Reaction rolls are my favorite part of OSR/NSR play. But they have been around forever, in largely unchanged form, since the early days of DnD. That got me thinking: can we improve on the 2d6 reaction roll? Recently I breezily proposed twin 2d12 as an alternative, and after revision of that concept and playtesting, I am permanently switching to an overloaded opposed reaction roll.
What's a 2d6 reaction roll?
When players encounter an enemy, roll 2d6 and sum them to determine their reaction, following this table:
If you want to read more, OSR Simulacrum did a really nice overview of their history and other fine minds have weighed in their usage and importance, including Goblin Punch, Eucatastrophic, and Murkdice. While some DnD editions have used d100 or d20 tables, the use of 2d6 makes for a nice bell curve of simple possibilities, where neutral reactions are the most likely, and immediate violence (or outright friendship) is rare.
I use (or hack reaction rolls into) in every game I run, including DnD 5e (more on that at the end), because they are fundamental in making the world feel alive. Reaction rolls allow players to conceive of the world, not as a big battlefield, but one full of dangerous and fascinating creatures to cajole, bribe, negotiate with, intimidate, run from, and occasionally fight (when there is no other option).
Building a better mousetrap
The 2d6 reaction roll is simple and hard to improve on. But it has two weaknesses. First, the minor: it requires addition and memorizing specific number ranges and/or having a printed table to hand. Second, it has big broad categories with vague guidance, so the GM is not overly informed from the basic roll on what to do with the enemy. Is an 8 neutral? Look it up, then ask, WWTMD (What Would The Monster Do?). In this, the reaction roll is much like the encounter die, and would also benefit from overloading--more detailed guidance.
One response has been to develop monster-specific reaction tables, detailing what each monster will do with a positive/negative/neutral roll. Called Miens in Troika, I love them but they are extra work for GMs--you need to make one for every monster (or monster type), and then have to look them up. Something more general would help.
To address these issues, consider this simple rule change: replacing the 2d6 with an overloaded 2d12 reaction roll.
The idea: two opposed d12 rolls
We get more numbers from a d12 than a d6, and that's information and nuance we GMs can use. Plus, the 2d12 oppose each other, much like the Duality dice in Daggerheart, modeling the Flight-Fight-Freeze-Friend response we all have when startled.
But the fun part of 2d12 is this: the reactions, and the odds of those reactions, closely mimic the original 2d6 reaction roll. They are just more nuanced and overloaded. Want to know when a kobold is cautiously interested? Afraid and about to flee? Confused? The dice tell you.
How it works
Roll a Love d12 and a Hate d12 (different colors) and compare the values. High values on the Love die mean Empathy and Curiosity, low values mean Indifference. High values on the Hate die mean Anger and Agitation, low values mean Indifference.
If Love is greater than Hate by 4 or more, a positive reaction. If Hate is greater than Love by 4 or more, a negative reaction. Otherwise, the monster has a neutral reaction, affected by the relative balance of Love and Hate.
Love is better described as an Empathy-Curiosity roll (the Monster's attitude towards others), and Hate as an Anger-Agitation roll (the Monster's internal state). So if Love wins, its Empathy towards you outweighs its Agitation. If Hate wins, its internal Anger (or hunger, for animals) outweighs its Curiosity towards you. See this graph:
When Love and Hate tie, the monster's reaction depends on their dice value. Tied values near 1 are indifferent, but at higher tied values of Love and Hate (>6), monsters are likely to react fearfully.
In fact, anytime values of Love and Hate are both above 6, it indicates increasing fear (yellow in the graph above, and the adjacent semi-fearful responses). Monsters are reacting with a mixture of strong Curiosity (noticing you), deep Agitation (uneasy), clear Empathy (understanding your capabilities), and passionate Anger (hating your presence).
Like the Moldvay 2d6 reaction roll, immediate attacks and immediate friendship are rare--each occurring 2.78% (1/36) of the time, in both methods. If you roll a 11 or 12 for Hate and a 1 or 2 for Love, the monster attacks. If you roll a 11 or 12 for Love and a 1 or 2 for Hate, you have a friend.
Also like the original 2d6 roll, the overloaded 2d12 has positive and negative reactions less often (25% of the time), and neutral reactions more often (50%). Although that differs slightly from the original 2d6 odds (28% positive/negative and 44% neutral), the continuous nature of the overloaded roll means the odds are fluid. If we say Hate that is 3 greater than Love leads to a tense, borderline negative situation, negative and near-negative reactions happen 31% of the time.
Unlike the original 2d6 reaction roll, this overloaded 2d12 reaction roll tells you clearly when monsters are likely to ignore the party, or to flee or avoid them. If you roll a 1 or 2 on both dice, the monster either doesn't care about their presence or is asleep. If you roll an 11 or 12 on both dice, it will likely flee or react unpredictably, in turmoil and fear.
Interpreting the Balance of Love and Hate
It all depends how much Empathy/Curiosity a monster is feeling towards others, and how much internal Anger/Agitation. Here's my graphical interpretation of different possible states we encounter with the dice, extrapolating from the values of each die and these simple rules:
A) A positive/negative reaction results from a large difference (>3) between Love and Hate.
B) Corner values (1, 2, 11, 12) lead to extreme reactions.
C) Ties between Love and Hate at low values are indifferent to cautious. At high die values, with both Love and Hate >6, reactions (and especially ties) are increasingly tinged by Fear.
D) When Love>Hate, interpret it as Empathy>Agitation; when Hate>Love, interpret as Anger>Curiosity.
I broke each d12 down into four ranges (1-3 low, 4-6 medium, 7-9 high, 10-12 extreme) and labeled each with a corresponding likely reaction. These are not fixed categories, but suggested zones in a gradient of responses.
In actual play, the reaction is a quick judgment call from the GM, based on the relative dice values--you don't need to reference the chart.
Example 1: Hate 9 and Love 6--Anger is high, Curiosity is medium. A neutral reaction, barely (difference <4). The monster definitely doesn't like the party, but wants to know about them. That means they definitely don't trust them, falling just short of hostility. Gollum meeting Bilbo.
Example 2: Love 8 and Hate 4--Empathy is medium-high, Agitation is low-medium. A positive reaction (difference >4, Love high). They are interested in interacting peacefully with the party and learning more, but feel a bit uneasy. I interpret that as somewhat guarded interest. Beorn on the arrival of the 13 dwarves.
Example 3: Love 11 and Hate 9--Empathy is extreme, Agitation is high. A neutral reaction (difference <4). They are being very careful around the party, spooked by sudden movements, highly uneasy and afraid--but interested in interacting peacefully since they well understand their strength and could like the PCs. I interpret that as fearful respect. Gollum and Frodo in the marshes, before the turn.
Going further: modifying the overloaded reactions
You can modify the reaction rolls for different creatures by just adding or subtracting from each die after rolling, according to that creature's nature. If you go over 12 or under 1, stop there.
- fraidy cat kobolds +3 Love, +3 Hate
- The Predator(TM) -3 Love, +6 Hate
- Friendly Allies +3 Love, -3 Hate
- Stolid neutrals -3 Love, -3 Hate
- Nervous friends +3 Love
- Hungry owlbear +3 Hate
Any reaction roll is just that, a first reaction. It's a place to start negotiations from. So if your PCs want to engage with the monster, I suggest they can change reactions by at most one step on each axis (+/- 3).
You can use their actions to judge which axis is affected by their efforts. Do they bribe the monster with food, or flatter them? +3 to Love. Do they speak slowly and softly to it, or trick it into thinking they are allies? -3 to Hate. Calming a monster affects Hate, charming it affects Love.
Sometimes it won't be clear, so it affects both Love and Hate (really GOOD food, accompanied by soft music; an accidental insult, paired with a bribe). But no gains should be cost-free and risk-free: time, money, food, the risk of offense, and so on. I don't use formal negotiation rules, but they are worth internalizing.
Some final notes
If you clicked on the Murkdice link above, you saw a 2d6 table that looks a bit like the table above. Hilarious--I first saw it today, after working on this idea for weeks. Couple issues I see. First, rolling 2d6 on each axis makes the corners extremely unlikely (e.g., 2 and 2, an immediate fight: odds of 1/1296)--most monsters will walk by you. Second, I don't quite understand how the axes relate to the conditions listed: I do not want to print this out and have to look at it every time I roll. But parallel evolution indeed--someone in the comments even suggested using 2d12 instead!
If you want to run this system in 5e, don't allow a character to add their Persuasion bonus to the initial reaction roll (it messes up the odds). Instead, start with the initial reaction, and let them respond to it. If they attempt placation or negotiation (or taunting), set a DC based on their actions and words, and a successful check moves the Love or Hate 3 in the desired direction, just like I described above. Or, you could, you know, just a make a fair ruling based on what they do. If they feed the owlbear their last meal, let them have it!
Compared to a 2d6 roll, I feel the overloaded 2d12 reaction roll is an upgrade: more informative and intuitive to use, a touch easier, and super fun. And if you try it out, you will use more d12, which we all know has many benefits. Please comment to let me know what you think of it!
At first I was like "IS this a better mousetrap?" but by the end I was convinced. Good mousetrap.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I had that same doubt multiple times while playing with this idea. :)
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