We've played now for 6 sessions and are just entering 490 with its battle against Octa and Eosa. I've noticed appropriate passions aren't always invoked by player knights because risks are considered greater than rewards. This results in avoiding passion use unless odds are significantly in the knight's favor.

For example, there has been a fair bit of fighting Saxons over the last year. One player knight has a Hate (Saxons) passion of 10. The risk of being disheartened and at -5 for ALL rolls is too great compared to the reward of being +10 for one critical skill only 50% of the time, not to mention the possibility of madness. So the player knight just won't invoke the Hate (Saxons) passion. It would be possible to increase the passion in the winter phase by 1 per year; but, it would take five straight years or so before the rewards start to outweigh the risk. So the yearly increase of 1 is not worth the cost. Barring extenuating circumstances, this effectively takes Hate (Saxons) out of play for the player knight.

Am I adjudicating this correctly?

When players deliberately do NOT invoke an appropriate Passion, I always lower their score by 1, since they are not acting according to it.

In your example, this would mean the Hate Passion slowly dwindling and dropping below the significance threshold of 5 and thus disappearing.

You are doing it correctly. That particular example is also correct. The problem you are experiencing is a direct result of the low score. ( thats a pretty pathetic passion score!!!) So thats a bummer 4 that player. On average when we generated passions in Kap 5 they wre significantly higher than that , so were much more useful. Also I dont think you are supposed to let the player dictate the passion roll. I think that anytime you are in appropriate situations that trigger the passion a player HAS to roll. I dont think thats mandatory, but It is very common. But being that the passion score is low as it is your player is in for trouble. Its a double-edged sword, to be sure! :P

When players deliberately do NOT invoke an appropriate Passion, I always lower their score by 1, since they are not acting according to it.


The rules are slightly more moderate than this.
They do not have to use the Passion unless it is over 15, in which case they must use it as son as it is confronted with a foe.
Except under certain circumstances, when it migh be required.

When players deliberately do NOT invoke an appropriate Passion, I always lower their score by 1, since they are not acting according to it.


The rules are slightly more moderate than this.
They do not have to use the Passion unless it is over 15, in which case they must use it as son as it is confronted with a foe.
Except under certain circumstances, when it migh be required.


HAHAHAHAHAH Yeah..what that guy said! lol I stand slightly corrected. :D

We've played now for 6 sessions and are just entering 490 with its battle against Octa and Eosa. I've noticed appropriate passions aren't always invoked by player knights because risks are considered greater than rewards. This results in avoiding passion use unless odds are significantly in the knight's favor.

For example, there has been a fair bit of fighting Saxons over the last year. One player knight has a Hate (Saxons) passion of 10. The risk of being disheartened and at -5 for ALL rolls is too great compared to the reward of being +10 for one critical skill only 50% of the time, not to mention the possibility of madness. So the player knight just won't invoke the Hate (Saxons) passion. It would be possible to increase the passion in the winter phase by 1 per year; but, it would take five straight years or so before the rewards start to outweigh the risk. So the yearly increase of 1 is not worth the cost. Barring extenuating circumstances, this effectively takes Hate (Saxons) out of play for the player knight.

Am I adjudicating this correctly?



This is not a problem. The system is working as intended.
I know when I was a new Pendragon GM, I wanted players to take risks and roll their passions more, and thought they were wimping out when they didn't. But as you rightly point out, from the player side the risk is too great. But that's okay, a hate of 10 is not a strong hate - the knight is not governed by it, and can choose not to use it.
Don't put pressure on them to try to use it, just leave it up to them - they may increase it, they may ignore it. But one day, they may find themselves desperately outnumbered or outclassed, and think, I'm going to lose here so I might as well try it. Those moments are both fun and tense when they come up, but you can't force them.

Thanks for the responses. Yes, we do enforce the > 15 passions being invoked mandatorily. I guess we'll just keep on keeping on.

We've played now for 6 sessions and are just entering 490 with its battle against Octa and Eosa. I've noticed appropriate passions aren't always invoked by player knights because risks are considered greater than rewards. This results in avoiding passion use unless odds are significantly in the knight's favor.

Don't put pressure on them to try to use it, just leave it up to them - they may increase it, they may ignore it. But one day, they may find themselves desperately outnumbered or outclassed, and think, I'm going to lose here so I might as well try it. Those moments are both fun and tense when they come up, but you can't force them.




The flip side to this is what starts happening once a Passion reaches 30+. One character had a love of 38 for his wife. The locals knew it, the enemy knew if, and so, all kinds of problems started to arise as the knights enemies' planned to use this against the knight.

Bob