My Dermatology Skill is at 60%
We’re In Danger doesn't have skills. Not really. The closest equivalent is what I call expertise. Each character has one at character creation, but advancement allows for a second expertise. Mechanically, when an expertise applies to a roll, the player adds a free "hit" to their results. This doesn't mean they automatically pass the test, but it means they're more likely to pass tests where their expertise applies.
I guess you can say that WiD characters have one skill, then? When compared to games like Call of Cthulhu, which has approximately six million skills, one might not seem like much.
I exaggerate there out of love for Call of Cthulhu. I love Delta Green too. I love various Gumshoe iterations (looking at you, Swords of the Serpentine). These are skill-heavy games. They function a little differently, but in each of those games, skills represent some combination of competency and specialization. A character with 60% in Tracking or HUMINT is quite competent at those skills, having spent requisite time in their life to specialize. A character with 5% in Mechanical Repair probably struggles to change their car's oil. This all works well for these games.
Despite base WiD featuring "regular" people, I didn't want each character to have a giant list of skills and overthink when/where to use them. Instead, I wanted players to focus on this one clear thing that sets you apart from other PCs, defines your specialty, and is easy to remember.
I have this vague (and unoriginal) theory that people only remember a couple details about a character, and with WiD, I wanted to lean into it. In writing classes I teach, we talk about "APB descriptions"--that is, when a writer gives us this big paragraph inventorying a character's weight, height, hair length and color, tattoos, level of fading and degradation in their jeans, the specific off-black color of their t-shirt, how their eyes are big dark pools you could just drown in, and so on. Most readers will remember one or two things--long blue hair and the neck tattoo of Taylor Swift. Are they tall? Are they heavyset? Are they wearing chinos? Who the hell knows, and how much does it matter?
With expertise to a degree, I feel like it's the equivalent of stripping away the 40 CoC skills you have between 1% and 35% (and might try to avoid using), and focusing on that one skill you have at 80%. It's getting rid of those APB descriptors, and giving someone the defining specialty.
Of course, the potential downside is obvious: What if my expertise doesn't apply? What if I take "dermatology" as my expertise, and the scenario doesn't involve dermatology?
For me, the answer is equally obvious: Then fricking make dermatology part of your play!
A note I mention to GMs in the WiD book is this: Look at the characters your players built. The items and expertises they selected are indicators for what they want to do. Present opportunities for the characters to use them. (I don't think this is a particularly novel approach to WiD, and instead it's a general GM Tip™ I think is useful for every game.)
But I don't think it's all on the GM. When I run WiD, I love when PCs reframe the narrative of the moment to justify expertise application. In some ttrpgs, I feel like we start with a fixed situation, and then assess which skill applies. It's like a multiple-choice test, where one of the skills in your big arsenal is the right answer.
- "PC: I want to do convince this bouncer to let me in the club." / "GM: OK, roll Persuade." / "PC: I suck at Persuade, but here goes..."
With WiD, I want to get rid of multiple choice questions and introduce some short answer prompts instead (I'm going to turn this into a pedagogy blog soon).
- "GM: There's a bouncer preventing you from getting inside the club. What do you want to do?" / "PC: I want to convince them to let me inside." / "GM: Great, do think your expertise applies?" / "PC: I have expertise in dermatology, so maybe I compliment the size and cleanliness of the bouncer's pores, and ask them about their skincare regiment?" / "GM: Their skin does have a certain gleam to it..."
It no doubt helps WiD that it was created with one-shots and quick campaigns in mind. I don't know if you want to run Masks of Nyarlathotep or Eternal Lies with it (but certainly let me know how it goes if you do). There's a certain logic to wanting more to play with in a character that will last you months or years.
All right, steam depleted. What's next? More pedagogy? More skincare advice? A deep dive on every single skill ever created across the history of ttrpgs?
If you read this, you're a champion. 🏆