Questions and Chatter

The task is difficulty 3, so you'd have to roll a 9 or better to pass.
You can expend points from your might or speed pool to reduce the difficulty by one step, lowering the roll needed to a 6.
It costs 3 points from your pool to reduce the difficulty by that single step.
Your speed edge of 1 reduces the speed cost by one, lowering the cost of expending that effort down to 2 points.

So you can try at the base difficulty of 9 OR you can spend 2 points from your speed pool to lower your required roll down to a 6.

But don't forget you still need to expend 2 from your might pool to participate in the task as well. They can be recovered later through a recovery roll. You can think of your Pools as your HP if that helps.

Thanks guys!

The other thing...and I should have thought of this myself, so I apologize...is that skills and assets can also be used to reduce the cost. So you could have claimed Running as your flex skill for the day and it would have reduced the Difficulty to a 1 meaning you needed a 3. You still would have failed with the result of 2, but you could have done that.

If you would like to retroactively change that I will allow it as you are new and I should have noticed this. However, Climbing is another thing that likely will come up when you get to the Spiram where The Seer lives, so maybe you want to keep it as is. You decide.

Otherwise these answers were exactly right.

I'm really glad my answer was correct, this was my first roll I've made in this system! Also, shields are an asset for speed defense, right?

Yes

*Hypeman Voice*Bringing up back story problems Ooooooh.*End Voice*

But seriously are there nonlethal options? Cus Imma get dat egg regardless.

Out of character I'd feel bad for the children if there's no nonlethal option...
In character "This isn't part of the Rite?"

I am also curious about nonlethal damage in Numenara. I really don't want to kill anyone!

Yes you can strike for non lethal damage. Your fists are light weapons that do only 2 damage normally. If you want to narrate that you only subdue or drive them off that is fine with me.

*looks at Pha's fists* Oooh... with your 1d4+1 for a light weapon... I'm at 1d4+3 or 1d4+7 if I get angry... I vote for trying to use my words first.

I'm expecting a signal that Pha and Yaru can move -- my sense is that we've got to let the NPCs get a round in before we can do anything.

Is it possible for my Onslaught Esotery to do non-lethal damage?

The three that could did, all actions now will probably be sorted after an initiative roll

So, I get a Major Effect on my initiative roll, right? Any thoughts on what it could be?

Well, looking for applicable suggestions online I found a few.

1. Decrease Defense Task Difficulties by one step for the rest of this scene
2. Attempt an additional action on this turn.

Friar_Tuk brought up an interesting point about points in your pools. Taking 'damage' reduces your pools Might first until it's to 0 then Speed and then Int. There's a three stage status effect on the downward spiral of life when you bottom out in any until all three are zeroed out. Expenditure for abilities, tasks, or effort come out of the pools as well and while not 'damage' its a resource from the pool and in truth I guess can be considered 'like damage' since they reduce your resources in a pool.

We have not gotten into major combat but it is a possibility to try and dodge an attack, spend effort to make it easier, fail and still take the damage meaning you double down on the loss of points to your pools, sometimes you just take the roll to see if you get hit if the odds are not good to dodge with effort keep in mind multiple uses of effort might sap you just as quickly.

Oddly enough it's one of the things I like about the system that there is a slippery slope on doing or not doing something that reduces your pools on the meta side and the narrative story side.

Double post since this one is more of a personal question that chatter.

Question for Foolsmask:
In my face to face group if you'd like to use a power for something related or outside the scope of the current mechanics we had the option to try it at times it just cost more. If I wanted to use Sculpts Flesh to not do more damage like designed but to make it easier to move in the environment and climb what would the increased buy in be? (Reference p. 82 Character Options - Modifying Abilities)

I agree that there as it is written it does work the way you are describing it. It is the job of the Narrator to mitigate those situations. My job is about telling an interesting story. Seeing a PC beat over the head with a stick isn't dramatic, unless maybe the one hitting the PC were an adversary with a blood feud...

I can agree to this, make it cost 3 Intellect to start with, and that will give you an asset towards climbing.

Remnant brought up something I'm curious about. Can we use an XP to re-roll?

Edit: Nvm, found my answer in the book

We can but I asked to see narratively if it was okay, there are actually a lot of narrative boons I think besides using XP for character advancement or a reroll that are pretty cool about this system.