Skills - richardwilkes/gcs GitHub Wiki

The Skill list on your character sheet shows all of your character’s skills (p. B167), their levels, and points spent.

Master Library

GCS includes the full list of official skills in the Master Library. See Library Explorer for more details.

You can also create your own custom skills.

Skill list

The skill list on your character sheet includes the following columns. Select a column heading to sort ascending or descending .

Column Description
Skill / Technique The skill or technique name, specialization (in parentheses), and any notes. Select the notes icon to open or close the notes for this skill.
SL The calculated skill level, based on its controlling attribute and points spent.
Rsl The relative skill level compared to its controlling attribute. For example, DX+2.
Pts The total points you’ve invested in the skill.
Page reference for the skill. See Page References for more details.
Tracks whether the skill matches the official Master Library. See Master Library Syncing in Character Sheet Overview

Adding skills

To add a skill:

  1. Open a Skill library from the Master Library.
  2. Choose the skill you want.
  3. Add the skill in one of two ways:
    • Drag it from the library to your sheet, or
    • Right-click it and select Copy to Character Sheet.

You can also create a new custom skill:

  • On your character sheet, go to Item > New Skill.

[!IMPORTANT] Some skills have prerequisites. If you add one without meeting its requirements, GCS shows an error below it. Hover over the error to see what’s missing.

When you add a skill:

  • GCS highlights the block where it can be dropped. No matter where you drag it, it goes to the right location.
  • The Points block updates automatically. Points spent on skills reduce your unspent points.
  • The skill’s starting level is calculated automatically, based on its controlling attribute. Changing an attribute can change the skill level.

Points and costs

  • Most skills require at least 1 point to purchase.
  • Higher skill levels cost more points, based on the buying skills rules and the Skill Cost Table (p. B170).

Managing skills

You can change skills on your sheet in a few ways.

Incrementing points vs. increasing levels

Increment/Decrement:

  • Adds or removes one point at a time.
  • Depending on the skill cost table (p. B170), several points may be required before the skill increases to the next level.

To add or remove points:

  • Right-click the skill and select Increment or Decrement, or
  • Go to Edit > Increment or Edit > Decrement.

Increase/Decrease Skill Level:

  • Raises or lowers the skill’s actual level directly.
  • GCS automatically adds or removes the correct number of points based on the skill cost table.

To increase or decrease the skill level:

  • Right-click the skill and select Increase Skill Level or Decrease Skill Level, or
  • Go to Edit > Increase Skill Level or Edit > Decrease Skill Level.

[!TIP] Use Increment when you’re tracking gradual training. Use Increase Skill Level if you want to jump directly to the next full level.

Tracking study time

You can also track study time for skills. See Study time for more details.

Organizing skills with containers

Skills can be grouped into Containers for easier navigation.

For Example:

  • Put Broadsword and Axe/Mace into a “Melee Combat Skills” container.
  • You can also use containers when building Character templates to enforce “pick X skills” rules.

Deleting a skill

To delete a skill:

  • Right-click it and select Delete, or
  • Select it and go to Edit > Delete.

Editing skills

You can edit a skill in a few ways:

  • Double-click it to open the Detail Editor for skills.
  • Right-click it and select Open Detail Editor.
  • Select a skill and go to Edit > Open Detail Editor.

Save your changes when you're done from the Skill toolbar (see below).

Skill Detail Editor fields

The Skill Detail Editor includes the following fields:

Skill Editor Field Description
Name The skill’s name.
Specialization The specific specialty of the skill, if required (p. B169).
Tech Level The Tech Level associated with the skill, if applicable. This field is greyed out unless Required is checked.
Required If checked, the Tech Level must match for the skill to be available.
Notes Notes about the skill. These appear below the skill in the list. Select the Scripting Guide for instructions on including JavaScript. Supports Markdown.
VTT Notes Notes for use in your Virtual Tabletop system. See your VTT’s documentation.
Tags Comma-separated Tags to help organize skills.
Difficulty Select the controlling attribute (p. B167) and the difficulty level (p. B168). Options include Easy, Average, Hard, Very Hard, and Wildcard (p. B175).
Encumbrance Penalty Multiplies the current encumbrance level. Applies to skills like Stealth, Climbing, and Swimming (p. B17).
Points Total character points invested in this skill.
Level Read-only. Shows the calculated skill level and relative skill level (DX+2). Levels are calculated based on the GURPS skill cost table (p. B170).
Page Reference The page number where the skill appears. See Page References.
Page Highlight Text to highlight in the PDF. Leave blank unless the default highlights fail.
ID The skill’s unique ID.
Source ID The unique ID for this skill in the source library.
Source Library The name of the source library.
Source Path The path to the source library.
Prerequisites Requirements for this skill. See Prerequisites.
Defaults Lists default skills and values (p. B173). See Defaults.
Features Lists attribute, condition, skill, spell, reaction, or weapon changes applied by the skill. See Features.
Melee Weapon Usage Melee weapon statistics (p. B268), including defaults. See Melee and Ranged Weapons.
Ranged Weapon Usage Ranged weapon statistics (p. B268), including defaults. See Melee and Ranged Weapons.
Study Tracks study time for this skill. See Study time.

Skill toolbar

The toolbar above the Skill Editor gives you quick access to common actions:

Button Name Description
Help Opens the help page from the User Guide.
100% Zoom Adjusts the display size of the Skill Editor.
Apply Changes Saves and closes the Skill Editor.
Discard Changes Exits without saving changes.
Set Substitutions Lets you enter values for skills with placeholders in their specialization or notes.

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