One Roll: Four Actions, Four Outcomes
Everything you attempt with dice in Fate is the same roll: 4dF + your skill, against a difficulty on the Ladder or an opponent's roll. Fate dice run −4 to +4 and cluster hard around 0 — your skill matters more than your luck. The full text is in @Missing file.
The four actions
- Overcome — get past an obstacle: pick the lock, leap the gap, talk past the guard.
- Create an advantage — make or discover an aspect you can use: throw sand in his eyes (Blinded), case the room (I Know the Exits). This is the action experts spam, because it stacks free invokes for the roll that matters.
- Attack — harm someone, physically or mentally.
- Defend — oppose an attack or maneuver. Rolled on the other side's turn.
The four outcomes
| Result | What happens |
|---|---|
| Fail (below opposition) | You don't get it — or you get it at a serious cost |
| Tie (equal) | You get it at a minor cost, or gain a boost |
| Succeed (1–2 over) | You get what you wanted |
| Succeed with style (3+ over) | You get it and a boost or an extra free invoke |
The margin is counted in shifts, and shifts are the game's exchange rate — on an attack they become the harm the defender must absorb.
Boosts
A boost is a disposable aspect with one free invoke — Off Balance, Distracted — that vanishes when used or when the moment passes. Succeed-with-style generates them constantly; spend them while they're hot.
The Ladder
Mediocre (+0), Average (+1), Fair (+2), Good (+3), Great (+4), Superb (+5) — difficulties are set in those terms, and @Missing file has the full run. When the GM says "the vault door is Good," you know exactly what that means: roll, add, compare. There is no other resolution mechanic in the game.