The Social Challenge system was designed to give a bit of a more interesting feel to higher pressure social situations like interrogations, high pressure political navigation, and other such events. Not all roleplaying will use this (see below) but this provides a framework for GMs to make it more obvious how well players are doing at the situation, and provide them easy avenues for moving the story and conversation along.
When to Use Social Challenges
Social Challenges are formal structured social encounters used when players need to overcome significant NPC resistance to achieve important goals. Use Social Challenges when:
- The NPC has strong reasons to refuse the request (fear, loyalty, secrets, conflicting interests)
- The social goal is important to the story or character advancement
- Simple roleplay or a single skill check feels insufficient for the stakes involved
- There’s meaningful opposition that requires tactical social approach
Regular roleplaying (i.e. normal one-off Influence/Deception/Insight Checks) should be used for:
- Casual conversations and everyday interactions
- Gathering basic information that NPCs would freely share
- Shopping, small talk, and social pleasantries
- Situations where the NPC has no strong reason to resist
Core Mechanics
As with normal roleplaying, you will be using your Social Skills: Insight, Influence, and Deception. They will be used in the same ways, but they will follow a more standardized format achieving an outcome very similar to a “combat”
Resolve System
The entire Social Challenge system is predicated on Resolve, which is a measure of an NPC’s ability to resist doing or saying something they do not want to.
NPCs have Resolve equal to their Willpower Modifier, and the goal of a Social Challenge is for the players to work together to use their Social Skills to:
- Identify what is making this person reticent to do what the party wants, and what social “ins” the party has to attempt to coerce them (using their Insight Skill)
- Use these uncovered social “ins” and motivations to pressure/coerce/bribe/threaten the NPC, thus lowering their Resolve (using their Influence or Deception Skills)
- Eventually get the NPC’s Resolve to 0, thus ending the Social Challenge
GM-Specific Mechanics
NOTE: Everything here is for the GM, but there is no harm in the players knowing how it works if they want. This is meant to provide a guide on how to lead these situations for your players.
Opening Insight Rolls
When you are running a Social Challenge it’s best to start things off with an Insight roll or two from the players. Let them ask questions about the NPC, about the situation, etc. If/when they succeed, provide them a useful springboard for the Social Challenge. Tell them he looks shifty and probably will fleece them for gold. Or maybe there’s a lot of people around and the party needs to keep things subtle. Maybe there’s been rumor that this NPC has known vices or dirt, and the party can use that. Think creatively to help your players navigate this (but don’t just hand them the win!). Many players are significantly less comfortable with these situations, and we want to aim as GMs to help them be able to roleplay something they are not used to while still succeeding! No player’s high-Insight character should be punished because the player isn’t an amazing empath or speaker.
Position & Effect
Position and Effect are the two primary ways you will judge the approach(es) the party is using to achieve their goals. When the party attempts some social maneuver like “I threaten to break his arm” or “I slip him 10g and ask him if that jogs his memory”, you must assess both of these. The Position and Effect of any given approach will be wildly case-by-case.
A very specific note for GMs, and for players (if you’re reading this!):
Players are not supposed to present their approaches from the perspective of Position/Effect!!!
These systems are merely for the GM to gauge outcomes. If your players are attempting to just say “We want to take a Risky approach and get a Great outcome! <rolls dice>” then the Social Challenge is going poorly. The party should merely present what they are saying, how they are saying it, and what they are hoping for. The GM’s job is to judge that approach on these metrics for the players.
Position: How risky the approach is
There are 3 possible values for Position, each representing a way of HOW the party approaches each moment. These can vary wildly both on how the party presents the approach, but also the context of the situation, where they are, who’s listening, who’s just in earshot, etc.
- Controlled: Casual conversation, non-threatening approach, established trust
- Risky: Direct confrontation, asking sensitive questions, time pressure
- Desperate: Threatening behavior, exposed lies, hostile audience
Effect: How much progress you can make
There are similarly 3 possible values for Effect. These are highly case-by-case, depending entirely on how you believe the approach would work on the NPC given their current mental state, what buttons the players are pushing, and other such factors. Each level of Effect has an increasing effect on the NPC’s Resolve:
- Limited: Small talk, minor requests, testing waters (0 Resolve reduction)
- Standard: Direct requests, reasonable persuasion, good approach (1 Resolve reduction)
- Great: Perfect approach, leveraging strong position, ideal circumstances (2 Resolve reduction)
Consequences
The following is an easy-to-follow table on how to judge the results of their roll combined with Position:
| Position | Success | Failure |
|---|---|---|
| Controlled | Achieve effect, no complications | No progress, no complications |
| Risky | Achieve effect, potentially gain minor complication | No progress, minor complication |
| Desperate | Achieve effect, immediate complication | No progress, major consequence |
| Note that Desperate + Success has “immediate complication” versus Risky + Success which is “potential minor complication”. This is a subtle difference, but it comes down to things that could be non-obvious or longer-lasting (minor complication; the party bribes the guard and he talks, but his bribe is noticed when he goes on a spending spree later and is questioned about the party!) versus something that happens immediately (the party breaks the NPCs finger; he talks immediately but his screams are heard! The party better hurry up…) |
Limits of Broken Resolve
Please note as a GM that, even when an NPC’s Resolve reaches 0, they may still refuse to discuss certain topics due to deeper loyalties, fears, or secrets. Broken resolve makes them willing to cooperate on the current topic, not an open book. The players should achieve their aims, maybe a little extra, but not the NPC’s life story and every secret.
Example Scenario
Use this scenario as a good way to get a feel for the absolute basics of a Social Challenge to understand how you can run it, what it looks like to succeed, etc.
Context
The party is investigating recent murders in town. They suspect the local tavern keeper witnessed something but isn’t talking. Several hooded figures have been seen around town, and people are scared.
Setup
Tavern keeper has 50 Willpower (+3 Willpower Modifier = Resolve 3). Party needs to reduce his Resolve to 0 to get him to reveal what he knows about the murders.
Action 1: Information Gathering
Player: “I watch him while we order drinks, looking for tells about what’s making him nervous.”
- Insight Roll: Success! Gains 1 Flow Point. Player learns he keeps glancing at a particular corner table and his hands shake when murders are mentioned. (No Position/Effect assessment or Resolve reduction since this is an Insight roll for information gathering)
- Current State: 3/3 Resolve remaining
Action 2: Building Trust
Player: “I lean in and quietly say we’re here to help catch whoever did this, and I noticed he seems worried about his customers’ safety.”
- GM Assessment:
- Position: Risky (direct approach could backfire)
- Effect: Standard (1 Resolve reduction potential)
- Influence Roll: Success! Reduces Resolve by 2. Risky position + success means gain complication: other patrons start listening in, creating “Unwanted Attention.”
- Current State: 2/3 Resolve remaining, complication “Unwanted Attention”
Action 3: Finding a Resolution
Player: “I quietly offer to escort any vulnerable customers home safely tonight.”
- GM Assessment:
- Position: Risky (would normally be Controlled, but “Unwanted Attention” makes it riskier)
- Effect: Great (2 Resolve reduction potential)
- Influence Roll: Success! Reduces Resolve by 2, bringing it to 0.
Resolution
The tavern keeper quietly tells them about the hooded figure he saw leaving through the back exit after the second murder, grateful for their genuine concern for his customers’ safety rather than just wanting information.