Cool or Vigilance?

Two different skills in Genesys can be used to determine Initiative: Cool and Vigilance. The situation at hand determines which skill should be used in a particular circumstance.


Characters should determine their Initiative using the Cool skill when they are aware and ready for combat (or for whatever situation has resulted in the use of structured gameplay). For example, rolling to see who goes first in a quick-draw gunfight or springing an ambush on an unsuspecting enemy would require Cool, as Cool represents a character’s ability to remain calm, collected, and focused on the task ahead.


Characters should determine their Initiative using the Vigilance skill when combat (or another situation resulting in structured gameplay) begins unexpectedly. Two enemies walking around a corner and running into each other would each use Vigilance to determine Initiative, for example. Likewise, someone being ambushed would also use Vigilance to determine Initiative (and if they ended up going earlier in the Initiative order than their ambusher, clearly they were vigilant enough to spot the ambush at the last second).


It’s important to note that different characters may use different skills to determine Initiative during the same combat, depending on their differing circumstances. Also, if you and your GM are unsure which of the two skills best applies to a given situation, you should default to using Vigilance.