Many times, players will try to create skills that are much too broad in scope. Less frequently, players will make skills that are too narrow in scope. Loosely speaking scope represents the percentage of situations a skill can apply to. An example of a skill that is too broad is magic as you can do anything you want with it. A skill that is too narrow would be death curse as it can only be used to kill someone. Somewhere in between we find the skill death magic which has many applications but not infinitely many. It has a specific domain in which it is useful. Storytellers should specifically look out for skills that are too broad during character creation and veto them. tighten the scope on them.
Pertains mostly to skills. Skills should be middling in scope, with relevant limits.
- magic
- elemental magic
- fire magic
- fireball
- 20ft radius, 150ft range, needs LoS, 2/rest, 8d6 damage, DEX save halves, fireball
Loosely speaking scope represents the percentage of situations a skill can apply to. “The extent of the area or subject matter that something deals with or to which it is relevant.”
Players should not be given control of reality (via things like “magic”)
if a skill winds up with broad scope you should consider adding other limits.
as a limit the storyteller would be defining and or tightening the scope. many other limits seem like they are there to help define scope (context and secondary resources both seem like they are there to )