would be unwise. This describes PCs better, and is why Leadership mostly only gives small Fright Check and self-control bonuses to avoid hesitation.

Like all social skills, though, Leadership is something used by PCs on NPCs. Use it on other PCs at your peril.

[Kromm]

And separately from the above, because it's totally unrelated to the Leadership skill, I'd echo RPK's suggestion that you simply make this some sort of superhuman power. There are lots of ways to do it, most of which involve Affliction with Accessibility, Advantage, and Area Affect, or simply a suitable trait with Affects Others. If a skill roll is needed, you could even let Leadership replace IQ, Will, or whatever. Just don't misattribute improved physical combat performance to Leadership. Leadership helps you win the mind game, but it doesn't make your troops stronger, faster, or tougher. The reason troops seem faster and stronger when inspired is that they're taking Committed Attack and All-Out Attack to move forward and hit harder, not because they have more Move and ST.

[Kelly Pedersen]

Would it be reasonable to let a Leadership roll act as a complementary skill to the Will roll required for Extra Effort? So, if the troops are charging across No Man's Land, and the platoon sargeant succeeds on his Leadership roll, he gives them +1 to the roll to add to their Move, or +2 if he critically succeeds.

[David Johnston2]

I find that reasonable.

[Kromm]

Yeah, that seems fine. "Mind games" includes things that depend on Will almost by definition; that's why Leadership can boost Will for a Fright Check. Of course, +1 to Will only translates into +5% for extra effort, so it won't be an especially meaningful bump if you use the stock +1/+2. I might let Leadership trigger the "motivated by fear, anger, or concern for a loved one" clause and give +5 to this specific use of Will, which means +25% on extra effort. I figure that if Intimidation can manage that (as written, it can), then it might not be beyond Leadership. Whether that's a good baseline effect or best saved for a critical success would require playtesting to sort out.

Regardless, this feels balanced because it costs FP; it isn't a bonus with no downside. And because the FP give a penalty on extra effort rolls, repeated use has diminishing returns. It seems fairly hard to abuse.

[Peter Knutsen]

Originally Posted by Rev. Pee Kitty

I'd build this as Affliction (Area Effect; Advantages, Striking ST and DX!; Selective Area; Hearing-Based). That isn't cheap, but it shouldn't be -- this is a very potent superpower that you're proposing, here.

As far as I can see, Striking ST in this context is actually much more useful than DX!, because more ST enables those who benefit from the Affliction to penetrate armour that before they couldn't, as opposed to hitting slightly more often.


Also, it shouldn't be DX!, it should be a purpose-made Talent that covers all unarned and melee weapon combat. This lowers the cost from DX!'s 15 CPs per level to 10 CPs per level for a medium-breadth Talent.

[Peter Knutsen]

Originally Posted by Rev. Pee Kitty

Y'know, I should also mention that if you really want Leadership to do this, and you're the GM, you can just say that it works that way. But that means that every single warrior in the world is going to buy up Leadership skill and use it, so there really won't be any advantage to either side.

One alternative is to allow Leadership to work that way for anyone who buys an Unusual Background -- much like for chambara skills or Imbuement Skills. I'd say 15-20 points is fair if it only beefs up Leadership.

What about offering Charisma with a +100% Enhancement? For every two levels, the character's Leadership skill becomes able to give his allies a +1 bonus to melee and unarmed combat skill rolls?

Essentialy it'd be a new advantage, costing 20 CPs and consisting of 2 levels of Charisma plus the combat skill benefit, and can be bought once or twice (since no one can have more than 5 levels of Charisma IIRC.)

[Figleaf23]

Originally Posted by Phoenix_Dragon

...
The only reason people might be percieved as hitting harder or more accurately with a very successful leadership roll is because that leader motivated them to stop fighting defensively (Defensive Attack or All-Out Defense), and start pressing the offense (Attack, Committed Attack, maybe even All-Out Attack). Leadership is a good way to keep people fighting effectively rather than just trying to save their own lives.

That's a great idea -- using Leadership to induce NPC subordinates to make particular combat maneouvre choices.

It provides an aswer for a problem we sometimes encounter when players and GMs dispute what a NPC hireling or ally 'should' or 'would' do.

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by Peter Knutsen

Also, it shouldn't be DX!, it should be a purpose-made Talent that covers all unarned and melee weapon combat. This lowers the cost from DX!'s 15 CPs per level to 10 CPs per level for a medium-breadth Talent.

Ain't no weapon talents. And for the record, all unarmed and melee weapon combat would NOT be a medium-breath Talent.