Gambling

Gambling
Use: Unskilled
use penalized. Macro skill. May be used in round play to simulate highly
competitive gambling.
Sample specializations: Specific
games of skill, specific games of chance 
Gambling is the
ability to successfully play the odds in games of skill and chance against
other people. The two types of games are handled in separate ways since one is
based on the character’s active participation in events while the other
involves wagering on random chance or on the abilities of someone other than
the gambler. In games of skill, such as most card games, each participant in the
game makes a gambling skill
check and the character with the highest total wins. For a more dramatic,
back-and-forth game of
gambling, the
skill can be used in round play and combined with the use of other skills such
as trick, test of will and
prestidigitation where
the gamblers attempt to influence the odds more in their own favor. In games of
chance, the gambler tries to predict the outcome of an event that she is not
directly involved in, such as picking who will win a fight or the determination
of random numbers in games. In these games, the gambler makes a gambling skill
check against a difficulty determined by the gamemaster based on the odds of
winning using the Difficulty Number Scale.
Cheating: The gambling skill can be used to
detect cheating in both games of skill and games of chance. It does not allow a
character to cheat though, which has to be done with other skills. Prestidigitation, for example, can be
used to roll loaded dice or “stack the deck” in a card game without anyone
noticing. The trick
skill
could also be used for the same effects. In games of skill, the difficulty to
detect cheating is the skill value generated by the cheater. In games of
chance, the gamemaster should set the difficulty using the Difficulty Number
Scale based on the difference between the normal odds and the illegitimate odds.