Using Skills

Using Skills

            Skills represent the character’s ability to do things, from picking a lock to knowing some obscure fact. Skills use the base mechanics, in which the character is trying to reach a Target Number set by the Game Master. The character total adjustment their level in the skill and relative Chararistic. The final result is their total adjustment added to their total adjustment.

             Unskilled Attempts: There are times when a character may wish to attempt something for which they do not have the skill. Anyone can try to move silently, or pick a lock and hope they get lucky. In which case a character receives a -5 to their role. The player roles d20, adds the relevant primary characteristic and subtracts 5 and that is their total. The game master, of course, is free to decide that a role is not possible, or to adjust this in other ways. For example, a while a surgical nurse might get a role to perform open heart surgery, it would be a far stretch to allow the average person to have a role at all.

Synergy Bonus: Sometimes two or more characters will have the same skill and so can combine their attempts. This only works if the task can feasibly have two or more people working on it at the same time. In such cases one of the characters performs the task (usually the one with the highest adjustment) and gains a bonus of the other characters total adjustment divided by 5.

            Complimentary Bonus: sometimes a character will have two or more skills which can apply to a situation. In such cases the character gains a complimentary bonus. This works similar to the synergy bonus. The most approapate skill is used gaining a bonus of +1 for every 5 total adjustment of the secondary skills.

Skill Vs Skill

Some skills are used to directly oppose another skill. A game of chess is a good example. In such cases each players role their skill, adding any modifiers and the highest role wins. In such cases in which a TN is needed, such as in an archery contest, if neither roles high enough then it is a draw. In other cases characters will perform an action which is not actively challenged by another character, or trying to prevent another character from being successful in their action. A rogue moving silently pass a guard is a classic example. A rouge roles their move silently skill, adding any adjustments. The adjust role becomes the TN in which the guard must match or exceed in order to hear the rouge. In essence, characters opposing 

Perception

Increases to the Tn of perception based skills, or to the roles of skills opposed to perception skills.

A lighted object in darkness -6

Looking for that item: -2

High contrast object (black on white) -1

Low contrast (similar coloring) +2

Very low contrast (tailored camouflage) +4

Heavy shadows +2

Night: +4

Dark night +6