The Liar, Liar curse is one of my favorites. The way I write it with Samson is that it wouldn't even occur to him to lie or obscure the truth, which admittedly is probably going to get him into some pretty hilarious situations at some point.
That being said, the curse is all about three things. First is
intention. Is the cursed character trying to twist the truth to seem a particular way? They shouldn't be able to. They shouldn't be able to lie, add shades of nuance or complexity either. Liar, Liar isn't just about
not lying, it's about being unable to engage in deceit (intentionally), and being forced into sincerity.
Which is why it's such a terrible curse. Imagine being a vampire and having to potentially admit to murder to your human friends and loved ones. If you're in a faction, you wouldn't be able to obfuscate it's intentions.
Mind you: Liar, Liar has no built in compulsion to reply to a question. Meaning that a character who wants to keep the truth close to their chest just doesn't have to respond. But then, that too comes with its share of problems.
Second is what the cursed character sees as the truth. They can obviously lie if they have been lied to. In this way, keeping information from a character with Liar, Liar may be a viable solution for people connected to them.
Third is what the character
believes another person is asking. To use the example of asking where the cursed character lives, there are a ton of different ways to answer which are technically true. I could say "The States", "West Virginia", "A House", "A suburb", "Under a roof", etc. Like there are dozens of glib semi-answers I could employ, but if a person is asking where I live, they are clearly looking for a specific location or direction.
If a character has Liar, Liar (again, they wouldn't be compelled to answer), they would need to give an answer that legitimately gives a fulfilling, honest answer to the question. This could be an address or directions, or even a description that is clear enough for a person to find the location.
Where things get more complex is if the person asking the question has left their intentions ambiguous. For example, if a character is asked where they live and they have 5 properties, the cursed character could interpret that different ways. They might answer with all of their addresses. They might answer with the location they are at most frequently, etc. The important thing is that they are not
deliberately withholding what they believe the other person is asking.
To add even MORE complexity (yay), a character with Liar, Liar would be unable to withhold an answer (or information) if it enters into the realm of lie by omission. Meaning that if a cursed character knows the truth, and the people around them are operating under the assumption of a lie or are being misdirected, then the cursed character would HAVE to say something to clarify, or ensure those around them know the truth.
More information about
lies.