Diplomacy
Key Ability: Chr | Trained Only: No | Armor Check Penalty: No
You can use this skill to persuade others to agree with your arguments, to resolve differences, and to change the way they feel towards you. This skill is also used to negotiate conflicts by using the proper etiquette and manners suitable to the problem.
Check: You can change the initial attitudes of nonplayer characters with a successful check. The DC of this check depends on the creature's starting attitude toward you, adjusted by its Charisma modifier. If you succeed, the character's attitude toward you is improved by one step. For every 5 by which your check result exceeds the DC, the character's attitude toward you increases by one additional step. A creature's attitude cannot be shifted more than two steps up in this way, although the GM can override this rule in some situations. If you fail the check by 4 or less, the character's attitude toward you is unchanged. If you fail by 5 or more, the character's attitude toward you is decreased by one step.
You cannot use Diplomacy against a creature that does not understand you or has an Intelligence of 2 or less. Diplomacy is generally ineffective in combat and against creatures that intend to harm you or your allies in the immediate future. Any attitude shift caused through Diplomacy generally lasts for 1d4 days but can last much longer or shorter depending upon the situation (GM discretion).
Note that Diplomacy cannot be used to influence player characters.
| Starting Attitude | Diplomacy DC |
|---|---|
| Hostile | 25 + creature's Cha modifier |
| Unfriendly | 20 + creature's Cha modifier |
| Indifferent | 15 + creature's Cha modifier |
| Friendly | 10 + creature's Cha modifier |
| Helpful | 0 + creature's Cha modifier |
If a creature's attitude toward you is at least indifferent, you can make requests of the creature. This is an additional Diplomacy check, using the creature's current attitude to determine the base DC, with the following modifiers. Once a creature's attitude has shifted to helpful, the creature gives in to most requests without a check, unless the request is against its nature or puts it in serious peril. Some requests have higher DCs than noted below, if the request goes against the creature's values or its nature, subject to GM discretion.
| Request | Diplomacy DC Modifier |
|---|---|
| Give simple advice or directions | -5 |
| Give detailed advice | +0 |
| Give simple aid | +0 |
| Reveal an unimportant secret | +5 |
| Give lengthy or complicated aid | +5 |
| Give dangerous aid | +10 |
| Reveal an important secret | +10 |
| Give aid that could result in punishment | +15 |
| Convert to the worship of a different god | +20 |
| Shift alignment by one step | +25 |
| Additional requests | +5 per request |
Action: Using Diplomacy to influence a creature's attitude takes 1 minute of continuous interaction. Making a request of a creature might take as little as 1 round up to a full day of interaction, depending upon the complexity of the request. Convincing a creature to convert or shift alignment requires at least a full day and tends to be a long-lasting or even permanent change, at the game master's discretion.
Try Again: You cannot use Diplomacy to influence a given creature's attitude more than once in a 24-hour period. If a request is refused, the result does not change with additional checks, although other requests might be made.
Special: Half-elves gain a +3 racial bonus on Diplomacy checks.