Charisma
Charisma
| Ability Score | Max # Henchmen | Loyalty Base | Reaction Adj. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | -8 | -7 |
| 2 | 1 | -7 | -6 |
| 3 | 1 | -6 | -5 |
| 4 | 1 | -5 | -4 |
| 5 | 2 | -4 | -3 |
| 6 | 2 | -3 | -2 |
| 7 | 3 | -2 | -1 |
| 8 | 3 | -1 | 0 |
| 9-11 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 13 | 5 | 0 | +1 |
| 14 | 6 | +1 | +2 |
| 15 | 7 | +3 | +3 |
| 16 | 8 | +4 | +5 |
| 17 | 10 | +6 | +6 |
| 18 | 15 | +8 | +7 |
| 19 | 20 | +10 | +8 |
| 20 | 25 | +12 | +9 |
| 21 | 30 | +14 | +10 |
| 22 | 35 | +16 | +11 |
| 23 | 40 | +18 | +12 |
| 24 | 45 | +20 | +13 |
| 25 | 50 | +20 | +14 |
The Charisma (Cha) score measures a character's persuasiveness, personal magnetism, and ability to lead. It is not a reflection of physical attractiveness, although attractiveness certainly plays a role. It is important to all characters, but especially to those who must deal with non-player characters (NPCs), mercenary hirelings, retainers, and intelligent monsters. It dictates the total number of henchmen a character can retain and affects the loyalty of henchmen, hirelings, and retainers.
Maximum Number of Henchmen states the number of non-player characters who will serve as permanent retainers of the player character. It does not affect the number of mercenary soldiers, men-at-arms, servitors, or other persons in the pay of the character.
Loyalty Base shows the subtraction from or addition to the henchmen's and other servitors' loyalty scores. This is crucial during battles, when morale becomes important.
Reaction Adjustment indicates the penalty or bonus due to the character because of Charisma when dealing with non-player characters and intelligent creatures. For example, Rath encounters a centaur, an intelligent creature. Rath's Charisma is only 6, so he is starting off with one strike against him. He probably should try to overcome this slight handicap by making generous offers of gifts or information.
When is charisma used? Charisma comes into play when rolling for certain nonweapon proficiencies, but it is much more than that. Entering an inn or a shop and talking to the proprietor doesn’t trigger a reaction check, but trying to haggle over prices does. Talking to the patrons of an inn or tavern to gather rumors or information should have a reaction check to see how the character comes across to the patrons. Interacting with the powers that be, should it be higher-level NPCs or figures in power (such as a town or city mayor, or even the king, should have a reaction check. Many times, this check is just the NPC sizing the character up.
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