Skill

Skills are a game rule for understanding what a character is capable of within a story.

Introduction

Skills are a term for what a character can do or understand. They are a form of mental or physical proficiency cultivated through repetition and theory. Examples include swinging swords (Melee Combat), running a triathlon (Endurance), strengthening one’s mind (Meditation), or performing acrobatic feats (Acrobatics). Everyone can consider themselves a Novice at every non-arcana Skill until they assign enough experience points to become an Apprentice. See Skill List.

Progression

To progress a skill, XP is spent towards the next tier of that skill. Everyone can be assumed to be a Novice in every non-arcana skill. Sometimes a Merit is spent instead of XP; each Grandmaster Skill requires Mastery as well as the expenditure of a Minor Merit to attain.

Note: Arcana skills require spending a Minor Merit to unlock Novice.

Skill Tiers

• T0 = Novice (0 XP)
• T1 = Apprentice (25 XP)
• T2 = Journeyman (50 XP)
• T3 = Expert (75 XP)
• T4 = Master (100 XP)
• T5 = Grandmaster (Minor Merit)

Example: Joe has no XP in Fishing and are therefore a Novice at fishing. He spends 25 XP to become an Apprentice, spending an additional 50 XP to become a Journeyman and so on until he has spent a total of 250 XP to become a Master. He then decides to spend XP on a Minor Merit to become a Grandmaster, acquiring the Minor Dominion ability to make the nearest fish jump from the ocean and into his arms.

Interpretation

Skills are not always hardline indicators of ability. Biology, similar skills, habits, and circumstance can still be factored into reasoning to a small extent, but care should be taken not to overplay the character’s abilities. This reasoning can never push a character beyond what an Apprentice could do. Skills are also a measure of your ability to handle adversity; everyone can ride a horse without issue, but they risk getting thrown off in the event of the horse getting spooked if they don’t have the skill to back it up.

XP in a skill indicates how much knowledge and practice your character has taken up on their own; your character also has a life beyond play - it can be assumed they have a routine for practice or have read a book on a subject they are skilled in, and they might even be able to recall information from that book if they have the XP to back up the understanding. It's reasonable for a Competent Herbalist to know the flora in a well-documented region, and an Expert might recognize similar species somewhere they haven't studied.

Novice

With zero experience you are capable of very little beyond the limitations, instincts, and traits of your own biology and habits. You don’t really understand how you do what you do, and what little you are capable of is often attributed to things you do every day. Treat this with reasoning; someone who is a smith as their job would have a reasonably mean and accurate hammer swing, even as a Novice in their combat skills. You are not expected to always fail, but you’ll often struggle with situations out of the norm.

Example: Johnathan hooks bait onto his line and casts it into the water. He sits there for minutes, working the line like he had seen his father doing countless times before. Then, there is a tug. Gleefully, Johnathan springs up from his seat, fighting with what has to be the biggest catch of his relatively young life. The line grows taunt, the pole bending and straining. Pulling firmly, he tries to haul the fish out of the water, before a snap rings out across the lake. He falls backwards, his fishing line broken. Gazing at his rod, his face sunken, he pulls out more bait and a new hook, and casts out the line once more. He will master this some day.

Apprentice

You've begun to understand the basics of the skill, and you might happen to know a few interesting facts about it. You are competent enough to operate this skill without issue as any other rank-and-file person in that trade might. Inventing something useful is still beyond your ability.

Example: The sound of metal striking metal rings out through the forge, the heat alone enough to make anyone sweat profusely, the salty liquid sizzling upon red-hot steel. A tall and burly man in a dirty apron paces behind his student, examining and critiquing every fall of his hammer. With a final strike, his student pulls the weapon off the anvil, and quenches it in a nearby barrel. There's a loud, drawn-out, hiss as the blade rapidly cools. The student's arms are shaking, both from exertion and from his nerves. Very carefully the blade is pulled free of the barrel and for the first time today, the blacksmith smiles. It is not exceptional by any means, just a standard steel sword, but it is nonetheless an important step in becoming a blacksmith. He firmly pats his giddy student on the back, before leading him off so that they can test out his shiny new sword.

Journeyman

You are beginning to possess a regimented understanding of the skill. You might be able to repeat some wise words from your mentor or formulas from a book you've read. Your inventions without assistance struggle to hold water, often ending in failure.

Example: Katrina carefully navigates one of the katas her mentor taught her. Every punch and kick must be perfect, landing in the right place at the right time. Going slowly at first, but quickly picking up the pace, she continues her deadly dance of strikes. Leaping up into the air, she brings her right foot high above her head and strikes quickly. A paving stone cracks down the middle as she lands her final blow against an imaginary opponent.

Expert

You understand a large sum of theory and potential pitfalls with the skill. You can recall whole theorems of understanding, and you’re beginning to develop your own unique theory regarding its application. Your inventions can be useful after a few failures and refinements.

Example: A tall man with an imposing presence stands at the head of a wooden table, a map laid out in front of him. Such a man might be at first glance confused with a brute, but there is a sharpness to his gaze. Cold and calculating. He stares at the map, littered with small pieces of stone, each representing a selection of troops. Minutes pass in contemplative silence, the military tacticians around him eager to hear what he is to say. A fire lights up in his eyes, and a deft hand moves around some pieces while the man barks orders at those in attendance. Soon, it's just him, the man starting to grin. They will surely win this battle with his latest tactic.

Master

You understand almost everything about the subject in a conventional sense, and you’ve developed your own unique theory regarding its application. Your inventions almost always turn out useful.

Example: Some wounds are impossible to heal. Too much lost blood, too much pain, too much mental injury. This should have been the case when a small, dark-haired, man was wheeled into the hospital. Doctors and nurses huddled around his body, trying to do the best they can, but slowly losing him. Brax stalks over, ordering a hole to be made for him as the other practitioners look at him with awe. He says little as he begins to work, save for ordering the less experienced professionals to fetch various pieces of equipment. Little by little, the man starts to stabilize, much to the surprise of those in attendance.

Grandmaster

Your understanding has exceeded what can be considered mundane, and your theories often parallel metaphor. Your inventions often have some paranormal quality behind them that only Masters can begin to understand - even Grandmasters who try to replicate these designs fail at replicating it exactly.

Example: An old gnome thrusts a complicated-looking rifle into the hands of a marksman, a crazed gleam in his eyes. Most saw him as the local madman. He was constantly holed up in his lodgings, and when he wasn't, he would quickly scurry around town before returning to his home. The marksman grimaces, slowly lifting up the rifle if only to appease the gnome. The scope's glass was crystal clear, numbers flashing up that he could hardly make sense of, but he knew enough to know where to put the crosshair. Aiming at a training dummy, he fired a single shot. A glowing bolt of green energy leaps fort from the barrel of the rifle, and pierces through the first dummy. However, it didn't continue straight. It turned, and pierced through the second, and so on. The marksman nearly drops the rifle, looking down at the cackling gnome.

Grandmasters in a mundane skill begin to push the boundaries of that skill. Not only are they above a Master in efficacy, but they are also capable of developing a single unnatural Minor Dominion Arcana for themselves. Grandmastery in any Arcana Skill does not confer this bonus, as those capabilities are already unnatural and pre-defined.

Submit Minor Dominion Arcana proposals in the Help Desk when you have acquired Grandmastery in a skill.

Ascension

Ascension is a state of being that may be attained for any Arcana skill. These require Grandmastery and a Major Merit to pursue.