Knowledge (local)

[Xagunder MacFaileas]

Question for you regarding, of course, the skill Knowledge (local). Do you require characters to specify which locality their skill covers, or does it cover ALL "legends, personalities, inhabitants, laws, customs, traditions, [and] humanoids" for wherever PC happen to go?

If you do require a specific location, how specific? A neighborhood? A city? A county? A country? A region? A continent? A world? A layer? A plane? A cosmology?

 

[Nifft]

This is my setting:

http://klimt.cns.nyu.edu/~fishman/DnD/setting.shtml

Several areas are detailed. I'll use the Blood Sea as an example, since it's where the PCs are now.

Knowlege (Blood Sea) allows checks for all rumors, etc. that pertain to the whole area. Some DCs are very high, if the rumor pertains only to a specific area. Here are some sample DCs:

DC 10: The Season of Storms lasts from June through December.
DC 15: Marseilles has just completed a Teleport Circle to mainland Luxoria.
DC 20: Goblin raiders have avoided certain islands recently.
DC 25: Elves have constructed a vessel on the back of a Dragon Turtle.
DC 30: Political envoys from the Necromancers have been seen in several capitols.
DC 35: A plague of were-rats has Marseilles under lycanthropic quarrantine until such time as the PCs -- er, authorities can clear things up. The quarrantine is enforced by Elder Elementals summoned for the purpose.
DC 40: The best "antique" (magic item) dealer in Marseilles is Nadia Soleil. She manages the Steam Mephits who work in her family's shop. She's willing to make "discounts" to those who will help her locate First Empire artifacts.
DC 45: The Urraccan ambassador to Luxoria (an adult Green Dragon) recently flew home from Marseilles, apparently quite angry.

Now, if a character uses Knowlege (Marseilles) instead of Knowlege (Blood Sea), all the DCs involving Marseilles are -10, and all the others are +10. If a character has both skills within 2 ranks of each other, all DCs involving Marseilles are -15.

-- N

 

[Wolffenjugend]

One thing you need to consider is how effective you want the Knowledge - Local skill to be. If you make players specify a region (which makes sense to some degree), the skill becomes much less useful and, in my experience, PCs who travel a lot won't spend any ranks in it at all b/c they're never in the same place long enough to make such a specific skill worthwhile. If, however, the PCs spend most of their time in the same region (or there are few regions to choose from), then making them specifiy might work better.

Strictly going by the rules, I don't think you need to specify. None of the other knowledge skills require it and there could be a significant difference between Knowledge - Nature when in the arctic compared to a rain forest. You'd probably be better of devising circumstance modifiers to apply when a PC is in a "foreign" region.

 

[dulsin]

This is my setting:

DC 45: The Urraccan ambassador to Luxoria (an adult Green Dragon) recently flew home from Marseilles, apparently quite angry.

Now, if a character uses Knowlege (Marseilles) instead of Knowlege (Blood Sea), all the DCs involving Marseilles are -10, and all the others are +10. If a character has both skills within 2 ranks of each other, all DCs involving Marseilles are -15.

-- N

I like your idea but the DCs seem very high. You would need a 25 skill (i.e. 22 level character) to have any chance of getting that high. With a 45 DC I would expect to know the name of the kings advisor's new lover that he met at the party last feast day.

 

[CleverName]

Good question.


Do not specify.

There are too few skill points around to force PCs to be that specific. I just add +5 to the DC if you are out of your PC's local territory.

 

[dulsin]

I think a better use for Local knowlege is as a modifier for other skills.

Your ranks of Kowlege "area" should add to any gather information, diplomacy, geography, history, bluff, intimidate checks relevant to the region.

Gather information: you have specific knowlege that aids you in asking the correct questions and talking to the right people.

Geography: You know this place like the back of your hand. Secret ways in and out, passes rivers, ect..

History: You know specific ledgends and heros of the region

Bluff, Intimidate, Diplomacy: Dropping the names of important and powerful people of the area can be very impressive to the locals.

 

[Steverooo]

I agree with Wolfen, and many others here... Don't divide it up. There are already too few skill points to go around! Just up the DCs for unfamiliar areas. Goodness! Even Knowledge (The Planes) isn't broken up into the various planes!

 

[Nifft]

I like your idea but the DCs seem very high. You would need a 25 skill (i.e. 22 level character) to have any chance of getting that high. With a 45 DC I would expect to know the name of the kings advisor's new lover that he met at the party last feast day.

In this case, it's 45 because it's specific to two regions: Marseilles on a specific day and Urracca as a specific person. (Note also that information about Marseilles is currently hard to come by, since the whole city is under quarrantine.)

If you're IN the city, that's a circumstance modifier. If you have Knowlege (Marseilles), that's a -10 to the check (DC 35). If you have Knowlege (Blood Sea) and Knowlege (Marseilles), it's only DC 30.

Does it make more sense now?

-- N

PS: Oh, and as a House Rule, all characters get an extra two skill points/level (8 at 1st level) which they can spend on any Craft, Profession or Knowlege. So, everyone has the freedom to take Knowlege (Local).

 

[Nifft]

Goodness! Even Knowledge (The Planes) isn't broken up into the various planes!

I do the same thing for the Planes. You can be an expert in the Hells (which gives you +10 to checks regarding those Planes, normal DC for checks regarding Ghenna, Acheron and the Blood War, but -10 to all unrelated Planes checks).

This means that PCs might just need to go seek out an expert from time to time. This is Good.

-- N

 

[dulsin]

PS: Oh, and as a House Rule, all characters get an extra two skill points/level (8 at 1st level) which they can spend on any Craft, Profession or Knowlege. So, everyone has the freedom to take Knowlege (Local).

I like to give out extra skills also. In my case it is +1/ level that can only be applied to ride, swim, craft, or a proffession and all of these skills are concidered class skills for everyone. Most of my players pick a trade to master while others use it to add to the "out doorsy" nature.