Intelligence, Trained Only.
This skill encompasses several categories, each of them treated as a separate skill. These categories are identified and defined below.
The number of Knowledge categories is kept purposely finite. When trying to determine what Knowledge skill a particular question or field of expertise falls under, use a broad interpretation of the existing categories. Do not arbitrarily make up new categories.
Check: A character makes a Knowledge check to see if the character knows something.
The DC for answering a question within the character’s field of study is 10 for easy questions, 15 for basic questions, and 20 to 30 for tough questions.
Appraising the value of an object is one sort of task that can be performed using Knowledge. The DC depends on how common or obscure the object is. On a success, the character accurately identifies the object’s purchase DC. If the character fails, he or she thinks it has a purchase DC 1d2 higher or lower (determine randomly) than its actual value. If the character fails by 5 or more, he or she thinks it has a purchase DC 1d4+2 higher or lower than its actual value. The GM may make the Knowledge roll for the character, so he or she doesn’t know whether the appraisal is accurate or not.
Like the Craft skill, the Knowledge skill encompasses slightly different categories in Gamma World than in d20 Modern. Some information has been lost, while other information is new to the Gamma Age. The following are the Knowledge skill categories used in Gamma World, with details on each.
The DC of a Knowledge check is dependent upon the rarity, not value, of the information. Information dating from before the Final Wars is very difficult to obtain. Due to the lack of long-distance communications systems, physical distance from the point of information increases the Knowledge check DC as well.
Action: A Knowledge check can be a reaction, but otherwise requires a full-round action.
Try Again?: No. The check represents what a character knows, and thinking about a topic a second time doesn’t let the character know something he or she never knew in the first place. However, gaining a new rank in a Knowledge skill allows a character to make a new check.
Special: An untrained Knowledge check is simply an Intelligence check. Without actual training, a character only knows common knowledge about a given subject.
A character cannot take 10 or 20 when making a Knowledge check.
A character with the
Educated feat gets a +2 bonus on any two types of Knowledge checks.
The GM may decide that having 5 or more ranks in a specific Knowledge skill provides a character with a +2 synergy bonus when making a related skill check.
Knowledge (art)
Fine arts and graphic arts, including art history and artistic techniques. Antiques, modern art, photography, and performance art forms such as music and dance, among others. The study of art and art history is an esoteric pursuit in the Gamma Age and relatively uncommon. However, some archivists and scholars include the study in their survey of the Pre-War world.
Knowledge (behavioural sciences)
Behavioural Sciences includes the use and application of psychology and sociology. When applied to sentients of a different genotype than the user, there is a -4 penalty on the skill roll. When the object of study is a different type within the same genotype, such as an android using the skill on a cyborg, the penalty is only -2.
Knowledge (business)
Business procedures, investment strategies, and corporate structures. Bureaucratic procedures and how to navigate them. The art of the deal remains largely the same, even if commodities and currencies have changed a great deal. Knowledge (business) covers business theory, historical business models, and where appropriate, business law.
Knowledge (earth and life sciences)
Biology, botany, genetics, geology, and paleontology. Medicine and forensics. In addition, this skill covers the study of biotechnology and its applications. Also, this skill includes the study of the emergent life forms and environments of the Gamma Age. This skill may be used to identify plants, animals, and environmental features. The base DC for the check is 15, modified by distance (see above) as it relates to the character’s homeland.
Knowledge (gossip)
Knowledge (gossip) covers both current events and what amounts to popular culture in the Gamma Age.
Knowledge (history)
Events, personalities, and cultures of the past. Archaeology and antiquities. The foremost form of scholarship in the Gamma Age, particularly among pure-strain human archivists, is the study of history, both current and Pre-Wars era. Note that most historical information is considered uncommon (see above), but the DC is also usually heavily modified for time and distance.
Knowledge (physical sciences)
Astronomy, chemistry, mathematics, physics, and engineering. The vast array of physical sciences include physics, mathematics, chemistry, and engineering. Unlike Earth and life sciences, the physical sciences have not been drastically altered by the Final Wars. Knowledge (physical sciences) checks, therefore, do not suffer the DC increase for information predating the Gamma Age” as listed above. This Knowledge skill is not often affected by distance either.
Knowledge (politics)
This skill covers law and legislation, political and government systems, and a general awareness of current political events in the Gamma World.
Knowledge (streetwise)
Street and urban culture, local underworld personalities and events. This skill includes the knowledge of both the “street culture” or various large communities of the Gamma Age and of the major players and events of the underworld. This skill is particularly useful in dealing with or rooting out criminal elements.
Knowledge (tactics)
Techniques and strategies for disposing and manoeuvring forces in combat. Knowledge (tactics) is the study of both historical battles and generals, and tactical expertise as it applies to the post-modern battlefield. Characters with this skill may attempt to recognize combatants by the tactics they employ. The DC is determined by the notoriety of the general, ranging from 20 for a little-known warlord to 5 for a would-be world conqueror.
Knowledge (technology: archaic)
This category covers technological innovations that had once been replaced by superior technology but that have seen a resurgence of use in the Gamma Age, since most advanced technology remains buried in the ruins of the old civilization. Knowledge (technology: archaic) includes such things as the catapult, rudimentary chemistry often called “alchemy”, the use of gaslight and simple applications of electricity, and steam technology. This skill is common among communities that have built themselves up from near-barbarism since the end of the Final Wars.
Knowledge (technology: Pre-War)
Pre-War technology covers a wide range of technological applications, ranging from the internal combustion engine and calculating machines at one end of the continuum, to ion-powered rockets and palm-sized super computers at the other. Essentially, technology presented as “modern” is d20 Modern, and some extrapolations thereof, are covered by Knowledge (technology: Pre-War).
Knowledge (technology: advanced)
The technological leaps that came out of the Final Wars, before the implosion of civilization, are considered advanced technology. Robotics, artificial intelligence, energy weapons, antigravity, force fields, and even teleportation all appeared during this era. Note that neither nanotechnology nor biotechnology are covered by Knowledge (technology: advanced nanotechnology has its own skill, while biotechnology falls under Knowledge (earth and life sciences).
Knowledge (technology: nanotechnology)
Far and away the most advanced form of technology the world has ever seen, nanotechnology is in a class of its own compared to the other “era-based” Knowledge (technology) skills. Note that Knowledge (technology: nanotechnology) checks centre around information that is at least uncommon and almost always suffers the +10 DC modifier for information predating the Gamma Age.
Knowledge (theology and philosophy)
Liberal arts, ethics, philosophical concepts, and the study of religious faith, practice, and experience. This skill covers the study of ethics and philosophical concepts, as well as the study of specific religions, allegiances, and practices. A successful check gives the character a +2 competence bonus on Diplomacy rolls with a group whose religious or ethical values are considered a community allegiance.
