Overview

From the solicitors with their thorough understanding of business and financial law, to the barristers who argue cases before the criminal courts, Gothic Earth is rife with lawyers and attorneys. Whether they prosecute the guilty, defend the innocent, or litigate trade disputes, their importance in the western world cannot be belittled.

Description

Lawyers must be constantly aware of their appearance. They must present themselves as talented professionals, well dressed and possessed of a fine mind. At the same time, however, they must avoid making too strong an impression on judges and clients. There is no surer way to lose a case than offending the court or alienating the members of the jury.

Role-playing

Lawyers tend to be methodical, careful people. They pay constant attention to the words and actions of others, while guarding their own to avoid giving away any secrets. Whenever possible, they take the time to formulate a plan and make sure that nothing is left to chance.

Special benefits

With the practice of law comes an understanding of public speaking and audience reaction. A skilled lawyer can use this to his advantage, whether he is speaking privately with a client, addressing a jury, or responding to a question from the bench.

In order to reflect this aspect of their personalities, all lawyer characters are able to temporarily increase their Charisma when the opportunity for oratory presents itself. In such setting, the exact nature of which must be determined by the DM, a lawyer is entitled to make a Proficiency Check on his Law skill. If he passes this check, he gains a +2 bonus to his Charisma for the duration of the encounter.

Special hindrances

While a lawyer's eloquence can be of great value during the course of an adventure, it is not an unmixed blessing. Whenever a lawyer fails in his Proficiency Check, his intended audience senses his intent and believes him to be insincere. The result of this is a -2 modifier to the character's Charisma for the duration of the encounter.

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New proficiency

Law (1 slot/Int/0)

Characters with this skill have a good understanding of the law, court systems, and related subjects. If a player wishes to spend an extra slot when purchasing this proficiency, his character is assumed to have been admitted to the bar and may practice law. A slot expended in this does not increase the character's chance of success when making a Proficiency Check.

A player selecting this skill may decide that his character has studied a  specific type of law. If such is the case, the character gains a +2 bonus to Proficiency Checks made within his area of expertise, but suffers a -2 penalty on all other Law Proficiency Checks. Possible areas of specialization include: business, civil, criminal, and international law.

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This page last updated 10/13/98.  For problems/questions/comments regarding the pages contact the webmaster.