RE: Re: Ransoms

From: Andrew Dawson <asmpd_at_...>
Date: Fri, 27 Sep 2002 17:17:18 -0400

At 03:44 PM 9/27/2002 +0100, MCGINNESS, Stephen wrote:
> > I'm not claiming its perfect but it seems workable and to me at least
> > makes more sense than a final action.
>
>So in the event that someone is going to CdG your character and the narrator
>indicates that he will allow you to use your wealth any failure by the
>aggressor means that you have convinced him and your wealth has not suffered
>as a result. Marginal or minor successes could mean that you convince him
>not to kill you but your wealth suffers while major and complete success
>means he ignores your ransom offers and offs you anyway??? :-)

This has the odd result of it not mattering how high the Wealth rating is, just how high the Wealth rating is relative to the ability used in the CdG. It follows that the clan champion equivalent fighter who is trying to kill with CC 10W2 will not be stopped by Common Wealth (15), but the Berserk Uroxi with a 1W1 rating is more likely to be affected by the offer of ransom. I'm not commenting on how someone may choose to alter the system, but on how it currently is written.

Maybe you can add at +20 modifier to Wealth when used in this situation because ransoming is so commonplace and expected, but then the equivalent of the tribal champion isn't impressed with that paltry wealth, and so on. Then you can come up with a "but not beserkers, they instead impose a -20" modifier, and so on.

I'd rather emphasize that ransoming is normal and expected in the culture, and that killing can taint you (if you're not Humakti or possessed of some other excuse like berserking or fighting chaos). I'll say "As you bring up your sword for the killing stroke, he cries out 'Ransom!'" and let the player figure it out without the coercion of rolls unless the PC has some mitigating flaw such as Greedy that causes such coercion. (In that case, I'd probably use an ability roll vs. Greedy instead of figuring out how to work it into the CdG--but only if the player decided to ignore the Greedy rating.) I also figure out whether a given NPC wants ransoms (they generally do unless the PCs are bloodthirsty killers who don't accept ransoms).

As far as I can tell, ransoms are not part of Hero Wars. I can't find them mentioned in the main book or TR, so we are really talking about a relic of RQ. I'll still use ransoming in my game, but there's no reason for a new player to know about it. (Unless someone knows that it is mentioned somewhere.)

Thanks,
Andy