Expanded Repartee and Reputation Actions

A while back I wrote up some expanded Repartee and Reputation Action rules for my long-term 7th Sea campaign. I have 6 actions worked out: Inquire, Charm, Intimidate, Taunt, Acquaint, and Befriend. Tonight I put them up on this blog. It should be obvious that all are derivative from the rules in 7th Sea, and would not be possible without the efforts and creativity of the fine folks at Alderac Entertainment Group. These 6 actions/rules started from the rules for Intimidation, Taunting and Charming in the 7th Sea Player's Guide, augmented by the Introductions rules from the Montaigne Sourcebook. From there I just kept building it up and refining it.

All are designed to work with the (Like/Dislike/Useful ratings of the) Political system in the Montaigne Sourcebook and/or the (Coins/Cups/Staves/Swords ratings of the) Fateweb system in the Player's Guide and Vodacce sourcebook. You can interchange the two systems (like I did) or pick the one that's better suited to your campaign and characters.

Rules like this don't supplant good role-playing, they augment it. Good acting can be rewarded with Drama Dice, free raises, extra L/D/U or C/C/S/S points, etc. The GM should never let his common sense and flair for the dramatic be over-ruled by these rules. While I wrote up very complicated rules to cover every situation, I tend to apply them very liberally and lightly. The point of the rules is to provide a consistent backbone to the game, not to slow things down or ruin great scenes. They also provides a fall-back "plan b" for those times when the player just can't find the words their witty PC should come to easily. Most happily, they are a decent solution to the problems stemming from an area that is one of my biggest pet-peeves in RPG design.

P.S.: There's a lot of typos and spelling mistakes in these files, and for some reason every instance of CUPS (etc) is capitalized. I never expected them to reach the light of public record when I first wrote them. I may go clean them up later, but for now you just gotta deal with it.

Expanded Repartee: Befriend

Expanded Repartee & Reputation Action Rules, Page 6:

Befriend: You may make a Befriend roll at the end of each Act towards each person you were friendly to during the Act, up to a maximum number of people equal to your Panache.

If you were mean to them at any point during the Act, or in any way caused an increase of their SWORDS/Dislike in the Act, you may not make a Befriend roll towards them. You may not make this roll if you made a Taunt or Intimidate roll against them this Act.

You may not use this action towards someone whose SWORDS/Dislike of you is greater than their CUPS/Like and their STAVES/Useful and COINS/Useful ratings towards you. You may also not use this action against anyone whose total Like, Useful or Dislike of you is greater than 10 combined (or whose total of all four suits towards you is greater than 12) at that point, their concept of you is very strongly formed and unlikely to change without major on-camera events.

Roll Wits + Socializing, contested by the other persons Resolve + Scheming.
Your target number is equal to 5 + 5 x their Scheming.

Thier Scheming is used to represent their general Paranoia and possible Suspicious nature.

They add their SWORDS/Dislike of you to their Roll, and to the TN you need to hit.

If you are successful, their Like of you goes up by 1.

Failed rolls: If you fail the roll, their Like and Useful ratings towards you go down by 1 each. It cannot and does not increase their Dislike - that can only happen by mistakes that happen on-camera.

Raises: Each additional Raise on the roll grants +1 extra point of CUPS/Like or STAVES/Useful, as you wish.

Note: This does NOT replace the favors and gifts section of the Intrigue system of the Montaigne Sourcebook. It is intended instead to augment that system and cover any interactions between the PCs and NPCs that might have occurred offstage or been glossed over during role-playing due to time or plot constraints.
As a Player, you are NOT required to make Befriend rolls for any NPCs if you do not want to.

Expanded Repartee: Acquaint

Expanded Repartee & Reputation Action Rules, Page 5:

Acquaint: This is the method used to introduce yourself to an NPC, or to leave a favorable impression in the mind of an NPC you just met.

Roll Panache + Socializing or Wits + Jester, contested by the other persons Resolve + Gossip.
Your target number is equal to 5 + 5 x their Gossip (+5 to TN if you used Wits + Jester)

Their Gossip is used to represent whatever bad they may have heard of you before this meeting.
If this is your first meeting, add your Reputation Rank to your Roll (subtract your Reputation Rank from your Roll if you are a scoundrel unless they are also a Scoundrel or Villain).

If you are successful, they become a new Connection with CUPS/Like:1, STAVES/Useful:0, COINS/Useful:0 and SWORDS/Dislike:0

Failed rolls: Should you fail the die roll, they instead get Like:0, Useful:0 and Dislike:1

Introductions: If a mutual friend (or Acquaintance) introduces you, it has several effects:
First, you gain a Free Raise.
Secondly, on top of the Free Raise, you add to your roll either the mutual friends CUPS/Like or STAVES/Useful rating towards you.
Thirdly, the new contact adds the mutual friends SWORDS/Dislike (of you) to their roll.
Lastly, success grants you L, U and D ratings with the new person equal to 1/2 those of the mutual friend’s ratings, rounded up. If using the Vodacce system, the same applies to all four suits.

Raises: Each additional Raise on the roll grants +1 extra point of CUPS/Like or STAVES/Useful, as you wish.

Alternate Rolls: You may roll Wits + any Knack you and the other person have instead of Panache+Socializing or Wits+Jester. This represents you trying to find a common interest to talk about. If you do this, they get a Free Raise on their roll.
If you pick a Knack they don’t have (but it is in a skill they have), they get 2 Free Raises on their roll.
If you pick a Knack not even occurring in any of their skills, You FAIL automatically.

Expanded Repartee: Taunt

Expanded Repartee & Reputation Action Rules, Page 4:

Taunt: This is the method by which you may cause NPCs to become upset, enraged or embarrassed. Doing so will quickly make an enemy of them, but it will also give you the upper hand in many situations.

Roll Panache + Jester or Panache + Incitation, contested by the other persons Panache + Diplomacy/Etiquette or their Panache + Jester/Incitation.
Your target number is equal to 5 + 5 x their Knack.
Thier Diplomacy or Etiquette is used to represent their ability to make you not want to hurt them. If instead they are trying to fight back, they use Panache + Jester or Incitation.

If you are successful, they are required to make a Raise in order to be successful with the next action they take against you and all other actions they take in the same turn as that action. Taunting makes them unlikely to be successful against you, but woe to you if they are: all those Raises they make still count for their normal benefits (such as augmented damage, increased duration, etc).

Restrictions: If you’re trying to be sly or hide the course of your conversation from observers. In such a case, you roll the lower of your Innuendo or Jester knacks.

Failed rolls: There are no side effects (beyond SWORDS/Dislike) to failing a Taunt roll unless you are in a public place. See “Reputation” below...

Dislike: Your first successful Taunt in each Scene gives the NPC 1 point of SWORDS/Dislike for you. Subsequent Taunts only gift SWORDS/Dislike if they cost the victim Reputation (See below).

Reputation: If you succeed at your Taunting in a Public Place, you gain Reputation Points equal to their Reputation Rank, and they lose Reputation Points equal to your Reputation Rank.
The situation is reversed if they roll Jester or Incitation and win.
If they roll Diplomacy or Etiquette and Win, you lose points as normal, but they do not gain any.

Raises: Each additional Raise on the roll increases the number of Raises they need to make by +1 more.
Alternatively, you may make Raises to increase the number of Actions for which they must Raise against you.
Making a Taunt’s effects last (if unused before then) to a later Scene is +1 Raise.
Making a Taunt’s effects last (if unused before then) to a later Act is +2 Raises.

Alternate Rolls: In any given scene, you may roll Wits instead of Panache for any 1 single Taunt roll. This represents your having thought up a good zinger for just this occasion.

Free Raise: may be gained if the player voices a very good in-character taunt or insult at the NPC. (GMs discretion)

Expanded Repartee: Intimidate

Expanded Repartee & Reputation Action Rules, Page 3:

Intimidate: This is the method by which you may cause NPCs to Fear you. To do so, you must make some sort of threat, as an action. If they are unarmed or badly outclassed (non-swordsman vs master) you may even count an attack as an Intimidate action.

Roll Brawn + Threaten or Resolve + Interrogation, contested by the other persons Resolve + Diplomacy or their Resolve + Threaten.
Your target number is equal to 5 + 5 x their Diplomacy or 5 + 5 x their Threaten.
Thier Diplomacy is used to represent their ability to make you not want to hurt them. If instead they are trying to fight back, they use Brawn + Threaten.

If you are successful, you inflict a 1 unkept die penalty from all their actions against you for the remainder of the scene.

The amount of power you hold over them gives you an edge. Add their STAVES/Useful or COINS/Useful rating for you to your roll.

Restrictions: If you’re trying to be sly or hide the course of your conversation from observers. In such a case, you roll the lower of your Innuendo or Threaten knacks.

Failed rolls: If you fail an Intimidate roll, you may not attempt to intimidate that same person in the same scene again unless you up the Ante (such as by inflicting pain upon them if you hadn’t previously, or threatening to hurt their loved ones when you’d previously be threatening only your target).

Dislike: Any Intimidate attempt gives the NPC 1 point of SWORDS/Dislike for you, regardless of whether or not it is successful.

Reputation: Using Intimidate in a Public setting causes you to lose 1 Reputation point.
If you have a Negative Reputation and fail an Intimidate roll, you instead actually gain 1 Reputation point (this is a penalty, if you think about it).

Raises: Each additional Raise on the roll increases the Penalty by -1 more die.

Expanded Repartee: Charm

Expanded Repartee & Reputation Action Rules, Page 2:

Charm: This is the method by which you may influence the opinions or goals of an NPC. To do so, you must list the opinion you intend for them to develop, and then roll as follows:

Roll Resolve + a Knack listed below, contested by the other persons Wits + Scheming or Wits + ColdRead
Your target number is equal to 5 + 5 x their Scheming or 0 + 5 x their Cold Read.
Their Scheming or Cold Read is used to represent their ability to notice your ulterior motives.
To convince them of your point takes 1 successful roll per point of Resolve they have.

The following Knacks may be used by you:
Socializing, if the person has at least 1 point of CUPS/Like for you. Add their CUPS/Like to your roll, subtract thier SWORDS/Dislike.
Seduction, if you’re really trying to charm them. Add their CUPS/Like or STAVES/Useful to your roll, subtract thier SWORDS/Dislike.
Bribery, if you are offering them money or gain. The amount you offer them may add 1 or more Free Raises to your roll. Add their COINS/Useful to your roll.
Haggling or Shopping, if you’re trying to convince them to lower their prices or accept a business proposition. Add their COINS/Useful to your roll.

Restrictions:
Innuendo, if you’re trying to be sly or hide the course of your conversation from observers. In such a case, you roll the lower of your Innuendo or other Knack.
Loyalty or Love (strong Staves or Cups): if you’re trying to turn someone against another person they have a 6+ in STAVES/Useful or CUPS/Like for, they gain +1 Kept Die to thier defensive roll, and STAVES/Useful or CUPS/Like rating added to your passive TN.

Failed rolls: If you fail a Charm roll, you may make no further Charm attempts versus that NPC in regards to that topic for the remainder of this Act. In addition, you must immediately make a Panache + Ettiquette roll vs 5 + 5 x their Ettiquette. Failure on that second roll results in them gaining 1 SWORDS/Dislike of you.


Raises:
To speed up the process, you may make Raises. Each Raise counts as an additional success towards your goal of successes equaling their Resolve.
To make the target completely unaware of your Influence upon them, you must make raises equal to thier Scheming rank.
Charm is temporary. Each Raise for Duration roughly doubles how long the person behaves under the new line of thinking.
Convince them of more than 1 thing at a time: +1 Raise per additional opinion voiced.

Extra Successes may be needed:
If you are trying to convince someone of something that would put them in danger or go against their nature or immediate goals, you will need double the normal number of successes or raises.

Expanded Repartee: Inquire

Expanded Repartee & Reputation Action Rules, Page 1:

Inquire: At the start of a conversation, a player may announce their intent to gather information about or from the NPC they are speaking with. To do so, the player must announce a list of no less than 2 topics they are interested in learning about. The GM will then provide them with a difficulty number as follows:

Roll Wits + a Knack listed below, contested by the other persons Wits+Sincerity.
Your target number is equal to 5 x their Sincerity.
It does not matter if they do not wish to conceal anything about that subject. The roll is based off how hard it is to generally get the truth from them and be certain that it is the truth.

The following Knacks may be used:
Socializing, if the person has at least 1 point of CUPS/Like for you. Add their CUPS/Like to your roll, subtract their SWORDS/Dislike.
Bribery, if you are offering them money or gain. Add their COINS/Useful to your roll. The amount you offer them may add 1 or more Free Raises to your roll.
Gossip, if the information you seek is about a third party. If the third party is a friend and the info would be damaging, you must place an additional raise on this action to succeed.
Interrogation or Threaten, if you are using physical violence or its threat against a person. Add their STAVES/Useful to your roll. Causing them harm grants 1 Free Raise, regardless of the amount of damage done.
Seduction, if you’re intending to offer yourself as a bribe. Add their CUPS/Like to your roll.

Restrictions: The following may limit your dice roll in some situations (much as how Balance limits your Footwork when in the rigging of a ship: You roll the lower Knack of the two)
Riddles or Occult, if seeking esoteric knowledge dispensed by metaphor. If the knowledge involves info about a Master-level mystery, you must also make a raise.
Innuendo, if you’re trying to be sly or hide the course of your conversation from observers. In such a case, you roll the lower of your Innuendo or other Knack.
Cold Read, if you are looking for only very vague or general information, like determing if two people have ever met.
Lip Reading or Ambush, if you aren’t talking to your subject, but instead just watching or listening in on their conversation with another.

If your target has a secretive Background (Mistaken Identity, Hunted, Treasure Map, etc) they may add a Unkept Die to their Sincerity Roll for each point of the Background.

If you are inquiring about their secretive memberships (that they spent points on, be that Secret Societies, or just possessing MacEarchen Weapons or forbidden magic like El Fuego Adentro) they may add a Kept Die to their roll.

Failed rolls: If you fail a Gather Information roll, you may gain no further information on those topics from that individual for that day. In addition, you must immediately make a Panache + Etiquette roll vs 5 x thier Wits. Failure on that second roll results in them gaining 1 SWORDS/Dislike of you.

Raises: If you seek info on more than topics than your Panache, each extra topic requires +1 Raise.
If you add extra topics mid conversation, you must make another roll, with +1 Raise.
To make the target unaware of your probing, you must make raises equal to thier Scheming rank.
To list just a single topic or gain answer to a specific question: +3 Raises.

On a success, you get all non-secretive info on those topics, +1 Secret. +1 Secret/Raise.