Relationships

GM Reference

The Relationships system tracks the bonds between PCs and important NPCs across the full range of human connection — from cool associations to deep devotion, and from healthy competition to bitter enmity. Relationship scores grow (or sour) through shared experience, gifts, insults, and the passage of time, giving GMs a structured way to model how recurring NPCs evolve alongside the party.

Relationship Levels

Every relationship has a Relationship Score — a numerical value tracked separately for each PC/NPC pair. The score determines the current level of the bond and what mechanical benefits or penalties apply. Scores can be positive (moving toward Devotion) or negative (moving toward Enmity).

0 Association
The baseline — aware of each other and on speaking terms, but no meaningful bond. Most NPCs the party meets start here.
Friendship / Competition
A real but moderate connection. A friend offers minor aid freely; a competitor pushes back on the PC's goals without outright hostility.
Fellowship / Rivalry
A strong and defining bond. A fellow willingly takes personal risk to help; a rival actively works to undermine the PC's efforts and reputation.
Devotion / Enmity
The deepest level. A devoted NPC places the PC's wellbeing above their own. An enemy will sacrifice significant resources to see the PC fail or suffer. Both states grant specific mechanical effects determined by the GM.

Positive and negative levels mirror each other — the same score thresholds apply on both sides. A single NPC can hold only one level at a time, but that level can shift in either direction as events unfold.

Growing Relationships

Relationship scores change through five main avenues. The GM decides the exact score changes; the entries below describe each avenue and the kinds of events that trigger it.

Certain campaign traits reflect a pre-existing bond with an NPC — a childhood friend who became a city official, a mentor from the PC's past, or a relative in a position of influence. These traits grant a starting Relationship Score above zero, reflecting the relationship's history before play begins.

A PC's Charisma modifier applies as a bonus (or penalty) to Relationship Score increases with NPCs who respond to personal magnetism. This is not automatic — the GM determines which NPCs are influenced by Charisma and which value other qualities (reliability, strength, wisdom) more highly.

Simply spending meaningful time with an NPC — sharing meals, traveling together, working side-by-side — slowly raises the Relationship Score. The GM may require a minimum amount of shared time per session or story arc before this avenue applies.

Meaningful gifts raise the Relationship Score; insults lower it. The GM determines what counts as meaningful based on the NPC's personality and circumstances.

  • A gift that shows genuine knowledge of the NPC's tastes or needs is worth more than a generic expensive item.
  • Insults in front of others, broken promises, or actions that contradict the NPC's core values cause the sharpest drops.
  • Bribing an NPC who values honour may lower the score even if the NPC accepts the coin.

Dramatic shared experiences — saving the NPC's life, witnessing a pivotal personal moment, surviving a catastrophe together — can shift a Relationship Score sharply in either direction. These events are GM-designated and should feel earned rather than routine.
Reversing Relationships: A relationship can shift from positive to negative (or vice versa) if the score crosses zero through insults, betrayals, or reconciliation. The transition is rarely instantaneous — intermediate levels exist on both sides — but a catastrophic event may justify an immediate dramatic shift at the GM's discretion.

Example Relationships

The following example NPC types illustrate how the Relationship system plays out in practice. Each entry covers adventure hooks, roleplaying advice, and how the relationship might grow over the course of a campaign.

Adventure Hooks

A parent's fear for a PC's safety can drive plot — the parent may hire investigators to trail the party, refuse to share critical information to keep the PC out of danger, or appeal to the PC's sense of duty to draw her home. A parent with enemies from the past can suddenly make those enemies the party's problem.

Roleplaying Advice

Parents are rarely objective about their children. Even a supportive parent may underestimate the PC's capabilities or push unwanted advice. A cold or absent parent creates unresolved tension the PC must navigate.

Growing the Relationship

Regular contact — letters, visits home, bringing gifts — slowly raises the score. Placing a parent in danger (or rescuing them from it) causes sharp score swings. A PC who never writes may find the relationship quietly cooling.

Adventure Hooks

Siblings create natural complications — a brother who followed the PC into a life of crime, a sister who joined a rival faction, or an estranged twin whose choices now reflect badly on the PC. A sibling in trouble (debt, blackmail, conscription) gives the PC a personal stake in an otherwise abstract plot.

Roleplaying Advice

Sibling relationships carry old baggage — jealousy, favoritism, shared trauma. A sibling who hero-worships the PC creates its own pressure. One who resents the PC's fame adds friction to every interaction.

Growing the Relationship

Shared history means the relationship fluctuates faster than with strangers — both score gains and losses tend to be larger. Standing up for a sibling publicly raises the score sharply; failing to do so when it mattered can drop it just as fast.

Adventure Hooks

A childhood rival who has achieved success in a different field creates constant comparison. The rival may show up at inconvenient moments, compete for the same contacts or resources, or pursue the same quest for entirely different reasons — leading to uneasy alliances or open conflict.

Roleplaying Advice

Rivalry doesn't require hatred. The most interesting rivals respect each other even while competing fiercely. A GM should give the rival genuine strengths and victories — a rival who only loses stops feeling like a rival.

Growing the Relationship

Cooperation on a shared threat raises the score even if the rivalry resumes afterwards. A public humiliation — in either direction — causes a sharp drop. Over time a rival can become a Fellowship-level ally or a genuine Enmity enemy depending on how the PC handles the competition.

Adventure Hooks

A spouse is simultaneously a source of stability and a vulnerability. Enemies who learn of the marriage have a lever. A spouse with their own ambitions, secrets, or dangerous past can become an adventure source entirely independent of the main campaign arc.

Roleplaying Advice

A spouse NPC should feel like a full person with preferences, fears, and goals — not a passive supporter. The GM should periodically advance the spouse's own story, giving the PC things to respond to rather than always initiating contact.

Growing the Relationship

Extended absences without communication slowly drain the score. Returning with gifts, stories, and genuine attention raises it. A broken promise or revealed secret causes a large, immediate drop that takes sustained effort to recover from.

This page reproduces content from Ultimate Campaign under the Open Game License. © 2013 Paizo Publishing, LLC.