Difference between revisions of "Discern"

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In short: figure it out. Discern is all about sizing up a person or situation. A powerful general stands high over a battlefield deducing his opponent's objectives.  A judge hears a defendant's case, and then determines if he's telling the truth.  A powerful wizard sees through the disguise of an assassin posing as one of his servants.  All of these are perfect examples of the use of the Discern skill.
 
In short: figure it out. Discern is all about sizing up a person or situation. A powerful general stands high over a battlefield deducing his opponent's objectives.  A judge hears a defendant's case, and then determines if he's telling the truth.  A powerful wizard sees through the disguise of an assassin posing as one of his servants.  All of these are perfect examples of the use of the Discern skill.
  
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{{section|Difficulty|Since Discern can be used for multiple purposes, the DL differs depending on the task. Mostly, Discern is an opposed roll.}}
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You can't retry Discern checks; you either figure it out or you don't. However, you can try to Discern something different about the same subject.
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{{section|Revealing Deception|}}
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When another character attempts to deceive you, using either a [[Bluff]] or [[Disguise]] check, you must make a Discern check to see through their falsehoods. If you meet or exceed the other character's check, you can tell fact from fiction. If your result is lowest, you believe the lie, but it doesn't necessarily mean that you trust the liar wholeheartedly.
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When someone impersonates a specific character, and you actually ''know'' the person being portrayed, you gain a bonus to your Discern check. This is based on your Disposition toward the one being impersonated.
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{| width="100%"
 
{| width="100%"
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! Example !! DL
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! Example !! Bonus
 
|-
 
|-
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| Realizing a ferocious bear is only protecting her young
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| Benign/Malign
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|align="center"| 10
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|align="center"| +2
 
|-
 
|-
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| Get the gist of what a mute person (or person whose language you don't speak) is trying to tell you
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| Friendly/Hostile
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|align="center"| 15
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|align="center"| +6
 
|-
 
|-
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| Figuring out that someone is being magically controlled, or that something about a situation is otherwise amiss
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| Enamored/Hateful
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|align="center"| 20
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|align="center"| +8
 
|}
 
|}
  
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=====Learning battle plans=====
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{{section|Understanding Intent|}}
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With a successful Discern check, you can determine your enemy's (or ally's) battle strategy. Oppose your Discern against their [[Bluff]].  Some of the possible information one could Discern from battles include: a place, object, or person a combatant is guarding; the next plan of attack; a likely escape or fall-back point. Your GM, as always, will know the specifics of what your opponents have up their sleeves. This can be used to the greatest effect in conjunction with using [[Disguise]] and [[Search]] to gather information from within the opponent's own camp.
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You can make a Discern check to figure out others' mood, goals, motivation, or reasoning. By reading body language, tone of voice, behavior, and other social clues, you can figure out why a person is performing an action, how they're feeling about a situation, or what their next move may be. The higher your roll, the more specific or accurate your gut feeling. This works just as well in combat as it does conversation, and it works just as well for allies as it does enemies.
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If your result is 5 or higher, you can determine a creature's Disposition toward yourself or another creature. Unless, of course, they're hiding their true feelings, in which case you need to reveal their deception as described above.
  
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=====Sense ability=====
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{{section|Maintain Disposition|}}
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With a successful Discern check, you can figure out specific things about people you meet. A DL of 10 will get you comparative skill (they're better/worse/as good as you at something).  A DL of 15 will get you style specifics (the clothes they wear indicate they practice [[Fire School|fire magic]], etc.).  A DL of 20 will get you limited statistic information (a ballpark of how many [[Health Points]] remaining, what percentage of their [[Magic Points|Mana]] is drained, or what's the neighborhood of their [[Endurance]] score, etc.)  A DL of 25 or over gets you specifics. One stat is allowed per roll.
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When another character attempts to improve your feelings about himself or another, you can decline the friend request. You must make a Discern check to oppose a [[Negotiate]], [[Perform]], or [[Seduce]] check made to improve your [[Disposition]]. Creatures of a ''bestial'' [[nature]] must make a Discern check to oppose an [[Animal Control]] check for the same purpose. If your result meets or exceeds theirs, your Disposition remains unaffected. If their result is higher, your Disposition improves one level for each 5 points of difference. If the opponent makes a Critical Failure, your Disposition toward them actually worsens one level.
  
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=====Estimation=====
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A character can also attempt to worsen your bond deliberately. They make a [[Taunt]] check to worsen your Disposition and you must make a Discern check to avoid being offended. If your result meets or exceeds theirs, your Disposition remains unaffected. If their result is higher, your Disposition worsens one level for each 5 points of difference.
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Estimating is useful for determining the number of troops on a battlefield, revealing the market price of a gem, guessing a woman's weight, or figuring out how long building a ship will take with six laborers.
 
  
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Since there are so many broad uses for performing estimates, the GM should decide the DL for each on an individual basis using the chart at the beginning of the chapter. If the character has ranks in an Occupation which is relevant to the estimation, (e.g. a farmer can estimate when crops are ready for harvest, a sailor can estimate the travel speed of a sailboat) the GM should allow them to include the bonus.
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{{section|Analyzing Strategy|}}
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You can ascertain the strategy of entire armies. If your Discern check exceeds the commander's [[Leadership]] check, you can determine a single aspect of the battle strategy before it unfolds. Some of the possible information one could Discern from battles include: a place, object, or person a combatant is guarding; the next plan of attack; a likely escape or fall-back point.
  
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{{section|Opposed Rolls|Discern checks are used versus [[Bluff]] and [[Disguise]] checks.}}
 
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{{section|Retry|Discern attempts cannot be retried without the expenditure of a [[fate point]], however, the character can try to Discern something different about the same subject.}}
 
 
[[Category:Skills]]
 
[[Category:Skills]]

Latest revision as of 13:04, 30 September 2019

Typically used with: Insight.

In short: figure it out. Discern is all about sizing up a person or situation. A powerful general stands high over a battlefield deducing his opponent's objectives. A judge hears a defendant's case, and then determines if he's telling the truth. A powerful wizard sees through the disguise of an assassin posing as one of his servants. All of these are perfect examples of the use of the Discern skill.

You can't retry Discern checks; you either figure it out or you don't. However, you can try to Discern something different about the same subject.

Revealing Deception

When another character attempts to deceive you, using either a Bluff or Disguise check, you must make a Discern check to see through their falsehoods. If you meet or exceed the other character's check, you can tell fact from fiction. If your result is lowest, you believe the lie, but it doesn't necessarily mean that you trust the liar wholeheartedly.

When someone impersonates a specific character, and you actually know the person being portrayed, you gain a bonus to your Discern check. This is based on your Disposition toward the one being impersonated.

Example Bonus
Benign/Malign +2
Friendly/Hostile +6
Enamored/Hateful +8

Understanding Intent

You can make a Discern check to figure out others' mood, goals, motivation, or reasoning. By reading body language, tone of voice, behavior, and other social clues, you can figure out why a person is performing an action, how they're feeling about a situation, or what their next move may be. The higher your roll, the more specific or accurate your gut feeling. This works just as well in combat as it does conversation, and it works just as well for allies as it does enemies.

If your result is 5 or higher, you can determine a creature's Disposition toward yourself or another creature. Unless, of course, they're hiding their true feelings, in which case you need to reveal their deception as described above.

Maintain Disposition

When another character attempts to improve your feelings about himself or another, you can decline the friend request. You must make a Discern check to oppose a Negotiate, Perform, or Seduce check made to improve your Disposition. Creatures of a bestial nature must make a Discern check to oppose an Animal Control check for the same purpose. If your result meets or exceeds theirs, your Disposition remains unaffected. If their result is higher, your Disposition improves one level for each 5 points of difference. If the opponent makes a Critical Failure, your Disposition toward them actually worsens one level.

A character can also attempt to worsen your bond deliberately. They make a Taunt check to worsen your Disposition and you must make a Discern check to avoid being offended. If your result meets or exceeds theirs, your Disposition remains unaffected. If their result is higher, your Disposition worsens one level for each 5 points of difference.

Analyzing Strategy

You can ascertain the strategy of entire armies. If your Discern check exceeds the commander's Leadership check, you can determine a single aspect of the battle strategy before it unfolds. Some of the possible information one could Discern from battles include: a place, object, or person a combatant is guarding; the next plan of attack; a likely escape or fall-back point.

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