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What's the EL when no combat is involved?
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<blockquote data-quote="Squire James" data-source="post: 62023" data-attributes="member: 548"><p>"Ask not elves for counsel, for they will tell you no and yes."</p><p></p><p>My particular take is that role-playing encounters that do NOT involve avoiding a fight should be given CR's in a fashion similar to traps. They share many of the same mechanics: one or two rolls by a PC decides whether or not he takes a hunk of damage (perhaps "social damage"). Along those lines, I'd put the CR of a role-playing enounter at about (main skill DC - 18). This is assuming a level 1 character can reasonably get about a +8 in the key skill if he worked at it (better results are possible with racial mods and Skill Focus, of course). Thus, a CR 1 encounter would be one where a skilled level 1 character can't quite get away with taking 10 to succeed at the key skills.</p><p></p><p>The previous assumes one actually uses skill rolls in role-playing situations. I recommend doing so, because the reactions of the NPC's should be based on the <em>character's</em> Charisma, not the <em>player's</em> Charisma. </p><p></p><p>However, if the PC's negotiates with potential foes in such a way that (1) avoids a fight, and (2) provides a result similar to winning that fight, I would award XP equal to the actual strength of the monsters. If they avoid a fight, but don't particularly solve the problem the potential foes would have posed, I'd give half XP at most (less if the PC's didn't give it a good effort).</p><p></p><p>For example, avoiding an encounter with animals should probably yield full XP because the animals will probably not go out of their way to trouble anyone else. Letting a group of bandits walk away without a fight means they are still a possible source of trouble to the PC's, so they are not yet entitled to a full XP award (half, or less if the PC's were actually sent to STOP the bandits).</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Squire James, post: 62023, member: 548"] "Ask not elves for counsel, for they will tell you no and yes." My particular take is that role-playing encounters that do NOT involve avoiding a fight should be given CR's in a fashion similar to traps. They share many of the same mechanics: one or two rolls by a PC decides whether or not he takes a hunk of damage (perhaps "social damage"). Along those lines, I'd put the CR of a role-playing enounter at about (main skill DC - 18). This is assuming a level 1 character can reasonably get about a +8 in the key skill if he worked at it (better results are possible with racial mods and Skill Focus, of course). Thus, a CR 1 encounter would be one where a skilled level 1 character can't quite get away with taking 10 to succeed at the key skills. The previous assumes one actually uses skill rolls in role-playing situations. I recommend doing so, because the reactions of the NPC's should be based on the [i]character's[/i] Charisma, not the [i]player's[/i] Charisma. However, if the PC's negotiates with potential foes in such a way that (1) avoids a fight, and (2) provides a result similar to winning that fight, I would award XP equal to the actual strength of the monsters. If they avoid a fight, but don't particularly solve the problem the potential foes would have posed, I'd give half XP at most (less if the PC's didn't give it a good effort). For example, avoiding an encounter with animals should probably yield full XP because the animals will probably not go out of their way to trouble anyone else. Letting a group of bandits walk away without a fight means they are still a possible source of trouble to the PC's, so they are not yet entitled to a full XP award (half, or less if the PC's were actually sent to STOP the bandits). [/QUOTE]
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