Interrogations Can Be Tough (But Very Rewarding)

One of the biggest blind spots DMs have, in my experience, is that they forget not every enemy is going to be killed when the PCs roll initiative. The undead will fall to pieces, the constructs will be smashed apart, and the animals may be driven off, but what about the myriad of other foes they might face? Those human toughs sent around to rough up the party, the orc mercenaries hired to cut off caravans to a town, or the cultists trying to stop the PCs from meddling in their plans? Sure, some of them are going to get killed, because that's the nature of fast and furious combat when steel is swinging and spells are flying. But what about the rest? What about the enemies who get knocked out, captured, or who just plain surrender because they aren't willing to die?

Well, that's when it's time to run an interrogation.

Look, we're gonna ax you a couple of questions, and we'd 'preciate it if you was honest with us, okay?

Having been on both ends of the screen for these scenes, there are a few things I'd like to recommend both to DMs, and to players out there to really make these scenes shine.

DMs, Don't Just Stonewall Your Players

This is probably the most frustrating thing you can do as a dungeon master when the party manages to capture an NPC. You don't have to immediately tell the party everything there is to know about this NPCs' life, history, and actions, but give them something. A name, a face, a location, some scrap of evidence the party can use to go forward from this point. Reward them for taking the time to take prisoners, and question them to find out what the hell is going on.

The man you seek wore the threefold mask of the shadow jester. A pity you lived, for your death will be worse, now.

For example, let's take the group of street toughs someone decided to send at the party to rough them up, and discourage them from completing their current task. The code of the streets may very well mean the toughs keep their mouths shut when it comes to giving out information... but what can the party learn from what they do let slip? Does the bard's Linguistics check pick up an accent unique to a particular block in the city, telling the party where they could start looking for these toughs' friends? Does the rogue manage to get the thugs talking about the poison they were using, purposefully misidentifying it so that one of them blurts out it's actually red fang venom, which is the calling card of a particular cult, or order of assassins, giving a hint as to who hired them? If the paladin separates the survivors, talking to them individually, can he diplomacize his way into the lapsed faith of the younger prisoner, getting him to admit what little he knows as long as the others aren't watching?

Hell, the party might just provoke an anger response from one of the prisoners, who sneers and tells them, "Just wait till the Man Eater comes looking for you. He'll eat your hearts, and pick his teeth with your finger bones." At that point all it takes is a decent Knowledge (Local) check to know that these toughs are part of the infamous Butcher's Boys gang, and that if the party wants more answers they can work their way up the food chain.

The Man Eater, along with a bunch of other NPCs, can be found in my 100 Random Bandits to Meet supplement, for those who are interested.

The key to remember is that you need to give the PCs clues, and you should make allowances for all the various skill checks the party has. Whether it's the party face trying to open up a dialogue, the tracker putting together observations about the prisoners' weapons, tattoos, and the mud on their boots, or the muscle putting the fear up them by cracking their knuckles and making not so veiled threats, everyone should be able to get in on the action.

Players, Remember, Social Skills Aren't Mind Control

This is something I've said time and time again, but it bears repeating. Bluff, Diplomacy, Intimidate... these are all useful skills that give us a number we can use to measure how effective your interaction with a character is. This is particularly helpful if your character is far more frightening, persuasive, or just charismatic than you are as a player. At the same time, however, these skills are not on-par with magic. You cannot use the raw force of a social skill to compel someone to do something. You can only change their standing toward you, or persuade them to believe something you're telling them. What they do with that information is up to the DM.

They might kill you, deary, but I will turn you into a newt and feed you to my fox. Now, who sent you?

Also, while we're on this subject, too many players seem to think that torture is also just as good as magic. The problem is (and I so rarely say this so please listen) torture doesn't work in the real world, and there's no reason it should work in a fantasy one, either. Psychology Today touched on this fact, but generally speaking if you choose to try to beat the information out of someone they're just going to tell you whatever they think you want to hear so that you'll stop. And for the DMs reading this, you should absolutely have that kind of action reflect both on the alignment of players (as was suggested in the Inquisitor's Guide for 5th Edition), as well as in the quality of the information they're given.

Now, with that said, what players should do is figure out how they participate in an interrogation scene, and what role they fill in what amounts to a social encounter.

Generally speaking there's going to be the "bad cop" and the "good cop" here somewhere. Perhaps the cleric or the paladin, speaking in reasonable tones and trying to make the prisoner think they are the only thing stopping the barbarian from crushing their skull, or the necromancer from using them for parts. However, instead of leaving the rest of the party as onlookers, get other people involved in the scene as much as you can. Have the rogue watching while they hunker down, acting as the lie detector with their high Sense Motive skill, watching how someone answers as well as what they say. While the interrogation is going on, have the ranger examining the corpses, trying to gain some insight about where the enemies came from, and who they are like a combination of Sherlock Holmes and CSI.

Give everyone a moment in the spotlight, and you'll have more fun, while also getting a more complete picture of what's happening.

Lastly, Mix It Up

As a final note to the DMs out there, mix up these interrogation scenes based on who is being interrogated, what they believe, and what happened before the end of the combat. Because the more organic the prisoners' responses are to what's happening, the more authentic and involving the scene will be.

And for extra points, include aspects of the party's Small Legend to show that the NPCs know who they are, and they've heard the stories about the PCs reputations.

Look, I've heard the tales. Just tell me what you wanna know.

For instance, does your fighter have a reputation as honorable? Do they bear the iconography and endorsement of a particular knightly order? If so, then a prisoner might invoke parley under the established code they're known for, agreeing to talk under terms of protection. Did the barbarian split two men in half with a single swing of their ax with a critical cleave in the last combat? If so, consider having the prisoners view that character with a substantial level of fear, having seen what just happened to those who opposed them. Do wizards or shamans have a particular reputation among the traditions of these prisoners? Or would a captured wizard consider talking to another master of the arcane arts when they wouldn't share their secrets with a common sellsword?

All of these things, combined with the unique history, personality, motivations, and fears of the particular characters who were taken prisoner can lead to unique, interesting scenes that will make an impression on the PCs. And in some cases these prisoners could be used as guides, as future informants, or even as converted allies.

For an example of how this can be used in text, check out my most recent module, Ghosts of Sorrow Marsh!

Good fun all around, this one.

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio. Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

DMs, Prevent Murderhobos By Rewarding Alternative Player Strategies

We're all used to hearing from the dungeon masters who complain about the murderhobos at their table. DMs who are trying to run a world with depth, complexity, and meaningful characters, but where the only response from their players seems to be to keep stabbing until either the plot moves forward, or people stop trying to talk at them.

He's a big guy, right? I take his shoes.

While there are numerous reasons that players turn to the life of the murderhobo, there is one thing you can do to help reform them. In some cases it even stops PCs from becoming murderhobos in the first place. The method is simple.

Reward the effort that comes with taking alternative routes, rather than simply making death the quick and easy answer to everything.

Enemies Should Be More Than Mere Mooks

There are going to be some enemies that have no unique characteristics. They have no personality, they aren't important to the story or the world, and they really are here just to have their heads staved in by the PCs. Your automatons, your mindless undead, things like that. However, any time there is a living, breathing creature involved in a combat, you need to signal to players that these characters aren't just targets to be knocked down so they can progress. They're a living, breathing part of the world that can be interacted with in ways other than violence.

It's still AN option, just not THE option.

 

You can lead by example on this, if you want to. For example, rather than just having a gang of outlaws ambush your party while they sleep, have them hail the camp. The leader lets the party know they're surrounded, and they have a choice. They can hand over a tithe (some reasonable amount of gold, typically), and the gang will leave... or if they refuse, then the gang will take everything they have.

Sure, some players are going to just draw steel or cast a spell, drawing all the readied actions coming their way. But others might try to get a dialogue going. To make a deal with the bandits by appealing to their sense of professionalism, by scoffing something like, "I thought the Cardinal's men had honor, yet you approach us like this?", or even by challenging them to single combat. But by opening the scene with dialogue, you've shown these particular bandits are characters. They react like reasonable, rational people, and they're open to suggestions if the party can make something worth their while.

That's a start.

Taking Prisoners, Instead of Taking Heads

Another thing you can do, as a DM, is to institute the Old West rule of bounty hunting, as I call it. If you've seen old-timey Wanted posters, then you know the phrase, "Dead or Alive," that was so famously tacked to the bottom of them. But the thing a lot of folks forget is that the reward for a live capture was often a great deal more than that given for a dead body. And in some cases the reward was entirely contingent on the individual being handed over while they were still alive, and able to stand trial, with no reward for someone who was dead.

Poster don't say nothing about the condition his knees have to be in, though.

 

Take that logic and apply it to early quests in your game. PCs want to get paid, but if killing someone means the reward for them goes up in smoke, then they're going to approach the situation very differently. It will get them thinking about the world, and about how they can win without needing to deliver a death blow. The sheer challenge is why I listed this approach in my 3 Ways To Spice Up Combat in RPGs, but it can have a larger effect than a single mission.

Especially if you plant the seeds just right.

Let's go back to that bandit gang example. Say you've got a low-level party, and they want to claim a reward that's out right now for the Cardinals; a gang of cutthroats and highwaymen who have plagued the area. Rather than just giving the PCs a flat reward for killing all the bandits, change it up. Give them a big reward for bringing in the leader of the gang to stand trial, with a smaller reward for him dead. Give the lieutenants the same treatment. But for the smaller foot soldiers of the gang, there's no reward if they're dead, unless a living prisoner verifies who they were.

Now you've got a challenge on your hands. Because not only do you have to take captives (ideally), but you may need to negotiate with some of them get them to act as your witnesses that their dead comrades-in-arms were actually part of the Cardinals so you can get paid. How do you persuade them to do that? Do you scare them into it with Intimidate checks? Do you talk to these bandits, and find out who they are, and who they used to be? Does the fighter recognize an old army tattoo on one of the prisoners, cajoling him to stand up, and tell the truth like a soldier should? Can the rogue get one of them talking over their soup, finding out that he only joined the outfit to get the money to take care of a wife, or a sick mother? Do they use that knowledge to make a deal with them, agreeing to take some of the proceeds to that bandit's family, if they help them out here and stand witness?

Repercussions For Their Actions

If you set the tone early, then you can give PCs repercussions for their actions... both good and bad.

Valor may be its own reward, but sometimes it helps to sweeten the deal.

 

As an example, say your PCs are trying to stop the bloodshed between a clan of orcs, and a local town. Common setup. While some raiders might be slain, those who are taken prisoner present another opportunity. Can the PCs show their captives that they will treat them with respect and dignity, as enemy combatants are due? Does this improve the attitude of the prisoners (perhaps from hostile to distrustful)? Do they find that the orcs are unique from one another, with some holding forth about the blood debt the town owes them, and others saying this whole thing is just a show because they're hungry and pushed off their land, but pride won't let them just move onto greener pastures... so to speak?

To take it a step further, say that the chieftain's son was among the raiders. A party of murderhobos would see his fine equipment and noted rank (likely as the raid leader), charge him, and kill him. Doing so might make him a martyr, and entrench the orcs that much more deeply. PCs who think to make knowledge checks, and who disable him so he can be captured may find they now have a prisoner who is very valuable... both for the information he possesses, and because he could force the chief to come to the negotiation table so terms for ending this feud can be discussed.

Repercussions can be small things, as well as big ones. Characters who bring in prisoners instead of corpses might find themselves admired and treated as heroes, while those who kill for gold are seen as untrustworthy and dangerous. PCs who pause long enough to find that the rampaging manticore has a toothache might be able to solve the problem without slaying the beast, giving them an opportunity to, if not tame it, then to earn its positive regard. Those who challenge an ogre to a test of strength when it tries to mug them on the road, and who then trick that ogre with some Grimm fairy tales Sleight of Hand shenanigans, may find that other ogres are deferential to them, having heard the tales of the man who squeezed blood from a stone.

And so on, and so forth.

You Get What You Give

To carry through the theme I started with If Your Players Focus On It, Make It Matter, players are going to latch onto the things that reward them. Both in a monetary sense, as I mentioned above, but also in the sense that you show them their actions are having an effect on the game world around them. That what they're doing matters, even if it's in small ways.

Return on investment is the name of the game, here.

 

If you want your players to take actions other than mindlessly killing NPCs, then those other actions need to give them something. Because if you stolidly refuse to have any give-and-take when PCs interrogate prisoners, you insist that all enemies fight to the death like zealots, or you refuse to reward any other course of action, then sooner or later players are going to stop using any other method because they aren't getting anything out of it.

On the other hand, if you show them there are multiple ways to approach a problem, and that the NPCs they deal with have real concerns, real lives, and are still characters in the world, then the PCs are more likely to treat them as such. And when they take actions, play them out. If the PCs try to reform a goblin rogue, throw them a bone for their efforts. Maybe he runs away after a while, but then at a climactic moment returns to stab another enemy in the back because a little glimmer of what the paladin was saying to him actually got through. If the party makes a deal with a crime boss instead of just killing him, develop that relationship. It could become a kind of gentleman's agreement over time, and he could act as a neutral player in the city, rather than just being another mobster to hack on their way up the chain of command.

And so on, and so forth.

This mindset takes some work, and you don't have to go whole hog on it right away. Start small, and keep several NPCs around who have more going on than just enemy #4 in this evening's fight. Lead by example, and show your enemies interacting with the party in different ways; bartering, threatening, cajoling, but doing more than just mindlessly attacking them. It's something a lot of players will pick up on, and you can establish some real back-and-forth once they've got the tune.

And if you're looking for some ready-made NPCs to help get the train rolling, I'd suggest checking out the following:

- 100 Random Bandits To Meet: Whether you want to follow the example I gave above, or you're just looking for more personality for your highwaymen, there's all sorts of thugs and mugs you can use in this supplement.

- 100 Pirates to Encounter: Whether your game is on the high seas, or just near a port town, there's scalawags aplenty to choose from in this collection.

- 100 Prisoners For A Fantasy Jail: Whether the PCs sent them there in the first place, or the game starts off in a prison, there are lots of colorful characters here that can add a dash of danger and intrigue to any game.

Lastly, there is one other thing I'd like to draw your attention to as a DM. The concept of a PC (or even a party) rogues' gallery. As I said in Who's in Your Character's Rogues' Gallery?, the individuals you oppose can define you in important ways. And if your party tries not to just murder every NPC they find (or if they do end up killing someone whose brother, father, mother, lover, etc. swears vengeance), then this can be a particularly useful narrative device.

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. Hopefully you enjoyed, and if you've used this tactic successfully in your games why not leave a comment below?

For more of my work, check out my Vocal and Gamers archives, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio. Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

DMs, Remember, Monsters Don't Have To Be MONSTERS

Before we get started, I've got some exciting news! My new novel Crier's Knife is finally out! So if you'd like to sink your teeth into some old-fashioned sword and sorcery, go take a look. The first few chapters are free, so you can try before you buy.

Now then, where was I? Oh yes!

Being Monsters Doesn't Make You MONSTERS

Real talk here, dungeon masters. How many times have you had a character at your table whose sole response to any situation is mindless violence? You ask them to politely hand over their weapons when going into the bar, they do their best to kill the bouncer. The merchant gives them a price total on their order, they try to kill them and take the goods. Enemies surrender, they go down the line execution style. An NPC says hello, and they deck them full in the face.

"Good afternoon, Sir! How are-" I take my surprise action to attack!

I'm exaggerating here, but only just barely. There is nothing worse for storytelling and immersion than someone who is clearly here only to kill things, regardless of if it makes sense in that situation, is true to the character, or destroys immersion.

Consider that frustration, and ask if your players feel the same way about some of the monsters you put in your game.

Parley?

There are some monsters that are always going to turn to the PCs and start attacking, no questions asked. Mindless undead who have been set a task, constructs with specific orders, and animals whose territory has been invaded (barring a party with a ranger or a druid who can talk said beast down) are never going to be more than an opportunity to cross swords or a chance to use serious stealth skills. That's what you put them there for!

But what about the rest of the time? When you have intelligent creatures on the board who should be using their heads instead of just reaching for their weapons because, hey, we're an hour and a half into the session and it should be time to fight something right about now don't-cha-think?

"What you all doin' in my woods?"

Give you an example of what I'm talking about.

During my group's play through of the adventure path Rise of The Runelords, there's a bit where you have to go into a cavern network and deal with a bunch of stone giants in pursuit of a ranger's corpse. Now, a majority of the encounters we had went like this:

- Party sees stone giants.

- Stone giants see party.

- Initiative is rolled.

However, there was one encounter that went differently. There were three giant hags, all gathered round a cauldron. A dangerous situation, to be sure, but one that was approached differently. Party members who spoke Giant announced us, and made the proper, respectful remarks. The hags, all deeply amused at the little adventurers, asked if we were there to kill the king. We told them no, we'd just come for the body of the ranger. They cackled at that, and told us that the ranger had been giving them quite a time... lot of trouble, for a dead man. Sadly, we'd likely have to slay their ruler to get to the ranger, and then we'd have to kill the thing he'd become. Ah well, the "king" wasn't worth much, and they would rather go back to their nice, warm swamp anyway.

And then, just like that, they teleported out. Information gained, combat avoided, and the only NPCs who felt like a genuine part of the world in that whole cavern system were gone.

I wonder what they're up to, these days...

Make Your Adversaries Real Characters, Too

It's true that, a lot of the time, the PCs and their adversaries are in direct conflict with one another. They're raiding an orc stronghold, and the guards have to keep them out. They're confronting a death-worshiping cult, and the cult sees no reason to listen to outsiders. Etc., etc.

But what about all those other situations? What about when there are pirates who don't want to lose any men, so they open negotiations for surrender? How about evil fey who, despite their desire to crack your heads and drink your blood, are still bound by specific (if unknowable) rules of courtesy? What about orc war bands who hail your party, and demand to know their business instead of just attacking them on sight? Or trolls who demand to know the party's destination in their swamp?

These are all potential situations where, sure, combat could still happen. And you might argue that a monster revealing themselves and engaging the party gives up a key advantage in that the PCs won't be ambushed if combat does happen. Fair points... but what are you giving up by assuming that every interaction is going to devolve into initiative? What effect does it have on your game when you don't bother figuring out the motivations of your bandit leaders, or the situations under which your dragons would not only not attack the PCs, but actively listen to the case they're making?

What does your story lose when you shut off the potential for NPCs like hags, gargoyles, redcaps, giants, ogres, gnolls, and all the other creatures to actually contribute more than another notch on the PCs' belts?

Or their swords, depending on how hard the bad guys' armor is.

It's true that you'll need to do a little extra tactical planning if you make your bad guys less into static obstacles and more into real characters, but you'll notice something when you do. Your players will begin to realize that these NPCs are just as real as their PCs. That they aren't just challenges to be slain, but that if they are treated differently they could add completely different elements to the story. If they know those orcs have names and motivations, then they might try to become their leader (or patron, if they'll turn mercenary), turning them into a helpful NPC war band. If they know the hill giants are capable of reason (even if they are thick as mud), then they might try to broker a lasting peace with the regional towns instead of just trying to kill everything 10 feet or taller that they meet.

And so on, and so forth.

There are still going to be situations where it's shoot first, ask questions later. Enraged manticores aren't all that interested in the motivations of PCs too close to their nests, and hordes of shambling undead can't be turned aside with anything short of shattered skulls. But you'll get a lot more mileage out of all those thinking, feeling NPCs if you present the opportunity for the party to interact with them in meaningful ways outside of rounds.

Just saying.

Also, if you're looking for a handy chart replete with antagonists that are still characters in their own right, then you might want to check out 100 Random Bandits To Meet. It's from Azukail Games, and authored by yours truly!

That's all for this Fluff installment. Hopefully it got the wheels turning for some of the DMs out there who would like to see their players do more than sling steel or spells when they see a creature. For more of my work check out my Vocal archive, or look at my Gamers page to just see my tabletop articles. You should also stop by Dungeon Keeper Radio, where I get together with other gamers to make fun videos for players and dungeon masters alike!

To stay on top of all my releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter. If you'd like to help support me then you can give me a one-time tip by Buying Me A Ko-Fi, and if you'd like to become a regular supporter you should go to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to sign up today! Lastly, if you want to buy some of my books, like my latest fantasy release Crier's Knife, you can go to My Amazon Author Page to see my entire library!

Tips On Using Bluff and Diplomacy in Combat (For Pathfinder)

When it comes to combat, the first thing that goes out the window are you social skills. Because now's not the time for talking, it's the time for fighting! Because unless you're trying to feint your enemy to catch them off-guard, or scare them with intimidation, this isn't the area to wield your silver tongue in.

Or is it?

Parley? Sorry, we don't speak coward!

As you've probably guessed by the title, there are a few ways you can turn a high Diplomacy or Bluff check into a viable battlefield weapon. I've gathered some of the ones I think are more useful, and presented them here. This list is likely not a complete one, though, so if I missed something you think deserves to be included here, please put it in the comments along with a source link or book and page reference.

Also, if you're more of an Intimidate specialist, I'd recommend check out How To Weaponize Your Intimidate Check in Pathfinder as well as the character build post The Bullyboy.

Bluffing Your Way To Victory

The most common way for someone to use Bluff in combat (other than feinting to deny an opponent their Dexterity modifier to their armor class) is by taking the Taunt feat. This feat requires you to be Small-sized, but it lets you swap Bluff for Intimidate when demoralizing your foes. It's particularly great because size doesn't matter in this case, allowing you to smack-talk giants without penalty. Ideal for bards who can maintain their music while demoralizing the enemy, helping allies and hurting foes in a single turn.

If you're not on the small side, though, there's also the feat Empty Threats. This one requires you have at least 5 ranks of Bluff, but it allows you to do pretty much the same thing as Taunt. It also has specific language that lets you use Bluff in place of Intimidate for the Dazzling Display feat, and any feat that requires Dazzling Display as a prerequisite. If you use Bluff in that way, though, then you can't use it to feint until the beginning of your next turn.

Fair trade off, I'd say.

If you're a spellcaster, it's also possible for you to take Conceal Spell. This feat is rather exhaustive, and requires you to have Bluff or Disguise, in addition to Sleight of Hand if you want to hide the fact that you're casting a spell, or using a spell-like ability. That last one is important, because it opens this feat to classes like kineticists, or to aasimar who take feats to expand their spell-like abilities. It does lengthen the casting time, and there is a chance the enemy will notice what you did with a Perception or Sense Motive check, but if they fail then they can't take an attack of opportunity on you, readied actions won't go off, and unless the effect emanates directly from you, there's no way to link you to the spell. Overall, a pretty intensive feat in terms of resources, but it's the answer to the constant question of, "How do I cast this spell without anyone knowing it was me?"

And it doesn't require you to jack up the spell level with Silent Spell and Still Spell.

You could also take Spell Bluff, if you're just looking for a way to get a leg up over casters who try to counter you (or to get a bonus against other casters who try the fake you out with what spell they're slinging). Not as useful if there are no wizards' duels going on, but worth keeping in mind.

Diplomacy In Battle

Diplomacy, as a rule, is a skill that takes time to work. If you're gathering information with it, it will take hours. If you're trying to convince someone to see things you're way, you have to give them a mini TED talk explaining what you're right. So, as a combat ability, it has truly limited efficacy.

Even with the right feats.

With that said, Call Truce is probably the biggest whammy you can pull off using Diplomacy in combat. The way this feat works is that you make a Diplomacy check, treating it as if you were casting a full-round action spell. You can't be wielding a weapon, or anything that might be considered threatening when you do this. You also have to be in plain sight. If no one on your side attacks an enemy or does anything threatening, you make a single check with a DC equal to 30 + the highest Charisma modifier of the enemy group. If you succeed, combat ceases for one minute, or until someone on the opposing side is attacked or threatened.

This can still go sideways if you attempt to use Call Truce as a ruse. Enemies receive a Sense Motive check to determine if you're calling a truce in order to gain an advantage. Additionally, if your enemies are fanatics, if they're clearly winning, or if they have a temporary advantage that will expire once the truce is called (short-term enchantments, for example), then the DM can declare that your attempt out-and-out fails.

However, if you've been looking for a way to just get those last few, scared bandits to put down their bows and talk with you, this is an ideal way to make that happen.

Another option, for the bastards out there, is the Betrayer feat. This feat allows you to butter someone up before combat, and if you manage to move their attitude along the path toward friendly, then you can make a single attack as an immediate action. If you got the target to friendly or better with your check, they're considered flat-footed against your attack, and take a -2 penalty to their Initiative if they survive. An ideal feat for assassins, cutthroats, and those who prefer seduction as an appetizer.

Lastly, there's the feat Urban Tracker. While not strictly combat-oriented, it struck me as useful in its own, specific way. Essentially it allows you to make Diplomacy checks to track people across an urban environment, rather than Survival checks. This pretty much requires you to be playing an urban game, but if you are, this is something that can help you find even the most elusive quarry.

Step Outside The Box

Remember, combat has a lot of different angles and strategies you can explore. And if you're a largely skill-focused character who's been looking to put some of those skills to use outside of RP-based challenges, I hope this guide helped. As always, remember, some enemies are too dumb, too inured, or just too inhuman for skills to work. Which is why you should have something heavy you can hit them with if you can't talk them down... like that barbarian you keep under glass for occasions just like this one.

That's all for this month's Crunch installment. Hopefully there are some skill monkeys out there who are coming up with new concepts as we speak. If you'd like to see more of my work (and particularly more gaming articles) check out my Vocal archive, or head over to the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio where I help out with DM advice, player tips, and occasional comedy. If you want to stay on top of all my latest releases, then follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter. Lastly, if you want to help support my work, then head to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to drop some change in my tip jar, or Buy Me a Ko-Fi. Either way, I'll be happy to give you my eternal gratitude, and some sweet gaming swag!

Don't NERF Skills in Pathfinder (Instead, Try Using The Rest of The Rules)

I don't know how many times I've been on a Facebook group, or a subreddit, and seen a DM asking for advice on how to deal with player characters with "overdeveloped" skills. Perception is probably the most common complaint, but Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidation sometimes get a bad rep for being easily "broken" in a game. These DMs are always asking how they can maintain their game's challenge when one player (or all of them) have taken it upon themselves to buff their skills until they shine, and they are unsurpassed in the execution of this one task.

The answer is pretty simple. Crack the book, and read how skills work in their entirety, instead of just the basics of how a check functions.

Seriously, guys, you make this a LOT harder on yourselves than you need to.

The Book Already Has The Balance You're Looking For

As I said way back in my post Operator Error is The Biggest Cause of Problems in RPGs, most of the problems DMs have behind the screen come from gaps in their knowledge about how aspects of the game actually work. For skills, most of us never move beyond the DC 10 for a simple task, DC 15 for a difficult one, and DC 25 or 30 for a nearly impossible one. However, that scale is only part of how skills work in Pathfinder.

Let's start with Perception, since it gets the most hate, and seems to cause the most problems. The most common use of Perception is to counter either a Stealth check, or to notice someone using Sleight of Hand. However, it is also used to locate traps, with the base DC of 20 for mechanical traps, and 25 + the highest spell level for magical traps.

Some traps have lower locate DCs than others.

Now, if you're a DM who is constantly frustrated that your party always finds your traps, locates your ambushes, or stumbles across your secret doors, you need to ask yourself two questions. One, why are you annoyed that your players are succeeding, using the resources they invested into their characters? Two, are you actually applying any of the appropriate negatives to the situation according to the chart on page 102?

You see, Perception is not just about the DC; it's also about the conditions you're using it in. Bad conditions? That's a +2 to the DC. +5 for terrible conditions. Distance? It's +1 for every 10 feet away the character is. If the creature making the check is distracted, that's a +5 to the check. Hearing something through a closed door is also a +5. It's +10 per foot of thickness to perceive something through a wall. It's a +20 if something is invisible, and then there is the question of whether the person making the check can see in the dark, can see in dim light, or if they understand what they're hearing.

All of that is a built-in feature of the game, and it's expected you're actually applying those negatives to situations where PCs are making Perception checks.

The other major problem I find is DMs who aren't actually running a skill the way it's listed in the book, and as such are making it more powerful than it should be. Intimidate and Diplomacy are the best examples. When you demoralize a creature in combat (one of the most common uses of Intimidate) the DC you have to beat is 10 + target's hit dice + the target's Wisdom modifier. So, while it's possible for you to Intimidate the dragon, you had better have Skill Focus, a racial bonus, a favored class modifier, a trait bonus, an equipment bonus, and roll above a 15 if you expect to demoralize that thing for even 1 round. It is not a roll-off of your Intimidate versus the target's Sense Motive (a skill most monsters don't even have most of the time, which would practically guarantee your success).

Then there's the creature's attitude. You see, it's entirely possible to use Diplomacy to change a creature's attitude toward you... but you can only move them 2 steps along the chart. So, if a creature has a hostile attitude toward you, the absolute best you can hope for with a Diplomacy check is to shift it to indifferent. And that means you need to make a check that beats the check of 25 + creature's Charisma modifier by 5 or more. So, at minimum, you need to hit a 30 just to make them not care one way or another.

But what about friendly creatures? Well, friendly is often misconstrued as, "I won the check, so now they do what I want." That isn't how that works. If you manage to change a creature's attitude toward you to friendly, either using Intimidate or Diplomacy, that creature doesn't immediately become a pawn under your control. It becomes "friendly," which means it will treat you as a friend. Depending on what you want, the DC will also go up (such as a +10 increase to the DC for giving dangerous aid, or a +15 or more for aid that could result in punishment). And if you use Intimidate rather than Diplomacy to make a creature friendly toward you? Well, that's a short-lived victory. It's also only really good for interrogations, since it only lasts for 1d6 X 10 minutes, after which the target treats you as unfriendly, and is likely to do things like report you to the town guard.

Don't Take Away Their Victories (But Don't Make Them Easy)

Pathfinder is a rules-dense game, and that means it's entirely possible to go through a whole campaign without touching on big sections of the rule book. But when you're a DM, and your players want to use those rules, it behooves you to learn them, and to run them with all the positive and negative aspects they're listed with. Because while it's entirely possible for the half-orc rogue to terrify a prisoner into submission in order to find out how many men are inside the bandit stronghold, or for the ranger to hear a twig snag as ambushers approach the camp while he's dead asleep, it's important to remember those aren't flat DCs. Sometimes it's easier for a character to succeed on those endeavors, and sometimes it's harder. Especially because natural 20s are not a guaranteed success on skill checks, by the rules.

However, while a DM might lament that someone in their party regularly hits checks in the 40s by level 10, take a moment to stop and ask what they had to do in order to get those numbers. How many feat slots, skill points, attribute bumps, traits, items, class features, and even spell slots are they dedicating to making sure they have the ability to spot ambushes with eagle-eyed clarity, or to fast-talk their way past all but the most astute guards. Just like barbarians with brutal attack numbers, or wizards who always seem to have just the right spell for a situation, don't punish the player for properly investing their resources to make effective characters.

Just make sure they're following the rules, and that they understand some situations are more difficult to overcome than others. Not because you're arbitrarily changing the rules, but because the rules were built with that difficulty curve in mind.

That's all for this week's Crunch post. Hopefully it helps both frustrated DMs, and players who have been wanting to go a little more in-depth with their skills. If you want to keep up-to-date on all my latest releases, then follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter. And if you'd like to help fund me and my blog so I can keep bringing you posts just like this, then head over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page. All it takes is $1 a month to make a big difference to me, and it gets you all kinds of sweet swag just for being a patron.

MORE Rules Pathfinder Players Keep Forgetting

In late June I published a list of 5 Rules Pathfinder Players Keep Forgetting, and the response to it was amazing. Forums were exploding with a buzz, and everyone was clamoring about other rules that got left off of the list. I took careful notes, and I decided there were so many that I had to come back and write a continuation to the original list. In fact, this series has been going on so long I now need to include the full list of entries on rules players have been overlooking, forgetting, or just plain don't know.

- Playing By The Book: Some Pathfinder Rules That Players Keep Forgetting
- MORE Rules Pathfinder Players Keep Forgetting
- Even MORE Rules Pathfinder Players Keep Forgetting
- Still More Rules Pathfinder Players Keep Forgetting
- 5 More Rules Pathfinder Players Keep Forgetting

So, that said, here's some more rules you likely forgot all about...

You Need Cover or Concealment to Use Stealth

You're going to need to do a little better than that...

I've lost track of the number of games I've played where a character is so specialized in stealth that a pin drop would seem like a gunshot compared to his footsteps. Hell, I've written a character build article for how to do this very thing right here on this blog. But even if you are silent as death and stealthy as a shadow, that doesn't change that you can't just roll a stealth check and become invisible.

Page 106 of the Core Rule Book outlines how the stealth skill works. Basically if anyone is observing you with any sense (sight, smell, hearing, etc.) then you cannot make a stealth check. Period. If you want to try and pull a Batman then you first need to make a bluff check, and then you can move to a place where you have cover and attempt a stealth check at a -10.

Short version; stealth is a skill, not a spell. Unless you have some class ability like hide in plain sight, or a feat like hellcat stealth (Cheliax, Empire of Devils) then you had better be able to move from rock to rock like a special ops soldier if you want to sneak up unseen.

Anyone Can Find Magic Traps

One of the strangest arguments I've come across from storytellers is that, in their games, rogues can't find or disable magical traps unless they have levels of some kind of spellcasting class. Despite the very clear language of the trapfinding ability these storytellers refuse to allow one of the signature abilities of the rogue class to come into play if they haven't dipped at least one level in wizard or sorcerer.

It must hurt to know they're double wrong.

Everybody chill out... I got this.

Page 417 of the Core Rule Book makes no bones about the fact that anyone can find traps both mechanical and magical. The basic DC for finding and disabling a mechanical trap is 20, and raising or lowering that DC changes the CR of the trap in question. When it comes to magical traps the base DC for both spotting and disabling the trap is a DC 25 + the level of the highest spell used in the trap. Only those with the trapfinding class feature can attempt to disable these traps using the disable device skill, but there's no word on whether or not wizards can disable these traps or not. Anyone, from the eagle-eyed barbarian to the overly-observant bard can perceive them, though.

Yes, You Can Take Multiple Archetypes For The Same Class

One of the best things that Pathfinder introduced starting with the Advanced Player's Guide was the idea of class archetypes. Rather than re-inventing the wheel by creating dozens of new base classes, or stuffing the world with prestige classes (a big complaint toward the end of Dungeons and Dragons 3.5), Pathfinder introduced archetypes that replace some of a class's old abilities with shiny new ones that allow them to be better at certain things. The Titan Mauler is good at fighting big enemies, and loses some signature barbarian abilities, the Holy Gun creates a black powder paladin, but strips away some of the raiment of a knight in shining armor... you get the idea.

Yes you can take more than one archetype for the same class.

It's the only way to explain this, really.

The caveat for this rule, found in the Advanced Player's Guide is that you cannot take two archetypes that replace the same ability. So you could take Thug and Bandit, two rogue archetypes, because they replace different abilities entirely. On the other hand you can't take an armor master and a brawler (the fighter variant, not the Advanced Class Guide class), because both of these archetypes replace weapon training 1.

Yes you can double dip. No you can't do it with the chip you've already finished eating.

Activating A Magic Item is a Standard Action

This is one of those sticky rules that players think they know, but often forget key pieces of. For instance, we all know that using a scroll or activating a wand is a standard action. But what about activating your flaming sword? Or sheathing your frost mace in arctic chill?

Yep, still a standard action.

Terrifying the locals remains, however, a free action.

Lots of players tend to forget that everything takes time. Yes it's cinematic for a fighter to growl a word in ancient celestial to light his burning sword, but it's good tactics to go into the stronghold of evil with your big guns cocked and locked. It also cuts down on grousing about wasted turns if you take care of all your command-word activations before the DM calls for initiative.

Combat Maneuvers

Combat maneuvers are those tricky things that most players eschew until they come up against a situation where they would be really useful (sundering the enemy's nearly impenetrable armor, hammering the poisoned knife out of the assassin's hand, grappling the escaped prisoner you want to take alive, etc.). While any character can attempt these maneuvers (though they draw attacks of opportunity if you don't have the improved name of combat maneuver feat), there's a lot of confusion about them.

So I make an opposed strength check now... right?

Firstly it's important to remember that some combat maneuvers can be done as a standard action, and some combat maneuvers simply replace an attack. Disarm, sunder, and trip can replace attacks (including those in a flurry of blows, or those being used by a two-weapon fighter), whereas bull rush, overrun, grapple, dirty trick, steal, and reposition all take a standard action. Of these standard actions, only a bull rush or an overrun may be used as part of a charge. You will roll a 20 and add your CMB (combat maneuver bonus), and if you beat the CMD (combat maneuver defense) of the enemy then congratulations you have successfully pulled off the maneuver.

Secondly you don't need to charge to use the bull rush combat maneuver. You can charge (Core Rule Book 198), and if you do you get a +2 to your bull rush maneuver, but you can perform the maneuver while standing entirely still.

Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate Are Not Mind Control

The bonus 6th rule of this set, at the risk of repeating myself, is that lots of players tend to forget skills are not more powerful than spells. Any character can have a skill and build it up to a robust number; only certain classes get spells. It's for that reason that yes a bard can talk a mean game with her silver tongue to try and sweeten up a guard to let the party past, but if he she really wants to make the guard do something then it's going to take a command spell or a similar effect to force the guard's hand.

Why? Because you can have the most reasoned, appealing argument in the world, but some people won't care because they're bigoted, prejudiced, distrustful, or they just don't like you.

Sorry honey, I only listen when men are talking.

According to the descriptions of these skills (all of which are found in the skills chapter of the Core Rule Book) bluff can be used to convince people of the truth of a believable lie, diplomacy can be used to increase a creature's attitude toward you by up to two steps, and intimidate can be used to force a character to act as if it were friendly toward you for a few minutes before reverting to unfriendly.

What can't you do with these skills? You can't convince the goblin that he's actually an ogre, you can't suddenly persuade the paladin that his oaths don't matter, and you can't intimidate someone into betraying a sworn ruler if that person has ironclad loyalty. You most certainly cannot just get into someone's pants because you rolled a really high number on a social check. Basically you can't just roll a die and then take control of another character's decisions and responses, no matter how many levels you beat the DC by.

For those who have rules that are constantly forgotten at your table please leave them in the comments, or email them! Thanks again for dropping by Improved Initiative, and if you'd like to follow me then type your email into the box on the right, or stop by my Facebook and Tumblr pages. If you'd like to support this blog, and by extension me, then like this post on FB by clicking the box on the upper right, leave a tip in my "Bribe the DM" button on the right hand side, or stop by my Patreon page and become a patron today!