When Modern AGE books refer to ability tests, they use the Making a Basic Test
following format: Ability (Focus). Intelligence (Chemistry)
and Constitution (Swimming) are examples of this format. In
most cases, it does not matter if you have the listed focus. You
can still attempt the test; you just won’t get the bonus a focus
provides. Some tests demand specialized skill or knowledge,
however, and those require you to have the focus to even
attempt the test. If you don’t have the required focus, you
automatically fail. These tests note that the focus is required
by using this format: Intelligence (Navigation required).
Example
The scientist Indra and the brawler Amy acquire a folder
with papers full of strange formulas. Naturally, they try
to figure them out. The GM tells the players that the test
will be Intelligence (Chemistry required). Indra has the
Chemistry focus, so her player can make a test to see if she
understands the papers. Amy does not have the Chemistry
focus, so she has no hope of understanding the papers. It’s
gibberish to her.
Using Tests
Once you know an ability test’s result, you need to
compare it against another number to determine whether
you succeeded. The number you use depends on the type
of test. The two most common types of test are basic tests
and opposed tests, detailed below. Chapter 8 also discusses
advanced tests, which are used in special situations. If the
situation calls for an advanced test, the GM should guide
you through the procedure.
Basic Test Difficulty
A player rolls their basic test versus the target number
picked by the GM. The GM sets the TN based on their
assessment of the test’s difficulty. The GM should take
anything that influences that difficulty into account. For
physical tests, heat, cold, the weight of an object that
needs to be moved, or the size of a target that needs to
be hit might all count. In social situations, a well-dressed
character might do better than one in rags. The GM
boils it all down into a basic difficulty. The following
table provides benchmarks.
Basic Test Difficulty
Test Difficulty Target Number
Routine 7 This same process can be used when more than two charac-
Easy 9
Average 11
Challenging 13
Hard 15
Formidable 17
Imposing 19
Nigh Impossible 21
34
In a basic test, you roll against a fixed target number (TN)
determined by the GM. Here’s how you do it:
1. Tell the GM what you are trying to do.
2. The GM determines the ability to be used and an
applicable focus (if any), and assigns a TN to the task
based on its difficulty and the prevailing circumstances.
3. Roll your ability test, and figure out your total.
4. If the total is equal to or greater than the TN, your
character succeeds at the action. If it’s less than the
target number, they fail. This may not have an effect,
but in some situations, failure may have unfortunate
consequences.
Example
Amy is trying to climb a building in the middle of the night.
The GM decides this is a Strength test, and Climbing
is the obvious focus. The wall has many handholds, but
they’re hard to see in the dark, so the GM decides the target
number is 13. Amy’s player rolls and her test result is a
14. Despite the darkness, she skillfully climbs the wall. If
Amy’s player had failed, she might have been unable to
find a way up—or she might have fallen and suffered an
injury, depending on the GM’s decision.
Making an Opposed Test
When your character directly competes with another, or
against some dynamic opposing force (evil spirits in a super-
natural campaign, for example) you must make an opposed
test. In this type of test, both competitors roll. The highest
result wins. Use the following procedure.
1. Tell the GM what you are trying to do.
2. The GM determines the ability and applicable focus (if
any) to be used by you and your opponent. The GM
might assign varying bonuses or penalties to each of
your rolls which take your individual circumstances
into account.
3. You and your opponent’s player (or the GM) both roll
ability tests and determine your respective totals.
4. Compare the test results. If you beat your opponent’s
test result, you win. If there’s a tie, whoever rolled
higher on the Stunt Die wins. If it’s still a tie, whoever
has the higher ability wins.
ters compete. In such cases, each participant’s player makes
an ability test. The highest result is the winner. Break ties as
described in step 4. If you need rankings for each partici-
pant (such as for a five-person race) go in order of test result,
breaking ties where necessary.
Not all participants need to use the same ability in an opposed
test, though it often happens. Many situations pit one ability
against another. A bodyguard trying to penetrate a spy’s
disguise, for example, would make a Perception (Seeing) test
opposed by the spy’s Communication (Disguise) test.
Chapter 2: Basic Rules