Synergy - Can Anyone Direct Me To A Previous Thread On This?

[Coredump]

Funny thing about Bards is that they also get Speak Language as a Class Skill. It may not seem like a big deal until your Bard5 can completely avoid combat with anything that has an Int of 3+. Diplomacy is pretty powerful mojo if you work it right. Heck, the target doesnt even need to talk back, just understand you. Suppose you get your mod up to around +35...not hard at all really. Take -10 for using Diplo as a full round action and you neednt roll to make the hostile bad guy indifferent. With a better modifier and a decent roll there is no more enemy...just a new friend.

But this relies on there being no other modifiers to this situation. Diplomacy is *not* a free pass.
First, even hostile seems to imply that they are not already attacking you. Second, there may be reasons they are. Perhaps they need to feed their family. Or are being well paid by the BBEG, or are *very* afraid of teh BBEG, or believe you did something evil to him. Plus, since most decent diplomacy would require *some* back and forth, (you adjust your 'story' based on the targets responses...) I would give a negative modifier if communication was only one way. Even as a full round action, "sometimes it takes much longer", so a full round is *not* enough. And even a full round, it is easy to have that be inturupted...


People act like Diplomacy is some free ride.
"I broke into his house, killed all the kids, and then raped his wife. But when he came after me I rolled really well, so he made me breakfast...."

Or...maybe not.

 

[IamTheTest]

Coredump, you are absolutely correct. I agree wholly on the matter. The point of my post was to show that Diplomacy can be a very powerful skill. I usually work Diplomacy as you have shown in your post. Or I will make an NPC with a high diplomacy score to combat the tactic. There are many ways to work with the issue. As far as logic of starving familes and the like, there is another level higher than friendly on the NPC attitude table: Fanatic. Granted at low levels this is a non issue, but rolls can get that high. Also, consider spells like Hypnotism. A double casting (assuming failed saves) will often take care of threats immediatley.
Consider what may happen at 6th level when a Diplo-Bard takes Leadership and gets a Marshall cohort (even a spellcaster that could buff CHA would do). Things could get terribly ugly. Just a couple thoughts.

 

[Obscure]

Yes, Coredump hit the nail on the head. Diplomacy is not a mind-effecting supernatural ability and it's not an enchantment spell. Even though it's not stated in the PHB, Rule 0 says that you can't reason with someone unless they're willing to listen to reason. IMC, Diplomacy involves roleplay -- giving at least a sketch of what argument(s) you're using to convince the target. A good argument devised by the player could warrant a bonus on the Dip check.

Diplomacy is not about just rolling a die and saying, "The d20 says that the bugbear stops attacking me now."

 

[Coredump]

To bring it back on topic....

*Is* there anywhere that says synergy bonuses stack?

 

[Obscure]

To bring it back on topic....

*Is* there anywhere that says synergy bonuses stack?

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/rg/20040210a

This doesn't explicitly say "synergy bonuses stack with each other" but it explicitly calls them unnamed bonuses (unlike in 3.0, where they were called "synergy bonuses") and unnamed bonuses stack.

 

[kanithardm]

I've heard of a +34 or something at 3rd level. Diplomacy seems to be one of the easier skills to get really high.

It was +35 and can be found on the second page of "Diplomacy, the replacement for roleplaying" thread. I can't find the exact link.

 

[UltimaGabe]

To bring it back on topic....

*Is* there anywhere that says synergy bonuses stack?

There doesn't need to be. They're unnamed bonuses, and unnamed bonuses stack.

 

[Obscure]

It was +35 and can be found on the second page of "Diplomacy, the replacement for roleplaying" thread. I can't find the exact link.

http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=136814&page=2&pp=40

It's actually +32; the poster made up a mink familiar that gives a +3 bonus.

 

[apesamongus]

You can also multiclass into Warlock because they have an invocation that gives them a Cha boost (and it's at will, so).

You can also multiclass to marshal for a level and get an aura that will add your charisma bonus to charisma skills for you and your allies, so you'd be getting charisma twice.

 

[irdeggman]

There doesn't need to be. They're unnamed bonuses, and unnamed bonuses stack.

Yes - in fact the terminology used in 3.5 is actually "skill synergies" and "a bonus due to a synergistic skill" so that it is not confused with a specific bonus type.

In 3.0 it was called a synergy bonus but on pg 176-177 of the DMG it said that synergy bonuses stacked.