2.7. Stealth Ability

The Stealth Ability is key to succeeding in heists, espionage, and other covert operations. While you can improvise other ways to navigate the world unseen and undetected, Stealth is your first line of non-detection, no matter your stats or skills.

Stealth is a Reaction and a Quick Action. Whenever someone might detect your presence, the GM will let you know, giving you a chance to use Stealth to gain powerful Stealth Conditions that you can either use to avoid detection or to empower your future Abilities.

Using Stealth will work a little different in Freeplay than it does in Encounters, as we will discuss in this chapter.

Freeplay Stealth

Moments of subterfuge will often lead to a game of cat-and-mouse, with Adventurers and NPCs taking turns, trying to evade or catch one another. During Freeplay, the heart of this interaction begins with the Alert Condition. When a creature acts, they may cause their non-allies to gain stacks of Alert. These moments also count as Reaction Triggers for the Stealth Ability. Should you choose to use Stealth, you can gain stacks of Stealth Conditions. You can spend Stacks of Stealth Conditions to prevent a creature from gaining stacks of Alert at a rate of one-to-one. You can also save your Stealth Conditions to instead empower your future Abilities.

Alert

The NPCs you come across will start with zero stacks of the Alert Status Condition. As they gain stacks of Alert they will alter their behavior. A creature's number of stacks of Alert is readily identifiable (without a Tests.) Below is a list of how an NPC's behavior may change for each stack of Alert:

• Alert 0: Clueless. This NPC does not know of your presence.
  • This NPC will go about their routines or patrols as usual.
  • This NPC has a Disadvantage against traps.
  • If an Encounter starts, this NPC will begin with two stacks of the Surprised Condition.
• Alert 1: Bothered. This NPC is noticing out-of-place sights and sounds and is becoming more conscious of what's around them. They are more ready if something were to happen.
  • This NPC will go about their routines or patrols with caution, stopping to look around or listen for noises.
  • If an Encounter starts, this NPC will begin with one stack of Surprised.
• Alert 2: Alarmed. This NPC knows sights and sounds around them are out of place.
  • This NPC will leave their routines or patrols to actively search. While looking for the source of the disturbance, they will start with the location in which they last heard or saw something or the location of the last Covert Skill Test that wasn't a High Score. If they find anything out of place, they may expand their search.
  • While at 2 stacks of Alert, if this NPC would gain another stack of Alert, the NPC becomes fully aware of the presence of the covert creature(s) nearby. This will often start an Encounter.
  • This NPC may seek out help from allies within sight and sound range, provided they have concern enough to seek help. Those allies may gain a stack of Alert in the process, two stack of Alert if they themselves find evidence for concern.

As you may have noticed, having one or two stacks of Alert are not too different from one another beyond roleplaying frills. The initial stack of Alert gives Adventurers a small buffer for mistakes.

When one of Stealth's three Reaction Triggers occurs, all triggering creatures will be slated to gain a single stack of Alert. The Stealth Reaction gives you a chance to gain Stealth Conditions before those stacks of Alert get assigned. In turn, you can use those Stealth Conditions to prevent those stacks of Alert entirely.

Most NPCs will lose a stack of Alert if they have searched all logical places for you and not found anything. They may also lose a level of Alert if it has been 5 to 15 minutes of in-game time without gaining a new stack of Alert. If you were directly discovered by an NPC, that NPC may choose to start a guard shift, meaning they will remain at one stack of Alert for the next hour or two. The GM may remove a stack of Alert from an NPC if you take clever steps to belay their suspicion (like by summoning a rat to be a noise scape-rat.) If a creature starts a guard duty by some other means, they may start with one stack of Alert for the first hour or two of their shift.

Reaction Triggers

All three Reaction Triggers for Stealth happen when you are within Shooting Distance(16u) or True Spitting Distance(4u) of a non-ally. Keep in mind that this means they would need to have direct line of sight within Shooting Distance(16u), but in True Spitting Distance(4u), their line of sight does not matter. Even if you are on the other side of a wall, the trigger will occur.

The three Covert Skills each have their own Reaction Trigger that is subtly different from the others. The Test you use for Stealth will depend on which trigger occurred:

• Sneaking Skill:
  • Trigger: You use Move to move within Shooting Distance(16u) or True Spitting Distance(4u) of one or more non-allies.
    • This trigger includes improvised movement or performing feats that are primarily about movement, like vaulting over a wall or crossing a patch of broken glass without making any noise.
• Subtlety Skill:
  • Trigger: You started an Ability, other than Move and Silent Abilities, within Shooting Distance(16u) or True Spitting Distance(4u) of one or more non-allies.
    • This trigger includes using improvised abilities that would not be Silent. All Abilities and actions are Noisy unless otherwise stated by the Ability or GM. Acts that require Skill Tests may also count as improvised abilities. Acts of dexterity that primarily involve your hands - like pick-pocketing someone or performing a card trick - may also count as triggers of Subtlety.
• Hiding Skill:
  • Trigger: When a non-ally starts or enters into Shooting Distance(16u) or True Spitting Distance(4u) of you on their Turn.
    • You can attempt to hold still and magically ward yourself from the awareness or notice of others even without cover.

The result your Covert Skill Reaction will determine how many stacks of Alert you can prevent the target(s) from gaining. Regardless of which Covert Skill you had to use, the roll result is the same:

• [..6] Low Score. Failure. The NPCs gain both stacks of Alert.
• [7..9] Mixed Score. The NPCs gain one stack of Alert instead of two.
• [10..] High Score. The NPCs don't gain any stacks of Alert.

If the target already has two stacks of Alert, you will instead lose stacks of the Covert Condition matching the name of the Covert Skill Test you performed. This effect is additive for all targets you give stacks of Alert to. If your Covert Condition reaches zero stacks, you will then need to remove from another Covert Condition of your choice instead. Also, when you run out of stacks of the Covert Condition matching the Covert Skill Test you performed, then the fully Alert creatures know of your presence and location. This will often start an Encounter.

Covert Test Bonuses

All Covert Skill Tests can gain the following Bonuses:

• Distant. Automatically get a High Score if no foes are in True Shooting Distance(16u) during the triggering activity.

• Quiet Act. Gain an Advantage if the triggering activity was Quiet.
• Covered. Gain an Advantage if you are fully obscured or the area is loud.

If you roleplay a stealthy solution well, like by distracting your enemies, the GM may also give you an Advantage on the test.

Covert Test Penalties

All Covert Skill Tests can incur the following Penalties:

• Close. Gain a Disadvantage if you pass within Spitting Distance(4u) of an NPC during the triggering activity.
• Loud Act. Gain a Disadvantage if the triggering activity was Loud.
• Exposed. Gain a Disadvantage if you are fully exposed or the area is silent.

Other Interactions

If you roleplay a stealthy solution well, the GM may make the Test easier or waive it entirely.

There're other ways to get an Advantage or a Disadvantage on Covert Skill Tests. For example a Dark Zone or a Fog Zone can help you avoid visual detection. Similarly, you can use a Loud Zone to cover up any noise-related actions that may trigger a Covert Skill Tests.

The GM may also waive a Covert Skill Test entirely if you are acting in a clever way to hide yourself or mitigate the circumstances that may get you caught.

Remaining Hidden in Freeplay

When in Freeplay, you should try not to stay out in the open. The GM will often introduce a threat to your Hidden status by warning you that an NPC will soon take their turn.

If an NPC has no stacks of Alert, the GM may hint that their patrol may take them in your direction or that they are starting to get up, as they seem to be out of ink for their pen. Regardless, this warning gives you an opportunity to find cover or get out of the area.

If an NPC has 2 stacks of Alert, they will use their turn in Freeplay to search for you. You can always ask how alert an NPC is, so long as you can see or hear them. When a fully Alert NPC takes their turn in Freeplay, they will use that time to investigate the noises or sights that tipped them off by going to the location of the most recent Covert Skill Test in range that wasn't a High Score. If their search takes them within Shooting Distance(16u) or True Spitting Distance(4u) of you, then you will need to make a Hiding Skill Tests to remain Hidden. This Test comes with the usual Bonuses and Penalties described above, so try not to stand out in the open. If you have a good enough hiding place that is not an obvious place to search, you may be able to skip the Hiding Test altogether.

You can generally Hide behind anything that would grant you at least 1/2 cover. You can also Hide in ways that may obscure or camouflage you in some way. Hiding can be as simple as going Prone in tall grass, jumping in a line of decorative suits of armor, crouching against a busy-looking pile of junk, or joining the crowd of goons with your cowl up. If you are not fully hidden, you will need to make Covert Skill Tests to help determine how long you can evade their attention. Most creatures that are in-tune with magic can use a bit of that magic to warp attention around them, making them slippery to the mind.

Encounter Covert Operations

Once an Encounter has started, Covert Operations shift to use a different set of rules. In an Encounter, your enemies can, without reservation, target and move toward you, even if you have stacks of the Covert Conditions. You can also use your Covert Conditions to perform powerful attacks, sneak by others, and avoid taking Damage.

Covert Conditions

There're three Covert Conditions, one matching each of the Covert Skills:

Escaping From An Encounter

To escape an Encounter and return to Freeplay, all Adventurers will need to let the GM know their intent to do so, then strive to end a Round with all Adventurers having 4 or more Stealth Condition Stacks each. At that point, the game will enter the Pause Phase and the Adventurers will need to avoid the Alert enemies as in Freeplay, maintaining their stacks of the Covert Conditions to prevent the Encounter from starting up again. Only once the Adventurers are out of danger will the Encounter reach its End Phase.

Next Up: 3.0. Character Sheet