Modelling Equal Gender Appeal

whswhs · 02-13-2022, 07:12 AM

In general, reaction modifiers also act as modifiers to Influence rolls. But this doesn't seem to be the case for Appearance. It's listed specifically as giving its standard bonuses to Sex Appeal for above average Appearance (and double penalties for below average Appearance), and as giving bonuses to Intimidation for seriously negative Appearance; I think that (a) these clearly supersede the standard reaction roll bonuses in these cases, rather than adding to them, (b) this strongly suggests that Appearance modifiers don't apply to the other four Influence skills, for which they aren't listed (for comparison, Voice is listed for Diplomacy, Fast-Talk, and Sex Appeal, but not the other three, and the definition of Voice concurs), and (c) if you have a split modifier, it seems clear that you get the higher modifier to Sex Appeal for those attracted to your sex, but for those not attracted to your sex, you don't get to roll in the first place, and therefore the lower modifier is irrelevant.

But what if you have Appearance (Androgynous) and an intermediate modifier?Or what if you have the Androgynous perk and a lower level of appearance?

The perk definition in Power-Ups 2 says that "With minimal effort, you can ensure that you’re mistaken for whatever sex is convenient." This seems to apply at least to disguising yourself as the other sex; it could at least be taken as saying that there are no penalties to the Disguise roll. However, I note that the Extreme Sexual Dimorphism perk gives you +1 to Sex Appeal, but -1 to Disguise when trying to remain anonymous; this makes me wonder if a normal roll to appear to be the other sex is unmodified, and if an Androgynous person might get a bonus, perhaps a minimal +1, or perhaps a +4 or so (that is, even default skill would often be good enough.)

It seems as if, if you have disguised yourself as the other sex, you'll get the reaction modifiers for people attracted to that sex. If you're Handsome/Beautiful, the Disguise roll is normal difficulty (whatever that is in this case), but others will react to you at +4; if you're Handsome/Beautiful (Androgynous), others will react to you only at +3 (you're not quintessentially masculine/feminine), but it's easier, perhaps much easier, to pass for the other sex and get that +3.

Question: If you're Androgynous, can you use Disguise to conceal the ambisexual quality of your appearance? This would get you +4 from those attracted to whichever sex you were appearing to be. I could see a case for saying either that this is a relatively easy Disguise roll (since you're good at passing) or that it's a normal difficulty Disguise roll (since your passing normally depends on your having an ambiguous appearance, and you're trying to make your appearance unambiguously masculine or feminine).

Any discussion of the case where the person is NOT disguised, and is known to be their true sex, seems to require more speculation.

02-13-2022, 07:12 AM	#23
whswhs Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Lawrence, KS	Re: Modelling Equal Gender Appeal In general, reaction modifiers also act as modifiers to Influence rolls. But this doesn't seem to be the case for Appearance. It's listed specifically as giving its standard bonuses to Sex Appeal for above average Appearance (and double penalties for below average Appearance), and as giving bonuses to Intimidation for seriously negative Appearance; I think that (a) these clearly supersede the standard reaction roll bonuses in these cases, rather than adding to them, (b) this strongly suggests that Appearance modifiers don't apply to the other four Influence skills, for which they aren't listed (for comparison, Voice is listed for Diplomacy, Fast-Talk, and Sex Appeal, but not the other three, and the definition of Voice concurs), and (c) if you have a split modifier, it seems clear that you get the higher modifier to Sex Appeal for those attracted to your sex, but for those not attracted to your sex, you don't get to roll in the first place, and therefore the lower modifier is irrelevant. But what if you have Appearance (Androgynous) and an intermediate modifier?Or what if you have the Androgynous perk and a lower level of appearance? The perk definition in Power-Ups 2 says that "With minimal effort, you can ensure that you’re mistaken for whatever sex is convenient." This seems to apply at least to disguising yourself as the other sex; it could at least be taken as saying that there are no penalties to the Disguise roll. However, I note that the Extreme Sexual Dimorphism perk gives you +1 to Sex Appeal, but -1 to Disguise when trying to remain anonymous; this makes me wonder if a normal roll to appear to be the other sex is unmodified, and if an Androgynous person might get a bonus, perhaps a minimal +1, or perhaps a +4 or so (that is, even default skill would often be good enough.) It seems as if, if you have disguised yourself as the other sex, you'll get the reaction modifiers for people attracted to that sex. If you're Handsome/Beautiful, the Disguise roll is normal difficulty (whatever that is in this case), but others will react to you at +4; if you're Handsome/Beautiful (Androgynous), others will react to you only at +3 (you're not quintessentially masculine/feminine), but it's easier, perhaps much easier, to pass for the other sex and get that +3. Question: If you're Androgynous, can you use Disguise to conceal the ambisexual quality of your appearance? This would get you +4 from those attracted to whichever sex you were appearing to be. I could see a case for saying either that this is a relatively easy Disguise roll (since you're good at passing) or that it's a normal difficulty Disguise roll (since your passing normally depends on your having an ambiguous appearance, and you're trying to make your appearance unambiguously masculine or feminine). Any discussion of the case where the person is NOT disguised, and is known to be their true sex, seems to require more speculation. __________________ Bill Stoddard I don't think we're in Oz any more.