Chapter 6 Skills

There are 12 Skills in the game. Each skill has an associated ability modifier

Skill Ability Summary
Athletics Strength Sprinting, Climbing, Swimming
Authority Strength Intimidation, Leadership, Military
Concentration Constitution Study, Craftsmanship, Art
Endurance Constitution Stamina, Wakefulness, Survival
Finesse Dexterity Balance, Tumbling, Lockpicking
Stealth Dexterity Hiding, Secrets, Ciphers
Perception Wisdom Observation, Empathy, Memory
Nature Wisdom Flora, Fauna, Environment, Healing
Diplomacy Charisma Rethoric, Etiquette, Politics
Trickery Charisma Lying, Gossip, Forgery
Arcana Intelligence Magic, Science, Cosmology
Lore Intelligence History, Geography, Law

Using Skills

Some actions are only available to characters with an appropriate level of training in a skill. These are the levels of training that a character can have in a skill:

  • Untrained. This the level that most characters have with a skill. Untrained characters have not received any formal training with a skill, but they can still attempt basic tasks associated with it, and succeed with a bit of luck and natural talent.
  • Trained. Characters Trained with a skill have spent significant time practicing it, and can be considered experts in the area. Trained characters rarely make errors on mundane tasks related to their skill of choice, and with effort and luck, they can even succeed on advanced actions out of the reach of amateurs.
  • Master. Skill Masters are individuals of extraordinary talent who have become famous for their prowess with a particular skill.
  • Grandmaster. Very few mortals ever reach this level of proficiency. The feats that Grandmasters can achieve are the stuff of legends.

For each skill, the associated Skill Bonus is generated as follows:

Skill Bonus = Ability Skill Bonus + Skill Training Bonus + Armor Penalty + Other Modifiers

For a detailed description of the Ability Skill Bonus, see the Character Building chapter

Skill Check Difficulty table

Abreviation Check level DC Req. Level Morale cost
R Routine -    
E Easy 8   1 on Failure
M Medium 13   1 on Failure
H Hard 18   1 on Failure
VH Very Hard 23 Trained 1 on Failure
I Legendary 28 Master 2 on Failure
I Impossible 33 Grandmaster 2 on Failure

Difficulty guide - Easy - Anyone can do it, but an untrained character may sometimes fail this or require extra time or help - Medium - Non-trivial effort for untrained characters, trained characters will handle it most of the time. - Hard - This is the most an individual without special training can achieve, with luck. Requires effort even from experts. - Very Hard - Experts can sometimes accomplish this, with luck. - Legendary - Something only the best in the world could do, on a good day. - Impossible - Normally considered out of reach for mortals.

6.1 Skill Check Modifiers

Description Modifier
Character previously failed same check +1 DC
Allies previously failed same check twice +1 DC
Advantage +2
Demoralized -2

A character is Demoralized when reduced to 0 Morale.

6.2 Skill Actions

The following actions are available to PCs on Skill Encounters:

  • Simple Skill Check
    • Standard Action
    • Check: Choose a relevant Skill, and make a check using the Base DC for the challenge.
    • Success: Gain +1 Progress for this challenge
    • Option: With the GM’s approval, the PC may increase DC by 1 to gain an additional +1 Progress on a successful check.
  • Partial Skill Check
    • Standard Action
    • Check: Choose a relevant Skill, and make a check using the Base DC for the challenge minus 1.
    • Success: For each 3 successes in a Partial Skill Check, gain +1 Progress for this challenge.
    • Special: This can be attempted multiple times per encounter, and the same Skill may be reused, but each attempt needs to focus on a different part of the problem
  • Double Skill Check:
    • Action: This requires 2 Standard actions. A single PC may spend these actions across 2 turns, or 2 PCs may spend them together.
    • Check: Choose 2 relevant Skills , and make a single check using the Base DC for the challenge minus 1. If the check is done by a single character, use the lowest of the 2 Skill Bonuses for the check. If the check is done by 2 characters, each character chooses a Skill, then you take each character’s Skill Bonus for their chosen skill, and use the lowest of the 2. The check is made once both actions have been spent.
    • Success: Gain +1 Progress for this challenge
    • Failure: This counts as a single failed Skill Check for each participating PC
  • Skill Assist
    • Standard Action
    • Check: Choose a Skill Check that a character will make this encounter, and a relevant Skill different that the one that will be used for that check. Make a check using the Base DC for the challenge minus 1.
    • Success: The next character to make the chosen Skill Check gains Advantage (+2 to the Skill Check).
  • Skill Recovery
    • Standard Action
    • Check: After an ally has failed a Skill Check, choose a relevant Skill not used on that check, and make a check using the Base DC for the challenge minus 1.
    • Success: Choose one of the following:
      • Choose one of the characters that made the failed check. If that character lost Morale in that check, they recover 1 Morale.
      • Ignore the failed check for the purposes of determining check penalties the next time a character attempts that check this encounter.
  • Gain time
    • Standard Action
    • Check: Choose a relevant Skill, and make a check using the Base DC for the challenge minus 1.
    • Success: Prevent any increases of the Escalation Die next turn.
    • Special: This can be attempted multiple times per encounter, but a different Skill must be used each time
  • Gather Information
    • Standard Action
    • Check: Choose a relevant Skill, and make a check using the Base DC for the challenge minus 2.
    • Success: Gain clues for challenge, or find out about new options to solve problem.
    • Option: This may be taken as a Minor Action by increasing its DC by 1.

There is also a special action that can only be used if all participating PCs agree: - Fail Forward - The Skill Challenge ends. Each participating PC spends 1 Stamina to have a Short Rest - At the GM’s discretion, the challenge is overcome or a new path presents itself so that the characters can progress. The characters suffer a minor loss in the context of the story. - Minor loss examples: Wasted time, lost equipment, displeased NPCs, embarrassment, inconveniences.

Players are encouraged to use Fail Forward once other options have been exhausted, or once all characters become Demoralized.

6.3 Skill Challenges

Level Challenge Tier Required progress DC
1 Basic 3 Normal
3 Basic, Long 5 Normal
6 Heroic 3 Hard
11 Heroic, Long 5 Hard
16 Paragon 3 Very Hard
21 Paragon, Long 5 Very Hard
26 Epic 3 Legendary
31 Epic, Long 5 Legendary
36 Impossible 3 Impossible

Adjustments by party size:

  • Assumption: Default party size is 4 to 6
  • 1 PC: Required Progress of 3 becomes 1, and 5 becomes 2.
  • 2-3 PCs: -1 Required Progress
  • 7-8 PCs: +1 Required Progress

Partial success: If the players achieve more than half the required Progress for the encounter, they should achieve partial success (determined by the GM). Likewise, any negative consequences due to Fail Forward should be mitigated if partial success is reached.

6.4 Roleplaying die roll

With the GM’s consent, players participating in a Skill Check that involves interaction with other characters, or where planning is important may replace the usual method of resolving Skill Checks with a Roleplaying Die Roll.

In a Roleplaying Die Roll, instead of rolling a D20, have the players describe in detail the actions the carry out to solve the problem. The GM then judges their performance based on the quality of the solution, and modifies the result based on roleplaying considerations.

Roleplaying Die Roll = Solution Score + Roleplaying Modifier

Solution Score: Use the following values instead of the check d20, based on the GM’s judgement:

  • Terrible: The described solution fails to address the challenge: Automatic failure
  • Below Average: The described solution only addresses the challenge partially, or under specific conditions: 6+1d4
  • Good: The described solution fully addresses the challenge: 11+1d4
  • Excellent: The described solution fully addresses the challenge, in a particularly imaginative or effective way: 16+1d4

Roleplaying Modifier: Apply the following modifiers based on the GM’s judgement of the role playing:

  • The described solution is out of place for the character, given their background and personality: Automatic failure
  • The described solution slightly conflicts with the character’s background or personality: -2
  • The described solution matches the character’s background and personality: +0
  • The described solution provides new and relevant insight about the character’s background and personality: +2

Once the Roleplaying Die Roll is resolved, add the Skill Bonus and compare with the target difficulty as usual:

Skill Check (with Roleplaying Die) = Roleplaying Die Roll + Skill Bonus