ow to play, Section 2:

             The Core Ranking Mechanic

Every characteristic or action can be described using words, and by comparing the level your character possesses to the level of the task at hand, the chances you will succeed can be determined.

Compare rank of attribute or ability vs Difficulty Target and find the Relative Degree

Target level - Att/Ablty level + Roll = Relative Degree

     Relative degree determines the level of outcome, given the description that corresponds to that number.

The chart shows the rankings and their associated number.  Ranks are the same for attributes, abilities, targets and relative degrees. A 0 rank is the default level of success, difficulty and ability. Positive numbers are better if an ability or outcome, and harder if a target number. Situations and conditions can affect either Att/Ablty +/- (better and worse) or the target number +/- (harder and easier).

So an attribute of 1 rolls a +2 against a target number three. A fair individual has a good performance on a hard situation. The relative degree is 3-(1+2) = 0, or 1+2-3=0. This is a success that is Mediocre(0) and is enough to get the job done, but won't dazzle or have

By default a mature adult is Mediocre at every common task they haven't specifically focused on, like Bartering, or Poor at a more specialized task, like Blacksmithing.  So, if you'd never worked with metal before and needed to make something basic like a bunch of nails, it would be a Mediocre difficulty.  If you were under time pressure, because you needed lots of nails quickly to finish the walls before the monsters arrived, it would be a Fair difficulty.  If there were a battle underway a Good difficulty, or Moderate Challenge.

Ranks of the Core Mechanic

The Description of a task, ability or result determines what rank the characteristic, test or task is.  This is the most common set of words used to describe varying challenges.  Once you grok this ranking and how it translates into story use, you understand the biggest part of the rules.

Difficulty is using this same slider in a way that you can gauge how hard the task will be, just do the difference between the target action level minus your ability rank.  Thus, the difficulty rank represents the number of ranks the task differs from your capability.

The Requirement column is for further clarification of what the ranks translate to.  Although it's written in school terms here, you can also think of it as amount of time dedicated to mastering that ability.  For example, a monk trained in unarmed combat would be Good, since it is a daily part of life, but their mentor would be Great and the best fighter the monastery had ever known would be Superb.

Using Ranks

• If the task you want to perform is at the same or lower rank as the ability/characteristic that applies, then you can assume that you've been successful at it, and write such a thing into your storyline (Story rule 0).  The degree of success is related to how much your rank compares to the task, so if you are equal it is a satisfactory outcome (mediocre).
• The exception to this is when a situation is uncertain; something which lies in the balance against another being or chance of nature, magic, etc.  This is part of the basic permissive mechanic (Story rule 1).
• If the task is a higher rank than what your ability/characteristic is, then you'll need to do one of three things:
• Test you luck by rolling dice (Story rule 2).  Dice give you a chance to do better (or worse) than your current rank
• Spend some action points to increase your rank for the test so that you are equal or greater to it, for a Mediocre or better result (Story rule 3)
• Do both, spend some action points and then roll.  Situations that are uncertain still need rolls (Story rule 1) and sometimes you want to ensure that those unfortunate rolls won't happen.
• For example, the monsters are now into the room with you and the blacksmith forge, and you want to try and pump the bellows in such a way that sprays them with hot coals.  You (or the other players in your group) decide that this could backfire and hit you instead.  So, you spend extra action points before you roll to ensure that you don't mess up.

Navigation

Next section - (#3) Dice Mechanics - resolving uncertain situations

Previous section - (#1) Basic Story rules - Game Mechanics

Index to all the mechanics: Mechanics

Clarifications

• Be reasonable in your assumptions about the level of difficulty.  Slaying a Dragon is never going to be anything less than a Legendary action, so it would be Insane if you were a starting warrior.  If you were already a Legendary warrior, it wouldn't be so hard. 
• The ranking table Description column is taken from the FUDGE RPG, and as such is OGL.  Our version differs by the other three columns; in the numerical ranking from -2 to 6 with mediocre being the default level

Image CC

in order

http://www.flickr.com/photos/derekskey/5249580870/sizes/m/in/photostream/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lgh75/2470607527/sizes/z/in/photostream/