Hello folks – quick question that was asked of me recently: for purposes of moves such as the Paladin’s I am the Law, is an NPC considered to be any reasonable being aside from PCs? For instance, assuming an attacking goblin understands the Paladin’s language, is it effectively an NPC? Other RPGs distinguish between NPCs and encounter monsters, but DW is different to the point that I assume anything is an NPC that isn’t controlled by a player. Just wondering how you guys treat it?
Hello folks – quick question that was asked of me recently: for purposes of moves such as the Paladin’s I am the…
Hello folks – quick question that was asked of me recently: for purposes of moves such as the Paladin’s I am the…
I’d ask the bard. Man, those guys know everything…
In addition to asking the Bard, because Bards do know everything, I’d just use common sense here. I consider NPCs to be any and every character controlled by the GM, but not all NPCs are intelligent or capable of communication.
Marshall Miller lol there isn’t one!
Chris Stone-Bush yeah that was my thinking as well, was just curious if anyone thought differently.
You’re not going to break the game either way, you’re just going to say something about the world.
Watsonian answer: The move is all about projecting authority, so it makes sense to me that any creature who can understand the paladin can also perceive the authority they project. Every creature who can think and reason can consequently be persuaded.
Doylist answer: It’s one of the Paladin’s main schticks. If it only worked on…. I dunno, how would you even distinguish that? Humanoids (by the DnD definition)? Creatures with ‘dialog trees’? Either one would make it so the Paladin hardly ever gets to use the move, and the latter loses sight of *Give Every Monster Life.*
So yeah, I’d say it has the potential to work on any sentient creature, though like any move there will be times when it can’t trigger because of specific fictional circumstances. Makes for a better table experience, I think.
Well, would it be cool if one of the attacking goblins understood the paladin’s language? And this started an argument amongst the goblins about what to do? Leading to the PCs getting caught up in the goblins’ affairs?
Of course goblins can be NPCs.
Of course that means that if the goblins fall under the Paladin’s jurisdiction… they also fall under his protection, and he is obligated to make sure that they are properly represented under the law. Otherwise he’s just another douchebag bully.
I remember an old thread about a paladin taking the boon “a voice that transcends language” and then using I am the Law on the very forces of nature (like gravity when he was falling). Sure, that won’t fly (get it) in every game. But be a fan, right?
(and of course, what happens when the forces of nature opt to just attack you instead of complying; messy, yeah?)
Jeremy Strandberg That is an absolutely brilliant and fascinating rabbit hole!
I’m pretty sure it’s also how you’d model a lot of the Shouts from Skyrim.
Would a Goblin, even if he understood the Paladin’s language, give a toss?
That’s for the dice to decide Andrew P.
This is how I run it: I am the law works on anything and anyone able to perceive the paladin, including player character (because that potentially leads to some great character progression and changes in the dynamic of the group). I also do not think that you necessarily have to be able to understand the paladin for it to affect you, the effects might just vary. Even when you can not decipher the meaning of the paladins words you are still able to understand the tone of his voice, his facial expression and gesticulation. Using it on the goblins, even when they do not understand his language might still lead to them understanding that the paladin means them no harm and give you lots of options for storytelling that go beyond simply leading from one battle to the next.