Give Me Your -5 Penalties

[DrLoveMonkey]

So penalties go up to -5 normally, fighting inside a burning building, showing up to court naked and covered in blood*, attempting to detect a character who is perfectly silent and in shadow.

I don’t believe I’ve ever used a -5 penalty ever in several years of playing Exalted 3e, but I want to change that. What are some good examples of -5 penalties that you’ve used, or just some ideas for some?


*why tf is this an example? It just seems absurd.

[autXautY]

I think that a player in my game once faced a -5 penalty for sneaking through a door while it was being opened.

[Sandact6]

• Fighting in hurricane force winds with an oil slicked surface
• Running across the surface of the water (without charms)
• Attempting to hit a bullseye at a target competition on a hot day while suffering a hangover from hell (Granted this was more stacked drug penalties)
• Attempting to shoot in a hurricane
• Attempting to make a fact check while being under the influence of drugs and not having slept in days.
• Attempting to push through a bureaucratic action in a country that is suffering massive upheavel and succession wars due to a slain king.
• Attempting to figure out -5 dice penalties.
• Attempting to navigate through very familiar and dangerous waters, through rough weather, without a map.
• Same as above, but for Survival
• Attempting to intimidate a ravenous predator that hasn't eaten for several days to back down (-8 penalty if you are slathered in some sort of exotic spice or sauce)
• Attempting to pick a lock using a stick.

[TheCountAlucard]

*why tf is this an example? It just seems absurd.

I think you just answered your own question.

[DrLoveMonkey]

I think you just answered your own question.

I mostly mean, like, I can see why somebody would be fighting in a burning building, I can definitely imagine a situation where a supernaturally silent enemy is sneaking up on you, it’s one of the Terrestrial’s main stealth abilities, but what set of circumstances lead you to getting stripped naked, then covered in blood, and then you go to court? It seems so niche as to be an unhelpful example. Maybe just getting covered in sewage Biff Tanner style or something?

Admittedly it’s pretty hard, because it has to be difficult enough to warrant the -5, but not so difficult to be charm-only.

[Kelly Pedersen]

I dunno, I can imagine a situation like that in Exalted pretty easily: you're visiting a queen's palace, having a nice bath, when suddenly... NINJAS! You fight them off, of course, but in the course of bantering with them, one reveals the evil plot - the Grand Vizier is going to poison the queen's ceremonial mead glass that she will drink at the solstice celebration being held right now. So once you kill the ninja assassins, you have to rush naked and covered in the blood of your assailants into the queen's court, to make your wild accusations against the Grand Vizier and beg the queen to violate protocol and not drink that mead.

[Sandact6]

I dunno, I can imagine a situation like that in Exalted pretty easily: you're visiting a queen's palace, having a nice bath, when suddenly... NINJAS! You fight them off, of course, but in the course of bantering with them, one reveals the evil plot - the Grand Vizier is going to poison the queen's ceremonial mead glass that she will drink at the solstice celebration being held right now. So once you kill the ninja assassins, you have to rush naked and covered in the blood of your assailants into the queen's court, to make your wild accusations against the Grand Vizier and beg the queen to violate protocol and not drink that mead.

This can help, but also make the assassin's trained goats from a Lunar Assassin. Imagine the look everyone's faces when you need to tell them you fought off a bunch of goat assassins.

[Flare]

I mean, yeah, my assumption was always like 'someone at a party comes onto you, they take you to a private room, then once you're naked they pull out a knife and try to stab you, and in the ensuing struggle you end up falling out of the room and over the railing onto the dance floor' or something.

[DrLoveMonkey]

I mean, yeah, my assumption was always like 'someone at a party comes onto you, they take you to a private room, then once you're naked they pull out a knife and try to stab you, and in the ensuing struggle you end up falling out of the room and over the railing onto the dance floor' or something.

Yeah I was thinking of that too, but I couldn’t figure out why you would then immediately just start attempting social influence like nothing happened, and not go and get clean and put clothes on. There would have to be some desperate emergency that required you to go convince somebody of something right now, and it couldn’t even wait two minutes, and it would have to coincide with somebody successfully convincing you to strip down, and then getting in a massive really bloody fight. Kelly’s example is pretty good though.

[Dex Davican]

It’s not about the emergency. It’s about selling Exalted might. As a Solar, you don’t HAVE to wash up or put on clothes. You can not only fit in, but set a new, messy fashion fad!

[Sith_Happens]

Yeah I was thinking of that too, but I couldn’t figure out why you would then immediately just start attempting social influence like nothing happened, and not go and get clean and put clothes on.

Because someone’s demanding you explain this instant what you’re doing naked and covered in blood in the middle of the dance floor, duh.

[Accelerator]

Sniping a moving target under a cover of darkness and rain.

Fighting using troops that are starving and untrained against elite soldiers.

Trying to carry out surgery using nothing but sticks and stones.

Fighting a creature with near perfect invisibility in the dead of night while unarmed and drugged.

Trying not to panic when an angry solar is standing above you with an essence charged fist.

[JohnDoe244]

Sniping a moving target under a cover of darkness and rain.

-3.

Check page 188: "Character suffers multiple minor complications, such as fog and high wind."

Sniping whilst completely blind is a -3.

If it's a full on driving thunderstorm, then -5, sure.

Fighting using troops that are starving and untrained against elite soldiers.

Agree.

Trying to carry out surgery using nothing but sticks and stones.

Should be represented by Difficulty, not a Penalty. If fixed Difficulty (perhaps from a Charm), then sure. Assuming it's literally sticks and stones, not stone tools (like a knapped flint).

Fighting a creature with near perfect invisibility in the dead of night while unarmed and drugged.

Agreed. Text book page 188: fighting blind with other senses impaired.

Trying not to panic when an angry solar is standing above you with an essence charged fist.

What are we rolling here?

If an angry Solar is trying to intimidate you by standing over you with an Essence charged fist, I think that's good grounds for them to roll a Threaten Action against your Resolve. It'd even give the Solar a Stunt bonus. But it's not going to apply a penalty to your Resolve.

If you're trying, I don't know, to meditate or something and are rolling (Wits + Integrity) to find inner peace whilst under duress... I don't see an angry Solar doing worse than giving you a -3 (though, again, that's probably better as upping the Difficulty by one). Actually being attacked would be a -5.

[Accelerator]

-3.
If an angry Solar is trying to intimidate you by standing over you with an Essence charged fist, I think that's good grounds for them to roll a Threaten Action against your Resolve. It'd even give the Solar a Stunt bonus. But it's not going to apply a penalty to your Resolve.

If you're trying, I don't know, to meditate or something and are rolling (Wits + Integrity) to find inner peace whilst under duress... I don't see an angry Solar doing worse than giving you a -3 (though, again, that's probably better as upping the Difficulty by one). Actually being attacked would be a -5.

More like

"You are flat on your ass and your bodyguards are scattered around you in separate pieces, because an angry solar has charged into your palace room and killed everyone there. She is currently shouting curses and condemnations upon you and your so-called crimes, and is now raising a fist to pulp your skull with. You struggle to find words to defend yourself, but your tongue that once threw out barbs and witty parries without pause now fails you."