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07-13-2018, 12:50 AM | #1 |
Join Date: May 2018
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Contests to change reaction roll results
What about allowing contests to change reaction roll results so that characters can try to "dig themselves out of the hole they just dug"?
You can role play trying to change opinions and impressions instead of using conflict rules but that makes social skills entirely subjective. Worse, it makes it difficult or impossible for someone to play a character who is more articulate, witty, or charming than they are. If the GM just crosses their arms and says, "convince me," instead of using conflict rules, there's an entire landscape of conflict that's missing from a game that's all about conflict. *** In real life, if you ask for something and you get a refusal, you might try entreating, charming, joking, threatening, seducing, bribing, or deception (the last four really depend on who you are). If you try humor, maybe they'll think you're making light of a serious situation (but maybe comedy is your strong suit). If you try deception, maybe the other person has Detect Lies. If you try bribing them, maybe they're particularly honest. If you try seduction, well, maybe you're just not their type. In our games, like in most RPGs, the rolling starts when the players get a reaction they don't like. The difference is that before they draw their weapons, they try to use social skills... You can use contests as combat-like rules for changing opinions or impressions: they allow offense, defense, and aiding your cohorts. This makes social skills worth getting, meaningful in the game, and fun to use, so every character has some social skills because it's just a matter of survival. Characters can often avoid combat or imprisonment by using them; they add another dimension to the game and they make characters like Dr Who fun to play. In TFT, when personality comes into play and the GM hasn't detailed the NPC, personality rolls should work fine for that. |
07-13-2018, 11:24 AM | #2 |
President and EIC
Join Date: Jul 2004
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Re: Contests to change reaction roll results
No arguments. Well-thought-out post.
Is there a specific way you think that should be implemented? Could it be dealt with in a few lines at the end of Reactions or Contests or both? What are you thinking? Perhaps "A bad reaction roll does not have to be the end of the scene. PCs can make a better offer, change their approach . . . roleplay it! The GM may choose to allow a new reaction roll, though perhaps at a penalty." |
07-13-2018, 12:04 PM | #3 |
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Arizona
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Re: Contests to change reaction roll results
Since we aren't entirely sure what the final set of Talents will look like, I'm not sure if the following suggestion has any merit or not:
Assuming that a few new "social interaction" talents are included (persuasion, intimidation, fast talk (con artist?), whatever) the entire series of social interaction rolls could be informed by them. Putting it another way, if your initial approach to the target NPC fails (bad reaction roll), allow the player to "change his approach" by switching to some other form of interaction; say from persuasion to fast talk, and then roll again -- at a disadvantage since the NPC is already inclined against him. If Fast Talk fails, then perhaps he can switch to Intimidation -- with or without a disadvantage (he's failed twice, but if he's REALLY intimidating, maybe that cancels the first two failures). Basically, I'm thinking you could only re-roll (under this suggestion) if you can change to a different approach towards the NPC. However, I would also say that these kinds of Talents would be the kind that anyone can attempt, though they would do so by rolling 4/Attribute if they don't actually have the Talent (e.g., 4/ST for Intimidation contest). I'll offer an example to help illustrate, though again this is based on what can only be defined as a lack of understanding of the available talents or how you're thinking about running contests in the final rules: Snark the Orc has attempted to make a deal with a local Merchant (Evard). Unfortunately, his initial attempt failed because Evard had a bad reaction roll towards Snark. Snark still wants to get the dagger he came for, so he now decides to try Intimidation. Unfortunately for Snark, he lacks the Intimidation Talent. So, in this contest, he will roll 4/ST to intimidate, and Evard will roll 3/IQ to resist being intimidated. Snark's ST is 14, but he rolls a 16. Evard's IQ is 11 and he rolls a 12. Both failed their rolls, but Snark failed by two, while Evard only failed by one, so Evard "wins" the contest, and intimidation fails to gain Snark the deal on the dagger. Evard tells Snark to get out of his shop and that if he comes back, Evard will call the watch on him! |
07-13-2018, 01:50 PM | #4 | |
Join Date: May 2018
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Re: Contests to change reaction roll results
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How contests actually work would be covered in the section on contests :) |
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07-13-2018, 02:45 PM | #5 | |
Join Date: Apr 2014
Location: Coquitlam B.C.
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Re: Contests to change reaction roll results
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If we are using a 1 die reaction roll spread, +2/-2 is a huge swing. If we go to a GURPS like 3 die reaction roll like I suggested, modifying it by two seems fine. Warm regards, Rick. |
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07-13-2018, 04:17 PM | #6 | |
Join Date: May 2018
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Re: Contests to change reaction roll results
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It looks to me like +2 could change hostile to neutral or neutral to friendly and vice versa for -2. Is that unreasonable for good success? I dunno, it's possible that it should be 3 instead of 2. Maybe Steve will comment on these things... |
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07-13-2018, 06:38 PM | #7 |
President and EIC
Join Date: Jul 2004
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Re: Contests to change reaction roll results
On the one hand, we want PCs to succeed in the long run. On the other hand, we don't want to hand them the cookie jar right away - that is no fun for anyone.
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