Visual Cue for Helping

Torchbearer Hacks and Expansions
1

I know suggested help is written against each skill entry in the book but that information is mainly referenced by the GM and then communicated to the players to judge if their help is useful.

My hack is to look up the skills that help other skills and if a player has a helpful skill but not the main one mark the skill entry with an asterisk or some other notation to say “this is a skill you don’t have but you are competent enough to help someone else do”.

I’ve been using the letter H in place of the rating number but H is Health so maybe I need a better notation.

It just makes it easier and makes the characters look better to new people playing convention games because the character has something written against 1/2 to 2/3 of the skills rather than the typical less than 1/3.

I have found it keeps the helping aspect of the game flowing. There are no helping rules written on the character sheet and that comes up every roll rather than, say, town which comes up every other session or less.

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2

Brilliant! Perhaps a “+” symbol would be suggestive of help. To make this process easier, you need a reversed list.

  • Alchemist helps Armorer, Carpenter, Cook and Healer.
  • Criminal helps Dungeoneer.
  • Hunter helps Pathfinder, Scout, and Survivalist.
  • Laborer helps Alchemist, Armorer, Carpenter, Cook, Dungeoneer, Healer, Hunter, Peasant, Sailor, Stonemason, Survivalist, and Weaver.
  • Lore Master helps Alchemist, Arcanist, and Scholar.
  • Manipulator helps Haggler, Orator, and Persuader.
  • Orator helps Steward.
  • Pathfinder helps Cartographer, Sailor, and Scout.
  • Peasant helps Rider.
  • Persuader helps Haggler, and Manipulator
  • Scholar helps Cartographer, Criminal, Lore Master, Steward, and Theologian.
  • Scout helps Criminal, Dungeoneer, Pathfinder, and Scavenger.
  • Steward helps Commander and Scholar.
  • Survivalist helps Hunter, Peasant, Sailor.
  • Theologian helps Steward.

Of course, any skill can help the same skill, and any skill can help a Mentor teaching that skill.

1 Like
3

Totally. I like the + symbol idea.

The biggest flaw with this is that spending a check to earn skill advancement becomes less clear.

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