Reputation system?

[Uthred]

Just wondering if anyone has experimented with using some kind of reputation system in their campaign and if so how it worked out? While the nature of communication in the Third Imperium would slow things down a bit the kind of stuff that a regular "Far Trading" group of PC's get up to feels like it should bring them to the attention of local and sub-sector entities. Or perhaps the universe is too vast and its better to just play it by ear?

 

[phavoc]

Just wondering if anyone has experimented with using some kind of reputation system in their campaign and if so how it worked out? While the nature of communication in the Third Imperium would slow things down a bit the kind of stuff that a regular "Far Trading" group of PC's get up to feels like it should bring them to the attention of local and sub-sector entities. Or perhaps the universe is too vast and its better to just play it by ear?

Yes, and no. Much depends on if you have a set of players who continually work on the same characters through multiple adventures, or if they are more or less one-shots, with new characters / locations done every so often.

It's certainly easily enough to work into the game. And you are right, the vastness of the Imperium would limit the reputation issues to a sector, or even less. For many that's billions and billions of people. Their reputation would get known within specific circles (like smuggling, or whatever). Confined within these sub-cultures is a fun way to add flavor... new enemies, new patrons.... after all, everyone get's boarded and sometimes has to drop their cargo in space....

 

[Condottiere]

D&D2.5 split characteristics, you could do the same for Social Standing.

Basic 10 = Upper Middle Class 8/Reputation 12

Basic 15 = Marquis 13/de Sade 17 (reputation extends beyond the borders of the Imperium to the Solomani Confederation)

 

[Askold]

In our PIrates of Drinax campaign our privateer commander basically has two separate Soc stats. This is because we decided to keep it a secret that the king of Drinax is financing pirates and the pirate captain being a Drinaxian nobleman (and a retired admiral) might lead to that information leaking out and therefore he has made up a separate identity for himself as the "Red Commander."

In effect this meant that if he is dealing with people while disguised his Soc stat is a representation of the reputation the pirate crew (and later the fleet) has gained and it started out quite low (and then again, not everyone respects a pirate reputation so the benefits from being a famous pirate only come up when dealing with other pirates and when using this reputation to intimidate people.) and on those occasions where he is acting as "himself" as the Duke of Asim and a former admiral he can use his normal Soc stat.