See Also: Skill List
A skill represents expertise gained with intensive training or study. Roll your Operative’s skill or lower on 1D100 to use the skill under dire circumstances. Making a skill roll means doing something that would leave untrained people lost. Anyone can attempt a DEX×5 test to keep from falling over in a out-of-control aircraft; only someone who’s been trained in the Pilot skill can fly the airplane away from the grasping, howling thing tearing at its hull.
Base Rating
Every skill lists its base rating. If it has a base rating of 1% or greater, anyone can attempt it. A skill at 0% can’t be used at all. No skill can be higher than 99%.
| Rating | What The Rating Represents |
|---|---|
| 01% to 19% | Dabbler. |
| 20% to 29% | A dedicated hobbyist; with a foreign language you can have rudimentary conversations. |
| 30% to 39% | College minor or basic training. |
| 40% to 59% | College major or years of experience; with 50% in a foreign language you have native fluency. |
| 60% to 79% | Decades of experience, or a graduate or doctoral degree. |
| 80% to 99% | A lifetime’s pursuit or multiple doctorates. |
How Skills Work
When your Operative uses a skill, sometimes you will roll dice and sometimes you will not.
Using a Skill without a roll: When circumstances are calm and controlled, you don’t roll dice to have your Operative use a skill; the Administrator just needs to know how high your Operative’s rating is. For example: landing a helicopter when things are calm simply requires a certain amount in the Pilot skill. Using a skill without rolling means randomness is not a factor. It’s about having the right skill, looking in the right place, and asking the right questions.
Using a skill with a roll: Roll skill dice when the outcome is in doubt. That usually means there’s a crisis, the circumstances are not under your Operative's control, or your Operative is not expert enough to succeed without a roll. For details, see Using Skills on page $page$.
Common Knowledge
Most Foundation personnel understand basic scientific concepts, can hum a tune or figure out some small things on the fly. While skills represents deep, specialized training or education, sometimes Operatives can rely on common knowledge.
Calling on common knowledge requires an INT×5 test or having a certain level of INT. Charming someone with unskilled art is usually a CHA or DEX test. Other efforts use other stats. The Administrator decides whether a task requires the general ability of a stat or the specialization of a skill.
Researching
There’s no designated skill for library use. Whether your Operative is scrolling through a digital archive or is sifting through microfilm or a database, look to the particular skill that’s involved in the research: History, Science, Medicine, etc. Some research may not need a skill (combing recent news archives, for instance), only a certain amount of INT and time.
Improving Skills
We learn from failure. If your Operative has at least 1% in a skill (any except Unnatural), it can improve when your Operatives attempts to use it and fails. On the character sheet, next to every skill, there is a check box. When your Operative tries to use a skill and fails, mark that skill’s box. At the end of each session, add 1D4−1 percentage points to every skill that has a check next to it. Then erase the check.
Failing without rollin: If your Operative attempts a challenging task that requires a certain level of skill but not a roll, and fails because the task requires more skill than your Operative has, put a check in the box.
Special Training
Some equipment or specialized knowledge requires extensive training that nevertheless doesn’t require a dedicated skill. This often means 10 to 20 hours of instruction and practice. With special training, your Operative can use an existing stat or skill in a new way. The penalty for using a skill without required special training is up to the Administrator. It may mean there’s no chance at all; or it may have a reduced chance, require a stat test, or incur some other drawback. An Operative might start the game with special training. A Special Forces soldier knows how to use hand grenades; a SWAT team member knows how to use tear gas; an Operative with any amount of Craft: Locksmithing) skill knows how to use lockpicks.
Examples of Special Training
- Parachuting (DEX)
- Skiing (Athletics)
- SCUBA gear (Swim)
- Space suit (INT)
- An exotic hand weapon (Melee Weapons)
- An exotic pistol or rifle (Firearms)
- Hand grenades (Athletics)
- Deep knowledge of a subculture (INT)
- Another country’s criminal codes (Law)
- Lockpicks (DEX)
- Electronic security systems (INT)
- Insider knowledge of a particular criminal conspiracy (Criminology)
- Fluency in a rare dialect (Foreign Language)
Skill Types
Art, Craft, Foreign Language, Military Science, Pilot, and Science skills are named with types. The skills are deliberately vague and are not meant to be restrictive. If a skill type seems close to what’s required, your Administrator will likely let it apply.
See Also: Skill List