We came across an unusual circumstance during our last game and hoping some here may clarify better than we could.
Basically the party (including me) decided to lay in wait on two sides of an entrance hiding behind collums. The plan was that one of these persons hiding behind the collum would throw a flash bomb once the enemy walked through this opening and the other would attack while the enemy was blinded.
Now when this was due to occur (I was the one who was going for the suprise attack)and the enemy was spotted walking between the collums (who hadnt seen us). I said to the DM that of course when I saw the bomb being thrown by my collegue behind the other collum at the enemy I would naturally blink enough to avoid the flash then attack(I did not say it after the bomb had been thrown)
The DM said that this couldnt be done because blinking was a free action, so it must be done on my turn and as it wasnt my turn in the inititative yet, it ws the bomb throwers, I couldnt blink.So then I was blinded as well as the our enemy.
Im not sure if the rules say this, or I should have "readied an blinking action" instead. Which would have effectively bogged down our plan.
Im not sure if this is taking rules to an extreeme, as how I see it, moving ones head, or arm should equally be free acts too and theres plenty of this going on within a six second round as is, free or otherwise. So I didnt really think blinking would need anymore attention that forewarning my Dm prior to the flash that I would shut my eyes for the brief second when the bomb was due to hit the ground and explode.
So is this taking the rules too far or does this seem reasonable within the games mechanics?
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Is he perhaps confusing a free action, with a swift action? These can only be done on ones turn, while a free action can be done at any time. I would say that blinking should be at least a immediate action, allowing one to perform such an act outside of one's turn (like the feather fall spell). In the end though, it is a dm's choice, though if one can talk (a free action) outside of one's turn, it would stand to reason one could blink.
This almost has the air of the random DM punishing act, an act that occurs when players use too much "imagination" in the game, something totally out of line in a fantasy roleplaying game. End Rant.
I would discuss with your DM why he made such a ruling, and how it added to the overall gameplay. Most rulings I believe, should always have this thought in the foreground. Being a clever player, shouldn't be a punishable offense.
We came across an unusual circumstance during our last game and hoping some here may clarify better than we could.
Basically the party (including me) decided to lay in wait on two sides of an entrance hiding behind collums. The plan was that one of these persons hiding behind the collum would throw a flash bomb once the enemy walked through this opening and the other would attack while the enemy was blinded.
Now when this was due to occur (I was the one who was going for the suprise attack)and the enemy was spotted walking between the collums (who hadnt seen us). I said to the DM that of course when I saw the bomb being thrown by my collegue behind the other collum at the enemy I would naturally blink enough to avoid the flash then attack(I did not say it after the bomb had been thrown)
The DM said that this couldnt be done because blinking was a free action, so it must be done on my turn and as it wasnt my turn in the inititative yet, it ws the bomb throwers, I couldnt blink.So then I was blinded as well as the our enemy.
Im not sure if the rules say this, or I should have "readied an blinking action" instead. Which would have effectively bogged down our plan.
Im not sure if this is taking rules to an extreeme, as how I see it, moving ones head, or arm should equally be free acts too and theres plenty of this going on within a six second round as is, free or otherwise. So I didnt really think blinking would need anymore attention that forewarning my Dm prior to the flash that I would shut my eyes for the brief second when the bomb was due to hit the ground and explode.
So is this taking the rules too far or does this seem reasonable within the games mechanics?
Is this the regular blink spell or the greater blink spell(3.5)?
RPG Superstar 2012 Top 32
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If I was your GM I would have let you blink as a free action, with a 50% chance you would still get hit by the flash since you were looking at the area. Blinking rapidly will not help you avoid the effects of the flash, but the 50% chance was whether your eyes you were in the middle of a blink or not when the flash occured.
If you had readied an action to close your eyes when you saw the toss, and then open your eyes after the flash/explosion, no problem.
Is this the regular blink spell or the greater blink spell(3.5)?We came across an unusual circumstance during our last game and hoping some here may clarify better than we could.
Basically the party (including me) decided to lay in wait on two sides of an entrance hiding behind collums. The plan was that one of these persons hiding behind the collum would throw a flash bomb once the enemy walked through this opening and the other would attack while the enemy was blinded.
Now when this was due to occur (I was the one who was going for the suprise attack)and the enemy was spotted walking between the collums (who hadnt seen us). I said to the DM that of course when I saw the bomb being thrown by my collegue behind the other collum at the enemy I would naturally blink enough to avoid the flash then attack(I did not say it after the bomb had been thrown)
The DM said that this couldnt be done because blinking was a free action, so it must be done on my turn and as it wasnt my turn in the inititative yet, it ws the bomb throwers, I couldnt blink.So then I was blinded as well as the our enemy.
Im not sure if the rules say this, or I should have "readied an blinking action" instead. Which would have effectively bogged down our plan.
Im not sure if this is taking rules to an extreeme, as how I see it, moving ones head, or arm should equally be free acts too and theres plenty of this going on within a six second round as is, free or otherwise. So I didnt really think blinking would need anymore attention that forewarning my Dm prior to the flash that I would shut my eyes for the brief second when the bomb was due to hit the ground and explode.
So is this taking the rules too far or does this seem reasonable within the games mechanics?
After rereading your post I think he should have let you close your eyes for that instant as a readied action. Unless he has a reason to have the group spell out everything before hand I don't know why he was being difficult.
Im pretty sure he said free action, and so only in my turn. But it was a bummer not to be able to alter the mechanic, especially considering I was delaying my round ready to do this discussed plan prior anyway.
Weather I blinked or turned away for the sec the bomb was between the hand and the ground, then turned back. I can see a flash taking a fraction of a second in time (not eeven worth turning away for, hence blink). Im sure as your fighting naturally and aware of your suroundings your turning your head and dodging etc and doing other simple things over six seconds anyway.
It was also said, as I had a wisdom of 4, I wouldnt be wise enough to do this plan. I did think that, but I thought wisdom would be knowledge of a flash bomb and what it does and as my character is reasonably intelligent, hed ask the effect of the bomb/plan when discussed with my comrade and so know to close his eyes to avoid blinding when the plan was executed via intellegence. The plan was rushed, so we didnt role play the discussion anyway as the enemy had arrived but the concept was between players.
Wrathstrike...lol..nice one.
But i figured free actions are at Dms discretion and that had been stated already, so instead of a cool tatic Im sure anyone could pull off in real life without problems, I got blinded and lost that next round too.
Thanks guys!
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Since you had discussed the plan, you should have been able to block your vision beforehand, then lower your hand, open your eyes or whatever (not an action) as part of your movement when you heard the flash bomb go off. I think that works better in the formal action economy than calling it a free action or readied action. However, I agree with others that it was a silly call not to allow it.
Strictly, you can only take free actions on your turn, with the specific exception of speaking. However, the GM could easily have explained this as a different kind of action, or let it pass.
Bad GM, no GM snacks for you!
Sticking to the RAW no matter what might be nice in most situations, but sooner or later you'll get to a point where the RAW just doesn't cover what you want to do (since the possibilities are endless and space in books isn't, that's only to be expected). A GM is expected to think about things like that and make decent judgement calls. If they're unable to do that, they should quit GMing and put a computer in their place. Their capacity for original thought is no worse than the GM's, and their "unoriginal though" process is about a killion times faster.
Seems like you could have kept your eyes closed, then open them as a free action during your attack.
Either way, your DM is a twit.
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Best case (where you had is all planned out) I would have allowed you to cover your eyes as your friend tossed it. Worst case (if you had not planned it all out ahead), I would have allowed a reflex save to get your eyes closed in time.
Now, I would have also allowed the enemy that same reflex save (but at a reduced chance, since they where more surprised then you). I try to do the same for my players as my NPC's, good or bad, and being blinded with no save sucks as a PC.
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Your DM is a twit.
This is standard tactics. Party knows a patrol is coming, lights a fire in the path, and takes cover/ambush positions. Spellcaster tosses pyrotechics, party knows to close their eyes when the fire starts "put-putting" half-a-second before the boom. Party avoids effect as a free action, which can be taken at any time, and then their readied actions to shoot/charge/cast/etc go off, and the fun begins.
DMs who stifle creativity should instead try embracing it, and using the insane actions of their players to drive the story. It's much more fun than staying on the tracks.
P.S. the Pathfinder Adventure Modules are shockingly good at providing loads of creative options for player tactics, and can easily get players going in the right direction again afterwards, as long as the players aren't being purposefully difficult. The adventure paths are definitely the best part of Pathfinder. The Paizo guys know what they're doing.
If the GM is having trouble keeping up with his players, he should look into running a Path instead.
First, to everyone insulting the GM, I suggest laying off. GM's come in all levels of experience but most try their best to provide a fun and fair game for the players. Calling him names seems to be unkind at best.
Basically the party (including me) decided to lay in wait on two sides of an entrance hiding behind collums. The plan was that one of these persons hiding behind the collum would throw a flash bomb once the enemy walked through this opening and the other would attack while the enemy was blinded.
Ok, some assumptions here...
1) You and the group are/were aware of monsters or enemies approaching or very nearby. I would say that at this point everyone rolls initiative. After that all PC's (and any monsters that detected the PC's) are in and able to act in the surprise round. Assuming no enemies detected the pc's getting into position, then each pc takes their surprise round action. During the surprise round each pc uses their partial action to move into their spots.
Now when this was due to occur (I was the one who was going for the suprise attack)and the enemy was spotted walking between the collums (who hadnt seen us). I said to the DM that of course when I saw the bomb being thrown by my collegue behind the other collum at the enemy I would naturally blink enough to avoid the flash then attack(I did not say it after the bomb had been thrown)
2) Ok, now we are moving into round 1. No enemies are aware of the pc's so they simply move forward. Each of the pc's readies actions. One of them to throw, the others to shield their eyes as soon as the item is thrown.
3) All pc actions are readied and it moves to the next round. The enemies move forward on their initiative roll, still unaware of the pc's (though they should be making checks each round of course). At this point Enemy #1 moves between the columns. PC #1 has a readied action to throw flash bomb. He does so, and that triggers the other pc's readied actions, to shield their eyes. The GM had ruled this a free action (seems reasonable) therefore it should happen just like that. The shielding interrupts the throw.
The DM said that this couldnt be done because blinking was a free action, so it must be done on my turn and as it wasnt my turn in the inititative yet, it ws the bomb throwers, I couldnt blink.So then I was blinded as well as the our enemy.
If the GM was saying that this was still before anyones actions in the first initiative round and not as I described above, then I believe he is correct. You can not perform any actions, even free actions, when you are flat-footed, and you are flat-footed before your turn in the first round of an encounter. However, I would have run it as described above and no one would be flat-footed at this point, technically not even the enemies since their initiative has come and gone a couple of times (during which time they moved forward unaware of the pc's.)
Im not sure if the rules say this, or I should have "readied an blinking action" instead. Which would have effectively bogged down our plan.
I would have said yes, you should say "I ready to cover my eyes, blink, look away, when the bomb is thrown." and this would have been a free action. If you do not use the ready action you could be unprepared when it is thrown and accidentally be staring straight at it.
Im not sure if this is taking rules to an extreeme, as how I see it, moving ones head, or arm should equally be free acts too and theres plenty of this going on within a six second round as is, free or otherwise. So I didnt really think blinking would need anymore attention that forewarning my Dm prior to the flash that I would shut my eyes for the brief second when the bomb was due to hit the ground and explode.
So is this taking the rules too far or does this seem reasonable within the games mechanics?
I say remember that a GM is trying to run many things at once and is usually trying to be fair. I suspect that he had no ill will and that he ran it as best he understood at the time.
As said your DM should have made this a readied action, even if you don't really say so it was somehow implicit...
But if it was me, with 4 in wisdom I have attacked the ennemy before the bomb was thrown, or not attacked at all or do something totally out of plan... :p
As a DM it's ok if my players want to have a very low score... But they have to play it... ;)
Having a low wisdom score (albeit a very very low score like 4 !!) is not a small thing... It mean you have no strength of characters, no patience, no force of will etc.
Not easy to play that kind of character... :)
I do not really see a problem, nothing wrong having a character with wisdom 4 be very specific about his actions.
Sure I would give the character a bonus on his reflex save to avoid being blinded, but I do not think the DM was being particulary unfair.
I would likely treat a bunch of goblins that found a box with flashbangs and try to ambush the PC's the same way. If this was a new tactic I do not see a problem with the way the DM handled it, maybe I would have allowed for a wisdom check to connect the dots in time.
Wisdom 4 is really, really terrible by the way.
Hello All,
Yes Wisdom of 4 is very bad. But that was just what I rolled as one of my stats!(my worst stat roll ever) And as the character was ninja (play testing) and he couldnt use charisma as his dump stat (hed have a -3 ki points modifier) and I couldnt see any other dump stat besides Int for him and who wants to play an Int 4 ninja!...lol...The wisdom addition statement from the DM came after game when I questioned if he had a problem with me as there were a few harsh statements made by him during the game (not rule related) and he was trying to perhaps prove something, but not sure what and he wasnt to interested in replying to my question after the game when I was trying to work out why he was this way besides the wisdom remark.
The flash bomb was thrown by an alchemist.
I was asked to roll a reflex save as equally as the "enemy" (a horse and Ill explain this later) and I rolled one shy of the DC, so there was no bonuses given. Bit rough I thought as I was watching the action while an unaware horse who doesnt know what a flash bomb is and not waiting for it like me, got the same save (we hadnt been seen by the enemy or horses, but we were aware of their impending arrival and could hear them moving forward at a slower pace from behind the collums). I did say something, like the plan was just very cinematic and I thought a great one and I wasnt sure an ambushing participant would watch the explosion when he knew it would blind him and could watch the alchemist go to throw the bomb as the trigger to shut his eyes (when the horses couldnt) but it was overridden pretty quick and I had to roll my reflex save.
The enemy in question were actually horses drawing a carriage (I didnt mention this as its a bit more embarrassing and it didnt matter really so I simplified the example here but now see some complexity raised). We knew the carriage was due to arrive as the front mounted guards had already galloped past and not spotted us and we knew the carriage was next (which was moving about 20-30ft per round). My next move was either to attack the unblinded horse, if they saved, to stop the carriage or run up to the carriage if they were blinded, as a move and try open the carriage door(my job was to run up to the carriage once stopped and try open the door and release a prisoner, so I needed my full round move to do this. Sorry if this changes the dynamic, but it was a lengthy description as is and I was trying to simplify it. I assumed the flash was a fraction of a second in time and as my act was described to be "delayed" with the sole intention to do my bit, I was thinking the act of my colleague throwing the bomb was my trigger to jump into action so shutting my eyes was a natural thing done outside of my intended act. That was the exact scenario and DM didnt suggest this complexity while I was delaying the prior two rounds with our plan in mind, but when I mentioned I obviously would shut my eyes when the bomb was thrown before my colleague had thrown it (cause I knew this Dm would probably make me blinded if I hadnt, which is fair).So the wait for this second carriage entailed two rounds of a delayed action. I only delayed as we were heavily outnumbered and warned by an NPC that the 10 hell guards were too tough for us, so we should grab and run and I needed as much of my round to do this so I delayed my action with my trigger to be to move into play once my colleague had thrown his bomb. But either way the DM didnt appear open to a discussion about it at all and simply stated the act of blinking is a free action so must be taken on my turn and that its not my turn. which I felt a bit rough as he knows I dont know the rules as well as him so he could have cut some slack on this first experience, but hes a bit like that with rules (hes a lawyer). Even tougher when he knew I was an integral role in opening the carriage and if this plan wasnt executed correctly there was a very real chance of a TPK due to being outnumbered etc as there was only three of us.
Thats the jist of it and just felt it a bit unfair I had the same save as a unaware horse who would probably watch the bomb being thrown anyway if done in plain sight...lol
We were playing a pathfinder adventure module of first level (one where you needed to get a hostage from the carriage and escape with them)
Thats as much detail as I can remember.
Thanks!
If you had the plan in place before the alchemist threw the thing, even with a Wis 4, you shouldn't have to have made a save. A low Wis is not a low Int, and I think that would be the key factor here. "Am I smart enough to close my eyes before this thing goes off?"
If your Int is above a 6, and you had someone tell you to do so, I say "Yes. Yes you are."
Your DM made a bad judgment call. If that's unusual, let it slide. If this becomes a habit for him, I'd explain to him how frustrating his lack of insight is (in nicer words). If that fails, find a new group. Be sure to take steps before that though.
I'll actually be one of the jerks and (kinda) side with the DM. Since you said you were going to blink I'd make you get hit by the attack, but get a +2 bonus on the reflex save because you do know it's coming.
But honestly, blinking when a flash bomb goes off only does so much... You'd have to shut your eyes long enough to do some effect- and even 'success' would be kind of disorienting... and when you consider each round is 6 seconds with everything more or less happening at the same time, the bomb is essentially blowing up in the middle, giving you only 2-3 more seconds to act.
I'd let you save the 'blink' free action and at most a standard action for when the bomb goes off. So enough time shoot/throw something, or move up, but not enough to charge.
Your DM was kind of a jerk to not explain how he was going to mechanically handle the situation (as you detailed it out) before hitting you with it. If the ledge is icy is he damned well should tell you before you cross it.
With a crap wisdom of 4, I woulda hid behind a rock and not gotten up until I heard a boom. But with a wisdom of 4, I wouldn't be clever enough to suggest it... what a vicious cycle.
Even a character with 4 Wisdom (lets say he has also 4 Int, because Int can counter Wis in these situations) should not be that dumb.
I hate the sentence "but thats what my character would do". Remember D&D is a team game, not an amateur theatre
FIrst, remember that I do agree that the OP DM should have let him close his eyes and not be blinded... ;)
Sorry but I think that you have to play your character... An Int 4 character who come with a very clever plan to attack is not roleplay... Your stat is a part of your character you can't have a low stat "just" for the mechanical part of the game...
Having a low wis mean that the character has no willpower... I know this my last character was a bard with a low wisdom score (6), he was "weak of mind", meaning he can't resist going with girls, was a "compulsive buyer", when in a crowd was likely to adopt the mood of the crowd (he was sent to a tavern to deliver a message, discover the the tavern was assaulted by a mob of angry citizen because the owner was supposed to be a spy from an ennemy nation and ended to help the crowd to burn down the tavern :D ) etc.
Pathfinder is not only a tabletop team game, Descent is a cooperative tabletop team game (and a nice one, I have begun a "campaign" and it's quite nice ;) ) it's a roleplay, and I agree with you the sentence "but thats what my character would do" should not be said, 'cause you deal with in game situation with in game solution... ;)
Consider what it means for your character to have wisdom 4, how does it influence his personality.
A few traits that might reflect that:
- easily distracted
- unable to focus
- weak willed
- daydreamer
- anticipation isn't your strong suit
- impatient
- reckless
As a DM I will play on people's weak scores, if they do not play upon it themselves and frankly a plan involving a flashbomb is an excellent situation for a lack of wisdom to show up.
In the short, if you were a little vague in the least bit about the plan I might have had you make this save as well, though probably with a bonus.
Maybe he was looking for an oppurtunity to make things a little more exciting.
If I was your GM I would have let you blink as a free action, with a 50% chance you would still get hit by the flash since you were looking at the area. Blinking rapidly will not help you avoid the effects of the flash, but the 50% chance was whether your eyes you were in the middle of a blink or not when the flash occured.
If you had readied an action to close your eyes when you saw the toss, and then open your eyes after the flash/explosion, no problem.
This. Or something like this.
The problem with that prawn is that combat isn't a paradigm where you're assumed to be just waiting for one or more attack rolls. You're actively thrusting and parrying the entire 6 second round. The iterative attack sequence represents the momentary opening you get to hit home. So if you're going to close your eyes, they're closed for the entire sequence.Seems like you could have kept your eyes closed, then open them as a free action during your attack.
Either way, your DM is a twit.
Perhaps I misread the OP, but the idea was he was waiting for the guy to throw the bomb, then he was attacking. They were not in combat yet. He only needed to keep his eyes closed until the bomb went off.
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Even a character with 4 Wisdom (lets say he has also 4 Int, because Int can counter Wis in these situations) should not be that dumb.
I hate the sentence "but thats what my character would do". Remember D&D is a team game, not an amateur theatre.
Sorry but I think that you have to play your character... An Int 4 character who come with a very clever plan to attack is not roleplay... Your stat is a part of your character you can't have a low stat "just" for the mechanical part of the game...
I think he's talking about those who use the phrase purely to screw over their fellow players, ignoring it when it affects themselves.
Stuff like "Oh, I spent your half of the loot, but thats what my character would do...", or "Oh, sorry, I didn't realise you wanted me to guard your back, but thats what my character would do...", or "Oh, did your mortally wounded character want the last healing potion? I drank it to cure my 1hp wound, but thats what my character would do...".
I've had the misfortune to play with wankers like that, and it does get very old, very fast.
Yes, Wis 4 is ADHD personified, and I think if someone did something unexpected, or at short notice, they would blunder into it, but the OP described the party spending time planning this ambush, so if they had the time, it should be taken as read that they got the Wis 4 guy to understand his part, and this can be handwaved as 'we spend 10 minutes positioning ourselves and agreeing a signal', without the players having to go through 'Who's on first base?' and eating up valuable game time, every time.
I think he's talking about those who use the phrase purely to screw over their fellow players, ignoring it when it affects themselves.
Stuff like "Oh, I spent your half of the loot, but thats what my character would do...", or "Oh, sorry, I didn't realise you wanted me to guard your back, but thats what my character would do...", or "Oh, did your mortally wounded character want the last healing potion? I drank it to cure my 1hp wound, but thats what my character would do...".
I've had the misfortune to play with wankers like that, and it does get very old, very fast.
Yes, Wis 4 is ADHD personified, and I think if someone did something unexpected, or at short notice, they would blunder into it, but the OP described the party spending time planning this ambush, so if they had the time, it should be taken as read that they got the Wis 4 guy to understand his part, and this can be handwaved as 'we spend 10 minutes positioning ourselves and agreeing a signal', without the players having to go through 'Who's on first base?' and eating up valuable game time, every time.
Arf yeah I understand, I'm lucky to play with the same guys for years so no issues like that in our group...
But maybe it was a (bad) way for the DM to remind the OP to play his character a little bit more...I still agree that the DM has made a mistake by doing this, if the character is put on a short leash by the other players (my group has taken an habit to never let me alone whan I was playing my 6 WIS character) then this kind of things should'nt occurs in the game... ;)
Having 4 in WIS is fully playable and can add to the game (lot's of laugh with my character) and the downside of the low wisdom can be toned by the other players if they play their part... :)
Free actions don't take any time at all, though there may be limits to the number of free actions you can perform in a turn. Free actions rarely incur attacks of opportunity. Some common free actions are described below.
Cease Concentration on Spell
You can stop concentrating on a spell as a free action.
Drop an Item
Dropping an item in your space or into an adjacent square is a free action.
Drop Prone
Dropping to a prone position in your space is a free action.
Speak
In general, speaking is a free action that you can perform even when it isn't your turn. Speaking more than a few sentences is generally beyond the limit of a free action.
Free actions need to be taken on your turn. Speaking is specifically an exception. You can't fall prone on someone else's turn.
Blinking isn't listed here, and I'm not going to comment on whether or not you can do it on someone else's turn. I'm just pointing out that free does not inherently mean "whenever".
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With low mental stats, I like to look at what skills they can effect.
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Int: appraise, craft, knowledge, linguistics, spellcraft
- Appraise: they will not know the value of common items (dc 20)
- Craft: they may fail at making a very simple item (wooden spoon: dc5)
- Knowledge: may not know "common knowledge" on subjects (dc 10 or less).
- linguistics: trailed only
- Spellcraft: trained only
Wis: Heal, Perception, Profession, Sense Motive, and Survival checks.
- heal: they will not know exactly how hurt someone is, or what is wrong with them most of the time.
- Perception: will have a hard time noticing that food was spoiled, something is walking around the corner, smelling smoke through a closed door.
- Sense Motive: feel free to lie to this character, they wild most likely not know.
- Survival: Taking their time, they are going to have problems tracking a medium sized creature across soft ground.
So, a wisdom of 4 (-3 stat bonus), there is a good chance that they where only listening with 1/2 an ear if someone was explaining a plan or may not be paying attention when the plan is acted out. In this case, I would offer a perception check or sense motive check if someone was explaining a plan, and a perception check to get the timing down.
A int 4 character would have problems crafting plans like that (you could make a DC for the int check for the plan based on how much of a CR you want the plan to be for the NPC's. Treat it like a trap). They may also forget things in the heat of combat. Did they remember that they need to close their eyes when the bomb was thrown. Again, Int check or kn(alchemy) check to remember that the bomb is going to flash and that you need to close your eyes. ]
I try to use skills that I know the character does have when making checks like these, since it rewards them for skill spent. If they have no skills that I can even match up to something they are trying, the raw attribute check at least tells us how well the character handles the ideas that the player is trying out.
Playing a mental stat of 4 is as difficult (if not more so) then playing someone with a super high one. There is a good chance that you are way outside of your (as a player's) scale of understanding for the world. It is best to use the skills as a help for the RP, since it does help with what the devs thought those stats represent.