Skills

Skills represent a character's learned abilities and fields of study. How much your character knows about a particular subject, or how well they handle procedures or acts concerning that Skill. They are used when determining whether a character knows something (or how to do something) or whether they are successful in their attempt to perform a specific task. Skills range from 1-5.

1. Amateur: This represents basic training or study of a skill.
2. Adept: This represents a solid understanding of the field, with substantial training.
3. Professional: This represents a working knowledge of the field with the ability to perform the skill as a profession.
4. Expert: This represents advanced knowledge and experience within the skill.
5. Authority: This represents mastery of the skill. The character is among the top practitioners of this skill.

A character can also specialize a skill in a particular subarea or task. For instance, a chemist might specialize in "organic chemistry" or "research". When dealing with a task within their particular specialty, a character can treat their skill as if it is one level higher. The cost of a speciality depends on the level of the skill, and a character can more than one specialty in a given skill, although they cannot have more than one level of the same speciality. (So a chemist with skill 2 could specialize in both organic chemistry and research, and would have a skill of 3 when dealing with those situations; but the chemist cannot specialize twice in organic chemistry to get a 4.) When a skill gets bought up, the price of any specializations is subtracted from the cost (and the specialization goes away).

For example, a character who doesn't have a skill (it's at level 0) needs to spend only 1 point for a specialization--they then have level 1 of the skill in certain situations. Later, the character can spend another point to bring the skill to level 1; the specialization goes away, and the character now has level 1 in everything. The character might then buy that specialization back for two more points, and would then have level 2 in their speciality and level 1 in everything else. The costs are:

Level	Cost	Spec. Cost
0	0	1
1	2	2
2	5	3
3	10	6
4	20	15
5	65	35

There are three kinds of skills: ordinary, combat, and magical. Ordinary and combat skills follow the same rules, and are listed below. Magical skills have different costs, and are listed on their own page.

Ordinary Skills

"Metaskills" refer to a large group of skills groups into a general category. Each example from that category counts as a single skill.

Academic Discipline (metaskill)

Unless otherwise specified, anything that would normally be listed as a major at a university is a valid skill. Examples: anthropology, astronomy, linguistics, mathematics, geology, theology, physics, psychology, law.

Animal Handling

The ability to train animals, care for and maintain them, and keep them calm.

Biology

Covers general knowledge of the life sciences--ecology, evolution, microbiology. Includes only minimal knowledge of botany and zoology (which are separate skills).

Blacksmith

The ability to work with and build things out of metal.

Botany

Knowledge of the varieties and properties of plant life and their place in the ecosphere.

Business Finance

Accounting and bookkeeping procedures for businesses, analysis of business transactions and histories.

Carpentry

The ability to work with and build things out of wood.

Cartography

The ability to create accurate maps of any terrain.

Chemistry

Ordinary knowledge of chemistry as covered in most colleges. Distilling ambrosia falls under this skill.

Civil Engineering

The ability to design, create, maintain large scale structures and examine them for weak points or other structural features.

Climb

The ability to climb difficult surfaces. Also knowledge of standard equipment and safety procedures.

Computers

Knowledge of how to operate computers. At low levels covers ordinary use, at higher levels includes programming and "hacking".

Cryptobotany

Knowledge of those plants unique to the praetermundus.

Cryptography

Familiarity with ciphers and the ability to create or decode them in any language that a character is familiar with. Does not include modern computer cryptography.

Cryptotheology

Knowledge of cults and other occult organizations, their basic tenants and publicly known practices.

Cryptozoology

Knowledge of those animal species unique to the praetermundus.

Disguise

The ability to conceal your identity. This does not generally work at games (where you are surrounded by people who know you and each other very well). It does include disguising yourself as someone else.

Electronics

The ability to identify, design, repair, and modify electrical equipment. Specializations: computer hardware, security systems, radios.

Escape

The ability to escape from being physically bound (including handcuffs).

Fine Arts (metaskill)

Ability to produce aesthetic and technically competent works using a particular technique. Familiarity with the creation or performance of the relevant art form. Examples: painting, sculpture, acting, directing, writing, cooking, music.

First Aid

Ability to perform basic first aid. Heals a number of wounds equal to skill plus one, only applies once per combat or other injury and may not heal more wounds than were inflicted by the most recent event.

Forensics

Analysis of a crime scene and evidence obtained from one. This covers the sort of analysis typical of a crime lab (think CSI). It is not a generic "investigation" skill. Specializations: Ballistics, blood tests, fingerprinting.

Forgery (metaskill)

The ability to create false objects both official and unofficial. Examples: art, currency, identity papers, badges.

Gambling

Those with this skill know that gambling is not just random chance, and know how to take advantage of that. People with this skill receive their skill in points which may be spent to obtain one of the following benefits: draw an extra card in poker, get an extra throw in craps, add or subtract two points in blackjack, or check if another gambler is cheating (see below). Instead of spending points, a character may cheat by spending more points than they have (or gaining the benefits without spending points). In this case, the player should claim to be spending the point, but must cross the fingers on one of their hands and keep it in their pocket for that game/hand. Anyone else with this skill may spend a point to see the concealed hand.

Gunsmith

The ability to create, modify, and maintain firearms.

History (metaskill)

A specific history skill covers knowledge of historical events and cultural trends associated with either a specific period of time or a specific culture or nation. Examples: American history, Russian history, Celtic history, classical history, the Enlightenment.

Language (metaskill)

The ability to speak, understand, read, and write a language. At level one a character can communicate basic concepts with a cooperative speaker. At level two a character has basic fluency but may have difficulty with fast conversations or unusually complicated or technical topics. At level three a character has fluency comparable to most native speakers, but wit an accent. At level four a character has no accept. At level five a character has a mastery of nuances of a particular language and is capable of winning scrabble tournaments or analyzing elaborate poetry.

Locksmith

The design and creation of mechanical locks. With proper tools, also the ability to open locks.

Mechanics

The ability to identify and repair fine mechanical devices.

Medicine

Knowledge of medicine as taught in a medical school, including anatomy and physiology and the ability to diagnose and treat illnesses. Specializations: autopsies, surgery.

Military Science

Standard military tactics and strategy. Also standard professional practices common to the military and knowledge of equipment.

Motor mechanics

The ability to identify and repair large mechanical devices and motors.

Navigation

The ability to find routes, read maps, plot courses and schedules for a journey.

Networking

Knowledge of the practices of professional business and other people with (legal) wealth and power.

Organization Management

The knowledge of maintaining the personal and resources of large scale organizations.

Pick Pocket

The ability to pick pockets. A player whose character has this ability should indicate that they're picking a pocket by attaching a small sticker to the person they're stealing from. Each level can be spent once per game to prevent being seen by one person. This works as follows: if someone immediately points out that they've seen you, you may immediately notify the relevant ST that you are spending a level to avoid being seen (one per person you want to prevent from seeing you); in this case, you don't steal anything, but don't get caught by those people. Alternatively, anyone who notices you may chose not to say anything at the time, in which case you successfully steal something, but should notify the relevant ST as soon as possible (before mentioning it IC!); unless you've specified ahead of time, the ST will mark that you've spent a point and count it as not being seen. After marking someone with a sticker, you should notify the ST as soon as possible, who will confirm what item you got. If the player has not already noticed that they had been pickpocketed then they will not notice for the rest of the night unless the specifically look for the item stolen; until you notify the ST, as soon as the player notices the sticker, the character realizes they have been pickpocketed. Note: you may not freeze a scene or ask people to pause IC play in order to tell an ST that you have pickpocketed someone unless you are trying to use the item immediately (for instance, stealing a gun from someone and shooting them). Anyone who sees a sticker on someone but didn't see it get placed should treat it as OOC knowledge.

Pilot (metaskill)

The ability to operate and perform ordinary maintenance on a kind of vehicle. Examples: car, boat, plane, horse, helicopter.

Police Procedure

Familiarity with standard police procedures and equipment. Knowledge of common criminal practices and relevant laws.

Profession (metaskill)

Any ordinary job not covered by another skill is a skill. Example: grade school teacher, butcher, fisherman, homemaker, janitor.

Sports (metaskill)

Knowledge of the rules and ability to play a sport or other competitive game. Example: baseball, basketball, fencing, football, golf, chess, halo.

Stealth

The ability to move around without being seen. This skill cannot be used at game.

Streetwise

Knowledge of the practices of the criminal underworld, both organized and unorganized. Includes boundaries of local law enforcement and how to go about obtaining illegal items.

Surveillance

Knowledge of and ability to use and effectively place standard surveillance. Also the ability to detect and identify such equipment.

Survival

The ability to survive in the wilderness. Foraging, finding shelter, hunting, scavenging.

Swim

At the first level, the ability to swim. At higher levels, knowledge of equipment of safety procedures for scuba diving, diving, and similar underwater activities.

Track

The ability to track animals or people in any environment. (Note that urban tracking is very difficult.) This also provides the ability to cover your tracks.

Zoology

Knowledge of the varieties and properties of animal life and their place in the ecosphere.

Combat Skills

Weapon Skill

The ability to effectively use a kind of weapon (or fight in a particular way). The specific weapon skills are: Archery, Large Melee Weapon (for example a sword or axe), Small Melee Weapon (for example a knife or nightstick), Other Melee Weapon (for example whips and chains), Handgun, Rifle, Shotgun, Submachine gun, Assault rifle, Thrown Weapon, Brawling

Evade

Allows a character to move more quickly during combat and possibly escape (see combat rules).

Shield

The ability to effectively use a shield for defense in combat.