[Skill] LEADERSHIP

[Druid]

OVERVIEW
Leadership is defined as a position of authority over a group or organization. Without followers, there is no leader. People who take leadership positions are the ones in charge with sway over others who are fellowship members, underlings in a business situation, peasants, gentry and so much more. There are many different types of leaders, different styles of leadership, and ways to gain control over people. Some leaders are fair rulers who have the best in mind for all. Others could be those with an agenda, possibly leading their followers astray as pawns. It stands to reason that a leader would be someone who can gain the hearts and minds of their followers and underlings no matter what their capacity of doing so is. Leaders take a role in society big and small, from the head of a household to the highest monarch. These people are held with an esteem, have an ability for persuasion and rhetoric, as well as have the potential for logistics and negotiation. They know how to get what they want from other people, bending them to their will and using them for specific goals. This is something as a balancing act as people in a position of power often are expected to, in return, provide things for their followers. In this way leaders who can't supply for their follower's needs can be usurped from their lofty heights as leader and possibly cast out from their society or fellowship. Leadership isn't dependent on one person, it is the whole community or fellowship that interacts with the person in power that makes a leader. In other words, again, without people to lead-- there is no leader.

Related Skills:
Persuasion
Etiquette
Rhetoric
Logistics
Negotiation
Socialization

What Makes a Leader?
It is worth noting that you don't need a title to lead. Some would say that leadership is a mindset as well as the ability to have followers, transmute your ideas into actions, and empower your people. Not all leaders are paragons for the people. There are many types and styles of leaders but something they all have in common is their potential to provide for others, inspire people for their cause, and are in general resourceful people. The ability to lead comes with the will to act, the know-how to get things done, a certain amount of charisma and charm, and the want to be in a position of power over others. Some people are natural leaders, born with the proficiency to inspire and drive others to their cause. Some rise in the ranks of a faction or gentry, cut throat and sly. Others are born into their power and must learn how to lead because of their circumstances.

It is something to say that actions speak louder than words, for one to be a successful leader they must follow through with their promises or find another avenue to take to make their followers happy. That being said, there are kings and other regency who are corrupt and lead through fear and a heavy hand. These people still have their followers, often guards or other armed people, to back up their ideals and keep other people in line. These leaders act as if their followers are property, to be used as pawns and bartering chips often for their own personal gain. Leading through intimidation and subterfuge is one way to get what you want and is worth noting, not all of those who lead do so with a bleeding heart.

Others, those who are wise, would say a good leader is one who is fair and supports their people. Someone who delegates with their people's best interests. These leaders inspire others to do better and often go out of their way to make their followers happy. Leaders like this are often the daydream of those romantic hearts who aspire to be leaders of others, but this is usually easier said than done. Leadership is not without its hangups, there are plenty of situations that may cause a leader to fall from their position of power. Using techniques like logistics and negotiation aid in a leader to preform their tasks; even the most lowly bar owner must figure out their stocks, where to get their items from, how to organize them, and which of their followers they trust to preform the action of serving others. More on the bartender, they must decide how to delegate when a bar fight or theft happens, either keeping the peace or allow their bar to turn into a brawl house. It is up to the leader to decide the quality of morals they want.

Novice (0-25):
A novice leader is just starting out to learn how to inspire others to follow them. They will find difficulty in bending others to their wants and desires. These leaders are often underneath other leaders or perhaps found themselves in a position of power they didn't want given, which was out of their circumstance. There are many ways to become a leader, it's up to your PC to provide for your followers and gain their support. People at novice level may not have many followers starting out and are working on gaining more to their cause. A pitfall of a novice leader may be the inability to gain people who will follow them, have trouble following through with their promises, and perhaps not have the charisma needed to KEEP their followers. It's worth working on the related skills to keep your followers in line with your ideals or be usurped.

Competent (26-75):
At competent level a leader has gotten their feet wet in this position of power. They have found ways that work for them that inspire others to their cause and keep them at the head of their society or organization. They will still make mistakes and find trouble in gaining more followers to their cause but are in the works of honing their skill to be able to generate more followers.

Expert (76-150):
An expert leader is someone who knows how to get into the hearts and minds of those around them, able to get others to rally to their cause. A leader at this skill is someone who has the prowess to sway most people and gets things done. They are still not as skilled as a master leader, but find they are able to rally people with a certain amount of ease.

Master(151-250):
Master leaders aren't necessarily dignitaries or others in a high position of power. Master leaders are those who are able to keep their followers branded to the leader's cause or notion and have the ability to gain followers with ease. They have great drive and go through with their promises, keeping people in line with their ideals. Master leaders are also those who find others gravitating towards them, looking to be lead.

[Navyri]

Leadership

• These people are held with an esteem, have an ability for persuasion and rhetoric, as well as have the potential for logistics and negotiation. They know how to get what they want from other people, bending them to their will and using them for specific goals...

While I don't believe this statement is incorrect, as the leadership skill can be used for either good or bad, this particular section reads as a bias and casts a more "evil" light upon its usage. I think it could be better placed in a different part of the article, as I'll touch on below.

Be careful listing some social skills early on and not others in your paragraph examples, as newer PCs could use it as a direct guide and fail to realize the nuances of this particular skill. Not all will read the entire article, sadly. For instance, you failed to mention intimidation, tactics, politics, (at least in this paragraph) which arguably can have just as important of an impact in influencing others. Not all leaders think about how they can use people (although some definitely do), but instead they have an innate ability to inspire or encourage other people, either through words OR actions to risk something for a common cause. The better the leader, often times the more the listener/follower is willing to risk for certain goals.

You touch down on this concept in the paragraph below the sub header, 'What Makes a Leader?', which I think is excellent. However, things feel a bit redundant here:

• Not all leaders are paragons for the people.

and

• ...for one to be a successful leader they must follow through with their promises or find another avenue to take to make their followers happy. That being said, there are kings and other regency who are corrupt and lead through fear and a heavy hand.

I think you give some really solid examples on how different moralities can approach leadership, but throughout the article it seems to bounce back and forth between what makes someone a malevolent or benevolent leader and that's where it almost gets repetitive. A suggestion that could be successful is splitting it up into two or three sub paragraphs regarding leadership and how it's used with different morality types (and if/how someone can remain neutral), instead of a number of examples in one paragraph. You could even take those lists of side social skills, and categorize them as suggestions for PC leadership types.

In a very broad sense, you cover the standard leader running an organization or community, but sometimes leaders work on a much smaller scale (daycare teachers, friend groups, family dynamics, formen). You do mention this, but I would love for you to go in a little more detail, especially since these situations would be more relevant for novice or competent levels who might not be in charge of a larger group.

You also use the phrase, "worth noting" a couple times in the write up.

I think your content is good, I would just suggest reformatting some of the information so it has a more consistent flow of topic.

[Druid]

Solid points Nav. I'll reply to the morality in full later.

Be careful listing some social skills early on and not others in your paragraph examples, as newer PCs could use it as a direct guide and fail to realize the nuances of this particular skill. Not all will read the entire article, sadly. Not all will read the entire article, sadly. For instance, you failed to mention intimidation, tactics, politics, (at least in this paragraph) which arguably can have just as important of an impact in influencing others.

Fair. I had a bunch of related skills that I was toying with but chopped them down to what I have here. Intimidation was one, tactics and politics are also good but I was trying to be more general with the skills because there ARE many types of leaders, I think even caregiving could be listed if we go into all the little minute things that make a leader. What I will do is use better examples of all the skills listed, you're right on that regard.

Not all leaders think about how they can use people (although some definitely do), but instead they have an innate ability to inspire or encourage other people, either through words OR actions to risk something for a common cause. The better the leader, often times the more the listener/follower is willing to risk for certain goals

See but I do a just fine job getting that point across as you're right, I made sure to make it redundant. I definitely want to highlight evil leaders. More on the morality below.

I think you give some really solid examples on how different moralities can approach leadership, but throughout the article it seems to bounce back and forth between what makes someone a malevolent or benevolent leader and that's where it almost gets repetitive. A suggestion that could be successful is splitting it up into two or three sub paragraphs regarding leadership and how it's used with different morality types (and if/how someone can remain neutral), instead of a number of examples in one paragraph.

I will admit to purposefully making it repetitive to drive the point home of leaders can be good or they can be bad, the point of a leader is someone who has followers. That is the definition. I definitely enjoy highlighting the more evil side of things because there are plenty of evil PC's who will need this skill and it's just worth it to me. There are TONS of articles about how to be a fair and just leader on google, if you want to read about how to be the best leader ever just google "how to be a leader" which is why I do take a more dark-side bias. We all know what makes a kind, fair leader.
That being said, I do like your idea about breaking it into sections and even adding neutrality. Because the important thing here, to me, is not ever leader is aspiring to be good at heart as much as we wish they would and that is also okay-- on a fantasy writing website at least.

In a very broad sense, you cover the standard leader running an organization or community, but sometimes leaders work on a much smaller scale (daycare teachers, friend groups, family dynamics, formen). You do mention this, but I would love for you to go in a little more detail, especially since these situations would be more relevant for novice or competent levels who might not be in charge of a larger group.

This is true, that's why at the end of my "What Makes a Leader" section I used the bar owner example but I agree, I could have done a better job getting the point across that leaders are both big and small.

Thank you for your feedback! I will work on this and reply again when it is edited. You're better at this than you thought.

*edit, I will also find a new phrase for my overuse of "worth noting", this is true!

[Pegasus]

Hi Druid,

Thanks for this write up - it's interesting and gives us a great start. Ok - on to specifics.

OVERVIEW

I think that this is an interesting definition of what leadership is. But I have kind of two things which I'd like to see added here.
1. I think you're missing the "but what does this skill do?" - and that should be where it starts. What is it that Leadership as a skill allows you to do? To lead, yes, for sure. But who, what, when, and what are the limits? To me, leadership is a very broad skill - it might be a surgeon leading a team of medics in a crisis, or it might be a general in a way - those are both leaders. Sometimes, leadership is not given - it's not someone "being" in charge - it can be someone stepping up and taking control in a crisis. For me - this skill write up should be about the skill of leading - not defining what leadership is if that makes sense?

2. You say there are types of leader - that leadership is defined as authority - personally, I think that leadership styles and types of authority are important here - an autocratic leader with ascribed authority will have a very different leadership style than other types of leader? Also - not all leaders are held in esteem - some people lead by fear.

I guess, for me, this part of the write up speaks in absolutes - like "These people are held with an esteem, have an ability for persuasion and rhetoric, as well as have the potential for logistics and negotiation. They know how to get what they want from other people, bending them to their will and using them for specific goals" - and I personally think that the skill is much more nuanced, you know?

As for the skills - maybe just add in a sentence for each one explaining how it's useful - and it might be worth having a sentence at the beginning of this section saying something like "The skills related to Leadership are many and varied, depending on the individual situation. The following list provides some examples:" or something?

What Makes a Leader?

All leaders have the potential to provide for others and are resourceful? I have to disagree. Nor does the ability to lead have to come with the will, know-how etc. Certainly, not all leaders want to be in a position of power. Reluctant leaders certainly exist. I think maybe here you could have a list of what makes a leader, with brief descriptions. Like - Circumstance, Birth, Rank, Skill, Information etc. Maybe?

It is something to say that actions speak louder than words, for one to be a successful leader they must follow through with their promises or find another avenue to take to make their followers happy. That being said, there are kings and other regency who are corrupt and lead through fear and a heavy hand. These people still have their followers, often guards or other armed people, to back up their ideals and keep other people in line. These leaders act as if their followers are property, to be used as pawns and bartering chips often for their own personal gain. Leading through intimidation and subterfuge is one way to get what you want and is worth noting, not all of those who lead do so with a bleeding heart.

Others, those who are wise, would say a good leader is one who is fair and supports their people. Someone who delegates with their people's best interests. These leaders inspire others to do better and often go out of their way to make their followers happy. Leaders like this are often the daydream of those romantic hearts who aspire to be leaders of others, but this is usually easier said than done.

I think this part is largely redundant - what new information is it giving to help the player play their PC with this skill? Presumably, the player has their own circumstances and idea for how this skill is theirs?

Leadership is not without its hangups, there are plenty of situations that may cause a leader to fall from their position of power. Using techniques like logistics and negotiation aid in a leader to preform their tasks; even the most lowly bar owner must figure out their stocks, where to get their items from, how to organize them, and which of their followers they trust to preform the action of serving others. More on the bartender, they must decide how to delegate when a bar fight or theft happens, either keeping the peace or allow their bar to turn into a brawl house. It is up to the leader to decide the quality of morals they want.

What you're talking about here is half-logistics and the other half is just describing what they have to do - it might be easier to understand in the light of a skill to give an example and then say ways that different leaders may handle it?

Novice (0-25):
A novice leader is just starting out to learn how to inspire others to follow them. They will find difficulty in bending others to their wants and desires. These leaders are often underneath other leaders or perhaps found themselves in a position of power they didn't want given, which was out of their circumstance. There are many ways to become a leader, it's up to your PC to provide for your followers and gain their support. People at novice level may not have many followers starting out and are working on gaining more to their cause. A pitfall of a novice leader may be the inability to gain people who will follow them, have trouble following through with their promises, and perhaps not have the charisma needed to KEEP their followers. It's worth working on the related skills to keep your followers in line with your ideals or be usurped.

Yes, but what can they do with this skill at this level? The tiers need to be clearly worked with "at this level the pc can..." and "the pc can not" - this reads a bit at times like 'they're better than last level but not as good as next' .

I think - for me and obviously this is just my opinion - what is needed in this write up is a "what does the skill do?" That isn't defined and, as such, the rest of it feels a little 'fluffy' - define your terms. What is leadership? Is it the ability to get people to do what you ask of them? Because you don't have that foundation, the write up jumps about a bit. I realise I've given a lot of feedback, but I think the fundamental issue is that you need to "pin down" this skill much more. Give it a clear definition and clear progression.

[Pig Boy]

I'm going to mainly focus on the tiers, as I see that as being the most critical part of a skill write-up, to give players an idea of what the skill is about, but also demonstrate how it improves as you progress. So here we go:

Novice (0-25):
A novice leader is just starting out to learn how to inspire others to follow them. They will find difficulty in bending others to their wants and desires. These leaders are often underneath other leaders or perhaps found themselves in a position of power they didn't want given, which was out of their circumstance. There are many ways to become a leader, it's up to your PC to provide for your followers and gain their support. People at novice level may not have many followers starting out and are working on gaining more to their cause. A pitfall of a novice leader may be the inability to gain people who will follow them, have trouble following through with their promises, and perhaps not have the charisma needed to KEEP their followers. It's worth working on the related skills to keep your followers in line with your ideals or be usurped.

The part here that concerns me, is this line: 'They will find difficulty in bending others to their wants and desires.' To me, this is what persuasion/negotiation/seduction are all about. Luring people and bringing them over to their side. What leadership is about is inspiring those who already follow you, commanding them, and maintaining a following.

This line here: 'These leaders are often underneath other leaders or perhaps found themselves in a position of power they didn't want given, which was out of their circumstance.' Doesn't seem to serve much purpose. A bad leader can be found in any walk of life or position, just as an exceptional leader could be found in the lowest echelons.

Competent (26-75):
At competent level a leader has gotten their feet wet in this position of power. They have found ways that work for them that inspire others to their cause and keep them at the head of their society or organization. They will still make mistakes and find trouble in gaining more followers to their cause but are in the works of honing their skill to be able to generate more followers.

This tier is somewhat spare, and given that it's the one that many would stop at, unless they're planning on running huge operations, it's a bit concerning for it to be so. It doesn't give much detail about how it's an improvement over Novice.

Expert (76-150):
An expert leader is someone who knows how to get into the hearts and minds of those around them, able to get others to rally to their cause. A leader at this skill is someone who has the prowess to sway most people and gets things done. They are still not as skilled as a master leader, but find they are able to rally people with a certain amount of ease.

Similar concern to Competent. Could you expand on what is possible at expert? This is also a common stopping point for skills for players, and we'll want it really well fleshed out.

Master(151-250):
Master leaders aren't necessarily dignitaries or others in a high position of power. Master leaders are those who are able to keep their followers branded to the leader's cause or notion and have the ability to gain followers with ease. They have great drive and go through with their promises, keeping people in line with their ideals. Master leaders are also those who find others gravitating towards them, looking to be lead.

I have to admit, I found it a bit strange for you to mention at master how the leader isn't necessarily in a position of high power or a dignitary. Why bother here? Also, try and stay focused on what is possible, as ever with skill tiers. That's the main thing that matters when it comes to writing up skills.

You've got a good start here, it just needs a bit of fleshing out in terms of what is possible at the tiers.

[Coroth]

I didn't read everyone elses response yet. But as an add-on to expert/novice..maybe require a certain number of Reknown points too. The more popular the person is, the more followers he can obtain by reputation alone.

Also, on expertise and novice, perhaps the person has obtained charismatical attributes..scars on his face to attract hardened criminals, and the tale behind the scar. Or A most prestigious dress or set of jewelry that would attract other ladies of the court to her, for if they were a gift from a highly rich noble or the sort then they want to know how to be like her and get those jewels too. It used to be a thing of fashion back in medevil. The king/royals would start the trends of fashion. And those who followed the king/royalty began to wear what they wore. Just a few examples that come to mind.

[Trouble]

This is a lovely looking writeup, but it has been a year since the last post in this subject. Could I check if you are still interested in developing this skill?

If I don't hear back from you in 2 weeks I hope you don't mind if I file this away in the unfinished archive for a future date.