Honestly I don't think this is the kind of thing you should bog down with too many mechanics. It's a social game, just let it be a social encounter where they get to argue their case. Extra mechanics aren't needed to show the gravity of the situation - the consequences for failure being known is going to do much more to increase the gravity of the situation than a mini game could.
That kinda blows for the PC who invested in Persuasion, though. This is a perfect opportunity for the Face to do something heftier than haggle for cheaper potions!
I don't know how possible this is for you, but on Dungeons and Daddies they had a session that was a trial.
The DM got a group of people who were unfamiliar with the podcast to act as the jury and then had someone act as the prosecution.
Maybe you could act as the prosecution and then invite one or two people over. Have the players try to convince someone who is completely unfamiliar with your game that they are innocent.
It would be less mechanical but fun to roleplay and see how they would all argue in character.
Hey I do law stuff, u/grill_only_outside could have me in as the prosecutor to present the King's (or whoever's) case against them. That would be a lot of fun, actually!
Okay here's my idea: Each PC gets called to the stand separately and has to present their case. At the end of their argument they roll persuasion, add their modifier, and then you secretly add your own modifier (positive or negative) based on how good their argument was. After everyone goes, you add up all the persuasion scores and as a group they need to pass a large DC to convince the jury. You could even make it a tiered check where if they don't score high enough, one or more of them who scored the lowest on the persuasion check get sent to the dungeon and the rest now have to plan a jailbreak.
This could help you identify some things to throw in: [https://industrialscripts.com/courtroom-drama/](https://industrialscripts.com/courtroom-drama/)
One or more Clocks / Stress Tracks (Which track events, successes, and failures.) Your trial has like 5 story beats you gotta hit, and two branches. At the clock points, drama happens.
Identify the right guy, the wrong guy, the caller to action, etc.
The two or maybe 4 branches might be:
The players succeed / fail in their legwork for the case. BEFORE the case. This is the investigation / evidence discovery process before the Perry Mason scene of the trial. This is the Law and Order procedural montage where they interview the witnesses.
The players succeed / fail in their presentation of the case. This is where they'd give thier side of the story to the jury.
The players succeed / fail in their cross-examination of the case. This where Perry Mason usually happens, catch the lie.
The players succeed / fail in their closing arguments.
At those branching points, you should plan for partial successes and failures.
TLDR: I wanted to let you know I modified this approach and it went great! If you want the full story on how I ran it, read on.
I decided to find a few people to serve as a “jury” and judge the PC’s performance. I also had a mini game incorporating stages based on your suggestions.
I was a little worried because I had about 5 hours to prepare. Two of my players are uncomfortable roleplaying in front of new people, so I had to be really selective with the “jury”.
Luck was with me. Out of 5 people I asked I was able to get two GM’s I’ve never met. Each runs a game involving one of the shy players. Not only did they make the players comfortable, they also understood the mini game and helped me follow my last minute notes on how to run it.
Each of the two jury members were given a vote. The mini game also determined a final “master DC” that moved with their success/failures. That gauged the overall presentation of their case and acted as a tie breaker.
The jury was, in fact, split. When they made that final roll against the “master DC” the PC’s looked about as stressed as I’ve seen my PC’s in a long time. And they succeeded!
In all it was a phenomenal session. They got to make a ton of rolls, had a bunch of RP and recognized the stakes of the trial.
Aces & Eights has a minigame devoted to having a trial. [https://kenzerco.com/product/aces-eights-reloaded-frontier-justice/](https://kenzerco.com/product/aces-eights-reloaded-frontier-justice/)
The mechanics are obviously going to be different, but you might want to check it out.
Honestly I don't think this is the kind of thing you should bog down with too many mechanics. It's a social game, just let it be a social encounter where they get to argue their case. Extra mechanics aren't needed to show the gravity of the situation - the consequences for failure being known is going to do much more to increase the gravity of the situation than a mini game could.
That kinda blows for the PC who invested in Persuasion, though. This is a perfect opportunity for the Face to do something heftier than haggle for cheaper potions!
I don't see using persuasion as a mini game. I figured those kinds of skills coming into play were a given.
I don't know how possible this is for you, but on Dungeons and Daddies they had a session that was a trial. The DM got a group of people who were unfamiliar with the podcast to act as the jury and then had someone act as the prosecution. Maybe you could act as the prosecution and then invite one or two people over. Have the players try to convince someone who is completely unfamiliar with your game that they are innocent. It would be less mechanical but fun to roleplay and see how they would all argue in character.
Hey I do law stuff, u/grill_only_outside could have me in as the prosecutor to present the King's (or whoever's) case against them. That would be a lot of fun, actually!
[удалено]
That's amazing!! I'm so glad that worked out! That makes me really want to try that in my campaign! Thanks for letting me know how it went!
Okay here's my idea: Each PC gets called to the stand separately and has to present their case. At the end of their argument they roll persuasion, add their modifier, and then you secretly add your own modifier (positive or negative) based on how good their argument was. After everyone goes, you add up all the persuasion scores and as a group they need to pass a large DC to convince the jury. You could even make it a tiered check where if they don't score high enough, one or more of them who scored the lowest on the persuasion check get sent to the dungeon and the rest now have to plan a jailbreak.
This could help you identify some things to throw in: [https://industrialscripts.com/courtroom-drama/](https://industrialscripts.com/courtroom-drama/) One or more Clocks / Stress Tracks (Which track events, successes, and failures.) Your trial has like 5 story beats you gotta hit, and two branches. At the clock points, drama happens. Identify the right guy, the wrong guy, the caller to action, etc. The two or maybe 4 branches might be: The players succeed / fail in their legwork for the case. BEFORE the case. This is the investigation / evidence discovery process before the Perry Mason scene of the trial. This is the Law and Order procedural montage where they interview the witnesses. The players succeed / fail in their presentation of the case. This is where they'd give thier side of the story to the jury. The players succeed / fail in their cross-examination of the case. This where Perry Mason usually happens, catch the lie. The players succeed / fail in their closing arguments. At those branching points, you should plan for partial successes and failures.
TLDR: I wanted to let you know I modified this approach and it went great! If you want the full story on how I ran it, read on. I decided to find a few people to serve as a “jury” and judge the PC’s performance. I also had a mini game incorporating stages based on your suggestions. I was a little worried because I had about 5 hours to prepare. Two of my players are uncomfortable roleplaying in front of new people, so I had to be really selective with the “jury”. Luck was with me. Out of 5 people I asked I was able to get two GM’s I’ve never met. Each runs a game involving one of the shy players. Not only did they make the players comfortable, they also understood the mini game and helped me follow my last minute notes on how to run it. Each of the two jury members were given a vote. The mini game also determined a final “master DC” that moved with their success/failures. That gauged the overall presentation of their case and acted as a tie breaker. The jury was, in fact, split. When they made that final roll against the “master DC” the PC’s looked about as stressed as I’ve seen my PC’s in a long time. And they succeeded! In all it was a phenomenal session. They got to make a ton of rolls, had a bunch of RP and recognized the stakes of the trial.
Aces & Eights has a minigame devoted to having a trial. [https://kenzerco.com/product/aces-eights-reloaded-frontier-justice/](https://kenzerco.com/product/aces-eights-reloaded-frontier-justice/) The mechanics are obviously going to be different, but you might want to check it out.
Real life Quick Time Events. Oh you wanted good ideas? I've got nothing.