Fame

[bloodtide]

So in 3X the rule books don't really say much about Fame. But how well known would a adventuring group or a single character be?

I've always used the:
1-5:Unknown
6-10:Locally Known
11-15:Known far and wide
16-20:Legendary

The idea is simple: the more powerful a character is, the more people talk about them.

The current problem
So here is the situation: The group of 11th level players attacked the drow slavemasters base as part of the ongoing plot form 1st level. During the battle, the drow used plenty of battlefield controls to stop the Charging Character dead in his tracks. The player immediately cried that it was unfair and that the drow should not know all about his character.

Some notes:
1.They have fought this same drow group for a while now, and have not killed all of them in every encounter..several have escaped. So it should be safe to say the drow slavers know who the characters are...

2. The charging is by far the greatest damage effect the whole group has. In a single round most characters are doing like 30 points of damage, while the charging character is doing 100+. So it should be safe to say that people notice the character that runs across a room and kills something with one massive hit....

3.The character himself has often role-played and told dozens of NPC's all about past battles and his amazing charging skills. Several times the player has told 'war stories' in taverns and such to attempt to get free drinks and such. So, again, it should be safe to say that the average NPC has heard about the charging character.

(While the drow did 'target' just this one character in the fight, it's not like they did not know about the other characters. It was just that most of the other characters did not have so obvious a weakness as charging. Knowing that the paladin never casts spells in combat or that the wizard mostly summons creatures is nothing to go off of).

And yet, as soon as the drow come out with the anti-charge tactics. The player complained. He even tried to say that 'information about his character should be secret'(somehow, he did not say how) and it was 'not fair' for NPCs/monsters to think/plan ahead/pick on him.

So what say all of you?

[Aegis013]

... the wizard mostly summons creatures is nothing to go off of...

So what say all of you?

Did you point out the things you said about the Drow and the stories he's been telling? If so it seems fine, but even if it's fine, the player will still feel as though he's being treated unfairly. With a 100+ damage build in a group doing 30-ish a round, he's clearly gaming for some spotlight.

Secondly, the Wizard mostly summons creatures? Well, if the Drow aren't explicitly evil, Perfect Summons from BoED can really mess that up. So it is definitely something to go off of, but there aren't as many readily available options for it.

[evil-frosty]

Drow are smart. Play them that way. The player does not really have a leg to stand on. He is a one trick pony and is upset that his one trick was negated by smart opponents.

[jaybird]

Tell the player to suck it up. Know the enemy and know yourself, and all that jaz.

[Geigan]

Point out the fact that he's been bragging about his abilities, and that people would know about them. Point out that he's a one-trick pony that can be easily gimped if charging is his only tactic. His complaining is really just the first phase in learning how to not make binary characters.

[Alabenson]

The problem with letting everyone know how awesome you are is the fact that eventually your enemies will start to put that information to use. If the PC makes a habit of bragging about his amazing charging abilities in every tavern he stops in, it only makes sense for his opponents, especially smart ones like Drow, to prepare accordingly.

Frankly I'd have the Drow rub it in by thanking him for telling them all about his fighting style the last time he got drunk in a tavern.

[Yahzi]

Drow are smart. Play them that way. The player does not really have a leg to stand on. He is a one trick pony and is upset that his one trick was negated by smart opponents.
That.

Also, Scrying (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/scrying.htm).

[HunterOfJello]

I've had a problem with this in my games. The PCs often take covert missions and wouldn't really be recognized for their deeds or go on non-covert missions and kill all witnesses present (i.e. entire towns). This has led to the realistic conclusion that no one would know who they are. However, they feel that since they've done so much, they should be quite popular for whatever reason.

I ended up having a bard travel with them for a short while and then leave to go spread word of their deeds around to fix the problem.

[Suichimo]

I've had a problem with this in my games. The PCs often take covert missions and wouldn't really be recognized for their deeds or go on non-covert missions and kill all witnesses present (i.e. entire towns). This has led to the realistic conclusion that no one would know who they are. However, they feel that since they've done so much, they should be quite popular for whatever reason.

I ended up having a bard travel with them for a short while and then leave to go spread word of their deeds around to fix the problem.

They may not be famous in the regular world, but in the underworld they have one hell of a name. Your mission is their mission. Absolutely no one will turn their head if their names are mentioned, unless you're in the right crowd.

[Knaight]

So in 3X the rule books don't really say much about Fame. But how well known would a adventuring group or a single character be?

I've always used the:
1-5:Unknown
6-10:Locally Known
11-15:Known far and wide
16-20:Legendary

The idea is simple: the more powerful a character is, the more people talk about them.

I wouldn't codify it that much. The way characters can act can very much affect their visibility. For instance, a level 1 character may well be unknown. If they have a habit of throwing wealth around, have fought a fight or two very visibly and publicly with survivors left to talk about it afterwards, and are particularly distinctive and memorable (say, they are the guy that charges everywhere) it will bump up how well known they are by a bit.



The current problem
So here is the situation: The group of 11th level players attacked the drow slavemasters base as part of the ongoing plot form 1st level. During the battle, the drow used plenty of battlefield controls to stop the Charging Character dead in his tracks. The player immediately cried that it was unfair and that the drow should not know all about his character.

Some notes:
1.They have fought this same drow group for a while now, and have not killed all of them in every encounter..several have escaped. So it should be safe to say the drow slavers know who the characters are...

2. The charging is by far the greatest damage effect the whole group has. In a single round most characters are doing like 30 points of damage, while the charging character is doing 100+. So it should be safe to say that people notice the character that runs across a room and kills something with one massive hit....

3.The character himself has often role-played and told dozens of NPC's all about past battles and his amazing charging skills. Several times the player has told 'war stories' in taverns and such to attempt to get free drinks and such. So, again, it should be safe to say that the average NPC has heard about the charging character.

(While the drow did 'target' just this one character in the fight, it's not like they did not know about the other characters. It was just that most of the other characters did not have so obvious a weakness as charging. Knowing that the paladin never casts spells in combat or that the wizard mostly summons creatures is nothing to go off of).

And yet, as soon as the drow come out with the anti-charge tactics. The player complained. He even tried to say that 'information about his character should be secret'(somehow, he did not say how) and it was 'not fair' for NPCs/monsters to think/plan ahead/pick on him.

So what say all of you?
Yeah, no. He has actively propagate information about himself, let it propagate through inaction, and made himself a person of importance to this particular group. If anything, they should know more, and the character should know that. At the player level, all of this should be blatantly obvious.