Perception Checks — Advanced Old School Revival

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While Perception checks are technically just a type of skill check in OSR+, they require more finesse to run successfully than other skill checks in the game. This is because a PC's perception is central to how they interface with the fiction, so players will frequently use the check in lieu of actually investigating a scene. But Perception checks are not a substitute for interrogating the fiction, so we need ways to mitigate this behavior and teach players to engage in the conversation.

Investigation vs. Button-Pushing

Players should not go into a room and ask "Can I roll a Perception check to look for clues in this room?" because a skill check gets triggered by something the PC does, not something the player declares.

When a player leads with a Perception check, ask them what they are looking for, and how they're doing it.

Perception Check Example

The mage Destiny is looking for clues regarding the disappearance of Professor Nasmith by investigating his Arcane Laboratory. The Laboratory has been ransacked. The GM describes the scene: there are toppled desks with broken beakers everywhere, a damaged orrery dangling from the ceiling, and a bookshelf in disarray with bloody footprints near it. The clues in this scene might include a faint magical aura on the orrery, an incriminating shred of evidence to be found in the wreckage, and an out-of-place book on the bookshelf that leads to Nasmith’s private sanctum.

Destiny: I take a closer look at the orrery. How was it damaged?

Destiny’s interrogation of the fiction is direct and specific, so the GM gives her the clue without a check.

GM: As you examine the orrery, it’s clear the thing was singed by fire. You notice a faint aura of magic lingering on the blackened orbs of the model’s planets.

Destiny then asks to examine the aura because she is a mage. She has plenty of time to do this, so the GM reveals some clues regarding the type of magic involved.

Destiny: Hmm, these footprints must lead somewhere. Is there anything about the bookshelf that stands out to me?

At this point, the GM could call for a Perception check to yield the clue that one book in particular has not been toppled, and sticks out like a sore thumb—the one that acts as a lever to open the hidden room. If he assigns a simple TN to the problem, then Destiny either gets the clue or misses it, which might be a bad thing if what’s in this room is important to pushing the narrative forward (i.e., the status quo will get reinforced).

Alternatively, he might call for Perception as a success check, where a poor result might result in the interior of the private sanctum having been burnt to a crisp, or perhaps someone unexpected showing up during the investigation that would introduce danger (read: a clock) to the scene. Either way, Destiny is getting the clue cleanly, or the clue plus something interesting that may be in or against her favor.

The key to resolving a Perception check is recognizing that it can only ever surface a clue about the thing the PC is investigating. If the PC is trying to determine if an NPC is lying and they ask about the NPC's body language, an opposed Perception check might reveal that the NPC is sweaty and fidgeting.

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