Deception

This skill represents your proficiency at deceiving others through conversation and face-to-face interaction. This skill includes your ability to bluff your way out of trouble, bribe a suspicious official, fast-talk members of the public, or successfully gamble your way to victory.

BRIBE (1 Minute)

Whenever you want to offer a target goods, information, or services to get that target to do things they normally wouldn't, spend 1 minute interacting with a target and make a Deception check against the target's Composure Defence. Bribery allows you to circumvent various official obstacles when a person in a position of trust or authority is willing to accept such an offering.

An illegal act, bribery requires two willing participants - one to offer a bribe and the other to accept it. When a character requires a bribe to render services, then your Deception check automatically fails if a bribe isn't attached to it. Some characters will be insulted by a bribe offer (their attitude changes one step for the worse), and others will report you to the proper authorities.

Critical Success: The target’s attitude toward you improves by one step for 1 day, and they accept the bribe.Success: The target accepts your bribe and does what you asked, but their attitude does not shift (a Hostile security guard remains Hostile next time you interact with them).Failure: The target refuses your bribe. They will not consider another bribe from you unless the value increases. Their attitude decreases by one step.Critical Failure: The target is insulted and refuses the bribe. They become Hostile and will likely report you to the authorities.

CREATE A DIVERSION ⬤ ◌ ◌

With a gesture, a trick, or some distracting words, you can create a diversion that draws your targets' attention elsewhere.

Spend 1 Action to make a Deception check and compare it to the Composure Defences of the targets you're attempting to divert. Whether or not you succeed, creatures you attempt to divert gain a +4 circumstance bonus to their Composure DCs against your attempts to Create a Diversion for 1 minute.

Success: You become Hidden to any creature whose Composure Defense you beat. This lasts until the end of your turn, or until you do anything except Step, Hide, or Sneak. (If you Strike a creature, they are Flat-Footed against the attack, but you immediately become Observed).Failure: You fail to divert their attention, and they are aware you were trying to trick them.

FEINT ⬤ ◌ ◌

With a misleading flourish, you leave an opponent unprepared for your real attack. Spend 1 action to make a Deception check against the target's Awareness Defence.

Critical Success: You throw their defences completely off. The target is Flat-Footed against your melee attacks until the end of your next turn.Success: You fool them momentarily. The target is Flat-Footed against the next melee attack you attempt against them before the end of your current turn.Critical Failure: Your feint backfires clumsily. You are Flat-Footed against melee attacks the target attempts against you until the end of your next turn.

GAMBLE (10 Minutes)

With a successful Gamble check, you can estimate the odds of a game of chance, determine if it's been rigged, spot a cheater, count cards, or increase your own odds of winning. Gambling requires you to make a Wealth check equal to the buy-in for a particular pot. At a casino, you will typically be presented with a range of options for gambling, including various wealth checks and the respective DCs for Gamble actions.

By Spending 10 Minutes, you can make a Deception check and decide to either play skillfully and honestly, or cheat:

If you play honestly, you gain +2 against unskilled opponents and -2 against opponents with a higher Deception tier than you.
If you cheat, you gain +4 against unskilled opponents and -4 against opponents with a higher Deception tier than you, as they are more able to determine you're cheating and call you on your actions.

Critical Success: You win the pot, plus a side bet equal to half the pot.Success: You win the pot.Critical Failure: You crash out. If playing honestly, you lose your wager. If cheating, you are caught by management or the other players.

IMPERSONATE (Variable Actions)

You create a disguise to pass yourself off as someone or something you are not. Assembling a convincing disguise requires either 10 minutes and access to a disguise kit, or 1 hour and access to a mall or other large shopping centre, but a simpler, quicker disguise might do the job if you’re not trying to imitate a specific individual, at the GM’s discretion.

After assembling your disguise, the GM will make a secret Deception Check to determine the quality of your disguise, and compare that to the Awareness defences of those you interact with. In most cases, creatures have a chance to detect your deception only if they use the Seek action to attempt Awareness checks against your Deception DC. If you’re disguised as a specific individual, the GM might give creatures you interact with a circumstance bonus based on how well they know the person you’re imitating.

Success: You trick the target into thinking you are who you claim to be. You might have to attempt a new check if your behaviour changes.FailureThe target can tell you’re not who you claim to be.Critical Failure The creature can tell you’re not who you claim to be, and it recognizes your true identity if they know you.

LIE (3 Actions) ⬤ ⬤ ⬤

You try to mislead or deceive a target through false bravado, outright lies, or extreme confidence. Spend 3 actions telling your lie to the targets, roll a single Deception check and compare it against the Composure Defence of every creature you are trying to fool. The GM might give them a circumstance bonus based on the situation and the nature of the lie you are trying to tell. Elaborate or highly unbelievable lies are much harder to get a creature to believe than simpler and more believable lies, and some lies are so big that it’s impossible to get anyone to believe them.

At the GM’s discretion, if a creature initially believes your lie, it might attempt a Composure check later to Sense Motive against your Deception DC to realize it’s a lie. This usually happens if the creature discovers enough evidence to counter your statements.

Critical Success: The target’s attitude toward you improves by two steps until they realize they were deceived.Success: The target believes your lie, and their attitude improves by one step until they figure it out.Failure: The target sees through your patter. Their attitude decreases by one step, and they gain a +4 bonus against further attempts to Lie from you or your allies for the rest of the Scene.Critical Failure: The target sees clearly through your lie and becomes Hostile.

PASS SECRET MESSAGE ◌

Use combat banter or subtle body language to pass a hidden message to an ally. As a Free Action, you make a Deception check (DC 15 for simple messages, DC 20 for complex ones) to pass along a coded message. Anyone overhearing the message must beat your Deception result with an opposed Investigate check to learn the true meaning of the message.

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