Types of Skill Challenges

Before discussing the question of initiative, I’ll talk about three major types of skill challenges: linear, non-linear, and tiered. More on these in a second, but first a detour.

DETOUR! SITUATION ASPECTS AND OVERCOME ACTIONS

Let’s start with this description of situation aspects from the Fate System Reference Document (http://fate-srd.com/fate-core/types-aspects):

“Situation aspects describe significant features of the circumstances the characters are dealing with in a scene. That includes:

• Physical features of the environment (Dense Underbrush, Obscuring Snowdrifts, Low Gravity Planet).
• Positioning or placement (Sniper’s Perch, In the Trees, Backyard).
• Immediate obstacles (Burning Barn, Tricky Lock, Yawning Chasm).
• Contextual details that are likely to come into play (Disgruntled Townsfolk, Security Cameras, Loud Machinery).
• Sudden changes in a character’s status (Sand in the Eyes, Disarmed, Cornered, Covered in Slime).

Who can use a situation aspect depends a lot on narrative context — sometimes it’ll be very clear, and sometimes you’ll need to justify how you’re using the aspect to make sense based on what’s happening in the scene. GMs, you’re the final arbiter on what claims on an aspect are valid.”

For a while, I wasn’t quite sure how to think about skill challenges, but I think this comes about as close as I’ve been able to find. A skill challenge is a series of obstacles that must be overcome in some fashion. Together, the obstacles block the party’s path forward, whether they be physical, social, or otherwise in nature. To move toward the goal of winning the skill challenges, the party must overcome the obstacles one at a time until they are all gone, or the obstacles will ultimately impede the party from achieving the goal. Now, with that out of the way, let’s talk about the different types of challenges. The type of skill challenge determines whether the obstacles must be overcome in a particular sequence or if the sequence is somewhat looser.

TYPE 1: The Linear Challenge

The linear challenge is one that effectively requires the steps to happen in a specific sequence. The classic “chase through the streets” skill challenges is linear. The party encounters the bad guy in a tavern. They chase him out of the tavern, through the town square, down a series of perilously narrow alleys, through the market, etc…Here, the obstacles should be overcome in sequence.

TYPE 2: The Non-Linear Challenge

A non-linear challenge is like a to-do list where everything has roughly the same deadline. An example of this type of challenge is getting a fortress ready to defend against goblin invaders. The sequencing isn’t really as important as the fact that everything gets done. Somebody needs to manage the watchtower, somebody else needs to rally the nervous, untrained troops, and wait, is that a storm coming?

TYPE 3: The Tiered Challenge

A tiered challenge is one that has several layers, or tiers. All of the obstacles at one level must be cleared away before the next layer of obstacles is revealed. This type of challenge is exemplified by the infiltration of a compound. On the outside, somebody needs to distract the guards, somebody else needs to pick the lock, a third person needs to keep lookout. Once inside, someone needs to disable the magical wards, another person needs to subdue the guard dogs, and on and on.

Next time, we’ll tackle initiative, as you may choose to alter how you handle that based on the type of the challenge.