Negotiations are high-stakes, protracted deliberations between the PCs and an NPC, wherein the PCs are attempting to persuade an NPC to undertake a meaningful course of action. An NPC with which the PCs are negotiating possesses two key attributes: **Interest** and **Patience**. ## Interest Interest represents the NPC's attitude towards the PCs' request, ranging from **1-6:** | Interest | Description | Result | | -------- | ----------- | ------------------------------------------------------------ | | **6** | Yes! And... | The NPC agrees with the PCs, and provides an extra benefit. | | **5** | Yes! | The NPC agrees with the PCs. | | **4** | Yes! But... | The NPC agrees with the PCs, but exacts a cost or condition. | | **3** | No! But... | The NPC disagrees with the PCs, but provides some benefit. | | **2** | No! | The NPC disagrees with the PCs. | | **1** | No! And... | The NPC disagrees with the PCs, and does something harmful. | If at any point an NPC's Interest reaches **6 or 1,** the negotiation ends. ## Patience Patience represents how much longer an NPC is willing to entertain the PCs' arguments; it also ranges from **1-6.** If an NPC's Patience reaches 1, the **negotiation ends.** ## Starting Attitude An NPC's **starting attitude** towards the PCs dictates how much Interest and Patience they begin the negotiation with: | Starting Attitude | Interest | Patience | | ----------------- | -------- | -------- | | **Trusting** | 4 | 6 | | **Friendly** | 4 | 5 | | **Open** | 3 | 4 | | **Neutral** | 3 | 4 | | **Suspicious** | 3 | 3 | | **Hostile** | 2 | 3 | ## Motivations & Pitfalls **Motivations** are the driving forces behind an NPC's psychology and worldview. Appealing to an NPC's Motivation helps increase their Interest. Generally a Motivation can only be appealed to once. **Pitfalls** are topics and concepts that an NPC greatly dislikes or hates; mentioning them decreases their Patience and Interest. Some examples are listed below: | `dice: 1d12` | Motivation or Pitfall | | ------------ | --------------------- | | 1 | Benevolence | | 2 | Discovery | | 3 | Freedom | | 4 | Greed | | 5 | Higher Authority | | 6 | Justice | | 7 | Legacy | | 8 | Peace | | 9 | Power | | 10 | Protection | | 11 | Revelry | | 12 | Vengeance | ### Uncovering Motivations and Pitfalls A PC can make an **Int or Cha check** to attempt to learn a Motivation or Pitfall of the NPC. On a success, they learn either a Motivation or Pitfall (PC's choice); on a Great Success they learn one of each. On a failure, the NPC's Patience is reduced by 1; on a Terrible Failure it is reduced by 2. ## Making an Argument PCs may make **arguments** to attempt to increase an NPC's Interest. **Cha and Int checks** are commonly be used, but also other attributes as deemed appropriate by the GM. Appealing to an NPC's Motivation or Pitfalls have additional effects. | Result | No Appeal | Appeal to Motivation | Appeal to Pitfall | | ---------------- | -------------------------- | -------------------------- | -------------------------- | | Great Success | +1 Interest | +2 Interest | -2 Interest<br>-2 Patience | | Success | +1 Interest<br>-1 Patience | +2 Interest<br>-1 Patience | -2 Interest<br>-2 Patience | | Failure | -1 Interest<br>-1 Patience | -1 Interest<br>-1 Patience | -2 Interest<br>-2 Patience | | Terrible Failure | -2 Interest<br>-2 Patience | -2 Interest<br>-2 Patience | -2 Interest<br>-2 Patience | ## Making an Offer At any point in the negotiation the PCs can ask the NPC to make an offer. The NPC will do so based on their current Interest level, but the PCs aren't obliged to accept. If the PCs choose to refuse the offer, they can continue the negotiation.