Cheating: This is the skill of winning at gambling games by cheating—by dealing cards from the bottom of the deck, etc. The cheating character should make his Cheating skill roll; each character he plays with can make one skill roll (Cheating at the normal level, Gambling at a – 1 penalty, or a base Intelligence check at a -4 penalty, whichever is best) against the character’s cheating roll. If one or more of the other players makes his roll lower than the cheater does (see “Using Skills Against Each Other” in this chapter), he detects the cheating. This skill is limited to characters of Chaotic alignment.
🃏 Racial Variants #
| Variant | Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Gnomish | The Micro-Mechanism | Gnomes use tiny, clockwork hidden-arm slides or weighted “loaded” dice. They gain a +2 bonus to their roll, but if they are caught, the physical evidence is undeniable. |
| Elven | Prismatic Tell | Elves can see subtle shifts in the spectrum of light. They “mark” cards with faint oils visible only to elven eyes, allowing them to cheat without ever touching the deck suspiciously. |
| Halfling | The Table-Bump | Leveraging their size and supposed “clumsiness,” they use a knee or elbow against the table to flip a die or tilt a surface, making the cheat look like an innocent accident. |
🗺️ Regional Variants #
- The High-Stakes Sharp (Metropolitan/Palatial)
In the gilded casinos of the capital, Cheating is a high-art of Misdirection.
- Specialty: The Conversation-Trap. They use witty banter and intense eye contact to “lock” an opponent’s gaze. Opponents take an additional -2 penalty to their detection rolls because they are too busy laughing or arguing to watch the hands.
- The Back-Alley “Shell” Artist (Urban/Slums)
In the gutters, games are fast, dirty, and physically aggressive.
- Specialty: Sleight of Crowd. They often have a “shill” (an accomplice) in the crowd. The accomplice creates a minor disturbance, allowing the cheater to use their Acrobatics skill instead of Intelligence for the Cheating roll.
- The Port-Side “Barnacle” (Coastal/Maritime)
Sailors use whatever is at hand—often literally.
- Specialty: Wet-Hand Technique. Using moisture, sea-salt, or sticky rum, they can “clump” cards together or make dice stick to a specific side. They are particularly adept at cheating in high-humidity or spray-filled environments.
- The Frontier “Tall-Taler” (Wilderness/Outpost)
In the rough outskirts, cheating is often about Intimidation.
- Specialty: The Heavy-Hand. They don’t hide the cheat well; they just make it dangerous to call them out. If an NPC detects the cheat, the Cheater can immediately roll Intimidation; if successful, the NPC “decides” they didn’t see anything after all.
⚖️ The “Detection” Mechanic #
As per the rules, if an opponent’s roll is lower than the cheater’s (meaning they succeeded better), they spot the fraud.
- Design Tip: If a character has the Gambling skill as well as Cheating, they gain a “Passive Detection” value, allowing them to notice others cheating without having to explicitly state they are looking for it.
