Chapter 3: Skills

A skill is a category of knowledge, an ability, or an activity relating to a task, such as athletics, navigation, or persuasion. A character who has a skill is better at completing related tasks than a character who lacks the skill, but even an unskilled character can attempt nearly any task.

A character's level of skill is either trained (reasonably skilled) or specialized (very skilled).

Training in a skill eases attempts to accomplish that task.

Specialization in a skill eases attempts to accomplish that task by two steps. (If you get trained twice in the same skill, or are already trained and get training in the same skill again later, you become specialized.)

Being an expert in a skill allows you to ease a task by three steps, but becoming an expert usually requires that you have a special ability that specifically grants you that option, such as with Expert Combatant.

Inability in a specific task or skill is also possible. An inability is a task your character isn't good at. You can think of inabilities as negative skills - instead of those tasks being eased, they're hindered.

If you have neither training nor an inability, you can freely attempt a task. This is something you can do, but you do it neither better nor worse than the average person. Most people (in the real world, anyway) can freely drive their vehicle, driving every day to get places, but they would be seriously challenged to come out of a spin after going much too fast on an icy road.

To carry on with the example of driving, a person who's never been behind the wheel might have an inability in driving. A professional driver, like a bus or truck driver or an auto aficionado, might be trained in driving. A race car driver, stunt driver, or criminal getaway driver might be specialized in driving.

Genre Skills: When you are given the opportunity to choose skills, select them from the appropriate genre. You can pick any skill listed for your game's genre that isn't restricted by your tier. For example, if the GM is running a swords & sorcery or dungeon fantasy game, pick your genre skills from the Fantasy Skills table. You'll find the description of the skill in this chapter, though.

Each genre defines several skills. Many more skills are possible, especially in science fiction genres, but the same is true in real-world genres and fantastic games. If you'd prefer your character have an avocation or background that isn't on the skills list for your genre, work with your GM to add that skill to your game.

Background Skills: One of the two skill choices you are given when creating a core character is your background skill. Your choice of background skill reveals something about where your character came from and an element of their backstory. When you choose (or randomly determine, if you prefer) a background skill, you can use it as a seed to create a narrative about your past.

For instance, if you choose crafting (with a focus on cooking) as your background skill, your character may have been a small-town baker who grew dissatisfied, a commissary cook for a military group that has since disbanded (or was decimated), or just someone who learned everything your grandmother was able to teach about her cooking traditions before everything changed.

If you choose performance as your background skill, your character may have been a dancer in a seedy inn at the edge of town, a member of a troupe of actors who've all moved on to different trades, someone in a traveling circus that fell afoul of the law, or maybe someone who was once a celebrated performer but fell from grace so completely that few now recognize you.

Alternately, come up with your background first, then select a background skill that suits it.

Tier-Restricted Skills: When you have the option to learn a skill, choose one appropriate for your genre and tier.

Specialization in a noncombat skill (such as persuasion, athletics, and gathering information) requires that you be tier 2 or higher.

Combat skills - such as attacking with a broadsword, or defending, like dodging to avoid an attack - require that you be tier 2 or higher to become trained in one, and tier 4 or higher to become specialized in one, unless you have an ability indicating otherwise (like Expert Combatant).

Master Skill List

Skill Descriptions

The skills presented here are intentionally somewhat broad and high-level so you can choose a skill that best fits the kind of character you're creating. For instance, if you want to play a character good at preparing and tanning hides, cutting and stitching what results to create a garment or leather object, and repairing the same, crafting (with a focus on leatherworking) is the skill for you. If you're in a real-world game, maybe you'd prefer hacking, especially if you want to hack electronic systems, write code, or try your hand at prompt engineering.

Animal care: Your experience with animals allows you to understand their needs and intentions, calm distressed animals, and attempt to influence them peacefully.

Astronomy: You are well-versed in the study of the stars, planets, and cosmology in general.

Athletics: Regular training has improved your physical fitness, making you better at climbing, jumping, running long distances, and swimming tasks.

Attacking (tier restricted): Choose one kind of attack action per training you gain in this skill: light bashing, light bladed, light ranged, medium bashing, medium bladed, medium ranged, heavy bashing, heavy bladed, heavy ranged, or your unarmed attacks. Alternatively, you're better at attacking with one of your special abilities (like Blast or Onslaught) or one kind of weapon you can freely use (such as swords or rifles).

Biology: You have a deep working knowledge of living systems, including animals, plants, and insects appropriate to your game's setting.

Chemistry: You're knowledgeable about the composition and properties of physical substances, allowing you to predict and study chemical reactions, analyze substances to detect chemicals of interest, and - with sufficient time and experiments - attempt to develop novel materials.

Crafting: You're well-versed in one aspect of crafting, as appropriate to your game's setting. Options include cooking; weaving; metalworking or blacksmithing; leatherworking; brewing, vinting, and/or distilling; woodworking; pottery; gun and ammunition smithing; or something else available for the genre.

Cybernetics: You're knowledgeable about cybernetic prosthetics, enhancements, and related machine-body and machine-mind devices, with some practice in installing, maintaining, repairing, and removing them.

Deception: You are a capable liar, able to use speech and the written word to deceive and misinform others.

Defending (tier restricted): Choose one kind of defense per training you gain in this skill: blocking an attack (a Might task), dodging an attack (a Speed task), a Might defense roll to endure an unwanted physical effect, or an Intellect defense roll to resist an unwanted mental effect.

Disarming traps: You have a knack for figuring out how devious mechanisms and traps function, giving you better odds in your attempt to defuse them, if not permanently than at least long enough to bypass them.

Disguise: You're adept at disguising your identity with a false appearance using minimal accoutrements, usually with whatever's at hand.

Driving: You can keep a car or truck (or land vehicle appropriate to your game's setting) on the road even under difficult conditions.

Engineering: You can analyze, repair, and create innovative solutions for complex problems, such as tracing power outages and making new devices appropriate to your game's setting.

Escaping: You're talented at slipping restraints, squeezing through bars, breaking the grip of a creature holding you, pulling free from sucking quicksand, or some similar circumstance.

Farming: You are knowledgeable when it comes to cultivating land, raising crops, and harvesting what you've grown to provide food and resources at the end of the growing seasons. (Tending to livestock in any but the most general way requires training in animal care.)

Firefighting: You are proficient in methods to contain fires and know the best ways to use axes, hoses, fire extinguishers, and other tools to directly suppress fire.

Forensics: You know how to interpret physical evidence to figure out what happened at a location, such as at a crime scene, or what may have led to an object's current condition, such as the cause of death for a body.

Gathering information: You're adroit at gathering rumors, stories, and other information from locals to discover the news of the day; doing so requires several hours of effort.

Geology: You're knowledgeable about planetary structure, composition, and processes (including working knowledge of earthquakes, volcanoes, and the formation of natural resources).

Gunnery (tier restricted): You are proficient in attacking with all large, mounted weapons appropriate to the setting, including tank cannons, battleship guns, turrets, or spacecraft weaponry such as torpedoes, railguns, phasers, and so on.

Gymnastics: Regular training has improved your balance, easing your tasks to avoid losing your footing, as well as attempts to roll, dive, flip, and pull off similar feats that require grace and agility such as precision jumping, sprints, swinging from ropes or handholds, dancing, skiing, or ice skating.

Hacking: You can exploit weaknesses in a computer or computerized machine to gain unauthorized access, manipulate its intended function, damage it, and/or otherwise contravene its regular operation. Hacking requires a connection and some way to manipulate the system, such as with a keyboard or more advanced interface, and requires at least a few rounds or even minutes of effort, and perhaps much longer, depending on the hack desired.

Healing: You're experienced in diagnosing and dealing with sickness, bruises, cuts, breaks, and other injuries, and are proficient with healing tasks.

Heavy equipment operation: You're proficient in operating various heavy machinery used in construction projects, such as bulldozers, cranes, excavators, pavers, rollers, and other equipment appropriate to your game's setting.

History: You're well-versed in the study of past events, societies, and cultures, and you have related knowledge about what's led to current nations and populations.

Identifying: Your analytical mind allows you to venture a guess regarding the origin of unfamiliar objects, texts, sounds, and so on.

Initiative: Your reactions are honed, giving you skill in initiative tasks during combat.

Intimidation: You're good at swaying others with threatening words and/or fearsome presence.

Lockpicking: You are proficient at unlocking a locked mechanism without the key.

Magic lore: You've studied magical traditions of many different sorts and know something about the different organizations and schools, leading magical practitioners, sources of power, fabled artifacts, and more. Your lore helps you identify magic items, the potential purpose of a strange ritual, or how an active spell is working, or gain some similar insight.

Mathematics: You're a whiz with numbers, calculations, and pattern analysis.

Mechanics: You can diagnose, repair, maintain, and (with the right tools and parts) build engines and various machines appropriate to your game's setting.

Mining: You have experience with methods for extracting valuable geological materials and minerals from the ground, including the use of mining tools appropriate to the genre.

Navigation: Your sense of direction is well honed, and you are familiar with using maps, cues from the environment, and/or tools appropriate to the setting to find your way through an unfamiliar or confusing landscape.

Outdoor survival: You know the basics of hunting, trapping, fishing, and other ways to find (and prepare) game and vegetation for food, as well as locating drinkable water and shelter in wilderness areas.

Perception: You have a better chance to notice what others miss in a physical environment when searching an area, listening closely, or using some other sense to discover what's hidden or not obvious.

Performance: You're adept in one kind of performance or art, whether that's singing, comedy, playing an instrument, acting on a stage or in front of a camera, composing, painting, or something else.

Persuasion: You're adept at winning people to your side of an argument with a combination of truthful reasoning (at least, true as far as you know), understanding, and kindness.

Philosophy: You're conversant with critically analyzing questions regarding existence, knowledge, ethics, and similar fundamental issues.

Physics: You're knowledgeable about scientifically derived laws of the physical universe and can use that knowledge to devise experiments to probe natural phenomena.

Pickpocketing: You're adept at separating a target from belongings they carry on their person without being detected. You're also trained with sleight-of-hand tricks, like making a coin seemingly disappear, hiding something in your own clothing, or planting something on someone else.

Piloting: You're adept at piloting planes, boats, submersibles, or craft appropriate to your game's setting.

Piloting spacecraft: You're adept at piloting a spaceship, including in tasks related to navigating to other locations in space, as appropriate to your vessel's capabilities and the game's setting.

Plumbing: You can install, maintain, and repair pipes, fixtures, and appliances that use water.

Psychic lore: You're cognizant of the many varieties of psychic talent; of the leagues, agencies, and other groups that employ entities with psionic power; and of other related topics. Your lore helps you identify psychic activity, objects, or the purpose of a particular psychic working, or gain some similar insight.

Psychology: You're conversant with the study of behavior and therapies developed to address mental health.

Publishing: You're well-versed in one aspect of publishing, such as writing, editing, copywriting, proofing, marketing, or something else. (Publishing is a modern real-world or science fiction skill. Someone interested in this skill in a historical real-world or fantasy setting might choose scribing instead.)

Recognizing motive: You're practiced at determining someone else's lies, motives, and disposition.

Religious lore: You know about the gods and pantheons of the world; their cults, temples, and priesthoods; and their doctrines, holy artifacts, methods of worship, and religious holidays. Your lore helps you identify holy items if any exist in your setting, the potential purpose of a religious ceremony, or how divine influence might be affecting an area, or gain some similar insight.

Riding: You know how to ride and care for a horse, camel, or similar mount. Alternatively, you know how to ride and care for a motorcycle, bicycle, or similar mechanical device appropriate to your game's setting.

Scavenging: You're experienced in scavenging for food, water, shelter, and when you're especially lucky, a random piece of postapocalyptic equipment. A scavenging task attempt usually requires a minimum of ten minutes but could stretch to two to four hours spent searching through the rubble and ruins.

Scavenging and Related Tasks

Scribing: You are adroit at copying texts, illustrating manuscripts, and preparing official documents by hand. (Scribing is usually an option in any setting except modern real world and science fiction. Someone interested in scribing in a modern real-world or sci-fi setting might choose publishing instead.)

Skilled trade: You're experienced in one skilled trade, potentially allowing you to earn a wage as a carpenter, a bricklayer, a drywall installer, a plumber, a mechanic, a roofer, an electrician, or a similar trade, as appropriate for your setting.

Stealth: You're adept at sneaking and hiding, staying out of sight, and keeping all noise of your presence to a minimum.

Systems operation: You can operate a variety of different complex systems - including computers, robots, spacecraft drives, environmental systems, communication systems, scanning systems, and so on - to achieve their intended functions. This operation could extend to generating simple code for legitimate programming purposes.

Tracking: You are better able to follow a target through all sorts of landscapes and environments and in identifying tracks.

Woodcutting: You're adept at felling trees, splitting logs, and preparing timber for fuel, construction, and other uses. (Woodcutting is usually an option in any setting except modern real world and science fiction. Someone interested in woodcutting in a sci-fi setting might choose systems operation, allowing them to direct automated woodcutting machinery.)

Zero-G fluency: You're adept at moving through zero-gravity and low-gravity environments.