Perception

Perception (PER, ) is one of the primary attributes in and.

Overview
Perception represents a character's senses as well as their instinctive ability to pick up on details. In interactions, it can be used to catch someone in a lie, to make an observant comment about their appearance, or to notice something happening in the background. In combat, it contributes to the accuracy, Reflex defenses and grants a bonus to Interrupt.


 * Ratings:
 * 5 - Oblivious
 * 10 - Average
 * 15 - Observant
 * 20 - Eagle-Eyed

Combat
Per point of Perception above/below 10, a character gains:


 * ±2 to their Reflex defense.
 * ±3 to the Interrupt potential of their attacks ( only)
 * ±1 to the Accuracy of their attacks.

See Combat for more explanation on how bonuses are calculated and applied.

Dialog and scripted interactions
In conversations, the protagonist's perception is commonly checked for noticing a lie or other relevant detail about the dialog partner.

In scripted interactions, any party member's perception may be checked to notice hidden objects or minor details that would otherwise be missed.

See Uses of Perception in interactions for a detailed list.

Detection
In, Perception is used to detect hidden objects. This was changed from, where detection was based on the character's Mechanics skill. The higher a party member's Perception, the larger the distance in which they will detect traps and hidden objects, like stashes, switches or items.

Objects that are more difficult to detect require the character to be closer to them in order to be detected, though if the character's Perception is less than the object's difficulty level, it will not be able to be detected at all.

Unlike in, characters do not get a debuff to the detection skill by not being in scouting mode.

The range at which a hidden object is detected is calculated using the lowest value of  (maximum detection range), the current line-of-sight distance (a dynamic value which determines the fog clear radius) and a calculated value using:

Given the above, if the detectable object's difficulty is greater than the character's Perception, the detectable range for the object will be <= 0, and therefore the object will be unable to be detected by that character. Note that an object must be within a character's line of sight in order to be detected.

Allocation
A player character's Perception score is allocated during character creation, and does not progress with levels. By default you may put between 3 and 18 points in it, but the character's race and culture can modify those limits - for example for an Orlan from The White that Wends, it would be between 6 and 21:

Buffs in
There are various ways to (temporarily) increase a character's Perception beyond their base score. These buffs are not restricted to the upper limit that is imposed during character creation - so a temporary score of 30 or more is not impossible.

Passive abilities/talents
unlimited – permanently active once learned

Weapons
unlimited – bonus while equipped

Equipment
one – bonus while equipped

Resting bonuses
one

Prostitute boons
one – for the protagonist only

Modal or active buffs
one – which includes:

Active abilities/spells – temporary bonus when used

Consumable items – temporary bonus when used

Buffs in
Most perception buffs are applied via one of the three Perception Inspirations; Insightful, Aware, and Intuitive. Stacking rules apply depending on whether the effect is passive or active. Generally, all passives stack - but actives do not and will instead use the highest bonus. In the case of inspirations, a Tier 1 inspiration will always be superseded by a Tier 2 one of the same type, and so on.

Passive effects
unlimited – obtained during gameplay

Abilities/spells
one – temporary bonus when used, mostly combat only

Weapons
unlimited – bonus only in combat, and either triggers under certain conditions or granted as a castable ability

Equipment
unlimited – bonus only in combat, and either triggers under certain conditions or granted as a castable ability

unlimited – bonus while equipped

Pets
unlimited – bonus while equipped to either self or party

Resting bonuses
one - until next rest

Prostitute boons
one – for the protagonist only, lasts until next rest.

Consumable items
one – for the user until next rest

unlimited – for the user for a duration (sometimes only in combat)

Class
unlimited – permanently to the character, sometimes under a condition

Debuffs in
Most perception debuffs are applied via one of the three Perception Afflictions; Distracted, Disoriented, and Blinded. Stacking rules apply depending on whether the effect is passive or active. Generally, all passives stack - but actives do not and will instead use the highest penalty. In the case of afflictions, a Tier 1 affliction will always be superseded by a Tier 2 one of the same type, and so on.

Abilities/spells
one – temporary penality when used, mostly combat only

Class
unlimited – permanently to the character, sometimes under a condition