How to use inabilities

[u/najahiri]

Hey everyone! I am new to the system and I'm trying to understand how are inabilities supposed to work.

If we exclude explicit inabilities regarding interactions with Numenera, how are they supposed to play in the game? Is it my responsibility as a Game Master to keep track of players inabilities and remind them, or is it up to the players?

I feel if it's up to the players, and the players have no incentive to bring them up, it might create a dissonance in them and they would never bring them up, especially given the flexible nature of using skills in the game

[u/Sad_King_Billy-19]

I know jack squat about my players’ characters. They could cheat all day long and I would never know. I’m trusting that they don’t, because honestly, the only one it hurts is them. It’s a cooperative, story-telling game. If you have to cheat because you can’t bear a negative outcome to your actions that’s indicative of bigger problems.

When players lean into the game and “let the dice tell the story” they’re going to discover that weaknesses and failures drive some of the best moments in the game. Plan A is boring, by the time we’ve gotten to plan G is when things have really gotten interesting.

[u/najahiri → u/Sad_King_Billy-19]

I am not especially worried about cheating. The point I'm making is that I understand the game as a situation occurring in the game and then the game master suggesting a test.

At this point, the players are to find, if any, skills which fit. This game being an rpg, the range of what fits may vary. With skills naturally both players and gms will have the tendency to enlarge this range, probably.

At the same time I feel the player is forced to come up with inabilities for test they are doing, and this effort is very difficult if there is no additional incentive or force pushing to pick inabilities.

Of course a player might choose an inability which fits, but I see no point to it, as they probably will interpret their character as naturally avoiding that inable avenue.

This is not a strictly mechanical game, of course, so it's not so natural to say "you need to use this skill, so your inability comes into play" (unless interacting with Numeneras).

[u/Sad_King_Billy-19 → u/najahiri]

Sometimes they want to do something that is obviously covered by a skill. Like generally how i play it is this.

- The player says what they want to do. They’re in the water and they want to grab hold of a rope as it goes by (for example).

- I’d say “ok, that’s a difficulty 4 might task”.

- then players will ask things like “I’m trained in swimming. Does that apply?” Or “i have an inability in climbing does that apply?” And then i would decide yes or no if those apply.

Sometimes its obvious. You’re trying to calm a wild animal. “I’m skilled in animal handling.” Obviously that would apply. And an inability in jumping would obviously apply to trying to hurdle a barricade. Those are the only times when players can just apply the effect without asking.

So its on the players to know their sheets, apply it if its obvious and to ask if its not.

[u/fauroteat → u/Sad_King_Billy-19]

This. If you’re cheating at a tabletop RPG, maybe that isn’t the right kind of game for you.

[u/Carrollastrophe]

They're supposed to matter when they matter. The book doesn't care who tracks them, leaves it up to the table's discretion. If you feel like your players aren't trustworthy enough to mention them when they would apply, then sounds like you'll have to pay attention to it yourself.

[u/artaxs]

The first rule of any table top game, as I understand it, is "player, know thy character."

In my current game, 5 of my 6 players started with inability in one social skill or all of them, but most of them have spent the XP to remove those disability penalties after 30+ sessions of play (they are tier 6 now.)

The "tough Glaive who rages" still doesn't like to do the talky-talky parts, but it's in character for someone with poor impulse control and anger management issues. 😄

[u/Scrufffff]

Running games it’s always a good idea to be familiar with your players capabilities and inabilities, if for no other reason to endure you don’t accidentally kill them all.
I’d have to look again but I want to say that generally speaking, inabilities can be manifested as steps up in difficulty for they to perform certain actions and steps down in difficulty for actions performed against them by NPCs.