Voices and Disguises

Talks that may or may not have anything to do with Hala or NWN

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Drakuul
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Posts: 220
Joined: Wed Jun 23, 2004 7:35 pm
Location: South Wales

Voices and Disguises

Post by Drakuul »

T'Holoth wrote
How do we treat the use of their voices?

I would assume most people have a unique voice? If i put on a helmet and blue platemail and go kill someone then talk a little "haha this is to pay you back for bla bla" then a few hours later i'm back with different armor and in person and start talking would someone present both times I was there be able to put two and two together?
I think, therefore I am right. QED.
Drakuul
Veteran DM
Posts: 220
Joined: Wed Jun 23, 2004 7:35 pm
Location: South Wales

Post by Drakuul »

Vanor on the Avlis boards wrote
It has become very clear to the Avlis Staff as a whole, that not everyone playing on Avlis is following the same rules when it comes to disguises. Considering that there are no rules regarding them right now, that seems natural.

So first point. If you believe that there are rules regarding disguises, you are wrong. There were none prior to this post.

Ok, here's the basic rule, boiled down to its purest form. Consider this the guiding principle for disguises, or any other form of hiding your identity from someone.

The PC trying to keep his/her identity hidden, is the one who must make all the effort. The less effort put into it, the less likely the disguise is to work.

For example, There are no helms out there that somehow alter someone's voice, and by simply putting one on, no one can recognize your voice. By the same token, stating once at the begging of an encounter that you are masking your voice or a single emote, is not enough to cut it.

You must constantly remind people you are altering your voice somehow. A emote every line isn't required, but the person attempting to alter their voice must be the one making the effort to do so. It must be clear to everyone what he or she is doing. If those interacting with the PC can't clearly tell they are trying to be disguised. Then that PC isn't putting enough effort into it.

This helps the PC as well, as it makes for a constant reminder and makes mistakes much less likely.

By the same token, simply putting on a different outfit is not enough to make you unidentifiable. There are several things you have left on that might provide clues to who you really are. So if you want to disguise yourself via clothing/armor, you need to change more then just the torso piece.

The more effort a PC goes to, to hide their identity the more likely they are to actually do so. The less effort the PC makes, the easier it will be to ID them. But it up to the person wishing to keep his/her identity hidden to make all the effort, and make it very clear to everyone else what he or she are attempting to do.

Of course the amount of disguise required is all based on how well the PC in question is known by those interacting with him or her. For my PC, trying to fool Kira his IC wife would be extremely difficult. Fooling someone he's knows fairly well, like say Jorio, or Arena would be less difficult, someone he knows hardly at all, would be fairly easy.

Also the simple fact that your PC's avatar has a hood on, or the hood/mask on, does nothing to help mask their identity, as they are always wearing one so it is as much a disquinshing feature as it hides things.

Any magical item higher then +2 will also be unique, and could be used to ID someone, especially if it's a weapon, or shield. Provided that of course the PC in question has been seen with it before.

For example...

If I want to disguise my PC, I would need to do all of the following to make the disguise 98% foolproof, as there is no 100% foolproof disguise.

I would need to put on armor or clothing that is unlike anything I've ever worn before. I would need to wear a helm unlike what I normally wear. I would need to begin every other or perhaps every 3rd line of speech with an emote of some sort, stating that I am disguising my voice. I would need to put on different boots, and maybe a different pair of gloves. If I have a holy symbol or some other jewelry that is unquine, I would need to change those out.

So to sum up. If you want to hide your identity from those around you, you not them will need to make that clear to everyone. Tells or ooc statements that you are in disguise and no further effort on the PC's part, isn't enough. Simply putting on a different outfit and holding a different weapon isn't enough. Simply putting on a helmet isn't enough.

This works in favor of everyone. For those who wish to remain unidentified, they can show the DM's what efforts they made in remaining so. It also serves as a nearly constant reminder to those involved what the PC is attempting to do, so a mistake is less likely.
This also applies here, and is really just common sense.
I think, therefore I am right. QED.
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