Exceeding Tolerance

[Glorelendil]

I've been reading through Tales from Wonderland in detail for the first time, and I've noticed something...peculiar. In several of the adventures there are negative consequences for exceeding the Tolerance of an Encounter. In some cases this is offered in conjunction with a table of results based on the number of successes.

I've been going with the rule that running out of Tolerance simply means the Encounter is over and nothing else can be learned/gained, but otherwise isn't positive or negative. But I double-checked the newer edition of the rules, and found this:

Based on the circumstances, running out of Tolerance may signify different things: that the encounter is simply over, or that the words exchanged during the meeting have aggravated the situation so much that the heroes should be ready to make reparations.

So apparently both are valid. The only difference during play (I think...) is that when using the latter version the last point becomes a gamble. Should you try to rack up more successes, or play it safe and call it quits?

How do others implement this? Version A or Version B?

[Wbweather]

I would think it would be entirely situational. When talking with an important character such as Beorn (especially if the company already has a relationship), then exceeding Tolerance might simply mean the NPC is just done talking, feels like further conversation is a waste of time, etc. In the case where the NPC is potentially hostile toward the company, or just doesn't know or trust them, then exceeding Tolerance could easily indicate that they failed to win him to their side or talk him out of hostile action and could have a negative effect.

[Majestic]

Probably because the bulk of what I've run has been from Tales from Wilderland, that's how I've been doing it too (Option B, varying depending on the circumstances).

Wbweather spelled it out perfectly for how I do things. If it's the party's Patron (say, Radagast), then he'll likely be distracted and seem disinterested when they exceed the Tolerance. But I made it really clear to my group that the dragon in the finale (Raenar) - due to the group having a new PC and thus a Tolernace of only one - would likely attack them! It really ratcheted up the tension, as they knew that failure meant a disaster! They were generously sharing Preliminary Roll dice with each other and encouraging use of Hope from the Fellowship Pool!

[Angelalex242]

...why is the tolerance 1 due to a new guy?

Tolerance is usually based on the highest Valor or Wisdom in the group. That is, the Fellowship of the Ring was riding on Gandalf and Aragorn's massive valor and wisdom scores, instead of the significantly less impressive Merry and Pippin.

[Glorelendil]

...why is the tolerance 1 due to a new guy?

Tolerance is usually based on the highest Valor or Wisdom in the group. That is, the Fellowship of the Ring was riding on Gandalf and Aragorn's massive valor and wisdom scores, instead of the significantly less impressive Merry and Pippin.

In that particular encounter in Tales from Wilderland it's the lowest Valour or Wisdom in the group.

[Angelalex242]

...That's kind of an interesting setup.

Means the character in question REALLY hates inexperienced people.

This is particularly in the case if the inexperienced guy is shy and not saying word in back or something.

"What? You brought a newbie to ME?! I'll kill you all!"

[Devil]

I would think it would be entirely situational. When talking with an important character such as Beorn (especially if the company already has a relationship), then exceeding Tolerance might simply mean the NPC is just done talking, feels like further conversation is a waste of time, etc. In the case where the NPC is potentially hostile toward the company, or just doesn't know or trust them, then exceeding Tolerance could easily indicate that they failed to win him to their side or talk him out of hostile action and could have a negative effect.

This is exactly how I do it, and my players have never been more stressed out (in a good way!) when having interactions with NPC's - be they friend or foe.

[Majestic]

...That's kind of an interesting setup.

Means the character in question REALLY hates inexperienced people.

This is particularly in the case if the inexperienced guy is shy and not saying word in back or something.

"What? You brought a newbie to ME?! I'll kill you all!"

Yeah, what Glorelendil said; "The Watch on the Heath" has a different setup.

What was really interesting was that this newcomer was a Barding who chose the background that referenced his admiration for what Bilbo did, trading riddles with a Dragon. The newcomer actually did finally step-up (after being encouraged to do so by the group), as he had a skill that he shined in, and he actually did well in the Encounter!

[Rich H]

I tend to vary/decide what could happen when the company exceed tolerance in an encounter depending on who the NPC is and what the goals of the encounter are. In addition as/when the company get closer to exceeding tolerance I also represent this by how the NPC reacts to them (eg, becoming more impatient, aggressive, tight-lipped, etc) depending on what I've previously described. This is offset though by the number of the successes accrued at the particular point in time. No hard or fast rules/guidelines here; just experience as a GM.

[Majestic]

I do the exact same thing, Rich. I don't tell the players how many successes they've rolled so far, so we all try not to meta-game it too much, but I'm always cognizant of how many they've succeeded at as they go through the Encounter.

I honestly don't know if my group has ever failed (exceeded the Tolerance) before; perhaps way back in our first adventure (with Thranduil in "Words of the Wise") years ago, but certainly not for a long time.