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SKILLS
Diplomacy
(Cha; Interaction)
You're skilled in dealing with people, from proper etiquette and social graces to a way with words and public speaking. Use this skill to convince people to do what you want them to do, or to just make them friendly towards you.
Check: You can convince people to accept your offers and suggestions with a successful Diplomacy check. There are two main uses of Diplomacy: Bargaining and Befriending.
Bargaining: You can propose a trade or agreement to another creature with your words; a Diplomacy check can then persuade them that accepting it is a good idea. Either side of the deal may involve physical goods, money, services, promises, or abstract concepts like "satisfaction." The Difficulty for the Diplomacy check is based on three factors: who the target is, the relationship between the target and the character making the check, and the risk vs. reward factor of the deal proposed.
If the Diplomacy check beats the Difficulty, the subject accepts the proposal, with no changes or with minor (mostly idiosyncratic) changes. If the check fails by 5 or less, the subject does not accept the deal but may, at the DM's option, present a counter-offer that would push the deal up one place on the risk-vs.-reward list. For example, a counter-offer might make an Even deal Favorable for the subject. The character who made the Diplomacy check can simply accept the counter-offer, if they choose; no further check will be required. If the check fails by 10 or more, the Diplomacy is over; the subject will entertain no further deals, and may become hostile or take other steps to end the conversation.
Base Difficulty = 10 + level + Wisdom
The base Difficulty for any Diplomacy check is equal to the 10 + level of the highest-level character in the group that you are trying to influence + the Wisdom modifier of the character in the group with the highest Wisdom. For this purpose, a number of characters is only a "group" if they are committed to all following the same course of action. Either one NPC is in charge, or they agree to act by consensus. If each member is going to make up their mind on their own, roll separate Diplomacy checks against each.
The Difficulty of the Diplomacy check is modified by the character's relationship with the other party:
| Modifier | Relationship | Description |
|---|---|---|
| -10 | Intimate | Someone who with whom you have an implicit trust. Example: A lover or spouse. |
| -5 | Ally | Someone on the same team, but with whom you have no personal relationship. Example: A cleric of the same religion or a knight serving the same king. |
| +0 | Indifferent | No relationship whatsoever. Example: A guard at a castle or a traveler on a road. |
| +5 | Enemy | Someone on an opposed team, with whom you have no personal relationship. Example: A cleric of a philosophically-opposed religion or an orc bandit who is robbing you. |
| +10 | Nemesis | Someone who has sworn to do you, personally, harm. Example: The brother of a man you murdered in cold blood. |
This relationship modifier may be further modified by -2 or +2 for characters that have some particular reason to be favourably or unfavourably inclined towards the hero, but perhaps haven't changed their basic relationship. For example: an Imperial agent the heroes spared the life of might still be an Enemy, but the normal +5 might be reduced to a +3 in that case.
The Difficulty is further modified by the risk and the reward the proposed deal offers:
| Modifier | Risk/Reward | Description |
|---|---|---|
| -10 | Fantastic | The reward for accepting the deal is very worthwhile, and the risk is either acceptable or extremely unlikely. The best-case scenario is a virtual guarantee. Example: An offer to pay a lot of gold for something of no value to the subject, such as information that is not a secret. |
| -5 | Favorable | The reward is good, and the risk is tolerable. If all goes according to plan, the deal will end up benefiting the subject. Example: A request to aid the party in battle against a weak goblin tribe in return for a cut of the money and first pick of the magic items. |
| +0 | Even | The reward and risk are more or less even, or the deal involves neither reward nor risk. Example: A request for directions to someplace that is not a secret. |
| +5 | Unfavorable | The reward is not enough compared to the risk involved; even if all goes according to plan, chances are it will end up badly for the subject. Example: A request to free a prisoner the subject is guarding (for which he or she will probably be fired) in return for a small amount of money. |
| +10 | Horrible | There is no conceivable way the proposed plan could end up with the subject ahead, or the worst-case scenario is guaranteed to occur. Example: A offer to trade a bit of dirty string for a castle. |
Note that if the character wishes to lie about the deal being offered, a Bluff check is required. In negotiations, all participants roll opposed Diplomacy checks to see who gets the advantage. Opposed checks also resolve cases where two advocates plead opposing cases before a third party.
Befriending: Diplomacy can influence a character's attitude over time, and make them friendlier towards you. The Narrator chooses the character's initial attitude based on circumstances. Most of the time, people the heroes meet are indifferent toward them, but a specific situation may call for a different initial attitude.
To adjust your relationship with another character, you must make FOUR successful Diplomacy checks against them. The Difficulty of these checks is equal to a normal bargaining use of Diplomacy, so it's 15 plus the target's level, plus their Wisdom, plus the relationship modifier, plus any appropriate modifiers for the deal (if you can demonstrate an advantage to them becoming more friendly with you, or on the flip side, if you're a jerk). After four successes, the target's relationship with you improves by one category (you can't improve someone who's Intimate with you already). If you succeed on the check by more than 10, you gain two successes on that attempt.
You may only make one befriending check against a given target per scene, and such a check requires spending at least an hour with the target (although you can be doing other things during that time). If your last befriending attempt against this target was successful, you gain a +2 bonus on the check. On the other hand, if your last attempt was unsuccessful, you suffer a -2 penalty on the check.
If you fail twice at befriending checks before you succeed four times, the target's relationship with you goes DOWN one level. A failure by more than 10 immediately moves the target's relationship with you down one level. Note that if you are attempting to befriend someone under false pretenses (i.e. you want something from them beyond friendship), you must make a Bluff check prior to each Diplomacy check or else the befriending attempt automatically fails.
Challenges: You can take the following challenges with Diplomacy:
Combat Diplomacy: You can make a Diplomacy check in combat as a full-round action by accepting a +10 modifier to the Difficulty. Opponents in combat with you are considered enemies. An indifferent opponent doesn't attack you unless you give him reason to do so. Allied foes stop fighting altogether, and, well, you're not likely to make anyone Intimate during combat.
Try Again: Generally, trying again doesn't work. Even if the initial check succeeds, the other character can only be persuaded so far. If the initial check fails, the other character has probably become more firmly committed to his position, and trying again is futile. At the Narrator's discretion, you can try again when the situation changes in some way: you find a new approach to your argument, new evidence appears, and so forth.
Action: Diplomacy is at least a full-round action. The Narrator may determine some negotiations require a longer period of time, perhaps much longer.