Good examples of Social Regards?

[Peter Knutsen]

Originally Posted by Kromm

Probably true. I'm not above admitting that not every 3e thing translated nicely to 4e. I'd probably price Charisma at 10-15 points/level, were I starting from scratch.

10 or 15 CPs? Are you serious?

[Brandy]

Originally Posted by Peter Knutsen

What do you think Charisma should cost, then? 6 CPs per level? 7?

1 level of Charisma grants:
1) +1 reaction from everyone
2) +1 on all Influence Rolls (which is sort-of talent like)
3) +1 with four other skills (which is definately talent-like)

To me, the value of those things together is somewhere around 10-12 points.

And should it depend on the campaign type?

I think it should depend on how the GM "games" influence -- see below.

In a standard fantasy campaign, Appearance is almost as useful as Charisma, because it works on most of the intelligent creatures you're likely to encounter, whereas in a standard space-based campaign, you will encounter lots of different species that just doesn't instinctively react to the human standards of beauty.

Not really. 1 Level of appearance grants +1 reaction only, and while in many campaigns the reaction bonus part of Charisma will have the same scope as the reaction bonus of Appearance, Charisma isn't limited to those that can see you -- Appearance is. Further, Appearance doesn't have any of the talent-like qualities of Charisma.

Here's the deal, though. I suspect that very few GMs use the mechanics of social influence as faithfully as they use, say, the mechanics of the combat system or even the mechanics of the task resolution system, i.e. skill rolls.

If a GM doesn't really use reaction rolls, or if a GM doesn't really allow a lot of active social influence checks, then Charisma is really not much more than a little 5 point talent (Leadership, Fortune-Telling, Public Speaking, and Panhandling) with a broader-than-usual reaction modifier. For that style of play, Charisma at 5/level is probably okay.

However, if the social influence mechanics are being used to overcome obstacles as frequently and as faithfully as the combat mechanics, then Charisma is worth a minimum of 10 points, perhaps more.