The RPG genreis one of the most complex and entertaining in gaming. With the endless dialogue possibilities it offers, the dreamlike fantasy worlds it explores, and thethrilling backstories of most of the characters involved, there’s never a shortage of fun. RPGs are extremely versatile, as they can be packed with fast-paced combat or take a more strategic, turn-based approach. Some RPG players prefer a silver tongue over fists of fury when it comes to conflict, and luckily, they have plenty of options.
Brute force can be useful when taking down colossal monsters or seemingly unbreakable stone walls. However, in many cases, the right words anda bit of charismawill go much further and help players avoid conflict altogether. Here are6 RPGs that allow you to talk your way out of fights.
While it wasn’t the first to do it in the RPG genre,Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republicimplemented persuasion checks masterfully. After all, the fact that Jedi and other Force wielders can use their powers to mess with people’s minds is canon. This game allows players to spend character points on persuasion skills as they level up. Naturally, the higher this character trait is, the more enemies that can be convinced to avoid conflict, and the easier it will be to do so.
What’s more, the persuasion skill isn’t only useful to keep the peace, but also to barter for discounts on docking fees, merchant prices, and even strangers' debts to powerful mob bosses.
It’s undeniable thatThe Elder Scrolls V: Skyrimhas one of thebest magical kingdoms in open-world games. While making their way to the frosty mountain peaks surrounding Winterhold College, or the impenetrable walls of Markarth, players will likely encounter more than one enemy.
Many vicious creatures and non-sentient beings only understand violence, but several others can be reasoned with and will likely let the Dragonborn be as long as their Speech skill tree is developed enough. High Speech skills are also very useful when convincing merchants to lower their prices and making guards look the other way when players commit a minor crime.
Traversing the Commonwealth is no simple task, as it’s ridden with all sorts of dangerous mutants, massive bugs, and feral ghouls. Survival is hard enough in a post-apocalyptic wasteland, so any chance vault dwellers can get to avoid conflict is most welcome.
Fallout 4has a complex and complete skill tree that allows players to maximize character traits, such as Charisma, which can make the Sole Survivor’s path a lot easier. When theCharisma skill is high enough, players can prevent a considerable amount of conflict and get discounted prices from merchants. Saving bottle caps has never been easier!
Geralt of Rivia is known for many things, such as his prowess in combat, his often questionable choice of friends, and his famed taste for witches and sorceresses. But something few on The Continent talk about is his ability with words.The Witcher 3allows players to use Geralt’s persuasion skills to make progressing through the game considerably easier.
While reasoning with certain creatures (and people) is impossible, Geralt will often be able to avoid shedding blood when there’s no good reason to do so. Either through threats, cunning invitations for a drink, or flat-out charisma, this game has plenty of space for diplomacy. And where words fail, Witcher tactics will succeed, so ifGeralt’s Axii Sign is advanced enough, players will be able to force enemies to lower bounties and keep the peace.
Starfield,Bethesda’s latest RPG, is more an open-galaxy game than it is an open-world game. This title allows players to explore the depths of the galaxy and visit over a thousand planets. And while some of them are quiet and peaceful, others are full of vicious creatures, merciless mercenaries, and murderous robots ready to strike. Survival in a galaxy that’s divided by politics and other types of conflict is hard enough as it is, so adding fistfights to that stress is unnecessary.
As opposed to other games on this list,Persuasion in Starfield is mostly random. Whenever the player’s main character tries to persuade an NPC, an invisible roll of the dice will take place, determining how effective or ineffective the persuasion effort will be. While it would have been nice to be able to maximize persuasion stats and get every encounter to go as intended, this random approach adds a challenge to the game’s missions and makes them more interesting.
Baldur’s Gate 3redefined what people understood as a D&D-based RPG. With its intense missions, magical environments, varied spells, turn-based strategic combat, and likable characters who can be romanced under the right circumstances, it’s not surprising that this title won Game of the Year back in 2023. Class selection is extremely varied and the possible upgrade paths for every character are nearly endless. To avoid fighting, players will have to do Persuasion checks whenever they face an enemy they can reason with. The higher the Persuasion stats, the more likely players are to be successful.
The Bard, Cleric, Paladin, Rogue, and Sorcerer classes can choose Persuasion as their proficient skill at Level 1, and building on said skill with further upgrades and boosting items, such as the Ring of Geniality, can help players become the ultimate charisma machine. With enough patience and the right elements, every proposal will be an offer NPCs can’t refuse. As with the other RPGs on this list, the Persuasion skill can also help make merchant items a lot cheaper, saving players thousands of gold coins that they can spend on something more useful.
