Elf-Friend

[Beran]

I thought the Elf-Friend Trait listed in TfW was a little bland.

Elf-Friend
"I name you elf-friend and blessed."
-Thranduil, The Hobbit

As one who has done great service in the name of the Elves you have been named Elf-Friend and are entitled to call upon them when in need.

This privilege carries many responsibilities. At time the Elves may seek your aid, and refusal to help them may lead to the status of Elf-Friend being revoked. They may do like wise if you abuse their friendship by seeking favours from them too often.

Effect: +2 to Standing when dealing with Elves.

Note: The LM may also rename this trait to reflect special friendship between you and other cultures.

[Glorelendil]

....entitled to call upon them when in need.

o.O

[Beran]

....entitled to call upon them when in need.

o.O

Sorry, I'm not up on all the symbology of social media these days. Was there a question in there somewhere?

[Morgoth]

Sorry, I'm not up on all the symbology of social media these days. Was there a question in there somewhere?

I could be wrong, but I think that was a look of confusion as he wondered about the implications of being able to call the elves in times of need.

[Rocmistro]

Beran:

I presume you mean this to still be a trait?

If that's the case, I think I would disapprove, but only because of the +2 Standing part. So far, there are noTraits (I think) which offer any kind of mechanical (numeric) static bonuses. It seems to be one of the foundations of the game that Distinctive Feature and Specialties should be kept as narrative/descriptive text only, without any explicit numeric leverage.

[Glorelendil]

I could see it being a Mastery, with the "call on elves in time of need" a bit of poetic fluff. In other words, you couldn't send a message to Rivendell and expect them to dispatch a rescue party (which is the part to which I was raising my emotive little ASCII eyebrows), but if you encounter elves in the wild they will recognize you as a "friend of elves" and be more inclined to lend assistance. Which means the +2 standing would be sufficient, mechanically.

Since I'm in favor of a broader range of masteries I like this. I'd create a similar one for dwarves, too.

[Beran]

Well, it's not like you can get on a cell phone and call in an immediate arrow storm strike from a local patrol of Elves. The Company would still need to directly (face-to-face) contact someone who was in a position to grant their request for help (ie Thranduil, Elrond, The Lady of Light.) So, there would still be an interaction to RP through. Even if the Company did send their request in writing, the help would be days, or even weeks away. So, if they think they can knock off a missive with a Raven whilst being surrounded by orcs at the Burned Glade and think salvation will arrive by morning to the sound of Elf hunting horns, the PCs will be in for a bit of a shock.

The way I see it is it gives you the opportunity to be brought before an Elven leader in a friendly manner and not by spear point.

[Morgoth]

I agree that it could work as a mastery or something like that. Mechanically, it's not similar to other traits.

[Beran]

You could eliminate the +2 to standing, but it isn't really something that is as clear cut as other traits. Just because you are Elf-Friend doesn't automatically mean you will get the favour you ask for.