CHARISMA: Is it a dud score?

[Particle_Man]

You don't even have to add new Saving Throws to do this. Just have each Saving Throw connect to two stats. (Might want to do something to make some save DCs higher, though.)

Most logical would be Fort = STR and CON, Reflex = DEX and INT, and Will = WIS and CHA, though this makes Strength entirely too powerful. (On the other hand, you could run Fort off of CON x2 or CON and WIS, but this overpowers CON and WIS, respectively.)

I like this one. I would average the modifiers rather than change the DC's, since I am lazy that way. I might work them a bit differently. Maybe Fort = Con and Chr. Reflex = Dex and Int. Will = Wis and Str. But this is at the early random musings stage.

 

[Staffan]

- More generally, the skill lacks any way to model firmly held beliefs and the like. Whether you're Dr. Phil or a member of the KKK, Oprah Winfrey is equally likely to make either one of your friendly. It doesn't matter if the person is hostile towards you because you killed their family; they'll forgive you 25% of the time (even if you're completely unskilled and have an average Charisma).

That's where circumstance bonuses come in. In the various Eberron books, major NPCs are often given reaction modifiers that change how easy they are to talk to if you fulfill various criteria. For example, Knight-Marshal of the Citadel, Sir Banarak Tithion, has the following modifiers: Party includes an agent of the Citadel +4, party has helped maintain order in the city +2, party was causing trouble in the city -4, party brings bad news -2.

What I would prefer to see is a Persuasion skill.

TORG splits interactions (the D&D Diplomacy skill) into two skills: Charm and Persuade. Charm is used to make people like you (using a five-step scale similar to the one in D&D - Enemy, Hostile, Neutral, Friendly, Loyal), and Persuade is used to get them to actually do something. The difficulty of getting them to do so depends on their attitude toward you, and differentiating between "Negotiated Success" (make it worth something to them), "Yes" (you get them to do what you want), and "Vow" (even better) - the latter two being restricted to Friendly/Loyal and Loyal targets, respectively.