Skills

Basic skill tests. Roll D100 at or below the skill to succeed; 00 counts as 100. The critical range is 01 through the skill's integer tens digit, minimum 01 at any skill above 0%; fumbles are 99–00 below 100%, and 00 at 100%. Also known as roll under, critical success, fumble, D100 test.

State the intended action, then roll D100 against the relevant skill. Roll two ten-sided dice: one is the tens digit and one is the units digit. 00 means 100.

Do not roll for routine work when the character has enough time, suitable tools, and relevant competence. Roll when pressure, danger, limited time, or meaningful uncertainty makes both success and failure interesting.

Result grades

Check fumbles first; a fumble overrides success.

Skills cannot exceed 100%. At 100%, rolls 01–10 are Critical, 11–99 are Success, and 00 is a Fumble.

Exact critical ranges

Use the integer tens digit, not rounding. Any skill above 0% has a critical range of at least 01.

Interpreting exceptional results

A Critical achieves the stated intent especially quickly, thoroughly, or effectively and may reveal an extra benefit or useful information.

A Fumble fails and introduces a serious consequence appropriate to the declared action, such as lost time, damaged equipment, danger, or a worse position. It should follow from the risk already present rather than invent an unrelated disaster.

Bonus and Penalty dice. Cancel Bonus and Penalty dice one for one, cap the net modifier at +3B or -3P, then choose the best or worst D100 result from the extra tens dice. Also known as bonus dice, penalty dice, difficulty, B and P dice.

Bonus dice improve a test; Penalty dice hinder it. Write them as +1B, +2B, -1P, and so on.

1. Total all Bonus and Penalty dice.
2. Cancel them one for one.
3. Cap the remaining modifier at +3B or -3P.
4. Roll one units die and one tens die, plus one extra tens die for each remaining Bonus or Penalty die.
5. Pair the shared units die with every tens die to form the candidate D100 results. Read 00 as 100.
6. With Bonus dice, always keep the result that is better for the roller. With Penalty dice, always keep the result that is worse for the roller.

Grade every candidate before choosing: Critical > Success > Failure > Fumble. Within Critical or Success, the higher roll is better. Within Failure or Fumble, the lower roll is better. Use this order even when the test is not opposed.

Examples. At 70%, results of 25 and 65 are both Successes. A Bonus die keeps 65; a Penalty die keeps 25. At 60%, 25 is a Success and 65 is a Failure, so a Bonus die keeps 25 and a Penalty die keeps 65.

Choose the result before comparing participants in an opposed test. Base skill and defender or status-quo tiebreakers never choose between one roller’s candidates. Bonus and Penalty dice change the roll, not the skill or its critical range.

When to apply them

Apply dice only for circumstances that materially change the task. Useful sources include terrain, tools, visibility, preparation, time pressure, injuries, and a sound or flawed approach.

A modest advantage or obstacle is usually +1B or -1P. Use larger modifiers only when several strong factors point the same way; the final net modifier never exceeds three dice.

Opposed tests. Compare result grade first; within the same successful grade the higher roll wins, while matching failures favour the lower roll. Exact ties favour higher base skill, then the defender or status quo. Also known as contested test, resisted test, opposed tie.

Use an opposed test when two characters directly compete or one actively resists another. Each participant rolls the relevant skill with their own Bonus or Penalty dice. Resolve each participant’s Bonus or Penalty dice before comparing their final results.

Compare results

1. Compare result grade: Critical > Success > Failure > Fumble.
2. If both achieve the same successful grade, the higher roll wins.
3. If both Fail, the lower roll wins. If both Fumble, the lower roll also wins.
4. If the rolls are exactly equal, the higher unmodified base skill wins.
5. If both roll and base skill tie, the defender wins. When there is no clear defender, the status quo remains.

The base-skill and defender or status-quo tiebreakers compare participants only. They never choose between one participant’s candidate results from Bonus or Penalty dice.

Example. Two ordinary Successes of 42 and 31 favour 42. Two Failures of 72 and 85 favour 72. A Critical always defeats an ordinary Success, regardless of the numbers rolled.

Assistance. Meaningful help from one or more capable characters usually grants +1B in total, or +2B when the combined assistance is exceptionally effective. Also known as aid another, helping, teamwork.

Helping a test

One or more characters can assist when they have a practical way to contribute to the task. The Gamemaster decides whether the method and available time make assistance possible.

An assistant normally needs at least 26% in the relevant skill. Meaningful assistance grants +1B to the acting character’s test in total, not per helper. Exceptionally effective combined help may grant +2B.

Apply assistance with all other modifiers, then cancel and cap Bonus or Penalty dice normally.

Resistance and combat skills. Dodge, Persistence, and Resilience resist danger; Close, Ranged, and Unarmed Combat govern physical attacks and defences. Also known as combat skills, resistance skills, Dodge Persistence Resilience.

Dodge

Use Dodge against an attack or physical danger the character can perceive and move away from. Combat rules state when a Reaction and any Penalty dice are required.

Persistence

Persistence measures mental resolve. Use it to resist Influence, intimidation, fear, and other attempts to override the character’s judgement or will.

Resilience

Resilience measures physical endurance. It is the standard skill for Fatigue tests and for resisting poison, disease, exposure, starvation, thirst, and similar bodily threats.

Combat skills

Close Combat covers melee weapons and shields. Ranged Combat covers missile and thrown weapons. Unarmed Combat covers grappling and natural attacks. An unarmed human normally deals 1D3 damage and counts as Light; a natural weapon uses its listed damage and Size, defaulting to Medium Size.

The Combat chapter defines attacks, Parries, Dodges, damage, range, and weapon restrictions.

Knowledge skills. Culture, Language, Lore, and Natural Lore cover learned knowledge, communication, and practical understanding of the natural world. Also known as Culture Language Lore Natural Lore, survival, tracking.

Each foreign Culture, foreign Language, and Lore field is a separate skill. Choose one own field of study at character creation.

Culture

Culture recalls a society’s history, politics, geography, customs, superstitions, and common beliefs. Use Culture (own) for the character’s home society and Culture (other) for each foreign society studied.

Language

Each Language is separate. A score of at least 50% means fluent everyday speech; lower scores allow simpler communication in proportion to the skill.

Lore

Each Lore is a specialised field of study and improves separately. Common fields are Alchemy (reagents, distillation, poisons, and antidotes), Magic, Military Tactics, Spirit World, Undead, Law and Heraldry, and Astronomy. Other fields, such as art, gambling, or philosophy, follow the same rules.

A successful Lore test also grants +1B to one directly related skill test made soon after, when recognition or preparation would plausibly help.

Natural Lore

Natural Lore covers the living world, terrain, and survival.

• Animals: identify animals and understand behaviour, habitat, and care. Training a wild animal normally requires a test after each full week; training it for riding also requires Riding 50%.
• Plants: identify plants, suitable crops, edible species, and unusual properties.
• Minerals: identify stone, ores, valuable deposits, faults, and unsafe ground.
• Survival: find food, water, and safe shelter in the wilderness. When a necessity is unavailable, make one test per day to find it before deprivation takes effect.
• Tracking: find a trail, then test again for each ten minutes spent following it when the trail is uncertain.
• Weather: predict ordinary changes in local weather.

Practical skills. Practical skills cover movement, making and repairing, stealth, vehicles, healing, social pressure, perception, performance, city life, and trade. Also known as Athletics Craft Deception, Healing Influence Perception, Riding Sailing Streetwise Trade.

Each Craft subject is a separate skill.

Athletics

Athletics covers acrobatics, force, climbing, jumping, running, and swimming.

• Acrobatics: balance, tumble, and cross unstable surfaces. Move at half Movement without a test; moving at full speed requires Athletics. When a falling rule calls for Acrobatics, test Athletics.
• Brute force: push, lift, drag, bend, or break using raw strength.
• Climbing: climb or descend at one-quarter Movement where holds are available. A successful test doubles this rate when speed or difficult conditions matter.
• Jumping: with a 5-metre run, a success clears about twice the character’s height horizontally or half their height vertically. Standing distances are halved; each extra horizontal metre applies -1P, subject to the normal -3P cap.
• Swimming: swim at half Movement in calm water. Test in strong currents, poor weather, heavy loads, or other danger.

Craft

Choose a trade such as blacksmith, bowyer, brewer, carpenter, mason, potter, or tailor. Craft makes and repairs appropriate goods. As a rough guide, work takes one day per 50 SP of finished value and consumes materials worth half that value.

Deception

Deception covers disguise, hiding objects, picking pockets, stealth, and misdirection. Attempts to avoid notice are usually opposed by Perception. Pickpocketing or planting a small item normally requires at least one minute of sustained access.

Driving

Driving covers carts, chariots, wagons, and similar vehicles. No test is needed at walking pace on flat ground; test for speed, dangerous terrain, jumps, collisions, or difficult manoeuvres.

Engineering

Engineering designs, builds, repairs, sabotages, and operates large works such as bridges, fortifications, mines, siege engines, gates, and ships.

Healing

Healing requires a Healing Kit; without one, the test suffers -2P.

• Battlefield treatment: spend the full round adjacent to a stationary patient. Success removes Bleeding and Dying but restores no HP.
• Ordinary injury: after an encounter, a patient who is not Wounded may receive one attempt before their next full rest. Success restores 1D4 HP.
• Surgery: outside combat and after stabilisation, success restores 1 HP and allows a Major Wound to recover normally.
• Poison or disease: successful treatment grants +1B to the patient’s next Resilience test against the affliction.
• Unconsciousness: a successful test can revive someone whose condition allows them to wake; it cannot wake a patient at 0 HP.

Healing and Recovery gives the full wound and recovery procedure.

Influence

Influence persuades, bargains, commands, or intimidates through words and conduct. When the target resists, oppose an appropriate skill, usually Persistence or Influence. Success can change the target’s immediate decision, but cannot force action against basic self-preservation.

Mechanisms

Mechanisms assembles, disables, or repairs devices with complex moving parts, including locks and traps. Picking a lock or disarming a trap normally takes at least one minute. If a device was designed to resist interference, oppose the creator’s Mechanisms.

Perception

Perception uses the senses to notice concealed creatures, hidden objects, small details, and approaching danger. It commonly opposes Deception.

Performance

Performance covers acting, dance, music, oratory, poetry, and song. A success produces a competent and pleasing performance appropriate to the character’s intent.

Riding

No test is needed to ride a trained mount at walking pace on flat ground with saddle and tack. Test for dangerous terrain, speed, jumps, bareback riding, frightened mounts, or combat manoeuvres.

Sailing

Sailing operates boats and ships under oar or sail. Calm routine travel needs no test; currents, storms, racing, navigation hazards, and damaged vessels do.

Streetwise

Streetwise finds rumours, illicit goods, fences, black markets, safe routes, and people who prefer not to advertise. Gathering information or locating a contact normally takes 1D4 hours. It also covers discreetly following someone through a busy settlement.

Trade

Use an opposed Trade test to negotiate a sale. If the buyer wins, reduce the price by 10%, or 20% on a Critical. If the seller wins, increase it by 10%, or 20% on a Critical. Double the change when the opponent Fumbles.

Trade also appraises market value. A success estimates an item’s ordinary local value to within 10%; unusual scarcity or obscurity may add Bonus or Penalty dice.