Reputations and Affiliations -- scope vs dice

[rafial]

Okay, after reading the character burner, studying the character worksheet, and reading the Circles chapter there is something I'm still confused about. I hope I'm just overlooking something here and one of you will set me straight.

So: are the number of dice granted by a reputation or affiliation always set by its scope, or can the number of dice vary independently from the scope. That is, can I have 3D local reputation, or a 1D national reputation. Can I have a 3D affliation with a small group, or a 1D affliation with a national group?

And if so, how does that affect the resources cost of the reputation? are you supposed to be paying for each factor independently? i.e. a 1D regional rep costs 32 points? Or do you just pay for the highest side, i.e. a 1D national or a 3D local rep both cost 25?

Or maybe I buy twice? A 2D local rep costs 14? But then what kind of discount woudl I get for a 1D national rep?

Je confuse!

[Angaros]

I can't give you any straight answers but here's how I interpret the dice: they describe what kind of power the character has gained through the reputation or affiliation.

A high number of affiliation dice means that the organization is willing to not only lend you a hand or give you some information but that you can use a large part of it's power to get hold of certain people.

A high number of reputation dice means you have a reputation that might be impossible to hide from -- you're a public figure, someone most people have heard of. Being so famous gives you a wider reach, makes it easier to connect and get people to help you.

While reputations tend to travel and the power of an organization often correlates to it's size, I don't see why a 3D reputation couldn't be fairly local or a 3D affiliation be with a small but powerful group. The dice aren't meant to reflect scope or width but the amount of power it lends to the character in applicable situations. And scope tells you whether the rep/aff can be applied or not. In short: tying scope to number of dice seems like a convenient generalization that can be ignored if it suits the character concept and setting.

[luke]

Ok. Jocke, should I just sign the books in your name next time? The Burning Wheel by Jocke A, as interpretted (badly) Luke C.

-L

[stormsweeper]

Damned Norwegians. :wink:

[rafial]

All right, so I think what i'm hearing is that you cost reputations and affiliations by whichever is larger, dice or scope.

[Angaros]

Ok. Jocke, should I just sign the books in your name next time? The Burning Wheel by Jocke A, as interpretted (badly) Luke C.
Eh? :oops:

And don't call me Norwegian, I feel so unclean, belittled and pox-ridden after being coupled with the land of lusekoftor. ;)

As for your question Rafial I'd determine the reputation or affiliation/organization from the character concept then discuss/bargain with the GM about how many dice this comes down to. And the number of dice determines the cost. Regardless of scope. But I've found that in most cases, the generalizations from the book work well.