The Crow's Nest #1
Navigating Delicate Negotiations
New Rules and Advice for Handling
Negotiations in 7th Sea
Welcome to The Crow's Nest, where we help you put the
rules of 7th Sea into practice along with ideas for new
NPCs, Monsters, Plot Hooks, and Secret Socieities. to throw
at your Heroes.
In Navigating Delicate Negotiations, you'll learn how to
use Raises and Pressure to negotiate agreements between
your Heroes and NPCs. Whether it's a formal contract
or a simple promise, our goal is to help you spark social
interactions where a Hero's own words will put them in
more danger than the point of a Villain's sword.
Starting Negotiations
Negotiating an agreement will almost always take place
as a Dramatic Sequence. Even while negotiating a Villain's
surrender at swordpoint, the furious action slows down,
and the pointy objects in the scene shift from "stabbing
tool" to "intimidation tool." Negotiations should focus on
the careful play of words, tone, body languge, and drawn
out pauses: perfect elements for Dramatic Sequences.
Transitioning into Negotiations
If your Heroes go into a scene with the Intent to negotiate,
you can cut straight to the negotiating table: open the
scene with a Dramatic Sequence and have your Heroes
declare their Intents and Approaches (see Declaring
Intent and Approach.) The Heroes can still exchange
pleasantries, but they've already got their Raises ready.
Example: Maria Orduño needs to charter a brig from Cardican
to the Atabean. She knows of an old captain looking to retire
and thinks he'd be willing to let her charter the ship for a share of
the spoils. She goes to meet him at his home and plans to Tempt
the captain with the promise of an easy profit. She rolls Wits +
Tempt, and gets 4 Raises.
It's a sunny summer day in Cardican - a good omen. Maria
confidently opens the old wooden gate and walks cheerily up the
path to the old man's home. She finds him sitting on the porch,
dipping the tip of a brush into a puddle of bright yellow paint.
"What can I do for you, milady?" he asks without looking up.
"Afternoon, Giles," Maria replies. "I've got a proposition for you."
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In many cases, however, your Heroes will stumble into
unplanned negotiations in reponse to events in the scene:
•• During a sea battle the enemy captain offers the
Heroes quarter.
•• A duchess furtively offers a Hero a job while dancing;
she insists on talking now because meeting in private
is too suspicious.
•• The Heroes demand that the Villain surrender.
When transitioning into an unplanned negotiation while
already in the middle of a Dramatic Sequence, you can
take one of three different Options:
Option 1: One Squence, One Approach
The first option is to keep all negotiating within the
current Dramatic Sequence; the Heroes spend Raises they
already have on negotiating terms.
This option makes record keeping easy and keeps all
of the action within a single Dramatic Sequence; the
Heroes get to keep their original Intents and Approaches.
However, Heroes may hesitate to negotiate if it means
not accomplishing their Intent, especially if negotiation
requires them to spend a Raise and change their Approach.
This option works best for brief agreements and promises
that take place during, but are not the primary focus,
of a scene; these sorts of agreements work best as
Opportunities the Hero can spend one or two Raises on
without changing their Approach.
This option also works well for catching the Heroes by
surprise and using your NPCs to Pressure them into
reacting. Keeping the Heroes' current pool of Raises
forces the Heroes to react and reconsider their goals for
the scene; this is a great way to put your Heroes on the
defensive.
Example: Maria gives Commodore Hawthorn a curt smile; she
doesn't have time for this. She only has 3 Raises left to...
"Please, Madam Orduño," the Commadore insists, "I have
something important to speak to you about." The Commodor
spends a Raise to Pressure Maria into negotiating with him.
Option 2: New Risk, New Approach, New Roll
The second option is to end the current Dramatic
Sequence early and start a new Dramatic Sequence as a
continuation of the scene.
This option esablishes a clear break from one sequence
to the next, and puts the focus on the negotiations in
the new sequence. All of the Heroes get to declare new
Intents and Approaches, which means they get a new set
of Raises for negotiating. However, if your Heroes still had
a lot of unspent Raises when you terminated the previous
sequence, they may feel cheated out of their original
Intents and Approaches. Frequently ending Dramatic
Sequencs early can make your Heroes feel railroaded.
This option works best when something big happens
that completely upends the scene and discrupts all of the
Heroes' original Approaches, especially when the Heroes
initiate it themselves:
•• A Hero dramatically unmasks the Villian and reveals
the Villain's plot in the middle of the ballroom.
•• While searching the Villain's hideout a Hero finds one
of the Villain's lackies cowering under a table and she
demands that the lackey answer her questions.
Windows of Opportunity make great excuses for starting a
new Dramatic Sequence.
Example: Maria and Bartholomew are rooting around
Commodor Hawhtorn's study looking for evidence to prove
he's been stealing from Elaine's treasurey. There is a Window
of Opportunity: the Commodor will return when both of
the Heroes have 2 or fewer Raises remaining. Maria and
Bartholomew consider barricading the door so they have more
time to look around, but decide not to.
When the Window of Opportunity closes and the Commodor
arrives, and Maria triumphantly presents the evidence she and
Bartholomew were able to find to the pale-faced Commodore.
The current Dramatic Sequence ends even though Maria and
Bartholomew still have Raises, and a new Dramatic Seqeuence
begins with each Hero declaring new Intents and Approaches.
Option 3: Sequence Within a Sequence
The third option turns the negotiation as its own Mini-
Dramatic Sequence. The Heroes set their Raises for the
current Dramatic Sequence aside, and declare new Intents
and Approaches for the Mini-Dramatic Sequence. They will
use these new Raises for negotiating. When negotiations
finish, the Mini-Dramatic Sequence ends, and the Heroes
return to their original Raises and Approaches.
This option allows the Game Master to shine a spotlight
on the negotations, while making it clear that it's only
a small part of the larger scene and making it clear that
the Heroes aren't throwing their current Raises away.
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Since the Heroes get a dedicated set of Raises for the
Mini-Dramatic Sequence, they can focus compltely on
negotiating, instead of worrying about saving Raises for
later. The downside of this option, however, is that Heroes
will need to keep track of two sets of Raises, and the Game
Master needs to keep the Mini-Dramatic Sequence short
and focused so that the Intents and Approaches of the
other Heroes don't get forgotten; it's easy to let the Mini-
Dramatic Sequence take over the entire scene.
This option works best when you want to put a focus on
the negotiations and have the option of shifting back
to the original sequence later. This is a good option for
games heavy in political intrigue, where the Heroes go
into a scene with a number of complex things they need to
accomplish, and you want them to turn each one of those
things into its own challenge. Scenes where the Heroes
need to negotiate the terms of trade agreement, while
surruptisiously digging up dirt on a Villain, and while
trying to stay in the local lord's good graces make for great
times to use this option.
Action Scene to Negotiation
Up until now we've focused Dramatic Sequences, but your
Heroes can just as easily find themselves in an unplanned
negotiation during an Action Scene - usually with
themselves or the Villain held at sword point.
Because Action Scenes happen at a much faster pace, it's
much easier to transition from an Action Scene into a
Dramatic Sequence focused on negotiating the terms of a
Villain's surrender or the safety of a Villain's captive. Here
are two options to consider:
1. Wait for the Heroes to spend all of their Raises for the
current Round, then end the Action Scene and start a
new Dramatic Sequence with your Heroes declaring
new Intents and Approaches, or
2. Terminate the Round early and start a new Dramatic
Sequence, similar to Option 2 above; this works
especially well if the Heroes try to Pressure the Villain
into surrendering, and the Villain does not have
enough Raises to act.
Declaring Intent and Approach
Some Approaches are perfect for stipulating terms of an
agreement, while others work better as support, helping
guide the discussion into the Heroes' favor. Each Hero
involved in negotiating should decide whether they
want to take an active or supporting role in sequence.
Here are some examples of how Heroes can use different
Approaches while negotiating:
•• Convince works best for Heroes actively defining clear
and specific terms.
 •• Empathy works best for a supporting role, feeling out
the opposing negotiator or encouraging them to see
things from your perspective.
•• Intimidate works well for both active and supporting
roles, but carries the risk of making the other party
resentful.
•• Notice supports negotiations by looking for loopholes
in the agreement.
•• Perform can support negotiations by keeping the
mood upbeat and pleasant or keeping someone
distracted.
•• Scholarship can support negotiations by looking for
loopholes or relying on specific knowledge to know if
the terms are fair.
•• Tempt can create distractions, figure out the
most tantalizing terms to present to the opposing
negotiator, or even offer something to them
"off-the-record."
•• Theft can allow the Heroes to insert terms that have
sneaky gray areas without the opposing negotiator
noticing.
•• Warfare can be used for negotiations related to war
or combat, such as establishing terms of surrender or
gaining a tactical advantage.
Negotiating Terms
While the Heroes decide on their Approaches and count
up Raises, determine the number of Raises the negotiating
NPCs have for the scene; you can have multiple NPCs work
together to challenge and negotiate against the Heroes.
Creating and Modifying Terms
The goal of the negotiation is to come to a set of terms that
the negotiating parties ultimately (if perhaps begrudingly)
agree to. By spending a Raise, anyone involved in the
negotiations can introduce a new term to the agreement,
as long as the term fits the Hero's Approach.
For example: Commodore Hawthorn wishes to negotiate for
the Heroes's surrender. Captain Maria and the Ship's Master,
Bartholomew, agree to negotiate the terms of their surrender.
Captain Maria decides take the active role in negotiations using
Warfare as her Approach, while Bartholomew will support her
by trying to feel out the Commodore's mood using Empathy.
Maria gets 5 Raises and Bartholomew gets 2. The Commodore,
who has 8 Raises, welcomes them into his quarters and offers
them a seat and a glass of wine.
"I'd like to negotiate your crew's immediate surrender," the
Commordore says pleasantly while pouring the wine. "You will
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have your crew drop their arms immediately." The Commodore
spends a Raise setting the term "The crew will cease fighting."
Maria quickly retorts, "And, once we surrender you'll set us free
back onto our ship and on our way." She spends a raise to add
the term "The Commodore will deliver Maria and her crew to
freedom." to the agreement.
Once a new term is introduced into the agreement, any of
the negotiators have a chance to spend additional Raises
to re-word and modify that term into something they find
more agreeable.
Example: The Commodore scoffs. "I will," he pauses and takes
a sip of wine, "gladly deliver you to your freedom once we reach
Carleon; after her majesty's guard has had time to welcome us at
the docks." He spends a raise to modify Maria's terms and spends
a second Raise, Pressuring Maria to accept his modification of
her terms; Maria will need to spend 2 Raises if she wants to try
modifying this term again.
Negotiators may not revisit terms they've already
discussed. Once a term has been agreed to, it may not be
revisited or contradicted unless all negotiators agree to do
so (see Revisiting Terms and Proposing a Bargain.)
Furious, Maria considers her options: if she doesn't modify the
Commodore's term now, she must accept it, but to do so will
cost 2 of her 4 remaining Raises. She decides to put her Raises
to better use and moves on: "I expect ALL of my crew to make it
back to Carleon alive," she demands, spending a Raise to add a
new term to the agreement. She clarifies, "None of your men may
harm any of my crew."
"And I..." the Commodor spends another Raise. "...expect there
will be no foolish attempts at escape."
While the conversation will usually go back and forth with
the negotiationg parties taking turns spending Raises,
there is no set Initiative. All participating negotiators can
freely spend Raises whenever they feel the need to. The
formality of the procedings will vary depending on the
type of negotiation taking place; generals hashing out a
peace agreement will have a more formal structure than
the courtesan tempting her client into divulging their
darkest secrets.
No Vetoes / Being Reasonable
You may not spend Raises to completely negate a term
introduced into the negotiation. Instead the negotiators
are encourated to find clever ways to modify terms they
dislike; make generous use of the old improv techniques of
"Yes, and..." and "Yes, but..."
Negotiators are expected to keep the terms they introduce
reasonable. Heroes can never force an NPC to terms they
wouldn't reasonably agree to, and NPCs can never force
Heroes to agree to terms that would earn them Corruption.

Favor and Influence
Just because a character runs out of Raises, doesn't mean
they have no hope of influencing negotiations.
•• Heroes, when negotiating with Secret Society
members, may spend 1 Favor instead of spending a
Raise to add or modify a terms.
•• Villains may spend 1 Influence instead of spendng a
Raise to add or modify a terms.
Supporting Negotiations
Heroes can take a number of supporting roles during
negotiations: reading the emotions of the characters at
the table, creating distractions, finding loopholes, offering
ideas for important terms, or providing domian-specific
knowledge.
Asking Questions
Heroes may spend a Raise to ask the Game Master a
question within the domain of their current Approach. For
example:
•• Heroes using Empathy might ask if a negotiator is
about to modify a term, so that they know the best
times to apply Pressure.
•• Heroes using Scholarship might ask about domain-
specific knowledge, such as the current market prices
for goods.
•• Heroes using Notice might ask if a term proposed by
an NPC has any possible loopholes and make sure
those loopholes are closed.
After getting their answer, the Hero has the opportunity
to role-play how they communicate this knowledge to the
rest of the party; it does not cost a Raise to do so.
Establishing Facts
Heroes may - subject to Game Master approval - spend a
Raise to establish a fact about the scene or the world that
can then be levereged within the negotiations:
•• Heroes using Sailing might state that the ship's hold
isn't big enough to fit all of the captured crew.
•• Heroes using Warfare might state that the enemy
captain is low on supplies, and that her men are
starting to get unruly.
•• Heroes using Notice might state that there is a minor
error on the Villain's copy of the treasure map.
•• Heroes using Theft might state that one of the
opposing NPCs is wearing some valuable jewlery.
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UNEVEN NEGOTIATIONS
Most negotiations don't happen on equal
footing.If your Heroes press the Villain to
surrender or if the Cszarina is asking the Heroes
for their help, it usually means they have the
upperhand in negotiations. On the other hand,
if your heroes need to charter a ship and there's
only one ready to shove off in the harbor, that
ship captian is probably going to get the better
end of the bargain.
When entering an uneven negotiation, decide
whether or not the Heroes are at an advantage or
disadvantage in the negotiation.
If the Heroes have the Advantage, give
participating Heroes between 1 and 5 bonus dice
that they may divide amongst themselves and
use towards their Approaches.
If the Heroes are at a disadvantage, give the
Villain or opposing NPC between 1 and 5 bonus
dice that they may add to their Approach for the
negotiation.
If both the Heroes and opposing NPCs are on
equal footing, neither party gets a bonus.
Applying Pressure
Applying Pressure during negotiations forces the opposing
negotiators to think carefully about how they spend their
Raises. A pair of Heroes, with one Hero adding terms while
the other applies Pressure, can quickly force a Villain out
of Raises.
•• Heroes using Tempt might Pressure a character into
paying attention to them.
•• Heroes using Empathy might Pressure their capturer
into providing more humane conditions or to end
negotiations.
•• Heroes using Intimidate might Pressure a negotiator
into thinking twice about modifying a term.
•• Heroes using Scholarship might Pressure a negotiator
into unecessarily modifying a term by making them
believe they need to close a loophole that isn't there.
Example: Bartholomew is nervous. Maria's getting flustered
in the negotiations, and they're on a one-way track to prison.
He knows that the Commodore's terms are going to be brutal
for the crew. "What about the crew? They need to eat and and
drink." Bartholomew spends a Raise to apply Pressure to the
Commodore:The next time the Commodore acts, he must must
ensure that Maria's crew will be fed, or spend 2 Raises to move
the negotiations into a new direction.
Keeping Your Promises
We all know pirates -both the heroic and the villainous
ones - lie, cheat, and steal. There's always the possiblity
that once terms are settled and hands have been shook
someone will walk away from the negotiating table
already thinking about breaking their word.
While this is a great way to highlight a Villain's
ruthlessness or a roguish Hero's contempt, where's the
drama if your agreement doesn't carry any sway? What's
the point if everyone can back out as soon as it becomes
inconvenient?
In Théah, your word is your reputation, and breaking your
word carries social repurcussions. Even the most fiendish
Villains and cavalier Heroes will think twice before
breaking their word.
Once your Heroes, NPCs, and Villains have agreed to a set
of terms, they must spend 1 additional Raise to take an
Action that violates the agreed terms, as if Pressure had
been applied to them for that action. The characters must
pay this extra cost EACH TIME they try to break one of the
agreed terms for as long as the agreement is in effect.
Example: During negotiations, the Heroes agree to surrender to
Commodor Hawthorn, sipulating in their terms that they will
not try to escape as long as Hawthorn promies not to kill them or
the rest of their crew until he hands them over to Queen Elaine.
If in the next scene Hawthorn decides to slit the throats of the
Heroes' crew, he would need to spend 2 Raises for each crew
member he decides to kill.
If in the next scene, the Heroes decide to attempt a break for it,
they need to spend 2 Raises for each Action they make in effort
towards their escape.
However, once Hawthorn is in Elaine's throne room, presenting
the captured Heroes to her majesty, the terms have been met,
and all bets are off.
Handling Frequent Offenders
If you find your Heroes frequently breaking the terms of
their agreements, consider applying (fair) consequences
for this behavior. In game consequences can include
applying minor penalties to social risks or future
negotiations with NPCs they've burned in the past until
the Heroes have proven themselves trustworthy again.
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Final Thoughts
Before we wrap up this issue of The Crow's Nest, we'd like to
leave you with a few final thoughts on putting Navigating
Delicate Negotiations into practice.
Revisiting Terms and Proposing a
Bargain
Once everyone agrees on a term, it stands as part of the
agreement and cannot be modified or contradicted later
in the sequence; this prevents characters from hoarding
Raises until the very end and spending them all at once.
However, facilitating a group is never quite that easy, and
you may occassionally have a Player think of something
they wish they'd said earlier and ask to revisit a term. This
conversation will usually happen out of character, and if
everyone at the table agrees, you may take a moment to
revisit the term and resolve it.
In general, you want to limit this sort of behavior, as it may
result in more revisions to the agreement and unecessary
churn at the table.
Alternatively, if a Hero wants to revisit an earlier term,
consider asking them to propose a bargain (in character)
where their Hero tries to get the opposing NPC to change
an earlier term by offering something to the NPC. If you
think the NPC would accept the bargain, the Hero spends
their Raise and the proposed bargain becomes part of
the negotiation. However, if the NPC rejects the proposed
bargain, the Hero keeps their Raise, and the negotiations
continue forward; no one may Pressure the NPC into
accepting a bargain that revisits a previously agreed term.
Working In Advantages
7th Sea has a number of Advantages that give Heroes or
Villains an edge in social situations. Take the time to get
familiar with them, and consider what mechanical benefit
they could offer during a negotiation.
Advantages like Barterer, Inspire Generosity, and
Leadership all encourage others to agree to a Hero's terms,
and could be used - depending on the situation - to add a
non-modifiable term or to skip negotiation altogether.
The use of Fascinate may apply "Pressure" to a negotiator
for the entire scene, forcing them to spend an extra Raise if
they want to focus on negotiating.
You can also use Advantages as mechanical
representations of the agreed terms. Did your Heroes
agree to perform a service for King Sandoval? Maybe
they specified that they have the Rich Advantage for the
duration of the contract to represent Sandoval providing
for their expenses.
Keeping Things Reasonable How Else Can I Use These Techniques?
In No Vetos we state that terms should not be negatable or The most straightforward way to use these rules is
canceled out. This is because few things ruin the fun faster within a formal negotiation such as trade contracts, job
than a few exchanges of: agreements, or terms of surrender, but you can apply the
general principles in a number of different ways:
Player: "You will let us go unharmed."
•• A military officer begging their superior to consider a
GM: "No, I won't let you go unharmed." new plan of attack,
Player: "You will let us keep our weapons." •• A powerful dignitary asking a personal favor.
GM: "No, I won't let you keep your weapons." •• An important family member seeking financial
support for a risky invsetment,
We want to encourage creativity and witty banter at the
table. This doesn't give Players or Game Masters the excuse •• The sultry whisper of a lover asking their partner for
to make absured or unreasonable demands on eachother's help,
Heroes, NPCs, or Villains.
•• A superior demanding that a subordinante perform a
As the Game Master it is your responsibility to make sure specific task or duty,
that when your NPCs negotiate terms or apply Pressure
to your Heroes, you do so for the sake of creating a more •• Two politicians arguing over a piece of legislation,
compelling and interesting story. Never force terms
upon your Player's Heroes just to spite them or show off •• A theologian trying to convert the unrepentant,
how clever you can be. Encourage a table culture where
At it's simplest, you can use the technique of extending
your Players feel they can tell you when they think you're
Pressure beyond the current Scene (see Keeping Your
making an unfair or unreasonable demand on them, and
Promises) to back Heroes into a corner when they make
make sure that when they speak up, you honestly listen to
promises they later regret having to keep.
their concerns. If you make a mistake, apologize for it.
Example: Josaphine, sobbing desparately grabs at Sasha's sleve.
The same applies for your Players: Demanding that Queen
"Please," she cries, "please, promise you you won't hurt him." The
Elaine abdicate her throne and make one of the Heroes the
Game Master spends a Raise.
new Queen is an unreasonable demand for your Players to
place on your NPCs. Sasha grimaces. She's made a solmn oath to bring Josaphine's
brother, Eugene (a Villain) to justice,. Sasha chokes back the
If you feel that a term made by a Hero is unreasonable,
tears and says, "I promise I'll only hurt him a little." Sasha spends
ask the Player to consider if they can revise the demand.
a Raise and tells the Game Master: "I won't deal more than a
The phrases "Hey, that's asking a bit too much, don't you
single Dramatic Wound to Eugene."
think?" and "Why don't you try it a different way?" are two
great tools you can use to politely get Players to reconsider
their actions.

Credits
Writing by Kevin C. Krupp

Layout and Formatting by Kevin C. Krupp

Special thanks to Tom Harrison for his ongoing feedback

and support.

Explorers Society, 7th Sea and all related marks are © and ™ 2016 John Wick Presents. All
rights reserved. No part of this work may be duplicated without express permission from
the Author.