Grip
Typically used with: Muscle.
In short: hang on. Awe your onlookers with your fearsome wall-scaling abilities. Clutch onto a bucking bronco. Open a stuck jar lid. Any great feat of strength using your hands and fingers only (or feet and toes, for that matter) is what the Grip skill is all about. Grip can be used to effectively ascend or descend vertical distances as well as maintain solid holds on objects or creatures.
Climbing
You can roll a Grip check to climb out of a pit, up a tree, down a cliff, over the city walls, or across a ledge. The tougher the surface is to climb, the higher the DL.
The ladder into a tree house should be DL 5, and a sheer cliff face should be DL 30. A smooth, flat surface is basically impossible for mortals to Climb short of using magic spells. If you use climbing equipment, you gain a +4 bonus to the Grip check. A device such as magnetic boots, while not magical, allow for climbing of flat, metal surfaces at a DL of 10.
If you fail the check, you fall from your starting point. Not so bad at the bottom, but deadly from the top. See the Guard skill about falling damage.
Depending on how far you're climbing, your GM may ask you for Stamina checks or risk falling. If you're trying to go especially fast (or at least faster than someone else), you'll also want to roll a Dash check. If you're carrying something or someone, you also want to roll a Might check.
Once you start climbing, you gain the grabbed condition (in this case you're wrestling the wall). It's really hard to climb and fight at the same time. Even so, a character cannot use a two-handed weapon while climbing (unless, say, the character has more than one set of arms).
You can try to catch an object or creature that falls from above you. Roll another Grip check. The heavier it is, the higher the DL. If you fail, whatever it was continues falling. If you roll a Critical Failure, you follow suit in proper arm-flailing fashion.
Holding
You can roll a Grip check to grab onto another creature ("Get over here!") or try to vie for the same held object ("It's my locknar").
Any time you try to grab a creature or an object it holds, combat begins and the GM should make everyone roll Reaction. See the "Grabbing" entry in the Tactics section of Chapter 10: Combat. Your opponent can prevent or escape your grab by surpassing your Grip check with a Might check (if they're strong) or a Thievery check (if they're agile). As long as you have a hold on them, you both gain the grabbed condition. There are all kinds of interesting maneuvers you can attempt once you have someone held, including prying an object from their grasp.
When someone tries to disarm you in combat, you roll a Grip check and they roll a Thievery check. See the "Disarming" entry in the Tactics section of Chapter 10: Combat. Certain types of weapons, especially those that require two hands to use, grant a +2 bonus to the Grip check. If you beat or exceed the opponent, you keep your weapon.
If someone tries to pickpocket you, they roll a Thievery check against your Perception check. If you win, you get a chance to hold onto your item. You make a Grip check and they make a Might check. The victor receives the item. You might also want to roll a Dash check to get it back.
When creatures of different sizes make opposed rolls involving Grip or Might, each should add its Size Muscle Bonus. As noted in the Size table in the Life and Death chapter, a creature's Muscle Bonus is its Size × 5. Thus, firnoy have a penalty of −5 and kulgeris have a bonus of +5. This modifier should only be included when those rolling have different Size scores.
| For example, Tolgo the firnoy tries to pickpocket Grek the kulgeri. Grek's Perception check beats Tolgo's Thievery check, so Grek gets a chance to hold onto his coin purse. Tolgo rolls a 15 for Might and Grek rolls a 12 for Grip. If they were the same Size, Tolgo would take off running with the wallet, however since Tolgo is Size −1 and Grek is Size 1, their rolls must include their Size Muscle Bonus. That makes Tolgo's Might check a 10 and Grek's Grip a 17. Grek keeps the wallet and draws a knife. |
You can also make a Grip check to manipulate something that requires localized torque or pressure, like twisting open the cap on some glue, wrenching open a scroll case, or catching a slick bar of soap. The tougher to hold onto the object, the higher the DL. Grip is the more delicate alternative to Might.
