Character Skills

Discipline carves purpose from potential.

Skills are earned, not inherited. They are the edge of repetition honed into excellence, the practiced form that gives action precision. While your Vitals define your natural capacity, Skills reflect what you have chosen to master.

To act with precision is to act with purpose—and that purpose is learned.

What Is a Skill?

Every action begins as intent—and becomes consequence.

A Skill is a trained discipline tied to specific actions. Skill Level (SL) limits how much you can Boost that Skill and how many proactive uses of that Skill you can initiate during your activation. Unlike Vitals, Skills are learned and can grow over time. You may only raise a Skill up to the value of its Linked Vital.

Ask yourself:

• What disciplines define my character’s edge?
• Do I specialize or stay broad?
• Is failure a result of chance—or lack of training?

Vitals vs. Skills

One is your capacity. The other is your craft.

Tip: Vitals define how far you can push. Skills define how well you control the attempt.

Linked Vitals

Every Skill has a Linked Vital. This Vital represents the natural capacity most often used when performing that Skill.

A Skill’s Linked Vital determines:

• the maximum Skill Level you may reach in that Skill;
• the Readiness Score of that Skill when combined with Skill Level (see Readiness Score below);
• which natural capacity is being tested when the Skill is used.

Some Skills may shift to a different Vital depending on the fictional approach. For example, Athletics might use Strength when breaking a door, but Resilience when enduring a long forced march.

Skill Level (SL)

Skill Level (SL) determines how many extra Action Dice you may commit as Boost when using that Skill. If a Skill is untrained (SL 0), you cannot Boost that Skill Check and may not benefit from Skill-based powers.

Max SL = Linked Vital

Boost limit = Skill Level

Skill Level does not grant default rerolls. Rerolls come from Advantage, Disadvantage, class powers, equipment, conditions, or specific rules.

Proactive Skill Uses During Your Activation

Skill Level also limits how many times you can proactively initiate that Skill during your own activation.

Proactive Skill Uses during your activation = Skill Level + 1

Minimum = 1 proactive use, even at SL 0.

This limit applies to actions you initiate: attacks, shoves, trips, disarms, feints, sprints, complex tasks, or other deliberate uses of the Skill during your activation.

This limit does not apply to responses made outside your activation. If you can react and have Ready Action Dice to spend, you may respond as the relevant rule allows.

The distinction is simple:

• Skill Level limits how many trained openings you can deliberately create during your activation.
• Ready Action Dice limit how much pressure you can answer outside your activation.

Example: Increasing Observation Skill

Leonora has Cognition (COG) 2 and wants to raise her Observation Skill from SL 2 to SL 3. Because a Skill’s maximum level is capped by its Linked Vital, she must first increase her COG to 3.

Once she does, and raises Observation to SL 3, she may Boost Observation checks with up to 3 extra Action Dice. Her higher Cognition also improves her Observation Readiness Score.

If Nyra has Melee SL 2, she may initiate up to 3 proactive Melee actions during her activation. She might attack three times, or attack, shove, and attack. She cannot turn every spare Ready AD into unlimited Melee actions.

If Nyra is attacked outside her activation, this proactive-use limit does not stop her responding. Her responses are limited by Ready AD, awareness, positioning, and whether the fiction allows a response.

Starting Skills at Character Creation

When creating your character, you begin with trained Skills from two sources:

• Bloodline Origin: Reflects upbringing and environment.
• First Class Level: Reflects your professional training.

If both your Bloodline and your Class selection grant the same Skill, the levels stack.

Tip: If you want a specialization from the start, choose an Origin that shares Skills with your Class. Otherwise, you'll need to raise those Skills later using Story Points.

Increasing Skill Levels

You earn Story Points (SP) by completing Story Milestones. These SP can be spent to raise Skill Levels (SL)—but only if your Linked Vital is equal to or higher than the new SL. If not, the Skill is beyond your current physical, mental, or emotional capacity.

• You must have a Linked Vital ≥ new SL to raise a Skill.
• Spend SP equal to the new Skill Level.

Advancement Cost = Target SL × SP

Example: Increasing Acrobatics Skill

Nyra wants to raise Acrobatics from SL 2 to SL 3. Her Agility (AGI) is 3, so she qualifies. She spends 3 SP to complete the upgrade.

Nyra may now Boost Acrobatics Skill Checks with up to 3 extra Action Dice.

Tip: Invest in Skills that define your role. Mastery shapes scenes—scattered points rarely make an impact.

Untrained Skill Use

Lack of training doesn’t mean you can’t try. If you use an untrained Skill (SL 0):

• You may still spend and roll Action Dice.
• You may not Boost that Skill Check.
• You do not gain default Skill rerolls.
• You may initiate that Skill once during your activation.
• You may not use Skill-specific powers unless otherwise granted.

Tip: Untrained checks rely on effort alone. You can still attempt them, but without Boost the odds are rough.

Skill Checks at a Glance

When making a Skill Check:

1. Declare what your character attempts.
2. The Guide confirms the Skill, Linked Vital, and Difficulty Rating (DR).
3. Spend the required Action Dice.
4. Decide whether to boost by spending extra Action Dice, up to the Skill Level.
5. Roll the committed Action Dice.
6. Apply Advantage or Disadvantage if relevant.
7. Count dots.
8. Compare the result to the DR.

Success = total dots exceed the DR.

Failure = total dots equal to or less than the DR.

Readiness Scores

A Skill’s Readiness Score represents your character’s standing preparedness when they are not actively rolling. It is used when the Guide needs a fixed value for awareness, resistance, response, or behind-the-screen checks.

Readiness combines natural capacity with trained discipline, but it does not equal a full active roll. It shows how prepared your character is before they commit Action Dice to an action.

Readiness Score = 1 + half the total of your Linked Vital and Skill Level, rounded down.

Formal formula: Readiness Score = max(2, 1 + floor((Linked Vital + Skill Level) / 2))

Minimum Readiness Score = 2.

Use this table if easier:

Readiness Scores keep Vitals meaningful even when dice are not rolled. They represent natural capacity and training working together as standing readiness, without requiring every opposed moment to become roll-versus-roll.

Tip: Record each Skill’s Readiness Score on your character sheet so it rarely needs to be calculated during play.

Summary

• Skill Level (SL) = the number of extra Action Dice you may commit as Boost.
• A Skill’s maximum SL = Linked Vital.
• Readiness Score = 1 + half the total of your Linked Vital and Skill Level, rounded down.
• You gain starting Skills from Bloodline Origins and your initial Class choice.
• Raising a Skill costs Story Points = new SL, and you must meet the Vital requirement.
• SL 0 = untrained. No Boost or Skill-based effects.
• During your activation, proactive uses of a Skill are limited to SL + 1, with a minimum of 1.
• Reactions outside your activation are not limited by proactive Skill uses; they are limited by Ready AD and the fiction.
• Skill Check = roll committed Action Dice, apply Edge if any, then count dots.