Revision as of 19:25, 3 August 2004

What Traits Should I roll?

This is a simple discussion of what attributes you should roll in what situations when using the Social Resolution System. A few rules complications are included here and there; these are entirely optional, and should not be considered a require part of the rules system.

Attributes

Charisma is the basic attribute that is assumed to be used most often in this rule. It is used for face-to-face negotiations that involve convincing someone else to see things your way through personal appeals and honest calls to the situation and facts at hand. For this reason, it is the easiest of the three attributes to discuss -- there are no optional rules that need to be added, and no real discussion of how using this attribute might change the rules or the assumptions made within the rules in any real way.

In general, arguements resulting from Charisma will depend more on how you are saying something rather than on exactly what you are saying to that person. You probably won't be making elaborate appeals to logic, are probably being forthright and honest about your intentions and goals, and are most likely to be attempting to accomplish something that you actually care about one way or the other.

A good general rule is: Use charisma when you don't know you have to use something else!

Manipulation is another very basic attribute, and it's not based entirely on "bad" arguements either. One of the most common methods of debate and arguement, the logical appeal, is based on this attribute. Manipulation deals with presenting your points in a method that gets the other person to agree with you, and rather those points are true or not is largely irrelevant to rather this attribute is appropriate for this appeal or not. Thus one shouldn't only use Manipulation for when your being "dishonest", but instead for when your arguement is based on what your saying more than how your saying it or how your presenting yourself. Only in a "default" situation, where it seems to depend on both, should you fall back on "is this tricky/sneaky or not?"

A nice example of something that is Manipulation, rather than Charisma, without being dishonest or tricky: Logically proving to someone that they should stop using a certain drugs using simple facts and realities of the situation at hand. These can include statistics, truths of the drug industry being supported, and other matters. It would not include, so much, things like emotional appeals, heart-wrenching personal experiences, etc.

Getting Caught Lying: If you fail in a Manipulation-based attempt, you automatically loose your opponents trust. He becomes convinced that the entire basis of your arguement is flawed or simply made up (regardless of the truth), and disassociates himself from it. You loose all cumulative penalities to the final difficulty (from past arguements), and the opposition of your mark increases by +1. If he has a chance to do so he is likely to poison others against you as well, raising their opposition as well. You also suffer this penality if someone proves that you lied.

the Advantages of Manipulation: A well-supported selection of facts (true or not) can be a good way of convincing someone something, if you can get them interested in what your having to say in the first place (succeed on your roll). If the Storyteller feels you've made a good factual case on a Manipulation based roll (lies count as facts, as long as you don't get caught), then you may lower a targets Opposition rating by one (or possibly higher for an especially convincing case).

Appearance is the third basic attribute, and can be used just as often -- though it is often overlooked in roleplaying games. The important part of an arguement based on Appearance is not what your saying, how your saying it, or really anything about your arguement at all. Instead, the success of the arguement is based on yourself and your appearance. You convince someone not with words, but with subtler manuevers. This tactic is best used for small favors, but can also have larger effects in certain circumstances.

It should be noted that the magnitude of most appeals based on appearance is low. It's a lot easier to get someone to help you carry some bags across the street because your attractive than it is to get them to betray everything they love for the sake of a pretty face. Which is largely what arguements based on appearance are based upon -- in a way, this is less of a method of persuasion and more of a method of control. The attribute should generally be used whenever there isn't a good arguement being made for the appeal but the target is quite obviously trying to get the other person to do something.

Do You have what it takes?: You have to have an appearance of 2+ to make these appeals. Yes, average looking people can make Appearance appeals if they wish to do so. In fact, it's not all that uncommon.

the Temperate: Those with a high Temperance rating are the bane of anyone who commonly used this method of persuaasion. Any mark with a Temperance of three or higher may subtract his (Temperance -2) from the character's appeal roll. They are also likely to have a fairly middling to high Opposition value to boot, depending on what is being asked. If Temperance is a great weakness of this style, it is also an advantage! Any arguement made against someone with Temperance 1 has +3 bonus dice. A mark with Temperance 0 also gives the appeal an automatic success. These low Temperance targets calculate their Opposition values as normal, however.

the Magnitude Factor: The magnitude of a favor has a larger factor on appearance-based appeals than normal. It's somewhat easier to get someone to do minor favors for you if you are gorgeous or flirt a little. On the other hand, it can take a little more than a pretty face to get someone to turn over the keys to the kingdom! Any appeal with a magnitude of 1 utterly ignores Opposition. Appeals of magnitude 2 lower the Opposition rating by one. Appeals higher than magnitude 3 are not reduced by the cumulative penality for being ignored.

the 'Social' Abilities

Other Abilities