One system I found very useful for confronting these sorts of conflicts is Dogs in the Vineyard. In that system, you can make balanced characters with very different capabilities. All the attributes a character has must be very descriptive and have a unique flavor.
For example, let's consider the barmaid and warrior mentioned earlier. When it comes to combat, the barmaid may have the trait "Been in a few bar brawls 2d6." The warrior could have the trait "Battle-hardened 2d10."
If they came to blows in the bar, the barmaid may be able to hold her own. If the barmaid additionally had a relationship of "Ferdy's Bar 1d10," her knowledge of the location and some assistance from one of the regulars would give her a fighting chance.
If instead they met in a dark alley, on a battlefield, or somewhere else, the warrior's superior combat experience, plus his "Family Sword 2d6" would likely see him prevail.
To give you an idea what an entire character looks like, here's Myxie's character sheet:
Throw Myxie into such a combat against a warrior, and her only useful traits would likely be magically talented and arcanist's arm, unless some aspect of the scene allowed her to devise a clever trap or mechanism to make use of the environment for "Clever Improvisation." Her "Well Read" and "Craftsmanship" traits would likely never help her in a combat situation, but could be quite useful in a social conflict or knowledge based skill challenge.
In addition, there are four different severities of conflict, and each one makes use of different base stats, so if your character isn't winning the shouting match, you can raise the stakes to fisticuffs. If brawling still isn't doing it, you can draw your sword. The fallout system takes into account how dangerously you engaged in the conflict, and you may suffer more severe injury the more you escalate the situation in an effort to win the conflict. It covers everything from courtly rumors and gossip to shaking down a merchant to barroom brawls to deadly battlefield combat. If there's a conflict with stakes involved you can roll the dice and up the ante.
The primary problem of this system is it requires some third party arbitration, otherwise you may end up with arguments about whether or not a trait or relationship applies to a given situation. It also takes a little practice to get used to how the system flows, but it's totally worth it. This system's focus on conflict resolution is quite revolutionary in the RPG field, and it's possible to make balanced characters who can still have substantially different capabilities based on the nature of the conflict in question. Even if you don't care to use the system, I suggest checking it out and possibly incorporating some of the elements into your own system.
For example, let's consider the barmaid and warrior mentioned earlier. When it comes to combat, the barmaid may have the trait "Been in a few bar brawls 2d6." The warrior could have the trait "Battle-hardened 2d10."
If they came to blows in the bar, the barmaid may be able to hold her own. If the barmaid additionally had a relationship of "Ferdy's Bar 1d10," her knowledge of the location and some assistance from one of the regulars would give her a fighting chance.
If instead they met in a dark alley, on a battlefield, or somewhere else, the warrior's superior combat experience, plus his "Family Sword 2d6" would likely see him prevail.
To give you an idea what an entire character looks like, here's Myxie's character sheet:
Quote:Myxie Tryxle – Dogs in the Vineyard Character Sheet
Background: Strong History
Acuity: 3
Body: 3
Heart: 4
Will: 3
Traits:
Magically Talented: 2d8
Well Read: 2d8
Clever Improvisation: 2d10
Craftsmanship: 3d6
Relationships: (Reserve 1d4, 3d6)
Grendar Trikhel: 1d6
Grendar’a Trikhel: 1d6
Uncle Ori’to: 1d6
Farawynn: 1d8
Headstrong: 1d8
Belongings:
Arcanist’s Arm 2d6
Book Collection 1d6
Throw Myxie into such a combat against a warrior, and her only useful traits would likely be magically talented and arcanist's arm, unless some aspect of the scene allowed her to devise a clever trap or mechanism to make use of the environment for "Clever Improvisation." Her "Well Read" and "Craftsmanship" traits would likely never help her in a combat situation, but could be quite useful in a social conflict or knowledge based skill challenge.
In addition, there are four different severities of conflict, and each one makes use of different base stats, so if your character isn't winning the shouting match, you can raise the stakes to fisticuffs. If brawling still isn't doing it, you can draw your sword. The fallout system takes into account how dangerously you engaged in the conflict, and you may suffer more severe injury the more you escalate the situation in an effort to win the conflict. It covers everything from courtly rumors and gossip to shaking down a merchant to barroom brawls to deadly battlefield combat. If there's a conflict with stakes involved you can roll the dice and up the ante.
The primary problem of this system is it requires some third party arbitration, otherwise you may end up with arguments about whether or not a trait or relationship applies to a given situation. It also takes a little practice to get used to how the system flows, but it's totally worth it. This system's focus on conflict resolution is quite revolutionary in the RPG field, and it's possible to make balanced characters who can still have substantially different capabilities based on the nature of the conflict in question. Even if you don't care to use the system, I suggest checking it out and possibly incorporating some of the elements into your own system.
I'm a tinker! Tinkerer? Hrm.... I'm an artificer! - Myxie Tryxle | Impressions and Memories
