Le Noir Faineant
Explorer
Rhun said:
Ditto. It's really great fun, and I am so sad I will miss great part of it while I travel the world in search of adventure...
(OOC) D&D 3.5 - Paridon: The Dark Metropolis (Ravenloft)
- Thread starter InVinoVeritas
- Start date
Ditto. It's really great fun, and I am so sad I will miss great part of it while I travel the world in search of adventure...
InVinoVeritas
Adventurer
Hey, have a great time, Ivid, we'll look forward to having you back.
As for roleplaying vs. rollplaying, it's part of how I think of Ravenloft. It's all about choices. What we think, what we experience, and how we decide. What tempts us? What harms us? What redeems us? Roleplaying makes it all important. Dice can't dictate that. I'm glad you're all enjoying it and throwing so much character in your characters.
Which brings me to something else: Powers Checks. If you haven't played in Ravenloft before, here's the skinny: Evil acts are both rewarded and punished. If you perform something shady or wrong... things might notice. I play it so that it's required that the act is actually decided upon by the player; Calahan's vicious attack on the corpse got a check, but Ru's confused roll-of-the-dice attack on the child did not. So far, there hasn't been a problem with it. The more minor the action, the less likely a check means anything. So, for example, an attack on a corpse is far less likely to result in dark powers noticing you than, say, an attack on someone who hasn't done anything wrong, and is likely a victim herself.
By the way, Darian now has a permanent +2 dark bonus to all Gather Information and Sense Motive checks. He's also changed somehow, but I'll let it get found out how IC.![:]](http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/devious.png "Devious :]")
As for roleplaying vs. rollplaying, it's part of how I think of Ravenloft. It's all about choices. What we think, what we experience, and how we decide. What tempts us? What harms us? What redeems us? Roleplaying makes it all important. Dice can't dictate that. I'm glad you're all enjoying it and throwing so much character in your characters.
Which brings me to something else: Powers Checks. If you haven't played in Ravenloft before, here's the skinny: Evil acts are both rewarded and punished. If you perform something shady or wrong... things might notice. I play it so that it's required that the act is actually decided upon by the player; Calahan's vicious attack on the corpse got a check, but Ru's confused roll-of-the-dice attack on the child did not. So far, there hasn't been a problem with it. The more minor the action, the less likely a check means anything. So, for example, an attack on a corpse is far less likely to result in dark powers noticing you than, say, an attack on someone who hasn't done anything wrong, and is likely a victim herself.
By the way, Darian now has a permanent +2 dark bonus to all Gather Information and Sense Motive checks. He's also changed somehow, but I'll let it get found out how IC.
industrygothica
Adventurer
InVinoVeritas said:By the way, Darian now has a permanent +2 dark bonus to all Gather Information and Sense Motive checks. He's also changed somehow, but I'll let it get found out how IC.
Well, this should prove to be interesting.
*Edit*
Ok, so I updated Darian with his new bonuses and realized that his skills were completely jacked. I think I've fixed them, but after a 12 hour shift who can be sure, eh? Would a kind soul with too much time on his hands care to do the math for me and make sure everything is square? Otherwise it'll have to wait until I get a day off next week before I can be sure. I'm not seeing a test of skills in the near future, so he should keep until then.
Thanks. -IG
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InVinoVeritas
Adventurer
The skills look fine to me.
industrygothica
Adventurer
InVinoVeritas said:
Excellent. Thank you.
Le Noir Faineant
Explorer
Well, people, packing my bags right now, leavign for Spain at dawn.My best regards to you all, it's been a pleasure gaming with you so far.
Hope we'll meet again in October!
Yours,
Rafael
IVV, what are the laws like in Paridon? I mean what are the punishments for various crimes, and who decides? How much leeway does the watch have in setting those punishments? For example, if a judge decides, are the judges likely to be inclined to follow the recommendations of Father Berman and the others?
Father Berman would like to do things with this information: theaten, gain information from, and punish Alek.
For example, by making his offer of a bet, Alek just tried to bribe the Watch. Is that a crime?
What are the punishments for drug dealing, for using magic to enslave people, for giving false testimony, for murder?
Are we allowed to lie to a suspect to get him to confess, or could that be grounds for the suspect to get acquitted? What about if we torture a suspect? Could we be charged ourselves for that? These are things that Father Berman would do on a routine basis if they are allowed.
Thanks.
Father Berman would like to do things with this information: theaten, gain information from, and punish Alek.
For example, by making his offer of a bet, Alek just tried to bribe the Watch. Is that a crime?
What are the punishments for drug dealing, for using magic to enslave people, for giving false testimony, for murder?
Are we allowed to lie to a suspect to get him to confess, or could that be grounds for the suspect to get acquitted? What about if we torture a suspect? Could we be charged ourselves for that? These are things that Father Berman would do on a routine basis if they are allowed.
Thanks.
InVinoVeritas
Adventurer
All very good questions.
Certainly, lots of the standard crimes are illegal--murder, theft, etc. The police gather evidence and arrest these criminals, they go to trial, the judge decides their guilt, they go to prison or the chopper's block. This is relatively straightforward.
Then there are the hard-to-prosecute crimes like bribery. Bribing the police is illegal, but is probably quite rampant. Bribing a judge is also illegal, but a judge decides if you are innocent or guilty.
Enslavement of citizens is also against the law, whether through magical or mundane means. Although there are not specific drug laws, there are laws against contributing to the general lawlessness, prevention of gainful production, and other such charges which can be trumped-up charges as much as not.
A famous catch-all trumped-up charge, although archaic in this enlightened age, is witchcraft.
Punishments run the gamut from imprisonment, death, the stocks, the lash, fines, fees, and the like. If you're important enough that they can't afford to kill you, but also you do something bad enough to be worth the expense, magical geasa and curses may be used--but they are rare and rather scary to the public at large. Exile is not typically used.
Torture? Torture is a bad and evil thing, and something no respectful member of Paridon's fine constabulary would ever commit. In fact, suggesting that they would is an act of sedition and illegal. Such terrible people who would dare sully the good name of the constabulary are removed for the good of society.
The judge decides on the sentence for the guilty, but will definitely take the police's views on sentencing into consideration. All in all, the police and judiciary have broad powers to prosecute at will. However, Paridon is a city of free thinkers, where the enlightened have freedom in sophisticated ways that the countryside would not understand.
* * *
The big thing to keep in mind is that evil can be found everywhere, within the constabulary included. There are plenty of laws on the books to cover all sorts of situations. You can charge Alek with anything you like--the trick is to make the charges, and him, stick. Of course, you should also let your moral compass be your guide. You could, for example, arrest, say, Marionette as the clocktower murderer, creator of the artificial vampire, general lawlessness, witchcraft, etc., and you might be able to convince a judge to go along with it, convict her, and sentence her to Darian's custody. But that would be wrong.
The police power you wield is very real, and very strong. But with great power comes great responsibility.
Or does it?
Certainly, lots of the standard crimes are illegal--murder, theft, etc. The police gather evidence and arrest these criminals, they go to trial, the judge decides their guilt, they go to prison or the chopper's block. This is relatively straightforward.
Then there are the hard-to-prosecute crimes like bribery. Bribing the police is illegal, but is probably quite rampant. Bribing a judge is also illegal, but a judge decides if you are innocent or guilty.
Enslavement of citizens is also against the law, whether through magical or mundane means. Although there are not specific drug laws, there are laws against contributing to the general lawlessness, prevention of gainful production, and other such charges which can be trumped-up charges as much as not.
A famous catch-all trumped-up charge, although archaic in this enlightened age, is witchcraft.
Punishments run the gamut from imprisonment, death, the stocks, the lash, fines, fees, and the like. If you're important enough that they can't afford to kill you, but also you do something bad enough to be worth the expense, magical geasa and curses may be used--but they are rare and rather scary to the public at large. Exile is not typically used.
Torture? Torture is a bad and evil thing, and something no respectful member of Paridon's fine constabulary would ever commit. In fact, suggesting that they would is an act of sedition and illegal. Such terrible people who would dare sully the good name of the constabulary are removed for the good of society.
The judge decides on the sentence for the guilty, but will definitely take the police's views on sentencing into consideration. All in all, the police and judiciary have broad powers to prosecute at will. However, Paridon is a city of free thinkers, where the enlightened have freedom in sophisticated ways that the countryside would not understand.
* * *
The big thing to keep in mind is that evil can be found everywhere, within the constabulary included. There are plenty of laws on the books to cover all sorts of situations. You can charge Alek with anything you like--the trick is to make the charges, and him, stick. Of course, you should also let your moral compass be your guide. You could, for example, arrest, say, Marionette as the clocktower murderer, creator of the artificial vampire, general lawlessness, witchcraft, etc., and you might be able to convince a judge to go along with it, convict her, and sentence her to Darian's custody. But that would be wrong.
The police power you wield is very real, and very strong. But with great power comes great responsibility.
Or does it?
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InVinoVeritas
Adventurer
I'll be out of town for the rest of the week, so I'll see you again around Monday or so. Try not to burn down the police station while I'm gone.
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