In A House Divided, your actions and interactions are constantly being measured through a system known as the Approval Tracker. This isn’t just a background detail; it’s a dynamic system that directly impacts your relationships with the various non-player characters (NPCs) you encounter and, consequently, your access to information, help, and even certain outcomes in the adventure.
Here’s how this approval system works from your perspective as a player:
- Tracking Your Reputation: The game keeps a lightweight system to track how individual NPCs, and even the party as a whole, view your actions. This means your choices have consequences that resonate with the inhabitants of Raventree Estate and its planar reflections.
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Approval Ranges: Each major NPC has an approval rating towards your party that can range from -10 to +10, starting at 0 when you first meet them.
- High Approval (+10) means the party is a trusted ally with whom the NPC would share their deepest secrets and stand beside against any challenge.
- Low Approval (-10) means the party is a sworn nemesis that the NPC would go to almost any lengths to destroy.
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Actions Have Consequences:
- Every action you take can either increase or decrease your approval with different characters. Sometimes, an action that pleases one NPC might displease another.
- Your Game Master will adjust this based on your quest completions, events, and even spontaneous or improvised actions.
- Crucially, NPCs need to be aware of your actions for approval changes to occur. Covert actions won’t affect approval unless they are later revealed.
- Gaining vs. Losing Approval: Be warned, the characters of Raventree Manor are “proud and prickly,” meaning it is harder to gain approval than it is to lose it.
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Unlocking Secrets and Information:
- High approval makes NPCs more willing to confide in you. This is one of the most reliable ways to uncover the manor’s secrets.
- An NPC’s “bearing” (Reserved, Open, or Lying) dictates how they share information based on your approval:
- Reserved characters will only speak openly about their opinions if your party has at least 2 approval points with them.
- Open characters are generally willing to share their opinions freely, regardless of your approval.
- Lying characters will never truly tell the truth unless your party reaches at least 5 approval points with them. Even then, you can use a Wisdom (Insight) check to discern if they are lying.
- Actively observing NPCs to learn their “telltales” or “traits” might cause a small approval loss if they notice your scrutiny and dislike it.
- Avoiding Banishment: Accumulating too much negative approval can lead to dire consequences, potentially even resulting in your expulsion from the Manor.
- Allies Can Intercede: If you have positive approval with one character in the Manor, you might be able to ask them to intercede on your behalf if other NPCs have negative approval towards your party. This means your ally’s approval rating would decrease, but the negative approval from other characters would be lessened.
In essence, this system encourages you to think carefully about your choices and relationships within A House Divided, as your standing with the manor’s inhabitants will heavily influence your journey and ultimate fate.