Reputation

When you want something from someone else, it helps if they have a positive image of you or that they fear you enough to give you the goods anyways!

In the Dragon Universe, there are many people of incredible power. For this reason, a Character’s reputation can have several aspects that may affect how other Characters see them.

Reputation

In the DBU system, Reputation is a system that allows for the players and the ARC to understand how certain factions and people feel about the Character in question. It should serve to help enhance roleplay and help the ARC to keep track of the various social dynamics that may appear in various games.

Reputations only matter for the involvement of the Player Characters with the Non-Player Characters that are managed and played by the ARC. While they have some mechanical effects, an ARC should prioritize the behavior elements of the Character that come from Reputation.

Factions. A Faction is a group of people with shared beliefs and motives, they may be as small as a few individuals (such as the Kamikaze Fireballs) or as large as an entire army (such as the Red Ribbon Army)! Either way, a Character’s Reputation when it comes to Factions should help influence the views of the Characters of that Faction as a baseline, either before that individual has met the Character in question, or before they have formed a solid opinion.

Individuals. An Individual is a single Character, and a Character’s particular Reputation in relation to that Character supersedes the Reputation they possess with the Faction as a whole. While a Character may have good relations with a Faction, a member of that Faction may hate their guts. An Individual Reputation exists for direct Character-to-Character Reputations that may differ from a Reputation to a Faction as a whole.

Types of Reputation. There are two types of Reputation: Affection and Alarm. Affection represents how much a Character likes another Character, while Alarm represents how much a Character fears another Character. A Character may be well-liked and feared, such as Son Gohan – many people may like his personality, but also fear his immense potential when it is unleashed. Then, there are Characters who may be disliked but feared, such as Frieza – those who work for him and those who know of him tend to dislike him, but fear wins out in the end.

The different types of Reputation both have their benefits.

Reputation: Affection

The more liked you are by an Individual or Faction, the more likely they are to help you out in ways you may not expect. They could support you, give you access to things you wouldn’t otherwise have, or maybe even just want to spend time around you.

Affection Rating. Reputation for Affection is measured in Affection Rating, a value between 0~4. Increasing or reducing your Affection Rating with an Individual or Faction is handled entirely by the ARC, with the difficulty to increase or reduce heavily being dependent on a Character/group’s mentality and beliefs. Gaining or reducing an Affection Rating shouldn’t be too easy, and should be seen more as a reward or punishment for some kind of behavior. What each value on the Affection Rating represents is shown here:

• 0 – Hated. This Individual or Faction actively hates your Character and will act against them in most situations. They may go out of their way to spite or try to harm your Character, depending on their beliefs.
• 1 – Disliked. While not to the extent of hatred, this Individual or Faction finds your Character unpleasant or harbors some kind of grudge. Generally speaking, they will act against your Character, but may not go out of their way to purposefully upset you.
• 2 – Neutral. This Individual or Faction has no particular feelings about your Character, and will treat them like any other stranger they’d encounter.
• 3 – Liked. This Individual or Faction likes your Character, typically being on their side and doing what they can to help them. They may not act to their own detriment in doing so, but they will offer aid where they can. 
• 4 – Loved. This Individual or Faction loves your Character, they may act even to their own detriment to help them, or act in surprising ways to your Character’s benefit.

Affection and Persuasion. Reduce/increase the TN of any Persuasion Skill Check against an Individual or Faction based on how much higher/lower their Affection Rating is than 2.

Reputation: Alarm

The more alarmed an Individual or Faction is by your Character, the more likely they are to act in your favor or, at the very least, avoid your ire. This can allow them to overcome their lack of Affection, as they may be too fearful of you to act against you.

Alarm Rating. Reputation for Alarm is measured in Alarm Rating, a value between 0~4. Increasing or reducing your Alarm Rating with an Individual or Faction is handled entirely by the ARC, with the difficulty to increase or reduce heavily being dependent on a Character/group’s mentality and beliefs. Gaining or reducing an Alarm Rating shouldn’t be too easy, and should be seen as a reflection of how scary or intimidating your Character is from the eyes of the opponent. What each value on the Alarm Rating represents is shown here:

• 0 – Harmless. Your Character is seen as completely harmless by this Individual or Faction. They won’t be scared to act against you, and may exploit your presence without concern.
• 1 – Unbothered. This Individual or Faction does not consider you a threat, and is generally unbothered by your presence. While they may treat you with some degree of awareness as an individual, they are unlikely to budge due to your actions.
• 2 – Neutral. This Individual or Faction has no strong feelings of fear about your Character beyond what they’d have against an unknown stranger.
• 3 – Feared. This Individual or Faction fears your Character. They may hesitate to act against them and may act in a way that supports your Character purely to try and remain on their good side.
• 4 – Terrified. This Individual or Faction is absolutely terrified of your Character and is highly unlikely to act against them, unless they gain some kind of unique edge, ally, or power that changes the dynamics. They will likely accept any requests and may act for you just to avoid angering your Character.

Alarm and Intimidate. Reduce/increase the TN of any Intimidation Skill Check against an Individual or Faction based on how much higher/lower their Alarm Rating is than 2.