Heya all!
In my last DW game, my players stumbled upon a group of cultist elves. The Rangeress, who was scouting ahead of the others, stepped out of the shadows with her bow raised in an attempt to gain leverage over them. Since she snuck up on them, I thought it was a good opportunity for her to parley, since they didn’t want to get shot.
She rolled and hit an 8, asking them to “speak with her instead of attacking.” The leader, seeking concrete assurance, told her that they would talk if she put down her bow. She complied and they started to chat.
During the conversation, the NPC elf made a comment about “half-breeds” and my Rangeress got really mad. She wanted to intimidate the elf, but I wasn’t sure how to handle it. I think I had her roll Defy Danger, but I honestly wasn’t sure what to do. Seemed like a perfect time for Go Aggro, but DW doesn’t have that move.
Any suggestions?
Parley/Dey with Cha usually but there are more direct playbook moves.
A more rangery move i wrote
Primal Howl
When you howl like the monsters that stalk the night to scare away your enemies roll+CHA
On a 10+ they choose 1
* Flee in panic
* Stand there in shock for a moment
On a 7-9 they choose 1
– do what they think you want
– treat you as the most obvious threat to be dealt with
– barricade themselves securely in and wait
If she doesn’t have a move to do it, then just make a GM move in response. Be a fan of the characters, but say what your understanding of the intimidation target demands: would they be intimidated?
I like the defy danger option in respect to “if the intimidate doesn’t move they’d naturally attack.”
I think Ben Wray has it right here. I tried the Defy Danger move and it really didn’t feel like it clicked. That said, I think I did it with Dex (she was throwing her spear to intimidate) when I should have used CHA.
Intimidation is parley with “I’ll fuck you up” as the leverage.
Adam Koebel – Yeah, I just get wary of the tit for tat. If the parley roll hits, then the NPC has to ask for something. Although, I suppose that “I’ll stop using racial slurs if you promise not to kill me,” is a good one.
Mark Diaz Truman fear of the rules does not invalidate them! Stick to the guns. This is a cut and dry parley, to me.
“Rethink your attitude or get mouthful of fist.”
Ha. Love it! Parley it is.
Parleying again with similar terms is also likely to lead to greater demands or assurances…
Can you guys talk a bit about leverage then? When does a PC have leverage? Is it supposed to be a pretty low bar?
I’d keep it lower rather then higher or Parley won’t get used in your game.
Leverage just means “I have something you want” which might be “gold” or “information” or something as nebulous as “mercy”.
In this instance, the leverage is violence. Concrete proof might be that she takes her hand off her sword when he apologizes for being a racist scumbag.
I tend to think of leverage from the NPC’s point of view: if I was this person/thing, what would be compelling to me?
For some creatures that might be “nothing.” Some of the more destructive demons, or primal goblins? They just don’t care. Honey badgers too.
For some creatures “violence” is an easy answer.
For some creatures, “violence” actually isn’t scary. If the NPC (rightly or wrongly) doesn’t fear the PCs, threats just won’t be leverage. They might, though, want the PCs to be their tools.
Everybody wants something. Parley isn’t so hard to use, especially if you Spout Lore or Discern Realities first.
PC: I snarl at him, putting my hand on the hilt of my sword and taking a half-step forward. I watch his eyes, the way his muscles tense up. Is he afraid?”
GM: I don’t know, maybe? ROLL DICE!
PC: I got an 8. I want to know: If I push him on this, what is about to happen, here?
GM: He flinches when you snarl, and his eyes aren’t on yours, but on the grip of your blade. A single bead of sweat slides down the side of his nose and drips onto the stone floor below.
PC: Oh, I got you, sucker. “Throw down your spear, fool, or I’ll gut you.” I Parley! My leverage is HIS LIFE!
Yeah, there’s a snowball here where to parley someone you likely need to get information on them…
Right, or at least have another move or some fictional positioning to set you up as the badass that doesn’t need no introduction.
Reputation is awesome for this.
“He knows I brook no insolence and am reputed to have killed a man simply for his looking at me cock-eyed. WATCH OUT, MOTHERFUCKER.”
Yup, and there are some moves that explicity give you a reputation, that can lead to leverage.
I want to +1 Adam Koebel’s comments harder. They demand it.