Eldritch Tales: Attributes and Skills

Hello!

I've been off working on other projects, but work on  Eldritch Tales: Lovecraftian White Box Role-playing continues! I have recently done some minor rewrites and am expanding the Mythos Earth setting information. I've gotten some questions about the magic system and would like to talk about that, but first I have to explain the basic resolution system.

In Eldritch Tales, all characters have the classic attributes (Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma) and we use the typical Swords & Wizardry attribute chart. In addition to the normal attribute modifier, each attribute has an "Attribute Feat Success" attached to it. This is simply a range required for success on a 1d6 roll. See below:

Attribute Roll	Description	Bonus	Feat Success
3-6	Below Average	-1 (or -5%)	6
7-14	Average	0	5-6
15-18	Above Average	+1 (or +5%)	4-6

The referee need not require a roll for every action taken by the character and should be careful not to allow die rolls to take the place of role-playing and player skill. However, when the success of an action is in question, the referee might call for an Attribute Feat. A 1d6 is rolled, modifiers are applied, and the result is checked against the Attribute's Success Range. If the number falls within (or is higher than) the range, the character succeeds!

For example, Minnesota Phipps has a Dexterity of 13, which give him a Feat Success of 5-6. Phipps wants to snatch a stone idol out of the hand of a cultist. He rolls a d6, and would succeed on a 5 or 6. The Attribute modifier is NOT applied to a Feat - it is already built in to the Success Range. The referee is free to apply modifiers. A inattentive or surprised cultist might grant a bonus, while a penalty might be applied if he is holding the idol with both hands.

Skills
Each class grants "Class Skills," which grant a +1 bonus to Attribute Feats that involve such skills. The Opportunist class grants Appraisal, Perception, Sneaking and Driving as skills. Anytime the character attempts an Attribute Feat involving one of these skills, he gains a +1 to the roll. Skills are not necessarily tied to a specific ability, although many are obvious. Cases arise where an argument might be made to allow two or more Attributes to be used. The referee makes the decision on which Attribute should be checked based on the situation.

Additionally, Occupations allow the player to roll two dice and take the better result when performing actions related to their Specialties. Class Skills and Occupational Specialties may overlap, and it is up to the referee if he will let the benefits to be used together.

I'll talk about Magic in my next post on ET. Suffice it to say that casting a spell requires a special Attribute Feat called a Spell Check.

Until next time!