Climbing

**Climbing**

**Use:** Macro use
for long-distance climbing.

**Sample specializations:** Rope,
wall, mountain, cave

This
skill is used when a character wishes to climb or scale vertical or
near-vertical obstacles, be it a rope, ladder, wall or mountain. A successful
skill check indicates that the character climbs a distance equal to their
climbing limit value. Failure indicates that the character falls at the start
of that round of climbing. The base difficulty number for a climb is 8, which
is modified by the conditions of the climb. A character may choose to “be
careful” and climb at a speed less than their climbing limit value (given in Chapter
One), which will reduce the difficulty of the climb. Characters who miss a *climbing* check can
catch themselves and avoid the fall with a successful *Strength* check of
difficulty 12. Characters who fail to catch themselves will fall and may take damage
when they land. The rules for determining falling damage are in Chapter Four. Characters
may attempt to climb at a faster rate than their *climbing* limit
value by making a speed push (see Chapter Four) as part of their climbing skill
check.

**CLIMBING CHART**

**Condition Modifier**

Ladder
-5

Tree,
rough surface with plenty of handholds -3

Cracked
wall, lots of handholds +0

Wall
with handholds, natural rock +2

Flat
but not smooth surface +4

Smooth
stone, metal surface +7

Less
than 90-degree angle -2

Less
than 60-degree angle -4

Less
than 45-degree angle -6

Darkness
+2

Slick
surface +2

Rain
+4

Ice-covered
+5

Character
is pushing speed +2

Character
is being careful -2 Per -1 speed value

Climbing
equipment (ropes, pitons, etc.) -1 To -5

**Example:** Marco
needs to climb over a tall stone wall to break into a building. The base
difficulty of the climb is 8. The stone wall is flat but not polished smooth which
increases the difficulty to (8 + 4) 12. Its night, which further increases the
difficulty to (12 + 2) 14. Marco elects to take his time and be careful. He
will climb the wall at a speed value of 1 instead of using his full climbing
limit value of 3. By reducing his speed value two points, he lowers the difficulty
by four points down to (14 - 4) non-combat situations, characters can climb at their
limit value for only a short period of time. For macro uses of the skill,
reduce the limit value by one if they are climbing more than and by two if
they are climbing more than . If a character “fails” a macro climb, she falls
from a point with a height value two less than the top, which is about midway
in the climb. If the character catches herself, she is assumed to limp to the
top from there. Climbs in which there is a failure (but in which the character
catches himself) add one to the calculated time value of the climb.

**Example:** Magoth
and Father Wagner are both trying to scale a mountain peak. Father Wagner’s
climbing limit value is 3 while Magoth’s is 6 thanks to giants being bigger and
stronger than normal humans are. The top of the peak is high, a
height value of 16. Because of the height of the climb, both characters have
their limit values reduced by two. Magoth successfully makes his *climbing* skill
check. He did not push his climbing speed so his limit value remains at 4 and
is subtracted from the height value of 16. Five is then added, resulting in a
time value of 17, which is only forty minutes. He zips right up to the top! Father
Wagner however fails his *climbing*
*skill check but does manage to catch*
himself. The fall occurred at a height value of (16 - 2) 14, about up. His
modified limit value of 1 is subtracted from 16, five is added and then another
one is added because of the fall for a final time value of 21, about four
hours. Magoth has plenty of time to enjoy the view from the top before Wagner
arrives.