Social ConflictsCopy link
A Social Conflict resolves competing goals through conversation, persuasion, deception, intimidation, negotiation, or conviction. Most encounters end after one token exchange. A temporary Opening offers a choice: Accept Opening or Press Further once.
Declare the request and approachCopy link
State what the Hero wants and how they approach the NPC. Agree the possible concession and meaningful setback before drawing. The WorldKeeper selects Resolve for pressure, intimidation, emotional manipulation or conviction, or Intuition for reading intentions, deception and tactics.
NPC social defensesCopy link
Resolve and Intuition use the existing 0–4 ratings where supported. They are defensive baselines, not resources that are depleted. Use the selected defense as the baseline for the NPC’s social token pool; do not add a second Presence bonus.
Pool slot | Result | ★ |
|---|---|---|
1 | 0 | No |
2 | 1 | Yes |
3 | 1 | No |
4 | 2 | No |
5 | 2 | No |
6 | 2 | No |
7 | 3 | No |
8 | 3 | No |
9 | 4 | Yes |
10 | 4 | No |
Choose one of the ten slots at random, preserving repeated values. ★ occurs on slots 2 and 9. Add that result to the chosen Resolve or Intuition rating. Use an NPC’s recorded custom pool when one has already been established.
Resolve one exchangeCopy link
Resolve the Hero’s Performance using the declared Pathway, Training, Shade and ordinary token effects. Add the Hero’s Status baseline once and any agreed modifiers. The NPC draws from its social pool and adds the selected Resolve or Intuition baseline once, plus any applicable ★ effect. Higher total succeeds; a tie gains no ground. Without an Opening, resolve the agreed outcome and end the encounter.
Social Break — an OpeningCopy link
A drawn Momentum Aspect triggers a Social Break and creates one temporary Opening, even if the Hero loses the comparison, unless an applicable ★ ability resists it. It does not change which total won. An Opening is a chance to listen, reconsider, reveal a clue or offer a compromise; it is not mind control or automatic agreement.
Accept OpeningCopy link
Accept the immediate agreed concession, information or opportunity. The encounter ends.
Press FurtherCopy link
Risk the Opening for a greater result. Describe a new approach or build on the first, and agree the complication before drawing. Resolve one additional exchange. A positive margin permits a greater reasonable concession within the NPC’s motivations. A tie or loss closes the Opening and applies the agreed complication. Press Further is normally allowed only once; do not repeat checks until the NPC agrees.
Optional ★ social abilitiesCopy link
An NPC may have one optional social ★ ability alongside its physical abilities. Apply it only when the NPC draw triggers ★.
Ability | On ★ |
|---|---|
Unshakable | Resist the first Opening in this encounter. |
Suspicious | Against deception using Intuition, add 1 to opposition. |
Silver Tongue | Frame a concession as a counteroffer; agree the terms. |
Proud | Against explicitly public pressure, add 1 to opposition. |
Empathetic | Recognize the Hero’s underlying motivation; the WorldKeeper describes what is understood. |
Calculating | Attach a reasonable reciprocal concession to a successful request. |
Consequences and boundariesCopy link
This short procedure does not use a Social Position track, separate social Health, Conviction or Composure losses, or a Social Impact/Wear bag draw. Status, Conviction and Composure remain Hero attributes; Resolve and Intuition do not decrease. Narrate the agreed stakes and respect the NPC’s agency. Clothing may matter to the fiction but grants no automatic Power or Status.
ExampleCopy link
A Hero asks a guard to allow passage and offers evidence. The WorldKeeper chooses Intuition. The Hero totals 6 and the guard totals 4; the request succeeds. If the Hero drew Momentum, the guard also becomes willing to consider an escort. The Hero may accept that Opening and end the encounter, or risk it once by pressing for broader access with an agreed consequence if the second exchange fails.