DITV - Sin list

Hi,

I'm wondering something about the sins in DITV : there is an exact list of eight sins in the Creating Towns chapter, which are the doors to demonic attacks.
Do the Dogs know about this exact list, of have they to figure out by themselves ?

I've always played that they know exactly what kind of behaviors constitute a sin.  99% of Dogs grow up in the Faith, and they get that special training at the Dog's Temple.  We know they know the progression from Pride to Hate & Murder - what constitutes a sin seems simpler than that.  The flock is responsible to avoid sinning, it's following the Faith 101.

Dogs always struck me as more fun when you don't hide anything from the players.  They're in a rough spot because they have to decide where to draw the line on what's acceptable and what isn't.... and how far to go to stop unacceptable behavior.  Whether to choose justice or mercy at any given point.  Muddling the waters with ambiguity hurts the intensity of the decision-making.

Thank you for your answer.

They're in a rough spot because they have to decide where to draw the line on what's acceptable and what isn't....

My problem is that if you give them the exact sin list, they actually don't have to draw the line anymore, it is already drawn for them.

I think you'll find that they have trouble drawing the line even though they know where they're supposed to draw it.

-Vincent

Let's play with some hypotheticals!

Brother Jakob stole food from the Territorial Army last time they stopped in town for R&R.  He did it because the drought killed his crops, and he hasn't been able to feed himself or his disabled father who lives with him.  He is a thief - he stole.  Will the Dogs punish him?

Sister Patience has neglected her children.  She left her home, and now without a good wife's efforts the household is rapidly falling apart.  Sister Patience's sister has been feeding and housing her.  Do the dogs punish them?  Patience, or her sister, or both?  Does it matter if Sister Patience's husband beats her nightly?

Brother Samuel's family was slain by the local tribe of Mountain Folk.  The town, independent of Samuel, offered the tribe food and blankets last winter and brokered peace.  Brother Samuel killed the heathen that killed his wife, but he did it after the ceasefire was called.  Do the Dogs punish him?  Do they help him cover it up?  Both?  Neither?

The local Mountain Folk tribe comes down to worship The King during service!  The local Steward convinced them to 'give it a shot' and won them over.  He moved the services from the Sabbath to sync up with the quarters of the moon, though, because the Mountain Folk consider those times holy and if they're worshiping The King during those periods he knows they're not off engaging in polytheism.  Do the Dogs punish the Steward?

Jimmy won't share ANYTHING with his sister.  When a Dog calls him out on it, little eight year old Jimmy starts hitting them.  Does the Dog escalate to punching a child if it comes down to doing so or giving the conflict?

Brother Ibrahim has taken over the duties of the Steward, because Steward Callahan is an IDIOT who couldn't keep his shoes tied if you dunked him in a tub of glue.  Serious problems have developed because of Callahan's incompetence.  But, Callahan's the one The King called to serve.  Does Ibrahim get punished?  Callahan?  Anyone in the flock who supported the change?

Here's a brief bit from my last game : Br Angus married Sister Patience.  She has a kid, and it almost kills her.  Br Angus demands his wife attend to her 'wifely duties' and almost immediately gets her pregnant again.  She dies the second time before giving birth.  He demands the hand of her much younger sister, who he has always had eyes for but who really dislikes him.  After all, the baby needs a mother, preferably blood.  It's Sister Jacquelin's duty to marry this jerk and spend the rest of her life with the guy who de-facto killed her sister.  So she starts sleeping around, hoping to get pregnant, trying to force her parents to let her wed almost anyone else.  What do the Dogs do?




There are three big 'issues' that I see cropping up, and that I aim for-

Where Justice and Mercy are opposed, what do the Dogs do?

When following a *general* tenant of the Faith would obviously hurt someone the town in a *specific* instance, do they still stand by the tenant?  Or do they make an exception?

How far are the Dogs willing to go, in terms of escalation, over less-than-life-threatening issues?  Will they never back down, even if it means shooting some of The Faithful over something ultimately inconsequential?  Where's the line between what they'll let go and what they'll hold fast on?  (The father's a drunk.  He drinks so much he's neglecting his family.  But isn't a drunk dad better than a corpse with a bullet between his eyes, blood staining the coats of his killers?)

Now you've got my mind on DITV again....

Another bit that works for my group / play style - when you make the town an identify who is the source of the moral / social / spiritual degradation make sure they do what they do to save something nobody would argue isn't worth saving.

Their family.  Specifically one person, usually.
The Faith itself.
Their life and safety (hunger, sickness, etc)

Make them relatable!  It makes it harder to default into punishment mode.