Administration
This skill provides a character with the knowledge and institutional literacy required to navigate, manipulate, or weaponize bureaucratic systems. It covers scheduling, personnel management, and the legal regulations governing organizations ranging from local offices to interstellar empires.
Organizational Interaction
The Administration skill can be used in an attempt to change the attitude of an individual employee of some corporation or organization. In such a case, it is treated as an encounter skill. If the use of this skill results in a target’s attitude being changed to Friendly or better, this can provide a bonus on any subsequent skill check to get information or cooperation out of the organization that is the employer of the target.
Navigating Bureaucracy (Progressive Track)
Bureaucratic tasks are handled as a Progressive Track in daily intervals, but the GM can adjust it if needed. The GM determines a hidden number of successes required based on the nature of the request. Every day, the character rolls to generate successes until the hidden threshold is met.
1. Baseline Difficulty (Organization Size)
The size of the system determines the base difficulty for the daily roll:
- Small (-1 step bonus): A local organization with loose rule, a small-town government, a small business.
- Medium (No modifier): A regional corporate headquarters, a city government agency, or a planetary spaceport.
- Large(+1 step penalty): A national ministry, a sector-wide trade guild, or a planetary military.
- Huge (+2 step penalty): An interstellar nation, a large corporation with strict rules, or an intelligence agency.
2. Difficulty Modifiers
Once the baseline is set, apply the following modifiers to the Difficulty:
- Familiarity (-1 Step): The administrator has done this before.
- Access (-1 Steps): The administrator is a member of the organization, have clearance or otherwise have the right qualification.
- +2 Steps (Rushing): The character attempts to bypass standard protocols to get a result in record time. This increases the success yield (see below).
Familiarity or Access can be obtained by hiring a local paralegal or bribing the right people
3. Daily Success Yield
The result of the daily roll determines how much progress is made toward the hidden target.
| Roll Result | Standard | Rushing (+2 Step Difficulty) |
|---|---|---|
| Critical Failure | -3 Successes. (A major blunder) | -3 Successes. |
| Failure | No Success. | 1 Success. |
| Ordinary | 1 Success. | 2 Successes. |
| Good | 2 Successes. | 3 Successes. |
| Amazing | 3 Successes. | 4 Successes. |
Narrative Roadblocks & Interference
Until the target successes are met, the GM presents the remaining “work” as physical or social obstacles:
The Come-and-Go
As the character accrues successes day by day the character can give feedback, in the form of tangible events.
The docking is already approved by port control, but there are still some maintainence results that need to be processed, after that you can bring the ship in for inspection. While a critical failure can mean the you skipped an important paper work and need to start again with a previous request.
Sabotage: An opponent using Administration to hinder the character, this subtract a success from the character’s for each success on his opponet roll.
The opponent arrange an immediate “vacations” for the ship inspector de day before he had to sign your docking bay approval he just inspected. You will need to redo the same step again.
Detection: An [Amazing] success reveals the interference and offer some clues of the method of sabotage (e.g., a rerouted digital request). Unmasking the culprit requires some other skills, allowing the party to show their worth (Investigation, Hacking, Stealth). A critical failure while interfering leave the opponent’s identity exposed.Organizational Interaction
Bureaucracy
This specialty skill measures a character’s ability to grease (or clog up) the wheels of bureaucracy. Important applications, permits, clearances, reports, or other bureaucratic requests can be processed faster and more efficiently with the use of this skill. Conversely, this skill can be used to make the same bureaucratic processes slower for others.
Rank Benefits
▶ Rank 2 [Optimized Routing] The character knows the shortcuts that actually work. When Rushing a request, the standard difficulty penalty is reduced from a +2 step penalty to a +1 step penalty. At Rank 4, the penalty is completely eliminated.
▶ Rank 6 [Procedural Immunity] Once per bureaucratic task, the character can ignore the -3 success penalty of a Critical Failure. Furthermore, when the character is a member of an organization and seeks permits for equipment or supplies, the request automatically succeeds in a single day. This automatic success is only negated if a rival is actively using a Sabotage action to hinder the character.
▶ Rank 9 [Invisible Hand] Your interference is a work of art. Opponents must roll an Amazing success just to realize they are being sabotaged. Furthermore, the character can now use Administration to trace a saboteur’s identity without requiring other skills, recognizing their specific “procedural signature.” Unless the saboteur also has Rank 9 in this specialty, they cannot hide their identity from the character.
▶ Rank 12 [Loophole Master] The character generates double the successes on any check. Additionally, the character cannot be interfered with; they utilize obscure procedural routes that make it impossible for others to track where the request is actually being processed.
Management
This specialty governs the acquisition of physical goods and the strategic management of capital. It is used to find rare equipment, navigate supply chains, and oversee group or corporate finances. A skilled procurer knows how to make money go further, how to find items that aren’t officially for sale, and how to turn stagnant capital into a growing engine of wealth.
Rank Benefits
▶ Rank 2 [Investment Portfolio] If the character is in charge of personal or group capital, they can have it invested. Each month, the character makes a roll to determine the yield:
- Critical Failure: -20%
- Failure: +0%
- Ordinary: +10%
- Good: +15%
- Amazing: +30%
▶ Rank 3 [Financial Leverage] The character receives a -1 step bonus to any check made using this specialty skill, and an additional bonus steps at Rank 9 and 12.
▶ Rank 6 [Master of Capital] The character drastically optimizes the group’s burn rate. All Upkeep costs for employees, ships, and properties under the character’s supervision are cut by half.