[Basic] Advantage of the Week (#23): Claim to Hospitality

[Otaku]

Last Week: Charisma, Reputation
Next Week: Clairsentience

Claim to Hospitality [1 to 10] (p. B41-42) is one of the many Social Advantages open to characters that represents NPCs predisposed towards providing certain forms of assistance, like Allies and Ally Groups (already discussed here) or Contacts and Contact Groups (both still pending). The chief benefit of Claim To Hospitality is saving yourself the cost (and some of the hassle) of finding lodging as it allows you to impose upon someone else for food, shelter and basic aid. The more widely available the help, the more valuable the Claim to Hospitality is:

• [1] - Single instance, like a friend with a house in another city
• [2] - A few instances, like a small family
• [5] - Multiple instances, like a society of merchants along an important trade route
• [10] - An incredibly vast network, like every merchant in the world

The more points are invested, the more "impressive" those against whom you have a claim are as well; the pattern in the book examples (paraphrased above) goes friend to family to moderately sized, significantly placed group to a fantastically expansive group (that the p. B41 generalizes as a "vast array of wealthy individuals"). RAW doesn't specify if Claims can exist at intermediary costs or not: it looks doable but also a bit awkward.

Provided the situation is already appropriate, meeting an individual for which you have a Claim to Hospitality should be fairly easy: roll three dice with a 14 or less being a success after 1d-1 hours of searching. No minimum is specified for the time based roll so I would assume that a roll of "1" means 1-1=0 hours (you find someone right away). On the other hand, randomly bumping into someone is only a roll of 6 or less on three dice and that is still only if it would be appropriate to encounter them there at all.

Members of the group should be friendly towards each other (+3 to Reaction rolls) the basic assistance they can provide instead of or in addition to a place to crash can be advice, introductions and possibly even small loans. Periodically, it may even approach that of a Contact. Of course if you want it to regularly approach or match a Contact, you should buy that Advantage instead. If you want even more, then buy an Ally or Patron, as appropriate. There are some minor built in drawbacks as well; if you've got a Claim to Hospitality, it usually runs both ways. So while you can (for example) impose on your friend for a place to stay the night, your friend might sometimes hit you up for a place to stay. Sometimes you may be expected to give gifts to those with which you stay (at least if you appear appropriately Wealthy).

GURPS Power-Ups: Perks actually has some Perks that include some form of a Claim to Hospitality built in: Cutting-Edge Training, Magical School Familiarity and Style Familiarity. You can see traces of certain Disadvantages, and a Claim to Hospitality might be appropriate opposite traits like a Duty or Sense of Duty.

So...

1) Have you ever been a part of a game where this Advantage was used?
2) Do you think this looks like it is appropriately priced?
3) Feedback on how you think this series of threads is going is also welcome.

It may seem almost backwards, but between how this discussion may ultimately end up overlapping with both a past and future discussion and the low amount of posts (relative to many other threads in this series), I am just going to focus on this single Advantage. Okay, so I also am continuing to be more busy than I am used to, and was afraid I wasn't going to make my own self-imposed deadline if I tried to work in say Contact Groups and Contacts. Those two will probably warrant their own thread, anyway. ;)

[WaterAndWindSpirit]

Originally Posted by Otaku

Last Week: Charisma, Reputation
Next Week: Pending

Claim to Hospitality [1 to 10] (p. B41-42) is one of the many Social Advantages open to characters that represents NPCs predisposed towards providing certain forms of assistance, like Allies and Ally Groups (already discussed here) or Contacts and Contact Groups (both still pending). The chief benefit of Claim To Hospitality is saving yourself the cost (and some of the hassle) of finding lodging as it allows you to impose upon someone else for food, shelter and basic aid. The more widely available the help, the more valuable the Claim to Hospitality is:

• [1] - Single instance, like a friend with a house in another city
• [2] - A few instances, like a small family
• [5] - Multiple instances, like a society of merchants along an important trade route
• [10] - An incredibly vast network, like every merchant in the world

The more points are invested, the more "impressive" those against whom you have a claim are as well; the pattern in the book examples (paraphrased above) goes friend to family to moderately sized, significantly placed group to a fantastically expansive group (that the p. B41 generalizes as a "vast array of wealthy individuals"). RAW doesn't specify if Claims can exist at intermediary costs or not: it looks doable but also a bit awkward.

Provided the situation is already appropriate, meeting an individual for which you have a Claim to Hospitality should be fairly easy: roll three dice with a 14 or less being a success after 1d-1 hours of searching. No minimum is specified for the time based roll so I would assume that a roll of "1" means 1-1=0 hours (you find someone right away). On the other hand, randomly bumping into someone is only a roll of 6 or less on three dice and that is still only if it would be appropriate to encounter them there at all.

Members of the group should be friendly towards each other (+3 to Reaction rolls) the basic assistance they can provide instead of or in addition to a place to crash can be advice, introductions and possibly even small loans. Periodically, it may even approach that of a Contact. Of course if you want it to regularly approach or match a Contact, you should buy that Advantage instead. If you want even more, then buy an Ally or Patron, as appropriate. There are some minor built in drawbacks as well; if you've got a Claim to Hospitality, it usually runs both ways. So while you can (for example) impose on your friend for a place to stay the night, your friend might sometimes hit you up for a place to stay. Sometimes you may be expected to give gifts to those with which you stay (at least if you appear appropriately Wealthy).

GURPS Power-Ups: Perks actually has some Perks that include some form of a Claim to Hospitality built in: Cutting-Edge Training, Magical School Familiarity and Style Familiarity. You can see traces of certain Disadvantages, and a Claim to Hospitality might be appropriate opposite traits like a Duty or Sense of Duty.

So...

1) Have you ever been a part of a game where this Advantage was used?
2) Do you think this looks like it is appropriately priced?
3) Feedback on how you think this series of threads is going is also welcome.

It may seem almost backwards, but between how this discussion may ultimately end up overlapping with both a past and future discussion and the low amount of posts (relative to many other threads in this series), I am just going to focus on this single Advantage. Okay, so I also am continuing to be more busy than I am used to, and was afraid I wasn't going to make my own self-imposed deadline if I tried to work in say Contact Groups and Contacts. Those two will probably warrant their own thread, anyway. ;)

I don't know if it'll ever get used, but every surface nation shadowkind characters (elves, dwarves, halflings... Dropped in the modern world) in my Urban Arcana conversion would have a 10 point claim to hospitality from their own kind.

[roguebfl]

I've used Claim to Hospitality for Bards in settings where a bard can gard a room and meal from any inn or noble provided they willing to preform and tell the news for it.

[Refplace]

I havhad and used it fro Bards, Priests and guildmembers.
Never really a big deal but a good background and plot device ability.

[Not]

My opinion is that Illuminated belongs in this category.

[Not]

Originally Posted by WaterAndWindSpirit

I don't know if it'll ever get used, but every surface nation shadowkind characters (elves, dwarves, halflings... Dropped in the modern world) in my Urban Arcana conversion would have a 10 point claim to hospitality from their own kind.

That could be covered by the +2 reaction from own kind in Minority Group.

[Otaku]

Originally Posted by WaterAndWindSpirit

I don't know if it'll ever get used, but every surface nation shadowkind characters (elves, dwarves, halflings... Dropped in the modern world) in my Urban Arcana conversion would have a 10 point claim to hospitality from their own kind.

Not quite familiar with the setting but are they that extensive and potent a network of characters to warrant 10 points? I mean I'm clueless about it, so I'm asking.^^'

At the 10 point level its both "An incredibly vast network, like every merchant in the world" and "vast array of wealthy individuals".

Anyway, something interesting is that at least a few modern religions I can think of have teachings that would suggest a Claim to Hospitality, though there is often a significant disconnect between teaching and application (and it may actually route through officials within the organization or at least specific people and not the average adherent).

[WaterAndWindSpirit]

Unless you have committed gross crimes (and even then, they'd want to see hard cold evidence before evicting you), every elven/dwarven/halfling/magical minority you belong to will welcome you, will allow you to lay low at their places if need be, as they need to support each other. Unless you're in the wilds (and even then, you could find former druids), you can get food, shelter and a place to lay low (exceptions are things like the drow, we know drow elves spend their time backstabbing each other). In a modern world where you can find shelter in any town in the world, from dwarves who learned engineering, elven hairdressers and beauty salon owners, who instinctively know you aren't human and know to which D&D subspecies you belong to, and who are willing to help their kind (they may not be rich, but if drow elves are looking for you in town while you're almost dead and in need of healing they will find a way for you to lay low, call the local doctor who's "Aware" (he knows about fantasy creatures) of varying physiologies and willing to heal you and keep shushed about it (as I said unless you committed gross crimes (fights against gangs who are fighting against everyone don't count, neither will violently shutting down a shrine to Lolth/Hextor/Tiamat/other evil D&D deity) and they can see cold hard evidence), and will call their lawyers to find a way to regularize your situation if you need to (you arrive without ID papers, effectively "Zeroed"), it may be worth 10 points yes. :P

[nerdvana]

I am developing a working adaptation of White Wolf's Scion and I'm including a 5 point Claim to Hospitality into the basic character template to represent that all the gods and their children (unless corrupted or an enemy or the like) tends to be open to the idea of helping on a quid pro quo basis (which seems implied with the advantage). This in association with Pantheon Rank is the basis of the succor Scion Heroes can expect to be able to ask for from time to time, both from their family and the other Pantheons.

[jason taylor]

A cultural diaspora of either exiles(Shetl Jews, White Russan's, etc) or pioneers(Anglo-Indians, Overseas Chinese, etc)is likely to have a claim to hospitality.

I have started to work out an elaborate hospitality code. It includes several things. It is for a trade diaspora type of culture(the "Nevites" because their ancestors once ruled a pocket empire centered in the city-state of New Venice) as mentioned above.

1. Dignitaries are to be given hospitality as diplomatic representatives.

2. Wandering scholars and similar dealers in information and culture and "Minervan things" get special treatment not only out of respect for their calling, but because of the practical difficulty of maintaining a technical base on a frontier.

3. Taking care of routine visitors is not obligate otherwise a given chief might find a whole ships crew on his hands. Moreover the visitors might be political or economic rivals. However they are at least told where boarding is to be had and usually there is an exchange of intelligence and useful gossip. It can also include legal assistance. In dire circumstances like a disaster or attack hospitality can take more extreme form sometimes to the point of suspension of a feud. In the case of violence from outside "the kin", such as piracy or pogram or such like an automatic alliance between voyagers from different clans is available and is not considered to leave an honor debt because any favors are paid by the continual readiness to give similar assistance if the shoe is on the other foot. I used that as a plot lever when once the hero's sister was kidnapped by a local warlord in the Sword Worlds. The hero was able to gather a rescue party that included not only his own clan and native volunteers, but fighters mustered from several other visiting ships.

4. The Nevites are not a potlatching people as such. Hospitality is not to be considered the same as flushing money down the latrine; they are traders and know what money means and such frivolity is not only absurd arrogance but an insult to taste. Rather hospitality is judged by the quality of the proceedings. Getting a good party cheaply is a compliment to the host's judgement not an insult and raises reputation. Entertainment can include feasting, public storytelling, displays of athletic, artistic, and intellectual virtuousity. Food can be from a variety of sources, but the meat will usually be game if available; slaughtered meat is dishonorable, and game parks are maintained where visitors can buy the right to hunt(even Jewish clans usually prefer an animal taken with a tranq dart and then slaughtered by a kosher butcher to an animal raised in captivity). Other duties of the host are providing facilities for bathing, sleeping, and in the case of married visitors, convenient lovemaking. One curiousity is that money is not exactly fungible. That is money gained through a "honorable means"(say, an epic trade voyage or as war plunder) is often placed in a separate account so that a host may boast of this when welcoming visitors or spending it on other ceremonial purposes, while money gained through "common"(honest but uninteresting) or "base"(criminal, immoral, or dishonorable things that a clan probably does not wish to talk about anyway), has less of a cachet; this is not a definite rule as obviously practicality interferes; the point is that money can be used as a kind of trophy and a clan's display and largesse are enhanced by a money's source. Another interesting wiggle is that hospitality should serve the community as well as the guest's convenience and the host's prestige. Common ways to do this are putting up guests at a luxury hotel or making use of local caterers. Some adapt the ancient Vilani custom of choosing a member of the clan to billet a distinguished guest, but others just maintain guest houses or use local commercialized hospitality which trade, by the way, is considered an honorable place to invest money.

All this is interesting, at least to me. Much of it is chrome. But it also has gurps ramifications. For instance if there is an attack in a given town a PC can have "allies" to form a posse but the same demand is given him. Giving a party will require a role on savoire-faire as the hosts reputation depends on his ability to arrange one or his wisdom in delegating the arrangement. Other possible ideas are an amiable public debate with a local philosopher with all the other guests watching, and probably wagering. Or a sporting(or not so sporting) duel. Wagering by the way is an accepted part of entertainment and the PC will gain reputation points for taking part.