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Message: <blockquote data-quote="LostSoul" data-source="post: 4698726" data-attributes="member: 386">It's hard to give examples because each group is going to have different goals - that's why I was avoiding it.  Here's an example of a skill challenge that worked well for me: <a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/general-rpg-discussion/248291-skill-challenge-i-made-cursed-magic-item.html#post4618159" target="_blank">The Bloodrope</a>  I'll give it a crack, starting off with the Duke.First of all, there should be a reason why the Duke doesn't want to help out the PCs.  This should be interesting to the players, as well, though that's part of NPC and adventure creation.  I guess they go hand in hand.Anyways... let's assume a simple motivation: the Duke doesn't want upstart mercenaries, graverobbers, and treasure hunters telling him what to do.  He sees them as a threat to his authority, and this is a bigger deal to him than the goblin army.The PCs are here because they think they need the help from the Duke to deal with the goblins and save the land; this is actually what drives the conflict, because he feels that he should be the one protecting his land.  What do the people pay taxes for, if rogues can do his job for him, for free?So we have a pretty sweet conflict in the mix.  Nice.If I was prepping this, I'd come up with a list of actions the Duke might try out.-Challenge them with a legal issue.  Maybe he wants everything they've found in their adventures; it doesn't belong to them, it belongs to him, and if he wants their help he should give it to him.  If they agree, this could end the challenge right there.-Act high and mighty and insulting, calling them names (like graverobbers), hoping that they will respond in kind - so then he can throw them out for insolence.  Add a few failed rolls in here and he could potentially arrest them.-If we have some successes, he'll try to give them support that he knows will fail.  Maybe he'll conscript some drunkards, slaves who will run at the first chance, and criminals as his force.  When this fails, it's all good, then he can send in his own army to clean up.-Maybe one thing the Duke tries is that he demands they sign an oath to carry out his wishes.  If they break it, they'll be outlaws.  And if they sign it, the skill challenge can end without a roll.  But maybe they negotiate it a bit and try to work out a better deal; failure might mean that he just tells them to get lost.Blah blah blah.  Basically I'm getting in the head of the Duke, trying to figure out what he wants (and remembering that what he wants is in direct conflict with the PC's goals), and pushing for it.But if they make a success, it's a success, right?  So the Duke has to go along with it.  That doesn't mean he changes his mind - unless the DM thinks he would - but maybe he has a grudging respect, understands their authority, or whatever.  Whatever the PC is trying to do, he succeeds.This can make things really cool.  Maybe the first roll is a Diplomacy roll to get the Duke to give them the troops.  It succeeds.  Okay, so he gives them crappy troops, like I said above.Now: how do the PCs deal with it?  Maybe they go back to the Duke and try to get him to provide better ones.  (edit: Maybe they threaten him with force, bring up an obscure law, or just talk him into it.)  Maybe they try to figure out what he wants and play to that.  Maybe they don't even deal with the Duke; maybe they ignore the Duke and decide to whip the NPCs into shape. Or maybe they get thrown out by the Duke early on and instead try to rally the people to pressure the Duke into dealing with the goblin problem.  Failure there might mean a riot put down with force; success means what the PCs want, they get.Does that make sense, or am I not getting my thoughts across?edit: You see how the conflict between characters drives the skill challenge, and what each side does - how the characters are roleplayed - moves it along?</blockquote>

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