Check Skill Terms - "Use Strength" vs "Use Strength Die"

[HexZyle]

I have come across a few skill terms when replacing skill rolls with another, or when activating an ability based on the type of roll, and I am a little confused. I have three questions:

1. Seoni buries her Sage's Journal to add her Knowledge to a local check against a bane. Does the roll gain Seoni's entire Knowledge stat of 1d8+1 or just the d8?

2. The current hour is Torag's Power. It states "When you would discard a boon to bless a Strength or Constitution check, you may recharge it instead." Do you recharge blessings that are played on Melee or Fortitude checks? Or is it exclusively on raw Strength/Constitution checks?

3. There is a card (I can't remember which one) which specifies to replace a roll with your "Strength Die". If Amiri does this for a Fortitude roll, does she roll a d12 (Strength) or a d12+1 (Fortitude:Strength)?
If she has Skill Feats in Strength, do they get added also?

[Jenceslav]

All those are described in some parts of the rulebook, but it can be frustrating to try to find them on your own, so:

The only time the traits are added to the check is when you are determining the skill used or when some power says to add a trait or replace a skill.
1) Adding Knowledge or Knowledge skill (note: Core set is sometimes inconsistent in this wording) adds her whole 1d8+1, adding Knowledge die would add just the 1d8, adding Knowledge modifier would add just the +1. Neither of these adds the Knowledge or Intelligence or any other trait. So this skill does not "become" an Intelligence-based skill.
2) That depends on the traits the check has. If your skill is Melee = Strength, then Torag's Power has the effect you cited. There are characters that have Melee = Dexterity or Melee = Intelligence or even something else. Those would not benefit from Torag's Power, as the Melee check won't be a Strength- or Constitution-based check. If you do not have Fortitude skill, then your Fortitude check would be 1d4 and would not get the Constitution trait. Torag's Power's second option (Constitution check) would thus be useful only for characters with Fortitude skill.
3) Gem of Physical Prowess (or Topaz of Strength) replaces just the die you are rolling. The check remains the same, but instead of let's say 1d6 you can roll your Str/Dex/Con die. You do not add the modifier; if your Strength is 1d12+4, you just replace the die you would roll with 1d12 and that's it. It does not gain the traits, so it is not a Strength check now. Also, you can use it on a skill you do not have, such as e.g. non-combat Arcane - in this case, your Arcane is 1d4 (no skill trait added); playing the gem would make it a plain "1d12 die" Arcane check.

[Jenceslav]

An addition to your 3 questions:
Some character powers (such as Quinn's) allow you to replace one skill for another. These should be all written as "On your XYZ check, ...", but sometimes have an incorrect "For your XYZ check" wording.

Quinn wrote:

For[sic] your check that invokes Finesse, you may recharge (☐ or reload) a card to use Knowledge instead of Acrobatics or Stealth, and add the card's level.

This means Quinn plays a Finesse card (weapon) "for your combat check", the check becomes an Acrobatics/Stealth check (Quinn does not have either, so 1d4) and gains the traits from the weapon. He then uses his power and the check becomes an Intelligence Knowledge check, i.e. base die between 1d10+2 to 1d10+6 based on Int skill feats. I am not sure if it retains the Acrobatics/Stealth trait, but I would say that it loses it, as it is "instead of it". Cards that benefit Intelligence checks would have an effect on this check, cards that benefit Strength or Dexterity would not.

[HexZyle]

Jenceslav wrote:

3) Gem of Physical Prowess (or Topaz of Strength) replaces just the die you are rolling. The check remains the same, but instead of let's say 1d6 you can roll your Str/Dex/Con die. You do not add the modifier; if your Strength is 1d12+4, you just replace the die you would roll with 1d12 and that's it. It does not gain the traits, so it is not a Strength check now. Also, you can use it on a skill you do not have, such as e.g. non-combat Arcane - in this case, your Arcane is 1d4 (no skill trait added); playing the gem would make it a plain "1d12 die" Arcane check.

Okay but if you had the skill that the roll is using and you are just replacing the die (Amiri has a +1 to her Fortitude rolls) does it work like other D20 systems where you still keep that +1 modifier but it's just based on a different core skill?

e.g. if Seoni did a Diplomacy check with the Gem of Physical Prowess would it be a 1d4+2 roll because of Seoni's bonus to Diplomacy - only the die is being replaced?

[skizzerz]

HexZyle wrote:

Jenceslav wrote:

3) Gem of Physical Prowess (or Topaz of Strength) replaces just the die you are rolling. The check remains the same, but instead of let's say 1d6 you can roll your Str/Dex/Con die. You do not add the modifier; if your Strength is 1d12+4, you just replace the die you would roll with 1d12 and that's it. It does not gain the traits, so it is not a Strength check now. Also, you can use it on a skill you do not have, such as e.g. non-combat Arcane - in this case, your Arcane is 1d4 (no skill trait added); playing the gem would make it a plain "1d12 die" Arcane check.

Okay but if you had the skill that the roll is using and you are just replacing the die (Amiri has a +1 to her Fortitude rolls) does it work like other D20 systems where you still keep that +1 modifier but it's just based on a different core skill?

e.g. if Seoni did a Diplomacy check with the Gem of Physical Prowess would it be a 1d4+2 roll because of Seoni's bonus to Diplomacy - only the die is being replaced?

What other systems do is irrelevant, you need to look at the rules for PACG in isolation rather than making judgement calls on how any particular TTRPG works.

If the instruction tells you to replace the die, that's all you do--replace the die. Everything else remains the same. So if you originally had 1d6 Charisma and the skill "Diplomacy: Charisma +1" and used a card that lets you use your 1d10 Strength die instead, you would be rolling 1d10+1. The check is still a Charisma check and a Diplomacy check, it does not become a Strength check. Because all the power let you do was replace the die, it didn't tell you to change anything else about the check.

I made this post ages ago. The wording of the cards has changed since that time with Core, but the base rules are still largely the same (one of the main differences is that in Core, you also add all of the traits on your character card to the check, which is not reflected in that link). You may find it helpful.