Driderman
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Off-topic conversationalist extraordinaire!
Posts: 357
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Post by Driderman on Oct 16, 2006 10:31:16 GMT -5
I gotta admit, it's beginning to bug me just a bit... Seems like it's impossible to intimidate player characters, no matter what. To take a few examples, I play a large nasty fellow with an attitude who always carries around his greataxe and gets into trouble. Despite the fact that he obviously is a big mean fellow, I've yet to experience somebody actually being afraid of him, or just at least backing down when he starts dealing out death-threats. Other example, my other character, a battle-priest of Tempus is standing around Isinhold in full battle outfit, a pretty impressive sight if I have to say so myself, and some gnome bumps into him and calls him a big, green metal booger Now he's a pretty friendly sort, but isn't about to take the insult lying down so he grumbles from within his fullface helmet something along the lines of "Do you always adress servants of the Lord Of Battle in such a manner?", which I would assume would make at least some people pause to consider their comments, but said gnome just jabbers off another insult off and wanders off laughing... Now, I'm not saying everyone should just roll over as soon as somebodys starts flexing their muscles, but sometimes it just seems to me that even the most lowly, 1-level characters ( not that there's anything wrong with being low-level of course ) are completely and totally immune to anything resembling intimidation and fear, unless it's the fear effect of monsters in dungeons. Usually, the rp on this server is pretty damn excellent, but in this case I would say it was lacking... Are we all really so intent on our characters being fearless that we have to bring out the dicebag for intimidation efforts?
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Post by Quadhund/Greenhouse on Oct 16, 2006 11:09:52 GMT -5
Are we all really so intent on our characters being fearless that we have to bring out the dicebag for intimidation efforts? Yes. If our PCs weren't as fearless as they are, they wouldn't be adventurers. Here is a link that addresses the issue in a similar fashion. frc.proboards37.com/index.cgi?board=roleplayideas&action=display&thread=1147756662With all the horrific creatures you can fight at level 1, unless you make your intimidate check, that gnome probably has fought worse things than a 7 foot tall man in full plate.
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Post by Booze Hound on Oct 16, 2006 12:29:16 GMT -5
yea, if you think about it, at level one, you are routinely slaying zombies, ghosts, animated ghostly full plate battle machines, etc etc etc. If you really think about it, very few PCs are going to be worthy of fear from other PCs unless they do some serious work. Especially hanging out in a backwater little town like Isinhold. I know it is where everyone hangs out (for some ungodly reason) but if you think about what Isinhold really is...well, it really shouldn't be a hub for bad ass adventurers to hang their hat. So where as some of the locals in the town would certainly be afraid of said PC, other PCs that have fought dragons, Beholders, Demons, etc aren't going to be too impressed unles they have done something worth being impressed about. You have to go to a lot of work to make people afraid of you, i.e. Raven Rift, Ranan, Sharita, Hrothgar, Padrin, Glewien, Deserae, etc. these guys have done bad things/good things, and are well known for their skills and abilities, and are therefore walked lightly around.
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Driderman
Old School
Off-topic conversationalist extraordinaire!
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Post by Driderman on Oct 16, 2006 12:33:49 GMT -5
So what guys are saying, basically, is that for a character to be intimdating he needs to be high-level and indulge in fullfledged combat PvP?
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Post by Quadhund/Greenhouse on Oct 16, 2006 12:58:31 GMT -5
Nope. There are three ways to intimidate a PC, imo. By reputation, show of force, or use the intimidate skill. I know a 6'4" 300 lb korean guy who could be intimidating as hell, but he isn't because of the way he carries himself. Without any ranks in intimidate, I'd say the PC carries himself just like a commoner does. Course if he then proceeds to break a table in half with a fist strike, that might be a bit intimidating.
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Post by ShadowCatJen on Oct 16, 2006 13:58:06 GMT -5
Aside from what's also been already mention on this thread and the other one...
I find that intimidation under multiplayer NWN suffers because of a cross between mechanics and metagaming. For one, players know that if their character dies, they can just respawn. Doesn't matter if it was an NPC monster or a PC that killed them. Death doesn't quite hold the same terror it does when you know that you can come back from it. End result is a case of fearlessness that would be unreasonable in a real world situation. But since this isn't the real world we're talking about... *shrug*
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Post by Kolfrosta on Oct 16, 2006 14:20:21 GMT -5
I think what it boils down to is the way it is roleplayed, and the folks here have made some good points. If Character "A" has fought demons, demiliches, dragons, giants and umpteen numbers of "Arabel orcs", it's doubtful a man in Isinhold is going to intimidate them, great-axe or no. Now it is quite possible said gnome in the previous example has found and fought dragons, giants and such, however looking at him you wouldn't know it would you? It is fine to be intimidating but you aren't going to routinely intimidate adventurers, especially if you aren't well known. Kinda like a barking growling puppy...(they are so cute when they act fierce.) On the flip side, Logandoug mentioned Sharita..sure she has faced and defeated all of the the above mentioned beasties. But to see her sitting in Isinhold doing the "meet and greet", I would think the last thing that should come to someone's mind is "Intimidating". Of course this doesn't in any way suggest she is going to fold to someone's threats.....arrest them and jail them for making threats, maybe...or more likely roll her eyes and walk away and find someone more interesting to talk to ....but certainly not fold to them. (If you are wondering, of the 6 PvPs she has had over the course of her carreer, she lost all but two of them...so, PvP isn't really a factor either...although, for a character like Raven Rift, who's seeming sole goal on the server was PvP, it added dramatically to his intimidation.) Rememebr, there is always a bigger dog than "the big dog". ;D
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Post by DM the Usurper on Oct 16, 2006 15:23:54 GMT -5
but no one bigger then the Usurper
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Post by Munroe on Oct 16, 2006 15:46:45 GMT -5
You have to go to a lot of work to make people afraid of you, i.e. Raven Rift, Ranan, Sharita, Hrothgar, Padrin, Glewien, Deserae, etc. these guys have done bad things/good things, and are well known for their skills and abilities, and are therefore walked lightly around. The only two on that list that have any intimidation factor are Raven Rift and Ranan. The others aren't very well known for their combat prowess except by other epic and near-epic characters. The most intimidating things a character can do is have a reputation or a genuine presence. That puts the half-orc Kah (can't spell his whole name) pretty high in intimidation in my book, Melkroth (the guy just seems Evil), as well as the wizard Phelzaron, who is known to have fought demons in Redmist. Sharita, Aelrik, and Glewien (and others) fought demons in Redmist too, sure, but that isn't what they're known for. I'd also add any Purple Dragon, because it's the armour that intimidates, not the person behind it. Any evil-looking spellcaster is more intimidating than a random brute, because brutes are just muscle, whereas spellcasters have mysterious power beyond the comprehension of the common man. I personally hate Bluff/Intimidate/Persuasion rolls vs. PCs since there's no appropriate counter. I'm of the mind that if you can intimidate someone, then do so. If not, then don't. Rolling dice is no substitute for RP. Halfings are smaller than everyone so intimidating them based on size is not likely to work since they're always smaller. Lightfoot halflings are particularly accustomed to dealing with tall folks. I'm not sure how much this applies to gnomes though since gnomes may hold a different racial disposition. I personally find Torian intimidating but I haven't figured out why. Characters I don't find particularly intimidating would be Theo, Mynian Copperhand, Sitt Nura, Beloril, Mina Barima, Collan, Quendros, Lynarra Bearslayer, .... and others I can't think of right now. Deserae should be intimidating since she's nutty as a fruitcake (my opinion), but she's not around players outside her clique enough for others to get a real sense of her. In fact, the problem with a lot of the so-called "intimidating" characters is they're in their cliques so nobody really gets a sense of just how dangerous they really are.
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Post by DM Richard (Retired) on Oct 16, 2006 16:13:56 GMT -5
I personally find Torian intimidating but I haven't figured out why. Maybe because if she decides she wants you dead she would gut you in a heartbeat without the slightest bit of remorse?
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Post by Munroe on Oct 16, 2006 16:15:48 GMT -5
I personally find Torian intimidating but I haven't figured out why. Maybe because if she decides she wants you dead she would gut you in a heartbeat without the slightest bit of remorse? That's just speculation. She hasn't threatened any of my characters, nor can I ever actually remember her threatening anyone with physical violence.
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Post by DM Richard (Retired) on Oct 16, 2006 16:40:25 GMT -5
Maybe because if she decides she wants you dead she would gut you in a heartbeat without the slightest bit of remorse? That's just speculation. She hasn't threatened any of my characters, nor can I ever actually remember her threatening anyone with physical violence. I think that is part of why I find her so intimidating. She doesn't threaten. She just takes care of business. ;D Or maybe it is just the personality of the player herself. *smiles politely*
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Post by Aodhan the Unusual on Oct 16, 2006 17:06:21 GMT -5
Huh? What? Not Torian... Not sweet, innocent, charming, cuddly Torian.... And yes, she HAS threatened people with physical violence.... Before her sword, she threatened to bash people's kneecaps with her mace... With her sword she's made promises to cut, rip, slice, dice, mince.... I mean, she's never been all that intimidating.... Mouthy, yes. Obnoxious as all hell, most definitely... But intimidating?
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Post by DM Richard (Retired) on Oct 16, 2006 17:28:34 GMT -5
Most characters will be made as brave (not always fearless) characters. Otherwise they wouldn't be adventurers.
Because of this, I think a lot of intimidation is how the PLAYER perceives your character. This perception will differ from player to player. If you can make the player on the other side of the screen feel like you are a threat to their character then your character will be intimidating.
Why is it mostly high levels that seem intimidating? Partially because they have been around for a longer period. If you are an unknown it will does not matter how deadly you are or how scary you think you are.
Another reason is because of the abilities they have gained and the fact that OOC the players know this person can toast their character.
To quote Quadhund, "There are three ways to intimidate a PC, imo. By reputation, show of force, or use the intimidate skill." All three of these methods MAY work on a character. The first two however are more reliable since they may convey the feeling as well as the intent.
There are some high level characters here on FRC that would loose to a much lower level mage most of the time. The first time they face the mage will they be intimidated? Probably not. The second time? Maybe. The 8th or 9th time it happens, the player will know you can and will believe you will. This is the "show of force". Another "show of force" could be when a group of characters surrounds your character.
Reputation would be when word spreads about the mage killing the high level (in the first example I used) and people becoming afraid of him. Or word spreading (in the second example) of the sizable force that a group has at its disposal. You notice I had the mage kill the high level? If the mage just beat him without killing him you wouldn't consider him as dangerous.
This doesn't mean you wouldn't treat him as such but the feeling wouldn't be there.
One last thing, intimidation doesn't mean you can or will hurt someone. It means they believe you can or will. If your character is Lawful or Good you may have a harder time intimidating others when they see your day to day actions.
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Post by malignant on Oct 16, 2006 23:33:08 GMT -5
Okay here's a revelation for you. My characters have been intimidated. I have a level three rogue, took me three weeks to get him there , and he is currently doing a penance for picking pockets. Two things, first the guy who caught him scared the heck out of him. Grim tried running as his first option, doesn't get more intimidated than that. Second; some time later while explaining his penance, (helping out newcomers with a meal, a room and advice if they are down on their luck if you're interested), Grim was overheard by a Purple War Wizard, who's name will remain privileged unless he wishes to reveal it. Now this Wizard quietly informed Grim that this was a good thing that Grim had reformed and made a subtle, well maybe not so subtle, threat that if he was caught picking pockets by said war wizard Grim's life would not be a happy one. Anyway, Grim did not back down. It's not in his nature to roll over and play dead. Grim did not however challenge the wizard. Grim did explain why he picked pockets and went into his usual rant about the poor being oppressed etc, etc, but he was shaking in his boots. The wizard reeked of power and Grimsige wanted none of that action. Even his two adventuring buddies, who I like to think would have backed Grim up, were doing their level best to diffuse the situation. Why? We were intimidated, that's why. It doesn't take a lot to see who's dangerous and who isn't. In real life and in the game (yeah I hate admitting there's a difference too) just see how a person acts. If a street punk walks up to you with a knife, it's intimidating. If a Marine in full kit walks up to you with an M-16, that's much more intimidating. Keep in mind the real killer here, the Marine, will probably be polite and nice as you please, unless you are perceived as a threat. . . As opposed to the street punk who will woof and huff and puff, until you are perceived as a threat, when the response is totally different. Same in the game. When I see a wizard dressed in purple with magic just glowing all over him, I'm more impressed than by a half-orc with a big axe anyone can buy. Heck, Grim just back stabbed a full orc with a two handed axe, why should he be bothered by another one? The intimidation is there, might not work on people who don't know how to role-play, but it is out there. Another point on this is; what do you expect for intimidation? Rolling over in fear and submission? Not gonna happen, even rats got their pride. A little less um, sass and disrespect? Yeah Grim's careful about what he says and to who he says it. Again keep in mind that adventures are made of sterner stuff than most. Malignant AKA Bink Songsmasher, Bard at large/Grimsige, Rogue
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Post by DM Grizwald on Oct 16, 2006 23:36:59 GMT -5
Wow...I think everyone pretty much hit it all. Though i've played here for a while and i was always confused about the intimidation factor. I had one huge character who would growl at the most friendly of pc's and they'd just growl right back. I mean friendly pc's that you've played with using other characters. So intimidation basically just boils down to rp'ing folks. I know its been said but where here to rp so lets do it. You wanna be intimidating, make it happen.
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Post by DM Grizwald on Oct 16, 2006 23:38:07 GMT -5
yea, if you think about it, at level one, you are routinely slaying zombies, ghosts, animated ghostly full plate battle machines, etc etc etc. If you really think about it, very few PCs are going to be worthy of fear from other PCs unless they do some serious work. Especially hanging out in a backwater little town like Isinhold. I know it is where everyone hangs out (for some ungodly reason) but if you think about what Isinhold really is...well, it really shouldn't be a hub for bad ass adventurers to hang their hat. So where as some of the locals in the town would certainly be afraid of said PC, other PCs that have fought dragons, Beholders, Demons, etc aren't going to be too impressed unles they have done something worth being impressed about. You have to go to a lot of work to make people afraid of you, i.e. Raven Rift, Ranan, Sharita, Hrothgar, Padrin, Glewien, Deserae, etc. these guys have done bad things/good things, and are well known for their skills and abilities, and are therefore walked lightly around. Oh PS. Padrin's just been keeping to himself, i think he's lost that intimidation factor
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Post by ChrilWavingdark on Oct 17, 2006 0:05:31 GMT -5
You never scared me you tree hugger!
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Driderman
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Post by Driderman on Oct 17, 2006 8:44:17 GMT -5
Wow...I think everyone pretty much hit it all. Though i've played here for a while and i was always confused about the intimidation factor. I had one huge character who would growl at the most friendly of pc's and they'd just growl right back. I mean friendly pc's that you've played with using other characters. So intimidation basically just boils down to rp'ing folks. I know its been said but where here to rp so lets do it. You wanna be intimidating, make it happen. Well, that was exactly my point to begin with... Let's rp it. And for all your stories about how that gnome ( who for the record was about level 1 or 2, I noticed him on the player list ) might have been a fierce dragon/demon/demilich slayer well, so might my character. Seeing as there's luckily no way to tell whether you're pissing off an epic-level or a newbie, then there's no way to tell if the fellow threatening to bash your head in is Talos' frigging drinking buddy and fight club partner. This is after all, as you say, a place full of adventurers who've faced all sorts of terrors and lived. So when one of said veteran adventurers who looks like a vicious killer starts threatening, who's to say what he can do? Even if you're a bad mofo yourself... And Malignant, no, I am not simply expecting people to roll over. Read my first people, I actually say that word for word if I remember correctly ;D I'd just like it if sometimes, just sometimes, when a blood-crazed greataxe wielding barbarian starts threatening to deal out massive amounts of death, people would at least back down a bit and think twice... Without regression to roll-playing with the dicebag Is that too much to ask? NB: Some people said "if you want to be intimidating, make it happen". Of course. I'm not expecting people to quake in their boots just they see a big man with an axe, but when I start rp his threats ( quite well too usually, if I say so myself, I've even gotten xp for it ;D ) i expect some people to pause to think
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Post by Booze Hound on Oct 17, 2006 9:38:59 GMT -5
I hear ya man, and after reading this, I sat back and thought about it for a long time. And honestly, I cant imagine my character getting anymore than pissed off if some oaf with a big axe starts barking threats. (that's what he would think, I love barbarians ) of course, he is a highish lvl PC, and kicking the crap out of gigantic axe wielding dudes is routine for him and has been for years. I would say that based upon appearance alone, maybe a character from lvl 1-3 may be intimidated by something like what you described. But at any higher than that, you have probably killed that giant 2 headed ogre and all his ogre buddies. and there is also the fact that at level one to three, you can pretty much modiy your armor/appearance/weapon to look as bad ass as you want, even though it isn't anways, one thing that no one has pointed out here that I was thinking of just now is background stories. Yea, your character may be Korgath of Barbaria (I love that show) who has absentmindedly stripped the skin off of an ogre whilst drunk in a tavern before he came to Cormyr...but hm...why is that kobold giving you trouble? this is off topic perhaps, but I think it ties in: Maybe don't create an epic background for your character that you hope to one day level up and be able to fill the shoes of, because it makes things difficult when you are trying to RP that, and you simply cant. I dunno, maybe that doesnt make sense and is off topic.
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Post by Talus on Oct 17, 2006 10:04:16 GMT -5
Well here's my thought. Why is everyone so against the skills and using the dice bag. Sure it disrupts RP some, and it's much more convincing if you don't have to use it. But man, I took those skill points for a reason. And the "there is no effective counter for Bluff, Persuade, and Intimidate" excuse, to me is not there. When a wizard casts fear or charm on you what do you roll? A will check yes that's right. So why can't you roll that to counter the skills?
I guess what I am saying is our characters are diffenrent than the players. And perhaps the player is not as good at the skills as the character. So by making the dice bag roll not an option to me lessen the RP ability of the Character.
So I don't see why as a community we can't agree to assign counters to certain skills, put it in the Rule book and use those when the situation is correct.
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Boogiedk
Old School
A mans home is his castle - But it shouldnt have to be his fortress
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Post by Boogiedk on Oct 17, 2006 10:21:51 GMT -5
and there is also the fact that at level one to three, you can pretty much modiy your armor/appearance/weapon to look as bad ass as you want, even though it isn't anways, one thing that no one has pointed out here that I was thinking of just now is background stories. Yea, your character may be Korgath of Barbaria (I love that show) who has absentmindedly stripped the skin off of an ogre whilst drunk in a tavern before he came to Cormyr...but hm...why is that kobold giving you trouble? this is off topic perhaps, but I think it ties in: Maybe don't create an epic background for your character that you hope to one day level up and be able to fill the shoes of, because it makes things difficult when you are trying to RP that, and you simply cant. I dunno, maybe that doesnt make sense and is off topic. True that ! Gero´s fought dragons , giants , and undead vampire lords . . I am not gonna roll against intimidate because some personage in a shiny suit is copping an attitude and waving a big axe around. . Hell Ranan or Raven doesnt even scare Gero anymore Be good B.
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Post by Lira Fry on Oct 17, 2006 10:40:12 GMT -5
Well here's my thought. Why is everyone so against the skills and using the dice bag. Sure it disrupts RP some, and it's much more convincing if you don't have to use it. But man, I took those skill points for a reason. So I don't see why as a community we can't agree to assign counters to certain skills, put it in the Rule book and use those when the situation is correct. Here's how Intimidate was handled by another server I've played on: Intimidate is rolled against: Hit Dice + target’s Wisdom bonus [if any] + target’s modifiers on saves against fear. Thus higher level characters are less likely to be intimidated... Persuade was handled by an opposed persuade check. Bluff depended on the subject of the bluff - it could be opposed by Lore, or Spot, or Listen, depending... Anyway, this is a hard subject. Some people just really didn't like rolling for these things, but it's hard to say that skills shouldn't count for anything either. I know they can be used for interactions with NPC's, but I've seen PC's with very high persuade scores simply blown off when trying to use the skill. And that just doesn't seem right...but I'm not all that keen on having my character forced into doing something she really doesn't want to do by some other die rolls.
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Post by Quadhund/Greenhouse on Oct 17, 2006 11:09:18 GMT -5
Munroe, I believe has a point for persuade and bluff since the opposing skill check is supposed to be Sense motive. But for intimidate, Lira is right. www.d20srd.org/srd/skills/intimidate.htmLoganDoug brings up a good point about trying to be intimidating to a PC when you when the opposing PC can slaughter with ease creatures you have trouble killing. Granted you wouldn't know this unless you saw them in combat, but this is what I meant by in a show of force. The result of an intimidation, as stated in the rules, would be for the intimidated pc to comply/act friendly towards the intimidating PC. The hit dice factor is to represent the horrors/battles you have faced in your lifetime, in my opinion. Thus, the more horrors you have seen, the less likely you are to be intimidated. I think Talus also brings up a good point. The dice are there as a guiding tool to help us when players are not good at the skills that their characters are. I am not saying that one should forgo a conversation and have the outcome of a situation totally determined by the dice, but use it as a guideline. IRL I am not intimidating at all (a few players can attest to that). Likewise, I wouldn't know how to make my character intimidating. But if i invest 20 skill points into it, I would like to be able to intimidate someone. And to further a point I tried to make earlier. I think using the skill can represent more of what we can't actually see in game. So much is lost in the translation of type that it is hard to visualize what is going on.
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Post by moulinous on Oct 17, 2006 11:11:28 GMT -5
I hate using the dice bag. i admit it. like with appraise i think this was accomplished or talked about once since then, intimadate is tricky. Guldar in the begining was almost timid in his dealings with the aforementioned Ranan and even manshin...now, not so much as he has grown in level and age. He has always mouthed off to PDKs and even war wizards. That is just who he is. Short people rarely get intimadated in RL and hins grew up as midgets so they are used to it. Heck, even kobolds are taller. Way back in i read a line that i think still applies today. A orc wizard just cast fireball at your pc, he is bleeding from where the spear sticks out of his lrg, and to top it off he is down to his last heal potion...but your pc is cool and collected cause that is how you decided he would be. In the begining you should be...a bit more worried, some pcs may never leave it behind, others have a false bravadp that they always will have...
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Post by ShadowCatJen on Oct 17, 2006 11:42:25 GMT -5
Speaking of the dice bag in general, I tend to only use it on three occasions.
1) When the DM tells me to
2) When a form of IC gambling or coin tossing occurs
3) When I, as a player, can not decide what my character would do in a situation (this typically ends up being a Wisdom check for me)
I also sometimes use it for Myn after she's performed a song, but it seems not to matter much especially if I've typed out the lyrics in game.
Otherwise it's all straight RP for me.
Also, I wanted to bring up for you, Driderman... what if that gnome happened to have a very very low Wisdom score? Then yeah, a moron like that would insult the very large half-orc with the very large sword and dark armor. ;D
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Driderman
Old School
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Post by Driderman on Oct 17, 2006 12:03:21 GMT -5
The gnome was meant as an example, I've seen plenty of other situations like that. But yeah, that might be the case... As for using persuade on other PCs, I consider it a no-no. That also what the PnP rulebooks say, if I remember correctly. In any case, it's not like I'm saying people are bad rp'ers, it's just that sometimes it seems people forego a bit of realism for being cool and tough, no matter their characters. It's a common problem in roleplaying too, both online and PnP. And I know the feeling, I've been there too. Had a little "encounter" with Valla and a few of her friends a while back, took quite a bit to swallow my pride and be psychologically raped like that ;D But I think I handled it pretty well. Now Korr mouths off to her companions when he's got backup and feels safe, otherwise, he just skulks away, hoping not to get noticed
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Post by Aodhan the Unusual on Oct 17, 2006 12:47:19 GMT -5
I'd like to bring Torian up again (hush... All of you... ). Here's a little female halfling, generally in a nice 'suit' and hat... Probably the last thing in the world you would find intimidating... But she HAS not only made people mad with her random outbursts, but has also scared people. And all through RP. If all the encounters she'd be in had involved dice rolls, she would rarely be seen as threatening (seeing as intimidation, bluff, persuade, etc. is generally only used on NPC, those skill points have been used elsewhere to enhance more widely used skills). But at the same time, she doesn't show any fear (outwardly... Though there have been times.... ). Basically, I feel intimidation, just like persuasion, bluff, taunt, and so, is all how you play the character. True it's hard to put inflections and tones on typed words, but accents (all caps letters or 'marked' letters to show emphasis), certain verbage, and so on, can go a long way.
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Post by ShadowCatJen on Oct 17, 2006 13:06:05 GMT -5
I'd like to bring Torian up again (hush... All of you... ). Here's a little female halfling, generally in a nice 'suit' and hat... Probably the last thing in the world you would find intimidating... But she HAS not only made people mad with her random outbursts, but has also scared people. And all through RP. If all the encounters she'd be in had involved dice rolls, she would rarely be seen as threatening (seeing as intimidation, bluff, persuade, etc. is generally only used on NPC, those skill points have been used elsewhere to enhance more widely used skills). But at the same time, she doesn't show any fear (outwardly... Though there have been times.... ). Basically, I feel intimidation, just like persuasion, bluff, taunt, and so, is all how you play the character. True it's hard to put inflections and tones on typed words, but accents (all caps letters or 'marked' letters to show emphasis), certain verbage, and so on, can go a long way. What she said. Case in point Mynian, as was pointed out, is not intimidating at all. She's a tailoring/bard sort so she's supposed to be approachable. She may even talk you into a few things, but I've never used the persuade roll on a PC, nor would I want to. I would hope that my RP skills are up to snuff enough to pull it off without the need for it. As for the point about the general "tough guy" attitude that many players carry... that, unfortunately, is the nature of the beast when it comes to gaming formats such as this. I like to think better of most players that they'd be willing to swallow their pride such as you did and have it their character can show faults such as doubt or fear.
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Post by StabbingNirvana on Oct 17, 2006 13:07:03 GMT -5
i havent been around in a while and not sure if it still works ... but if youre gonna plan on intimidating someone you should put them on hostile. that'll let them know you mean business. and besides, the red glow and the yellow writing in the combat log sure does grab one's attention ...
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