Venture 4th By Skill Alone.pdf

By David Caffee

Art by Shaman’s Stock Art

Skortched Urf Studios &

Gareth Michael Skarka

INTRODUCTION

Skills make up an important part of any role playing

game. A character’s skills are what make him or her

versatile and unique. A character’s various aptitudes

can aid greatly in combat situations as the party jumps,

swings, climbs, and lock picks its way through a

dungeon. Non-combat encounters are almost entirely

skill based and without these situations an adventure

would be nothing but one endless battle after another.

expands on these areas by providing more situations

where the characters can excel through knowledge,

expertise, and daring stunts. In this work you will ind

skill challenges suitable for parties of all levels, from

the heroic to the epic tier. Also presented are new uses

for every skill found in the core player’s book.

DESIGNING YOUR OWN

SKILL CHALLENGES

When designing a skill challenge the most important

consideration is integrating it into the rest of your

adventure. A skill challenge should occur at an

important juncture in the story. Never insert a skill

challenge into an adventure just because you liked the

idea. Like a combat encounter, a skill challenge should

be natural part of the story. Consider how the challenge

its into the larger context of your adventure. If your

characters are a party of grave robbing treasure-seekers

then feel free to insert as many skill challenges as you

want that involve puzzle traps or ancient riddles. On the

other hand, a skill challenge that involves negotiation

and political discussion is much better suited for an

adventure where the characters are attempting to unit

the Twelve Baronies against an undead army.

In 4E, skills are broken down into a small number of

broad categories and each one can be used in a number

of creative ways. The latest incarnation of the game

has also introduced us to the skill challenge, a dramatic

encounter where the situation is resolved through a

series of skill checks instead of ighting. By Skill Alone

The skill challenge represents a crossroads where the

party is allowed to take an easier path if they succeed

in completing the challenge. The easier path may be

interpreted literally, such as a situation where a party

of adventurers must unlock the secret door of Aldair

in order to take a shortcut through the mountains. Or

the characters can simply have a less dangerous way of

getting where they are going, such as a group of PCs

who fast talk their way past the king’s guards instead of

battling them. Failing a skill challenge knocks the party

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dental.

off track but it shouldn’t stop them dead. Never create

a situation where the only way in or out of a dungeon is

to pass a skill challenge. The PCs should always have at

least two options. The old stand by answer is to give the

party the choice between a skill challenge and a combat

encounter. That way if one choice doesn’t work out the

party can back track and try the other option.

character taking damage equal to his full hit points.

If the skill challenge is designed in a way that causes

individual characters to lose surges as the result of

failed skilled checks then a DM should be even more

hesitant to use lost healing surges as a consequence for

failure.

Examples of Risk

Loss of healing surges.

Consider the array of skills that your players have

selected for their characters. If you can, gather up their

character sheets and make a list of the skills in which at

least one character is trained. If more than one character

is trained in a skill, make a note of it. Once your list is

complete you should have a decent idea of what the

party is capable of in terms of a skill challenge. There is

no point in forcing the PCs to make a bunch of untrained

checks. If no one in the party is trained in Diplomacy

then you should avoid creating a challenge where

Diplomacy is a primary skill. The players are bound to

be frustrated by a challenge where none of them have a

decent chance of making a check with one of the main

skills. However, if a character has a feat or racial bonus

that increases a certain skill then that player probably

can’t wait for the opportunity to use it.

•

Initiating a combat encounter.

•

Encountering a trap or hazard.

•

Being forced to take a more dangerous route or

being driven off course.

Failure to obtain treasure.

•

Examples of Rewards

A treasure parcel of the appropriate level.

•

Avoiding a combat encounter.

•

Overcoming an obstacle or hazard.

•

Taking a quicker or easier route to your

destination.

RISKS AND REWARDS

A skill challenge is like a combat encounter in the fact

that there must always be a suitable risk associated

with the task as well as a reward that makes the task

worthwhile. Balancing these two needs is critical to

making the challenge fun and exciting for your players.

Without a sense of danger the players won’t care if their

characters succeed or not. Likewise, putting too harsh

a penalty on a skill challenge may cause the players to

feel cheated, as if they had lost a battle without a chance

to ight back. By the same token, the players will feel

cheated if they complete a tough challenge without

gaining any reward at all.

Assigning risk is often the easiest part of this equation.

The penalty for failing a skill challenge may be as

simple as not getting the reward that the PCs were after.

If the PCs were trying to escape from a monster then

they are forced to ight instead. If the party was using

the skill challenge to unlock a treasure vault then the

prize remains elusive. A failed skill challenge can lead

to more serious consequences such as the loss of healing

surges. As a rule of thumb, the PCs should never lose

more than four healing surges as the result of a failed

skill challenge. Four lost surges is the equivalent of a

•

SKILL CHALLENGES

- HEROIC TIER

success or failure for the challenge, but instead provides

a +2 bonus or a -2 penalty to the next character’s skill

check.

A Game of Chance (XP 200)

The baron’s parlor is illed with thick smoke and alive

with the sounds of revelry. In the back corner a high

stakes game is underway. Your quarry sits at the table,

laughing rudely as he rakes in his winnings.

Streetwise (20): Your familiarity with gamblers and

card cheats allows you to catch another player cheating.

Using this skill doesn’t count as a success or failure

for the challenge, but a successful check can remove a

single failure that has already been accumulated.

This skill challenge deals with attempts to inluence

an NPC by taking his money at the gaming table. The

reward may be a in the form of information that the

other person knows, a favor that the characters need

done, or an item that they need to obtain. The characters

have learned that the NPC in question is a serious

gambler who often stays up all night engaged in games

of chance. One way to get what they require is for the

PCs to get the best of their mark during one of these

marathon gambling parties.

Thievery (DC 20): You attempt to use sleight of

hand to cheat the other players. A failure means that the

character is suspected of cheating and this skill can no

longer be used for the rest of the challenge. A failure

gained from the use of this skill can be negated with the

use of either Diplomacy or Intimidate.

Unmodiied Roll (DC 18): Sometimes luck is on

your side. You simply play the hand that you are dealt

and hope for the best.

This skill challenge may also be used if the characters

are short on money. A skill challenge should only occur

in situations when it is vital to the plot, so do not allow

the characters to use this challenge to simply build

up their wealth. The challenge should be a means to

a speciic end. Perhaps the PCs need to book passage

on a ship that leaves in the morning but do not have

quite enough coin to pay the fare. Or perhaps an ally is

scheduled to be hanged and the characters don’t have

enough gold to buy his freedom.

Secondary Skills: Diplomacy, Intimidate.

Diplomacy (DC 20): You use lattery and charm to

gain the trust of your fellow gamblers. Using this skill

doesn’t count as a success or failure for the challenge,

but a successful check can remove a failure that has

been gained from the use of the Thievery skill.

Intimidate (DC 20): You use threatening body

language and harsh stares to silence your critics. Using

this skill doesn’t count as a success or failure for the

challenge, but a successful check can remove a failure

that has been gained from the use of the Thievery skill.

Setup: To get what you need from an NPC, you must

take all of his money at the card table.

Level: 1

Complexity: 2 (requires 6 successes before 3

failures)

Success: The characters gain the favor of the NPC

that they had been targeting. He or she will reveal one

piece of useful information, give up an item that is

important to their quest (no monetary value), or perform

a simple task that aids them on their quest. In addition,

the party gains 200 gp.

Primary Skills: Bluff, Insight, Streetwise, Thievery,

Unmodiied Roll (luck).

Bluff (DC 20): You try to maintain an aura of extreme

conidence, convincing your opponent that you posses

the winning hand. A failed check indicates that your

expression gives you away and reveals the true strength

of your cards to the other players.

Failure: The PCs do not gain whatever they were

after and word of their misfortune spreads throughout

the vicinity. Attempts to use social interaction skills

(Bluff, Diplomacy, etc) with the local NPCs are more

dificult now, incurring a -2 penalty to the characters’

skill checks.

Insight (DC 15): You study the faces and mannerisms

of the other gamblers, looking for signs of weakness

or overconidence. Using this skill doesn’t count as a

Arcane Door (XP 250)

The stone face on the door barks in your direction,

“Answer my riddle true and you shall pass. Answer it

not and the way will remain sealed.”

Thievery (DC 28): You attempt to force the door open

or otherwise trick the mechanism into cooperating. A

failed check with this skill closes it out and it cannot be

used again for the rest of the encounter.

This challenge has the characters attempting to solve

a riddle in order to open an enchanted door. The door

leads the way to a shortcut or protected route that will

allow the characters to get to their destination faster and

easier. Failing this skill challenge means that the door

disappears and the characters must travel by a longer or

more dangerous route. Riddle in question does not have

to be a verbal contest like the riddle of the sphinx or

other famous brainteasers. The challenge could just as

easily involve getting a series of levers into the proper

position or placing a group of symbols into the correct

patterns. Other ideas include a musical riddle (the PCs

must strike the proper tones on a series of gongs), a

combination lock (a series of marked wheels must be

lined up to match symbols along their outer rim), or a

water lock (a series of valves must be activated in order

to direct the water to the correct destination).

Success: The door unlocks and the PCs are allowed

inside.

Failure: The door fades back into the stone and does

not reappear.

Collapsing Bridge (XP 300)

Ropes snap and boards break as the ancient bridge gives

way under your feet. The chasm looms threateningly

beneath you as you race to the safety of the other side.

In this challenge, the PCs are attempting to cross a

bridge or catwalk only to watch it come apart under

their weight. The structure may have been deliberately

sabotaged or simply frail from age and neglect. If the

PCs are successful in the challenge then they make it to

the other side and continue on their way. If the PCs fail

then they plummet from a dangerous height and end up

face to face with an even greater threat.

Setup: The characters must solve the riddle in order

to unlock a magical doorway.

Level: 6

Complexity: 1 (requires 4 successes before 2

failures)

Setup: In order to cross the rapidly decaying

structure, you must move quickly and nimbly.

Level: 3

Complexity: 2 (requires 6 successes before 3

failures)

Primary Skills: Arcana, History, Perception,

Thievery.

Arcana (DC 22): You study the construction of this

magical device and attempt to decipher the markings

and runes that surround it.

Primary Skills: Acrobatics, Athletics, Perception.

Acrobatics (DC 20): You use your balance and agility

to weave through the lailing wreckage and swing across

gaps in the structure.

Bluff (DC 28): You use banter and double talk to trick

the door’s guardian spirit into revealing a clue about the

riddle’s answer. Only one success can be gained from

the use of this skill.

Athletics (DC 20): You run quickly, leaping across

holes in the loor, climbing tattered ropes and smashing

through any obstacles in your path.

History (DC 22): You call upon your mastery of

ancient legends as you try to recall a similar riddle from

antiquity.

Perception (DC 15): You point out the safest path

and lead your comrades around obvious dangers. Using

this skill doesn’t count as a success or failure for the

challenge, but instead provides a +2 bonus or -2 penalty

to the next character’s skill check.

Perception (DC 18): You try to notice a pattern or law

in the design of the doorway that will help your party

get past it. Using this skill doesn’t count as a success

or failure for the challenge, but instead provides a +2

bonus or -2 penalty to the next character’s skill check.

Success: The PCs get to the safety of the other side

and continue on their journey.

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