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The Tome Of Drow Lore.pdf - RoseRed

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Failure Result: <strong>The</strong> spy is forced to feed false information<br />

to the aggressor, inflicting a –2 penalty to all actions the<br />

aggressor House takes against the defending House. Each<br />

month, the aggressor may make a Gather Information<br />

check (DC 25), with a success indicating that the double<br />

agent is discovered and the penalty is lifted.<br />

Paper Tiger<br />

From time to time, it behoves a less powerful combatant<br />

in the Sheathed War to appear more powerful than is<br />

actually the case. For example, if an Intelligence Gathering<br />

campaign shows that a combatant with greater resources is<br />

about to move against you, it is best to make them rethink<br />

that plan. With this action, you create the appearance of<br />

greater strength, making your opponents believe (for a<br />

short time), that your Rank and Power are more impressive<br />

than is actually the case.<br />

Influence Requirement: 2,000<br />

Power Requirement: 1,000<br />

Cost: 1,000 gp per additional 1,000 ‘phantom’ Power<br />

Time: One month<br />

Skill DC: Intimidate (DC 20 + 5 per 1,000 ‘phantom’<br />

Power)<br />

Success Result: For a period of three months after the<br />

action is completed, all rival Houses and organisations will<br />

believe your Rank and Power are at an elevated level.<br />

Failure Result: If your Intimidate roll fails by five or<br />

less, all rival Houses and organisations see your Rank and<br />

Power as unchanged. If your Intimidate roll fails by more<br />

than five, your attempts at inflating your own importance<br />

are viewed as laughable and your effective Rank is lowered<br />

by one for three months.<br />

Public Relations Campaign<br />

By successfully wining and dining the nobility of a drow<br />

city, it is possible for a dark elf Noble House or other<br />

organisation to improve its public image and increase its<br />

influence within that city. Though extremely costly and<br />

difficult, this is the safest method of gaining Influence. As<br />

a result, drow nobility spend a great deal of time partying<br />

with one another and attempting to gain favour with other<br />

Houses.<br />

Influence Requirement: 1,000 per Rank<br />

Power Requirement: 0<br />

Cost: 2,000 gp per Rank of your Noble House; 500<br />

Influence per Rank of your Noble House<br />

Time: Three months<br />

Skill DC: Diplomacy (DC10 + current Rank)<br />

Success Result: If the Noble House succeeds at the<br />

Diplomacy check made at the end of this action, it<br />

immediately gains 2,000 Influence. Note that this action<br />

becomes more difficult as a House gains rank, as it requires<br />

greater and greater expenditures of time and effort to<br />

increase the influence of a powerful Noble House or other<br />

organisation.<br />

Failure Result: <strong>The</strong> Noble House neither gains nor loses<br />

Influence, though it has spent a ridiculous amount of gold<br />

and kept many of its Influence assets tied up for three<br />

months during the attempt.<br />

Smear Campaign<br />

A smear campaign is an attempt to weaken a Noble House<br />

by tarnishing their public image. In drow culture, this<br />

often means leading others to believe the House is weaker<br />

than it actually is, or that it is hamstrung by some sort of<br />

emotional or moral ideal held dear by its masters. Smear<br />

campaigns, while an effective way to undercut the strength<br />

of a Noble House, can fail spectacularly. If the campaign is<br />

exposed, it gives the targeted House a handle to use against<br />

their attackers. While the drow have no problem with liars,<br />

they really prefer it when a Noble House has the grace and<br />

style to at least lie successfully.<br />

Influence Requirement: 5,000<br />

Power Requirement: 0<br />

Cost: 2,000 gp per Rank of the target Noble House; 1,000<br />

Influence per Rank of the target Noble House<br />

Time: One month<br />

Skill DC: Bluff (DC 20 +1 per level or Hit Die of the<br />

target), opposed by target’s Sense Motive<br />

Success Result: If the attacker’s Bluff skill check result<br />

beats the target’s Sense Motive skill check result, the target<br />

Noble House suffers a loss of 1,000 Influence. If the<br />

attacker’s Bluff skill check result beats the target’s Sense<br />

Motive skill check result by more than ten, the target Noble<br />

House suffers a loss of 1d4 x 1,000 Influence<br />

Failure Result: If the attacker’s Bluff skill check result is<br />

ten or more less than the target’s Sense Motive skill check<br />

result, the target gains a +5 bonus to any counterattack they<br />

make in response to this action. If the Bluff skill check<br />

fails, but by less than ten, the money is wasted but there are<br />

no other ill effects for the attempt.<br />

<strong>The</strong> Enemy of My Enemy<br />

This action is extremely dangerous and monstrously<br />

expensive to the Noble House attempting it, but if successful<br />

can have wonderful benefits. <strong>The</strong> aggressor House chooses<br />

as targets two rival Houses or organisations that are not<br />

at the time actively engaged with one another. Through<br />

97

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