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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Fenes 2" data-source="post: 463820" data-attributes="member: 6166">I am one of those DMs that often have sessions where not a single combat took place, or if a combat took place it was not a challenge, but just a formality resolved in a couple attack rolls.Often my PCs have to navigate the social circuit, gathering information from the nobles and the dregs of the town. I usually reoslve this with a roleplaying scene followed by the die roll with appropriate modifiers. I am not of the opinion that good player knowledge and ability makes up for lacking pc skills - that dwarven barbarian has to make that diplomacy roll, despite the player knowing exactly how to treat the half-elven duchess - and I also do not let a player fail a check just because he had no idea how to act in a feudal society despite playing a knight with diplomacy +10 and knowledge royality and nobility +8.Contrary to others I also feel it helps to supply the information neccessary, as long as the player has some idea what to do. F.e., if a player "wants to talk shop" with a merchant, I would let him know, perhaps after an intelligence, knowledge or gather information check, what was happening in the trade business, leaving it up to the player how to use that information in dealing with the merchant.It also helps if you let the players state their intentions and mannerisms in an abstract way followed by a diplomacy or other skill check instead of requiring that they detail how the act. F.e. if a player says "I bow gracefully and address the duke with the utmost deference" and rolls well on his diplomacy check I supply the details, how he bows with one hand in front of his chest and the other flourishing an imaginary hat after the southern fashion.If you use that kind of system the player pick up the information and clues in game, and they have an incentive to take the appropriate skills for their PCs. After a whle they know enough to describe their actions themselves.Another inventive is to curb the desire to gather loot in combat. If you can win a piece of land or a monopoly in trade, both representing veritable fortunes, by gaining influence in court you are less likely to press for some more dungeons to crawl through.As important is to let the players earn exp in social situations, if they care about exp. If you either classify each social interaction as an ecounter, dishing out exps for overcoming it, or if you set story awards for social encounters, make sure that you make at least as much exp in social interaction as in combat, again if your players care about that.(My group does not use exp anymore, we just level up when we see fit to, so we have no pressure "to make some exp close to levelling".)Currently my PCs are trying to convince a collection of merchants and nobles in a coaltion to free an invaded city. In order to do that they have to influence the different NPCs. They can impress them, blackmail them, sweet-talk them, bribe them, all within the session. Each of the NPCs has a different agenda, but it is not required to convince everyone - some will go with the flow when other key figures are convinced.To add some difficulties to the situation, one PC is replacing a missing noble, and is now faced with an impending arranged marriage to an influental (and violent) family and his double's lover, the daughter of a powerful and protective duke, who wants to elope with him (or daddy will hear about the affair...). The PCs decided to let the elven archer court the would-be eloper, and to stall for time with the engagement until after the agreement is secured while looking for an acceptable commander for the allied force, which will require some behind the scenes negotiation and consequently information gathering.As a more standard challenge at the same time the party has to dea with the social situation a couple of assassins are on the lose, trying to kill the party or the nobles or the merchants and members of a local church have been missing in the woods.</blockquote>

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