How often does language come up in your game?

[ShadowX]

Do you find the languages a PC speaks to be superficial? Or does language play a role in your game occasionally?

 

[CPXB]

Do you find the languages a PC speaks to be superficial? Or does language play a role in your game occasionaly?

Generally, yeah, languages play a pretty big part in my games. Communication, generally, is very important because in virtually every encounter with a sentient being there is a way to "defeat" the situation socially. So, yeah, being able to talk to the critter in question is a pretty good idea.

 

[tarchon]

It depends on the DM a little, but it comes up quite a bit. We frequently change language learning mechanics to have a little more realism too.

 

[DonAdam]

How often does language come up in your game?

We run on a 5 second tape delay, so typically we can edit out any problematic stuff.

 

[Crothian]

Language is a big factor. It seems that whenever they run into a new language, the next level one or two of them are spending skill points to get it. One player is even planning on taking the Polyglot epiuc feat as her first epic feat, if we get that high.

 

[Adrienne]

I didn't intend for language to be a big issue in my game, but one of the players is obsessed with being able to speak every language they encounter. It's becoming more useful than I expected, since they're able to communicate with (and thus bluff) more and more of the creatures in the dungeon.

 

[TracerBullet42]

Language plays a pretty big part at times in our games...

One time, we had to communicate with someone and we didn't speak their language, and we had to, basically, play "charades" to communicate. And so we really acted it all out. It was quite histerical for the GM to watch us act like buffoons to get our point across...

But I did learn that you can communicate an awful lot without saying a word...

It was a lot of fun!

 

[Painfully]

In my last campaign, I removed the comprehend languages and tongues spells specifically because I didn't want the mystery of languages to be overcome by magical means.

When my players magically ported to a much older continent with a different elven population, I used sylvan as their base language, and allowed those with elven to speak in simple phrases until they spent some time with the locals.

I don't try to make it too serious an issue. But it is important to use language to show that a place or thing is much older than contemporary times, and with it, comes some form of mystery and power. Otherwise, everything would be in Common. Boooooo-ring!

 

[frankthedm]

I ditched the everything knows common sillyness and have made languages quite important. Knowing the right language can save the lives of the party , though since i don't take thing easy on the players, speaking in the wrong language can get you killed.

Here is some stuff i use [some borrowed from this board some my own]

The common tounge is used but is considered boorish in some societies and sometime carries a one or 2 point penalty for language based skill checks where another language is predominant. Dwarven is a popular language choice amoung serious traders and merchants as it has many precise words for merchendice values and qualities[-2 on bluff checks related to item worth and value]. The Language of the orcs has many creative obcenities and is considered excedingly crude in most societies. While most elves are gone from the world thier language is good for poetry and song [+1 on perform [song and poetry]. Infernal is chocked full of double meanings and other things that aid deciet granting +2 on non combat bluff checks... Unfortuanatly; most sentient beings who know the language will simply chose not to believe someone speaking in this language & the language sounds as evil as one would expect it to, leading those who hear you to assume the worst.

 

[Steverooo]

Do you find the languages a PC speaks to be superficial? Or does language play a role in your game occasionally?

Why, every stinking time I go to spy on someone, of course! That Favored Enemy Bonus to Spot & Listen doesn't do a whole lot of good, unless you can speak the language of whatever you're trying to spy on!