Social Skills – Infinite Horror

Detailed Skill descriptions:

When playing a session, how do you measure how much an NPC likes the players? What will they do at each level of goodwill? Below is goodwill put into numbers.

An NPC's goodwill toward you affects some Social Skill rolls, so the table is placed here.

Attitude	Meaning	Possible actions
Hostile	Trading their life for yours would be a bargain	Attacks you, hinders you, accuses you
Unfriendly	Makes things go wrong for you as much as they safely can	Misleads you in conversation, gossips behind your back, suspects you first when something happens, insults you, runs from you
Wary	Somewhat suspicious of you	Keeps quiet about important matters in conversation (but doesn't lie), deliberately avoids you
Indifferent	Doesn't care about you	Ordinary social contact
Friendly	Likes you a little	Happy to share information and opinions with you, gives a little help
Helpful	Helps you as much as they can without harming their own interests	Friendly conversation, talks you out of risky or bad behavior, gives limited help, backs you up when needed, gives you medical care outside combat, includes you in group buffs
Devoted	Willing to give their life to help you	Protects you in combat, supports what you do (however mad or wicked it sounds), gives you medical care in combat, spends time in combat casting single-target buffs on you
Obedient *	Only animals reach this level; it means fully tamed	Acts affectionate with you, plays with you, is willing to show you its weak spots and sore points, lets you ride it

Note that these descriptions all assume Natural Essence.

Animal Ken: understanding animals' habits and feelings, getting along with them, and training them.

Common uses and Specialties:

Mounted combat:

Mounted combat: MAN + Animal Ken (Riding)

This is a special Specialty. With it, every roll you make in mounted combat gains a 1 DP specialty bonus, and this bonus stacks with other specialty bonuses.

And without this Specialty, every Skill roll you make in mounted combat suffers the no-Specialty penalty.

For example, when you make a Blade attack while riding, this Specialty gives you 1 more point of specialty bonus on top of the usual specialty bonus from Blade.

Training animals:

Training animals: MAN + Animal Ken (Animal Training)

This Skill lets you train animals to do certain jobs, such as pulling carts, fighting, or standing guard.

Action: this is an extended roll with an interval of one day. While rolling, you must stay with your animal companion.

You must teach your animal companion specific commands before it will follow them.

The DCs for learning these commands are below. Note that an animal won't follow a command you haven't taught it:

Command	DC
Fight: knows how to fight; you can control it as you would a character	DC 40
Guard: stays in one place to keep other creatures away, or keeps prisoners from escaping	DC 30
Carry: light loads need no training; medium and heavy loads do	DC 20
Track and search: searches an area, or follows a lingering scent, to hunt down enemies	DC 30
Fetch: leaves you to fetch an item	DC 30
Protect: protects a target	DC 30
Perform: learns tricks such as rolling over, sitting, or jumping through hoops; each counts separately	DC 20
Follow and come: follows you, and comes, goes, and stays when told	DC 20

Each animal can learn commands, which only work when its owner gives them. If you want others to be able to command your animal companion, you can train it with the command's DC multiplied by 1.5; each extra x0.5 lets one more person give it that command.

There is no limit to how many commands an animal can learn.

But each command it learns raises the DC of the next: to learn a new command, add up the DCs of all the commands it already knows (not counting the extra DC for multiple people), plus the new command's own DC. For a multi-person command, only the new command's own DC is multiplied.

Example: teaching an animal Fight takes DC 40. Making it also take Fight commands from 2 other people takes DC 80. Teaching it Guard afterward takes DC 40 + DC 30 = DC 70. If Guard should also obey 2 other people, it takes DC 40 + DC 30 x 2 = DC 100.

Note: any animal companion or mount bought as a resource in the Overseer's Space counts as already knowing every command, but obeys only the buyer (its owner). To make it obey other characters, it still needs training as normal.

Improving an animal's attitude:

Improving an animal's attitude: MAN + Animal Ken (Beast Speech)

See "Negotiation" below for the rules, with every mention of "Socialize (Negotiation)" replaced by "Animal Ken (Beast Speech)".

With these changes:

In general, domestic animals start out Indifferent, wild creatures are usually Wary, and hungry large predators are Hostile.

For supernatural animals, the DC rises with their Rank.

As a simple rule, raise the DC by 1 for each D-Rank the supernatural animal has.

If a supernatural animal has high Intelligence, use Socialize instead.

Also, with the ST's permission, PCs can use Animal Ken on creatures that for some reason have only animal intelligence.

For example, a character turned simple-minded by a spell.

Empathy: understanding other people's feelings and motives and sharing them, and being easily affected by others' emotions.

Common uses and Specialties:

Steadfast

Steadfast: the higher of RES / COM + Empathy (Steadfast)

This Specialty is used to oppose a target's Negotiation, Persuasion, Threaten, and Roar rolls. See the rules for "Negotiation", "Persuasion", "Threaten", and "Roar".

Note that because every character has their own position and attitude, a character without the "Steadfast" Specialty does not suffer the no-Specialty penalty on Steadfast rolls.

But without the "Steadfast" Specialty, you use the lower of RES and COM for this roll.

Read People

Read People: PER + Empathy (Read People)

This Skill lets you judge a target's emotions, state of mind, and so on.

Action: in general, reading a target means interacting with them normally for more than 1 minute (10 consecutive full-round actions). Seeing through a lie someone tells you, however, takes no action.

You can tell whether a target is under charm, mind control, or similar effects: because these supernatural effects restrict the target's behavior, you can spot them. The DC is the successes of the ability's spellcasting roll, or of the Will roll if there was no spellcasting roll.

You can also read the target's current emotional state at DC 3. On a success, you learn the target's state of mind, such as fear, nervousness, excitement, or dejection.

You can also use a Read People roll to oppose a target's Bluff roll; see the "Bluff" rules. And because everyone has some sense for protecting themselves from deception, a character without the "Read People" Specialty does not suffer the no-Specialty penalty on Read People rolls. But if you have the "Read People" Specialty and your Read People roll beats a Bluff roll, you can clearly tell the other person is trying to deceive you.

Note that Read People is usually a one-time roll: you can usually make only one Read People roll for a given conversation, event, or target (unless you change the subject or start a conversation unrelated to what came before).

Expression: the character knows a performing art, such as oratory, playing music, or singing.

Common uses and Specialties:

Expression is a Skill with sub-skills, and the sub-skills don't affect each other. Because Expression is special, abilities like "all Specialties" cannot affect it.

When making an Expression roll, if you don't have the matching sub-skill, you cannot roll Expression at all, unless stated otherwise.

When you learn Expression, you must choose one sub-skill at the same time before you can raise it.

It is written as Expression - sub-skill.

When raising it, you raise the matching Expression sub-skill, and when using it, you use the matching sub-skill.

For example: a character can have Expression - Instrument 2 and Expression - Oratory 5. When giving a speech, the character rolls Expression - Oratory 5; when playing music, they roll Expression - Instrument 2.

If a roll calls only for "Expression" without naming a sub-skill, use your highest Expression sub-skill.

Expression sub-skills:

Music:

Singing:

Singing: PRE + Expression - Singing

Singing means the singer uses their own vocal cords and mouth to make sound, so anyone without the ability to speak can't use this Skill. While using this sub-skill, every language-related ability is unavailable, as if occupied.

Instrument:

Instrument: PRE + Expression - Instrument

Playing an instrument takes hand movements, usually both hands, so you can't take actions with your hands while playing. Some instruments also need the mouth (such as a trumpet); for those, every language-related ability is unavailable, as if occupied.

Note: to keep things simple, we don't divide orchestral, percussion, and other instruments into categories; all count as Instrument.

Physical:

Dance:

Dance: PRE + Expression - Dance

Dance means the dancer performs with their own body, using the whole body. The hands usually don't count as occupied while dancing, but because of the dance, no ability that requires a stance can be used, as if occupied.

Physical performance:

Physical performance: PRE + Expression - Physical Performance

Physical performance means the performer performs with their body or technique, mostly using the whole body and sometimes only part of it. Magic tricks and acrobatics both belong here. In general, a performer giving a physical performance can't use any ability that requires a stance.

Speech:

Oratory:

Oratory: PRE + Expression - Oratory (Recitation)

Oratory and recitation mean performing by speaking, which needs the mouth, so anyone without the ability to speak can't use this Skill. While using this sub-skill, every language-related ability is unavailable, as if occupied.

Note: to keep things simple, every spoken performance counts as Expression - Oratory, even stand-up comedy or crosstalk.

Note: music and speech must be carried by sound; physical performances must be seen.

These kinds of Expression cover almost every ability in the resources. If a resource doesn't say, the ST decides which sub-skill to use.

Also, in any situation, you can earn some fame by performing. This is a Natural Essence performance, rolled as MAN + Expression - matching sub-skill. The time needed ranges from one act to a whole day, as the ST decides. Suggested DCs:

Performance	DC
Terrible: about the level of a street beggar	DC 1
Ordinary: somewhat enjoyable	DC 3
Good: professional standard	DC 5
Stunning: the best among professionals, worthy of top awards	DC 7
Extraordinary: worth recording in history	DC 10

Intimidation: using physical violence or mental threats to make others afraid enough to do as you say.

Common uses and Specialties:

Threaten

Threaten: MAN + Intimidation (Threaten)

This Skill lets you temporarily change a target's attitude toward you through threats and scares, at the cost of your long-term relationship with them.

Action: changing someone's attitude takes at least one minute (10 consecutive full-round actions). In some special situations it may take much longer, as the ST decides. You can also make a hasty Threaten roll as a full-round action, but you lose half your successes on it.

You can use this roll to change the target's attitude temporarily. Your MAN + Intimidation (Threaten) roll is opposed by the target's "Steadfast" roll. If you win, the target's attitude toward you temporarily rises to Friendly (nothing changes if it is already above Friendly) for one scene, or until the person or item threatening the target leaves.

The Friendly attitude shows only in how the target acts while threatened. That is, the target's attitude toward you doesn't really change, but while threatened, they help you as if they were Friendly.

Once the duration ends, the target's original attitude toward you immediately drops one level.

For example: a target starts Wary toward you. A successful Threaten roll temporarily makes them Friendly. When the duration ends, their attitude drops one level, to Unfriendly.

Note that when intimidating a target, you must have enough means to be a threat (or at least make the target believe you do), such as holding a gun or weapon on an ordinary person, or using a hostage. Without enough means, your Intimidation successes are halved.

And when you do have enough means to intimidate, you may gain a circumstance bonus depending on those means, as the ST decides.

Besides this, if the target has fear points tied to you, you can also make a Threaten roll, and each fear point the target has toward you gives your Threaten roll 1 extra success.

Since the essence of threatening is the target's fear, targets immune to fear are also immune to Threaten, and you can't threaten creatures with no intelligence.

Roar

Roar: STR + Intimidation (Roar)

This Skill lets you terrify opponents in combat and shake their confidence.

Action: roaring at a target in combat is a standard action.

You can only use this Specialty in combat.

Your STR + Intimidation (Roar) roll is opposed by the target's "Steadfast" roll. If you win, the target gains a fear condition equal to your margin of success. You can only intimidate an enemy you threaten in melee, and the target must be able to see you.

If the target has the "Steadfast" Specialty, the fear condition points from this ability automatically drop by 1 every turn; if not, they save against the fear points as normal.

Even if your roar succeeds, a person can only be frightened so much, so repeated roars don't stack; use the highest.

If you fail, roaring at the same target again in the same fight has no effect.

Since the Essence of intimidation is the target's fear, targets immune to fear are also immune to Roar, and you can't roar at creatures with no intelligence.

Socialize: most skills of speech, such as striking deals, quick talk, seduction, rousing, and persuasion.

Common uses and Specialties:

Negotiation:

Negotiation: MAN + Socialize (Negotiation)

This Skill lets you change people's attitude toward you through the power of speech.

Action: changing someone's attitude takes at least one minute (10 consecutive full-round actions). In some special situations it may take much longer, as the ST decides. You can also make a hasty Negotiation roll as a full-round action, but you take a 5 DP untyped penalty on it.

A successful Negotiation roll can change someone's (a non-player character's, an NPC's) attitude. The target opposes with a Steadfast roll, and its successes are added to the DC to get your final result.

Normally, Negotiation works only once on the same NPC or about the same matter. Most people have their limits: however good your argument, their attitude toward the matter shifts only so far, not without limit.

Likewise, if your Negotiation roll fails, the target may become firmer in their attitude toward you or the matter, or even worse.

Starting attitude / new attitude	Hostile	Unfriendly	Wary	Indifferent	Friendly	Helpful	Devoted
Starting attitude: Hostile	-	DC 4	DC 7	DC 10	DC 13	DC 16	DC 20
Starting attitude: Unfriendly	-	-	DC 3	DC 6	DC 9	DC 12	DC 15
Starting attitude: Wary	-	-	-	DC 3	DC 6	DC 9	DC 12
Starting attitude: Indifferent	-	-	-	-	DC 3	DC 6	DC 9
Starting attitude: Friendly	-	-	-	-	-	DC 3	DC 7
Starting attitude: Helpful	-	-	-	-	-	-	DC 5
Starting attitude: Devoted	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Hostile: willing to take risks to hurt you; attacks, hinders, insults, or runs from you.

Unfriendly: wants bad things to happen to you; misleads you, gossips about you, avoids you, watches you suspiciously, insults you.

Wary: somewhat suspicious of you; keeps quiet about important things in conversation, avoids you.

Indifferent: doesn't care about you at all; a stranger.

Friendly: wishes you well; chats with you, gives advice, gives limited help, backs you up.

Helpful: willing to take risks to help you; protects, supports, heals, and aids you.

Devoted: willing to give their life to help you; risks their life to rescue you, protects you, supports you.

Normally, a stranger starts out Indifferent toward you.

Some special situations change the DC.

For example, the two sides belong to different factions, or differ in skin color, looks, taste, or religion. All of these change the DC; the ST decides the details.

Since a TRPG is a roleplaying game, we encourage players to roleplay rather than just roll dice. This rule is only a reference for the ST, who may always set it aside and ask the PC to actually roleplay.

Others can help with a Negotiation roll, but only someone whose attitude is at least Friendly toward the person being negotiated with can help under the "assisting" rules.

Persuasion:

Persuasion: MAN + Socialize (Persuasion)

This Skill lets you temporarily change someone's view of one particular thing through the power of speech.

Action: changing someone's attitude takes at least one minute (10 consecutive full-round actions). In some special situations it may take much longer, as the ST decides. You can also make a hasty Persuasion roll as a full-round action, but you take a 5 DP untyped penalty on it.

You can only make a Persuasion roll about one thing, and when you roll, you must state your request, such as "drop your weapon", "release the hostage", or "surrender". The target opposes with a "Steadfast" roll. If you win, the target does what you ask.

For each charm point the target has toward you, your roll gains an untyped bonus of 1 DP. Your attitude relationship with the target also affects the DC of your Persuasion roll:

Target's attitude toward you	DC adjustment
Hostile	DC +15
Unfriendly	DC +11
Wary	DC +7
Indifferent	DC +3
Friendly	DC -1
Helpful	DC -3
Devoted	DC -5

Note that what you ask must not harm the target's interests, or the target must gain more by doing it. You can't persuade a target to do something absurd, such as killing themselves or handing you all the money in their pocket, unless you give a convincing reason.

Depending on your request, the ST may raise or lower the DC.

Some special situations change the DC.

For example, the two sides belong to different factions, or differ in skin color, looks, taste, or religion. All of these change the DC; the ST decides the details.

Note: since a TRPG is a roleplaying game, we encourage players to roleplay rather than just roll dice. This rule is only a reference for the ST, who may always set it aside and ask the PC to actually roleplay.

You may also be trying to persuade the same target to make a different choice from someone else, such as you and A both trying to persuade B to kill the other. In that case, everyone trying to persuade the target makes an opposed Persuasion roll against the target. Then everyone who won compares their margin of success, and the persuader with the greatest margin wins.

Gather information

Gather information: MAN + Socialize (Gather Information)

This Skill lets you hear local rumors, spread rumors, or collect general information through various channels.

Action: a typical Gather Information roll takes 1d4+1 hours.

When you are somewhere suited to socializing, such as a tavern, a nightclub, or a town square, you can make a MAN + Socialize (Gather Information) roll to learn recent news about the area, or to dig up specific information. The details and DCs are below:

Information sought	Base DC	Special circumstance	DC adjustment
Big news everyone knows	DC 1	Different race	DC +2
Specific information (directions, getting a map)	DC 2	No common language	DC +3
Specific, uncommon information (an item's history)	DC 4	Older events	DC +1 per week earlier
Information only certain people know (when the guards change shifts)	DC 7
Secret information (a drug deal)	DC 10

Note that Gather Information is not an extended roll. If you fail, you can start a new Gather Information roll.

And if your successes are high enough, you can spread them evenly (rounded down) across the time spent; once a unit of time has enough successes to meet the DC, you finish gathering information early.

For example: you want a map to Ashenvale, at base DC 2. You make a MAN + Socialize (Gather Information) roll and get 4 successes, and the 1d4+1 hours comes to 2 hours, so you gain 2 successes per hour. You have enough successes in the first hour, so you can stop after 1 hour, map in hand.

You can ask around about the same information several times. Each time you must start a new roll, and each roll takes time. And if you keep asking about a particular kind of information, you may draw attention.

Subterfuge: hiding your intentions and deceiving others, with smooth talk and sleight of mind.

Common uses and Specialties:

Feint: INT + Subterfuge (Feint) (see the combat chapter for details)

Bluff

Bluff: MAN + Subterfuge (Bluff)

This Skill lets you make false information sound true, giving you the means to deceive people.

Action: deceiving someone with a bluff takes at least one minute (10 consecutive full-round actions). In some special situations it may take much longer, as the ST decides. You can also make a hasty Bluff roll as a full-round action, but you take a 5 DP untyped penalty on it.

Your MAN + Subterfuge (Bluff) roll is opposed by the target's "Read People" roll. If you win, you can make the target act as your bluff intends for a short time (usually within 1 round); a clever bluff may last longer.

For example: you can make a woman think there's a cockroach at her feet, so she briefly moves away from where she is. Or you can trick someone into thinking their house is on fire, so they rush home to put it out.

For example: you want to get close to someone and find a chance to ambush them. If you win, they don't notice you are about to attack, giving you a surprise round for your attack.

A bluff achieves 2 things: the target believes the lie and acts on it, and the action itself.

For example: you trick the target into thinking they left something at the tavern, so they go search the tavern.

The searching is the action itself; the lie the target believes is that they left their belongings at the tavern.

After searching the tavern, the target still hasn't found their belongings.

In that case, the target ends their action, but may still believe their belongings are at the tavern and they just didn't find them.

This means the target's deceived action has ended, but they are still deceived.

So a bluff has two kinds of duration:

The first is truth time: until the target realizes they have been deceived.

The second is action time: until the target finishes the action they took because they were deceived.

In any case, once the target learns the truth, whether or not the action time has ended, they are immediately no longer deceived and stop the deceived action.

How hard a bluff is depends on your lie and your relationship with the target:

Lie	DC adjustment	Attitude	DC adjustment
The target wants to believe it	DC -1	Hostile	DC +3
Reasonable, no loss	DC +0	Unfriendly	DC +2
Against common sense, a little loss	DC +2	Wary	DC +1
Hard to believe, risky	DC +4	Indifferent	DC +0
Unbelievable, very risky	DC +7	Friendly	DC -1
Beyond imagination, could never exist	DC +12	Helpful	DC -2
		Devoted	DC -4

The target you deceive must have the intelligence to understand you, so bluffing automatically fails against beings with no intelligence or very low intelligence (such as beasts).

Usually, when your Bluff roll fails, if the target doesn't become suspicious, you can keep bluffing until they grow suspicious or lose patience.

Some special situations change the DC.

For example, the two sides belong to different factions, or differ in skin color, looks, taste, or religion. All of these change the DC; the ST decides the details.

Disguise

Disguise: INT/MAN + Subterfuge

This Skill lets you change your own or someone else's appearance.

Action: a disguise takes about 1d6 x 10 minutes.

A character can use this Skill to pose as a specific person. You can disguise yourself or someone else.

When disguising, make an INT/MAN + Subterfuge (Disguise) roll and note the successes, adjusted for how difficult the disguise is.

Then, while disguised, you must oppose anyone who pays attention to you and might question your identity. They roll PER + Empathy (Read People) or PER + Investigation (Spotting). If you lose, your disguise is seen through.

For example: you disguise yourself as an officer. When you enter a watchtower, the guards at the door who know that officer (even by sight) can oppose you. But if a soldier has never seen the officer, he opposes your Blend In, not your Disguise.

Usually, a target makes a roll to see through your disguise as soon as they meet you, then once every hour after that. If you meet several different creatures, each must roll.

Besides the basic opposed roll, disguises are adjusted for the following:

Special circumstance	Adjustment
Disguised as another sex	Disguise successes -2
Disguised as another humanoid race	Disguise successes -2
Changing age (youth - young adult - middle age - old age)	Disguise successes -2 per age group crossed
The target's attitude toward the person you're disguised as	Starting from Indifferent, -3 successes per level up or down

A disguise won't get you past iris scans, fingerprints, or other checks that need the real person; you have only changed your face.

Usually, besides their role, a person also has their own unique identity.

That is, in a company, employees can come and go freely, but only the chairman can enter the chairman's office.

So getting in and out of the company needs a Blend In roll, while getting into the chairman's office needs a Disguise roll (unless you sneak in, of course).

So the difference between Disguise and Blend In is that Disguise changes your face, which may get you into places where your face is your pass; Blend In can't.

As a special rule, Disguise can only be rolled with this Specialty; otherwise no roll is possible.

Note that this is a Natural Essence disguise, not an illusion, so abilities that see through illusions can't see through it.

Usually, a character in disguise is also blending in at the same time. So a target can make separate opposed rolls against your Disguise and your Blend In; if either succeeds, your disguise or cover is seen through.

Blend In

Blend In: INT/MAN + Subterfuge (Blend In)

This Skill lets you pass as a member of a particular group of people, rather than a particular person.

Action: blending in takes about 1d2 x 10 minutes.

You can only blend in yourself, by changing your voice, posture, clothing, and so on to look like a certain group of people. For example, passing as a German soldier or a fanatical believer, rather than as a specific person.

Then, while blending in, you must oppose anyone who pays attention to you and might question your identity. They roll PER + Empathy (Read People) or PER + Investigation (Spotting). If you lose, your cover is blown.

Since you aren't posing as a specific person, in most cases once you have blended in successfully, you don't need to do it again for the same target, unless you slip up and make them suspicious.

Besides the basic opposed roll, blending in is adjusted for the following:

Special circumstance	DC adjustment
Passing as another sex	DC +2
Passing as someone of another faith, religion, or faction	DC +1
Passing as another humanoid race	DC +2
Changing age (youth - young adult - middle age - old age)	DC +1 per age group crossed
How familiar the target is with the group you're passing as	ST decides
No common language	DC +5

Blending in won't get you into places or events limited to a specific person. You have only changed your role, not become someone else.

Usually, besides their role, a person also has their own unique identity.

That is, in a company, employees can come and go freely, but only the chairman can enter the chairman's office.

So getting in and out of the company needs a Blend In roll, while getting into the chairman's office needs a Disguise roll (unless you sneak in, of course).

So the difference between Disguise and Blend In is that Disguise changes your face, which may get you into places where your face is your pass; Blend In can't.

Note that this is a Natural Essence disguise, not an illusion, so abilities that see through illusions can't see through it.