Question: How do you upgrade dice? Say you have a rank of 4 in Computers but only a 2 in Intellect, how many dice do you have?

2 green 2 yellow.

Take the higher number of skill or attribute and that is how many green dice. Replace a number of green dice with yellow dice equal to the lower of the 2 numbers.

3 minutes ago, Edgookin said:

2 green 2 yellow.

Take the higher number of skill or attribute and that is how many green dice. Replace a number of green dice with yellow dice equal to the lower of the 2 numbers.

This. Because you can be either naturally good at something (your characteristics) or trained in something (skill ranks) to get good at it.

Thanks. This is how I've always understood it. But thanks to an api installed on Roll20 which isn't handling that properly, I'm in a mild debate over this.

It doesn't matter which number, your skill or your characteristic, the larger trait tells you the number of dice, and the smaller trait tells you the number of upgrades.

So Int 2, Computers 4 gives you the same dice pool as Int 4 Computers 2: PP AA .

One way I like to look at it is this (hopefully this is helpful - as people around here can tell you, I have a...somewhat unique mental approach to things that sometimes doesn't translate well): each "rank" is a slot. The number of pips in that slot tells you what kind of die to use. 0 pips is no die, 1 pip is an Ability die, and 2 pips is a Proficiency die.

For example:

In slot 1, you have a pip from your Int and a pip from your skill (both are at least Rank 1). you have two pips, so a Proficiency die is added;

In slot 2, you again have a pip from both Int and Computers, because both are at least Rank 2. Another Proficiency die;

In slot 3, you get a pip from your skill, which is at least 3, but not from your Int. Only one pip this time, so only an Ability die is added;

In slot 4, again only a skill pip, so you get another Ability die;

In slots 5, 6, and 7 (yes, all the way up to 7; sometimes characteristics can get up to seven ranks in certain situations ), you get no pips from either Int or Computers, because none of them are rank 5 or more. No extra dice are added.

This leaves you with the same dice pool as before: PP AA . This is basically just another way at arriving at the same result, but it makes sense to me as a way to explain that it doesn't matter where the ranks are coming from, they result in the same thing. Hopefully that helps!

Also, ninjas. Ninjas everywhere. I even ninja'd my own ninja edit by putting it in the original post. So there !

Absol, I followed that quite well and that could be a great way to reference it. Thanks

Use the form fillable PC sheet. It computes every skill check in the game and displays it in icons based on entered characteristics and skill level tics.

There's one element of Upgrading that might come up in the future not mentioned here: if you have to upgrade your pool but everything is already "best" dice - all Proficiency or Challenge dice - you add one of the eight-sided ones.

This will never come up when building basic skill pools because, as mentioned, it's always lower-number-upgrades-higher-number, regardless of which number is which. But, lets say you have Int 2 Computers 2. That leaves you rolling two Proficiency dice. It's an important check, though, so you flip a Destiny Point, which Upgrades your check. What do? Add an Ability die. If it somehow gets Upgraded again, that Ability gets upped to a Proficiency, for a total of three Proficiency dice.

Again, you'll never see that in creating basic skill pools. But it is important to know.

Remember though that downgrading never removes dice when doing the opposite so, downgrading a 3 purple check has no effect. You need red dice in the pool for downgrading to make a difference.