Bargaining-(Cha)You are skilled at the art of bargaining. This skill is good in markets when haggling over the price of tomatos, or in the boardroom when discussing business deals.
Body Artistry-(Agl)You are skilled in artistically altering the human body, through body piercings, tattoos, scarification, and branding. People may desire this for any number of reasons: personal statement, ritual significance, or sexual stimulus.
Bureuacracy-(Ego)You know the ways of red-tape - forms in triplicate, review panels, commisions and committees, authorizations, etc. You can either hide behind the bureaucracy as a means of never getting anything done (or, more actively, keeping it from getting anything done) or you can cut through a bureaucracy and get results fast. Either way, it means you know whom to call and what to say.
Carousing-(Cha)This is not simply the ability to party; anyone can do that. It is the ability to party purposfully and sucessfully: to overhear important facts, catch the interesting rumours, negotiate yourself into a position of being introduced to the right people, successfully pretend to be drunk (when it would be useful), get others intoxicated enough to do your bidding, etc. You should describe what you are trying to do at a particular party, and not just throw the die. Good roleplaying can modify the effect.
Cosmology-(Ego)You know the true reality. You know about the Demiurge, the shattering of the Illusions, the Death Angels and the Azgouls. You know a little about Metroplois and Inferno. Note: no character should be able to start play with this skill, and it can only be developed with the GM's permission. Also, any character who knows this but has a Mental Balance above -25 does not truely believe it. They know it like most people know their horoscope: interesting information, but hardly fact. As the character is forced to face the truth, of course, MB will be affected as usual. Lictors, Death Angels, and other creatures of Reality automatically have this skill equal to their Ego.
Counseling-(Per)You have ways of easing the distressed and mentally disturbed. You can, after sufficient conversations with people, determine what their probable psychological problems are, determine possible methods of recovery, and aid them through the process. This can simply be a keen insight into the human spirit or it might indicate professional clinical training.
Creative Writing-(Ego)Words drip like honey from your gilded pen (or keyboard). Poetry, essays, short stories, novels, and other forms of the written arts are all covered by this skill. This is the more graceful and enjoyable form of Written Report. GMs who require more realisms may ask that Creative Writing be taken separately for each form of writing that is used.
Erotica-(Ego)You have learned a number of the ways to enhance libidinous experiences: you know the tools, toys and techniques to heighten the sensory experience, and you know all about the various locations on the human body that are particularly sesitive to erotic stimulation. Perhaps more important, you can quickly and intuitively know what will most stimulate a particular partner.
Escape Artist-(Agl)You know how to extricate yourself from a variety of bindings; simple locks, ropes, etc. Complicated locks require either the burglary or lockpicking skill. If you are bound, your skill at picking locks using either of these skills is limited by your Escape Artist score.
Haut Monde-(Ego)You know the high life. You can name the best coffees, and identify the best wines. You know the most chic fashions, and where the best (or at least the trendiest) restaurants and vacation escapes are. You have an unerring knowledge of the finer things of life, partially through experience and partially through what you consider good "common sense".
Herbalism-(Ego)You grow and cultivate herbs for both their culinary and medicinal purposes. You can locate and identify many such herbs in the wild. You also know some applications of herbalism, from tea distilling to preparing anesthetic poultices. Real medical use of herbalism requires either Pharmacology (a Medicine specialty) or the skill Alternative Medicine.
Instruction-(Cha)You are good at teaching others. You make dull topics interesting, and you have a good speaking style. You can be a grade-school teacher, a professor, a private tutor, or someone who is just good with explaining things. A varient of this skill is the skill Education, a Social Sciences specialization, which means you know the theories and principles of educational development. That specialization does not make one a good teacher; it only means you have "studied it".
Locksmithing-(Ego)You can pick locks, take them apart, construct them, and make keys. This is a wide-application professional skill, used by locksmiths and criminals alike. The very basic apoplication of picking simple locks is covered by Burglary. This skill has more specific and technical uses and functions.
Lip Reading-(Per)In relatively good light, you can read someone's lips and understand what they are saying. You may miss a word or two, but you should be able to get the gist of their conversation. At a higher score, you can uncerstand perfectly what someone is saying. This does, of course, presuppose fleuncy in the language. For foreign languages, your skill at lip reading is capped by your skill in the other language.
Lore: Dreamworlds-(Ego)You have knowledge of the dreamworlds: you know of the nine dream princes, of psyphagi, nachschreck, and other creatures of dream, and you know about the Dream Wanderers. You know of various portals and a number of dream worlds. Note: no character should be able to start play with this skill, and it can only be developed with the GM's permission.
Lore: Metropolis-(Ego)You know about the primal city, Metropolis. You have knowkedge of the various inhabitants of the city, e.g., the Azgouls, the living Gods, etc. You also know about its various parts and "districts", e.g., the Living City, Machine City, etc. You know the theories of how to get there, and you may even know the location of a few alleged portals. Note: no charcter should be able to start play with this skill, and it can only be developed with the GM's permission. This skill also has the Mental Balance limitation as Cosmology. Most creatures or denziens of Metropolis automatically have this skill equal to their Ego.
Natural History-(Ego)You know the ways of nature. You can identify common animal tracks, you can identify some animal behaviour, basic plants and wildlife, take a guess at an animal's health and probable age, etc. Maybe you're a forest ranger, or you have just visited grandpa's log cabin every summer. This is not an academic discipline; it is rarely learned in school situations. It can, however, be learned from another individual and from experience.
Navigation-(Ego)Using this skill, you can almost never get lost. You usually require some equipment, e.g., a compass, map, sextant, etc., but you can effectively guide your way to almost any destination, regardless of the weather or time of day. This skill can be used for movement by land (the skill would then more properly be called "orienteering"), air, or sea.
Scrounging-(Per)You have an unerring knack for finding useful implements and objects among what other people would consider junk. While some objects may require repair, others will be perfectly suitable. Weapons, clothing, and even food may be found this way, but within reasonable limits. GMs may provide bonuses or penalties for you scrounging skill based upon where you are using it. A high effect in this skill can occasionally produce amazing discoveries.
Sign Language-(Ego)You know how to communicate in sign language. Most likely you know Ameslan (American Sign Language), but you may know some varient on it: either an existing form of sign language or one that is made up. This skill must be taken for each form of sign language known.
Slight of Hand-(Agl)You are good at holding things without their being seen, palming objects, taking, or replacing them quickly and covertly (if they are within easy reach), producing them unexpectedly, etc. This is used by both stage magicians and criminals to great effect.
Streewise-(Ego)You know the ways of the streets. Gangs are more likely to accept you, you know a few good informants, and you don't come off sounding like a poser when you use street slang (chances are, it comes naturally to you). You know a few of the prominant locations for drug deals and other criminal acts, naturally this skill is more effective in a city the character is familiar with.
Style-(Ego)You look good. You know just the right clothes to wear, what will probably come into fashion, and what is just a bad mistake. if you aren't already good-looking, you are at least dashing in that tailored suit; if you are already handsome, you can dress to kill. While it helps to be rich (clothes designers don't just give away their apparel, after all), you can throw together just the right ensemble to catch someone's eye. Conversely, you can use your style sense to blend in with certain groups (e.g., you can dress college preppy and look like you've done it all your life.).
Tracking-(Per)You can follow the tracks and trail of something or someone. You can identify the source and age of the tracks with some certainty. Difficulties on this might vary based upon circumstances, including size of tracks, terrain, age of tracks, and recent weather conditions. The GM might require a certain effect in order to successfully follow the tracks indefinitely.
Trivia-(Ego)This is a catch-all phrase for a knowledge based skill that doesn't really fit under anything else, e.g., the history of baseball cards, famous fashion designers in history, etc. It can include the knowledge of academic disiplines learned as a hobby, although often your knowledge might lack scholarly rigor. For instance, you might have as trivia the area of "Romantic Poets". With this, you can recognize a few poems or poets, maybe even a few broad themes, but you won't be able to place it in the context of the history of poetry or literature.
Weapon Maneuver:
Fast Load-(Agl)You can reload a gun in half the time it would normally take. This time is indicated under the LOAD column on the weapons table. If two figures are listed, the second figure includes the use of a speed-loader. Regardless, a sucessful use of this skill cuts the reload time in half. This skill must be taken separately for both bows and crossbows.
Budo Maneuvers:
Leg Sweep- This is a low kick to your opponet's legs, sweeping his legs from under him and knocking him to the ground.[All]
Elbow Strike- You can strike out at an opponet using your elbow as the surface of impact. This is a strike that may begin looking like a regular punch, and it difficult to anticipate. Attempts to block are at -3.[Commando, Kung Fu, T'ai Chi]
Knee Stike- You can deliver a painful, and often debilitating, strike with your knee, at your opponet's groin, kidneys, ribs (or anywhere open for an attack).[Commando, Kung Fu T'ai Chi]
Root- You are rooted to the ground and cannot be knocked off you feet by an opponet's Throw or Leg Sw\eep atack, even if it was a perfect success. The number of people you can successfully defend against goes up as your skill increases: Students can defend against one attacker, instructors against two, masters against three and grand-masters against four.[Jiujitsu, Kung Fu, T'ai Chi]
Tornado Kick- This is a type of flying kick that allows you to strike an opponet behind you with no action penalty - you can leap up, reverse your facing and kick behind you, and return to your original facing all in one action.[Kung Fu]
Ki-Forces:
Combat Mind-(20 points)You can read your opponet's moves, knowing instinctively what action will follow; you can anticipate such moves easily. Any defensive maneuver you attempt has a +5 bonus for success.
Vitals Strike- (25 points)You have studied the meridians that run through the human body, and you are intimately familiar with the body's weakest spots; you have studied just what type of blow is necessary to cripple or kill. Roll for a Strike, and, if successful, roll for the effect. In addition to typical damage, the following occurs: Scratch-opponet is stunned, loses next action, Light-opponet loses consciousness, Serious-attacker can deliver a fatal strike if so desired.
Iron Skin- (20 points)You can strnegthen the chi that surrounds you body, creating a protective barrier. This effectively gives you an armor rating of 3 when absorbing damage from any physical attacks.