Even if he lacks a cipher’s key, a cryptanalyst

can often solve a substitution cipher via frequency

analysis — determining the frequency with which
letters appear in a given language, and then applying
that information to the cipher’s symbols to make it
statistically simpler to guess what each one stands
for. The use of nulls — additional, meaningless char-
acters scattered throughout the message — partly
counteracts this, as does deliberate misspelling; it also
works better on long messages than short ones.
Substitution ciphers fall into two general
categories: monoalphabetic, in which the cipher
remains the same throughout the message (e.g.,
the homophonic substitution cipher); and poly-
alphabetic, in which the cipher changes one or
more times throughout the message (e.g., the
Vigen re cipher).
A simple substitution cipher counts as a Very
Simple code (modifier of +2 or better). More elab-
orate ones are Simple, Average, or Complex.

Some specific types of codes and ciphers

include:
 the risks are acceptable and the logistical difficulties
easily overcome can a onetime pad cipher function
effectively. For example, one is (or has been) used
in secure communications between the presidents of
the United States and the Soviet Union. A onetime
pad cipher counts as a Very Complex code; creating
one requires a Cryptography roll at -5 (or worse);
deciphering one is impossible.
A monoalphabetic substitution
cipher that uses tic-tac-toe and X-shaped grids to
generate symbols to replace letters. It’s been used
for centuries; for example, the Freemasons of the
1700s employed it to keep their records secure. A
A substitu- pigpen cipher counts as a Very Simple or Simple
tion cipher in which each letter of the message code (modifier of +0 or better).
is replaced with the letter x places down in the A relatively simple substitution
alphabet; x is a number between 1 and 25. The cipher that uses a keyword, a five-by-five square
classic example uses x = 3, so that “river” becomes of letters, and a system of breaking messages into
“ulyhu.” A Caesar-shift cipher counts as a Very digraphs (two-letter combinations). A Playfair
Simple or Simple code (modifier of +0 or better). cipher counts as a Very Simple or Simple code
A form of sub- (modifier of +0 or better).
stitution cipher in which each plaintext letter has A cipher in which
several possible substitutions (the number usu- the alternating letters of a message are written on
ally varies based on the frequency of the letter). A two lines, one above the other, and then the two
homophonic substitution cipher counts as an Aver- lines of gibberish are joined into one long line of
age code (modifier of -2). gibberish. Decoding it is simply a matter of know-
A keyword code (or, more accu- ing or deducing where the two lines join. A rail
rately, keyword cipher) uses a word or phrase with fence transposition cipher counts as a Very Simple
ten letters or words, none of which repeat. The or Simple code (modifier of +0 or better).
letters or word represent the numerals 1 through Double ciphering, i.e., run-
9 and 0. The letters or words can be used to write ning a cipher through another cipher algorithm.
phone numbers, letters of the alphabet (via a Performing a superencipherment requires a Cryp-
simple substitution cipher), and the like, though to tography roll with the combined modifiers for the
the uninitiated they look like meaningless strings two types of ciphers used; deciphering one requires
of letters. Keyword codes are popular among crim- a Cryptography roll with the combined penalties of
inals, since they’re easy to remember. A keyword the two types of ciphers used, plus an additional -2.
cipher counts as a Very Simple or Simple code Invented around the year 1560,
(modifier of +0 or better). the Vigen re cipher is a series of 26 separate
A system of encoding that relies cipher alphabets, each one Caesar-shifted. A key-
mainly on ciphering, but with some codewords word determines which cipher alphabet is used to
involved as well. A nomenclator counts as an Aver- encode/decode each letter of the message, making
age code (modifier of -1 or -2). cryptanalysis by frequency analysis impossible.
Toward the end of the First Vigen re ciphers remained unbreakable until 1854,
World War, American cryptographers found ways when Charles Babbage devised a way to crack
to restore the Vigen re cipher (see below) to useful- them (though he didn’t publish it, so it became
ness by making the key structureless and extending known as the Kasiski Test after the man who did
its length to the length of the message. The keys are in 1863). A Vigen re cipher counts as a Very Com-
meaningless strings of letters listed on sheets on a plex code (modifier of -5 or worse).
pad. The key on each sheet is unique and used only
once. Both sender and receiver have a copy of the In most cases, you can resolve attempts to
pad. After encrypting and decrypting a message encrypt or decrypt a “handmade” code or cipher
with the key on the first piece of paper on the pad, using the normal Skill Versus Skill Contest rules
the sender and receiver both destroy that sheet. The and the modifiers outlined above. See below
randomness of the key makes it mathematically regarding base times.
impossible to decipher the code via cryptanalysis. In
fact, the possibility exists that anyone trying brute- Of course, breaking a code doesn’t confer
force cryptanalysis will actually “read” a seemingly knowledge of the language in which the plaintext
true message in the encrypted text that isn’t there! is written. In fact, if the cryptanalyst cannot speak
However, the onetime pad cipher system suffers and read the plaintext language, he may have
from practical difficulties — logistical problems trouble deciphering the cipher, since awareness of
relating to manufacturing and distribution, vulner- linguistic structure and the like may provide clues
ability to the loss or theft of the pad — so it was to cracking the code.
hardly ever actually used. Only in situations where
 For that matter, a language itself, if untrans-
lateable by others, can serve as a foolproof code.
The Navajo “code talkers” who helped America
with battlefield communications in World War II
are a perfect example. The Axis powers had no
way to translate the complex Navajo language,
making it an ideal method for passing secret mes-
sages; it was never “broken.”
 Also falling within the purview of the Cryp-
tography Skill is steganography, the practice of
secretly communicating messages not by encoding
them, but by hiding them. Anyone who finds the
message can read it... but first he has to find it! As discussed in detail above, for thousands
In ancient times, people used many clever but of years Cryptography generally involved no
(by modern standards) low-tech methods to hide technology beyond that necessary to write. But
messages. Examples include: once cipher machines are developed, technol-
ogy rapidly comes to play a more and more
important part in cryptology. By the time of
the Enigma machine and, later, computers,
reliable Cryptography virtually requires equip-
ment; without it, a character lacks the means
to securely encrypt messages or the means to
decrypt enemy messages.

Characters may be able to use some Powers to

overcome the need for Cryptography. For example,
Retrocognition or the ability to read the “psychic
traces” left in the message by the encoder (Detect
True Meaning Of Message, or the like) might
As technology became more advanced, so render the most complex, secure code transparent
did steganography. For example, during World to the character. For this reason, the GM may want
War II and the Cold War, nations could use to forbid or restrict the use of such powers; they’re
microdots — a page of text shrunk down to the likely to spoil the mystery and fun of deciphering a
size of a period on a printed page — to convey message “the old-fashioned way.”
information. Modern cryptographers use com- Similarly, some Powers may help charac-
puterized steganography to hide all sorts of data ters encode messages. An Uncontrolled, 0 END
in seemingly innocent graphics. form of Images could be applied to a message to
Of course, it’s possible to use both encryp- “encode” it, for example — and possibly even be
tion and steganography on a single message. “programmed” to change appearance every few
That provides two levels of secrecy to protect minutes so that a cryptanalyst can’t possibly have
the message. the time to decode it.

When a character encrypts a message, fail-

ure usually means improper coding, leading to a
garbled message. A badly-failed roll (by 4 or more)
may even communicate the wrong message.
When a character tries to decode a message
(or find a steganographically hidden message), fail-
ure typically means the character can’t break the
code. A badly-failed roll (by 4 or more) may mean
he thinks he’s broken it, but in fact he’s mistaken
and has incorrectly “translated” it.
 Except in the cases of the simplest handwrit-
ten ciphers and the most advanced decryption tech-
nology, encoding or decoding a message is usually
a time-consuming and laborious process. Several
factors influence the time involved.
The first is the length of the message — the
longer it is, the longer it takes to encode. On the
other hand, as noted in the Cryptography Modi-
fiers table, the longer the message the greater the
chances of cryptanalyzing it successfully.
The second is the complexity of the code. A
simple substitution cipher can sometimes be writ-
ten nearly as quickly as normal writing; creating
and writing a message in a Vigen re cipher could
take days. Superencipherment, steganography, and
the like only increase the time.
The Cryptography Base Times table provides
suggested guidelines for the time needed to encode
and decode messages. The GM should alter these
as he sees fit.
 -2 from Field -4 from Field -6 from Field roll at -2 roll at -4 roll at -6 roll at -8

VERY CLOSELY VERY LOOSELY

FIELD DISCIPLINE SUBDISCIPLINE SPECIALTY CLOSELY RELATED LOOSELY RELATED
RELATED RELATED
Biomedical Engineering
BIOLOGY Physical Anthropology
Marine Biology
Biogeography

Hero System 5th Edition

Botany
Dendrology

Mycology
Palynology
Phycology
Developmental Biology
Ecology Ecohydrology
Evolutionary Biology Paleontology
Phylogenetics
Taxonomy
Genetics Microbiology
Histology Diagnostics
Microbiology (Molecu- Biochemistry
lar And Cell Biology) Genetics
Diagnostics
Bacteriology
Cytology
Virology
Physiology Medicine
Anatomy
Zoology
Arachnology
Cryptozoology
Entomology
Apiology
Coleopterology
Dipterology
Lepidopterology
Orthopterology
Ethology
Herpetology
Ophiology
Ichthyology
Mammalogy
Cetology

260 ■ The Skills

 -2 from Field -4 from Field -6 from Field roll at -2 roll at -4 roll at -6 roll at -8
VERY CLOSELY VERY LOOSELY
FIELD DISCIPLINE SUBDISCIPLINE SPECIALTY CLOSELY RELATED LOOSELY RELATED
RELATED RELATED
Cynology
Equinology
Felinology
Primatology
Ornithology
The Ultimate Skill ■ Chapter Two

Chemical Hydrology
CHEMISTRY Chemical Physics Chemical
Oceanography
Analytical Chemistry
Biochemistry Medicine
Microbiology
Inorganic Chemistry
Organic Chemistry
Pharmacology/ Health Sciences
Toxicology
Theoretical Chemistry

EARTH SCIENCES
Atmospheric Sciences
Aeronomy
Climatology
Meteorology Hydrometeorology
Meteorological Ocean-
ography
Geodesy/
Geophysics
Geology Hydrogeology
Geochemistry
Geomorphology
Mineralogy
Paleontology Evolutionary Biology
Invertebrate Paleontol- Zoology
ogy
Micropaleontology
Paleoanthropology Anthropology
Paleobotany Botany
Paleozoology Zoology
Vertebrate Paleontology Zoology
Petrology Petroleum Engineering
261
 -2 from Field -4 from Field -6 from Field roll at -2 roll at -4 roll at -6 roll at -8
VERY CLOSELY VERY LOOSELY
FIELD DISCIPLINE SUBDISCIPLINE SPECIALTY CLOSELY RELATED LOOSELY RELATED
RELATED RELATED
Plate Tectonics
Sedimentology
Soil Science

Hero System 5th Edition

Edaphology
Pedology
Speleology
Stratigraphy
Biostratigraphy
Lithostratigraphy
Vulcanology
Glaciology
Hydrology Limnology
Chemical Hydrology Chemistry
Ecohydrology Ecology
Hydrogeology Geology
Hydroinformatics
Hydrometeorology Meteorology
Hydromorphology
Isotope Hydrology
Surface Hydrology
Limnology Hydrology
Oceanography
Chemical Oceanog- Chemistry
raphy
Marine Biology Biology
Marine Geology
Meteorological Ocean- Meteorology
ography
Physical Oceanography

ENGINEERING
Agricultural Engineer-
ing
Architecture/
Architectural Engineer-
ing
Biomedical Engineering Biology
Chemical Engineering
Plastics Engineering

262 ■ The Skills

 -2 from Field -4 from Field -6 from Field roll at -2 roll at -4 roll at -6 roll at -8

VERY CLOSELY VERY LOOSELY

FIELD DISCIPLINE SUBDISCIPLINE SPECIALTY CLOSELY RELATED LOOSELY RELATED
RELATED RELATED
Civil Engineering
Construction
Engineering
Hydraulic Engineering
Structural Engineering
Transportation
The Ultimate Skill ■ Chapter Two

Engineering
Computer Engineering
Software Engineering
Electronic/
Electrical Engineering
Cybernetics
Optronics Optics
Environmental Engi-
neering
Sanitary Engineering
Industrial Engineering
Safety Engineering
Marine Engineering
Materials Engineering/ Materials Physics
Materials Science
Metallurgy
Mechanical
Engineering
Aerospace Engineering
Astronautical
Engineering
Engine Design
Fluid Systems
Robotics
Mining And Geological
Engineering
Nanotechnology
Nuclear Engineering
Petroleum Engineering
263
 -2 from Field -4 from Field -6 from Field roll at -2 roll at -4 roll at -6 roll at -8
VERY CLOSELY VERY LOOSELY
FIELD DISCIPLINE SUBDISCIPLINE SPECIALTY CLOSELY RELATED LOOSELY RELATED
RELATED RELATED
HEALTH SCIENCES
Clinical Medicine Biochemistry
(a.k.a. Medicine)

Hero System 5th Edition

Anaesthesiology
Dermatology
Internal Medicine
Cardiology
Endocrinology
Forensic Pathology
Gastroenterology
Geriatrics
Hematology
Hepatology
Infectious Diseases
Nephrology
Oncology
Otolaryngology
Pulmonology
Rheumatology
Urology
Neurology Neuropsychology
Obstetrics & Gynecol-
ogy
Optometry Ophthalmology
Pediatrics
Psychiatry Psychology
Forensic Psychiatry
Surgery
Ophthalmology Optometry
Orthopedics
Plastic Surgery
Dentistry
Diagnostics Histology
Immunology
Microbiology
Clinical Laboratory
Science
Radiology
Dietetics

264 ■ The Skills

 -2 from Field -4 from Field -6 from Field roll at -2 roll at -4 roll at -6 roll at -8

VERY CLOSELY VERY LOOSELY

FIELD DISCIPLINE SUBDISCIPLINE SPECIALTY CLOSELY RELATED LOOSELY RELATED
RELATED RELATED
Embryology
Epidemiology
Immunology Diagnostics
Osteopathy
Pathology
Veterinary Medicine
The Ultimate Skill ■ Chapter Two

Avian Medicine
Bovine Medicine
Canine Medicine
Equine Medicine
Feline Medicine
Reptile Medicine
MATHEMATICS Physics
Algebra
Field Theory
Number Theory
Analysis
Applied Mathematics
Accounting
Probability Theory
Statistics
Calculus
Geometry
Euclidean
Non-Euclidean
Topology
Trigonometry
PHYSICS Mathematics
Astronomy/
Astrophysics
Cosmology
Planetary Physics
Plasma Physics
Atomic/
Molecular/
Optical Physics
Atomic/Subatomic
Physics
Chemical Physics Chemistry
265
 -2 from Field -4 from Field -6 from Field roll at -2 roll at -4 roll at -6 roll at -8
VERY CLOSELY VERY LOOSELY
FIELD DISCIPLINE SUBDISCIPLINE SPECIALTY CLOSELY RELATED LOOSELY RELATED
RELATED RELATED
Molecular Physics
Optics Optronics
Photonics

Hero System 5th Edition

Condensed Matter
Physics
Materials Physics Materials Engineering/
Materials Science
Polymer Physics
Solid State Physics
Particle Physics
Accelerator Physics
Nuclear Physics
Theoretical Physics

SOCIAL SCIENCES
Anthropology Paleoanthropology
Archaeology
Cultural Anthropology
Linguistic Anthropol- Linguistics
ogy
Physical Anthropology Biology
Demographics
Economics
Geography
Linguistics Linguistic Anthropol-
ogy
Psychology Psychiatry
Neuropsychology Neurology
Psychoanalysis
Sociology

266 ■ The Skills

 Divination by precious stones, either
by scrying or as a geomantic technique. A subtype
of Lithomancy is Margaritomancy, divination by
means of a pearl.
Divination by means of visions. The
character concentrates on the questions put to him
and begins receiving psychic visions of the answer.
This may require meditation or other methods of
instilling a “trance” or similar state of conscious-
ness in which the visions can occur.
Divination by meteors.
Telling a person’s character by the
moles on his body.
Divination by the behavior of rats,
mice, or other rodents.
Divination by inspecting the nerves
of a corpse.
An African method of divination by
interpreting the actions and movements of spi-
ders or crabs. (Perhaps the English equivalent
would be Arachnomancy.)
Reading a person’s character (and some-
times fortune) or determining other facts through
mystic numerical analysis. Also called Arithmancy.
Divination by gazing into the ques-
tioner’s eyes.
Divination by interpreting the patterns
formed by spilled or poured wine.
Seeking oracles in the howling of dogs.
Divination by examining the navel
or the umbilical cord.
Interpreting dreams for omens.
Divination from the letters in a per-
son’s name.
Divination from reflected sunlight.
In some traditions this specifically means the
reflections of sunlight on the oiled fingernails of a
young boy.
Divination by watching how eggs
break when placed in a fire (also called Ovo-
mancy or Oomantia).
Divination by serpents.
Divination by the flight of birds.
Also called Orniscopy.
Divination by bones — typically
by heating them and interpreting the resulting
cracks and marks.
Divination by brushing clothes.
Divination using the plastron, or
undershell, of a turtle.
Divination by fire, either scrying or
Divination from incense smoke. throwing tokens into a fire and interpreting how
Also called Turifumy. they burn. See also Lampadomancy.
Divination by the letters (or other
written characters) in a name or word.
 The famous divining rod, used to
find liquids, minerals, or metals underground. (In
this case Divination is only used to answer one
question: “Are there liquids, minerals, or metals in
the ground beneath me?”.) Also called dowsing.
Divination by random selection of
rune-carved twigs or stones scattered on a surface.
Divination using the shoulder-
bones of an animal, sometimes by heating it and
interpreting the cracks or markings left by the fire.
The Scottish version, Slinneanachd, sometimes
involved having to first eat the animal’s flesh with-
out touching the bone with either nails or teeth.
Divination by animal droppings.
Divination by shadows or ghosts
(“shades”).
Divination by burning straw.
Divination by spindles.
Divination by ashes. Also called
Tephromancy.
2 Toxins of Th n
 poison used (and perhaps from that make educated
Typically, the purpose of poison is to kill. guesses about exactly which toxin is involved). If
However, not all poisons have fatal effects; it succeeds by 3 or more, the character typically
some just make the victim sick or dizzy, or knows the exact poison used. If the roll fails, he
knock him out. cannot identify the poison; if it fails badly (by 4 or
In the real world, poisons generally make the more) the character mis-identifies the poison.
victim feel ill, then cause cramps, convulsions, If a character finds an unidentified poison (for
and eventually death. Sometimes they have other example, among the effects of an assassin he’s just
minor effects, like raising (or lowering) body tem- captured), he can make a Poisoning roll to identify
perature, causing drowsiness or drunkenness-like it. This takes the same time as evaluating a poison-
effects, impairing the senses slightly, or mildly ing victim and usually involves applying simple
discoloring some part of the body. But in fictional tests to the poison to determine what it is. If the
settings, poisons can have many horrific effects Poisoning roll succeeds, the character can identify
that heighten the drama of the situation. They the general type or class of poison; if it succeeds
could, for example, cause extreme insanity prior by 2 or more he identifies the poison exactly. If the
to death, strongly discolor the victim’s body, make roll fails, he cannot identify the poison; if it fails
the victim bleed from the pores, or the like. Play- badly (by 4 or more) the character mis-identifies
ers and GMs should be fiendishly clever in their the poison.
descriptions of a poison’s effects.
In Superheroic games, characters have to
A character with Poisoning can evaluate a poi- spend Character Points to buy poisons. Since many
soning victim (living or dead) to determine what poisons are powerful and expensive, the high cost
sort of poison was used on him. To do so he must often makes buying too many of them prohibitive.
examine the victim for at least 1 Turn and make a In Heroic-level games, typically characters
Skill Roll. The roll suffers a penalty of -1 per step can buy poisons with money instead of Character
down the Time Chart since the victim was poi- Points. This may cause problems in the game.
soned (though if the poison remains active because Eager for its potent offensive power, characters
of Gradual Effect, this penalty does not start to may suddenly invest heavily in poison and use it
accrue until all increments of damage have been constantly, throwing off campaign balance.
applied). If the roll succeeds by up to 2 points, the Gamemasters who want to restrict the use
character can identify the general type or class of of poison in the campaign have several options.
First, make poisons difficult to create and obtain.
Lengthen the creation time (and increase the perils The Base Time for creating a poison is 1
of poison-brewing). Make poison so rare that Minute per 10 Active Points in the poison, but at
it’s difficult to find in the market, and incredibly the GM’s option some poisons may take much
expensive to purchase. Possession of poison may longer. (And of course this doesn’t account for the
also be illegal, causing characters further problems time needed to acquire the ingredients and other
when they try to buy or carry it. equipment needed.) Characters often take extra
Second, make poisons difficult to use. time to improve their chances of success. The same
Increase the speed with which they weaken or applies to creating antidotes.
evaporate. Require a character to make a DEX Harvesting poison from an animal or monster
Roll in every Phase he uses a poisoned weapon, usually takes a minimum of 5 Minutes, and pos-
with failure meaning he has accidentally poisoned sibly longer depending on the size of the creature,
himself. Give poison-using characters a Reputation the toughness of its flesh, the location of the poison
Disadvantage that makes it hard for them to live or sacs, and so forth.
work with folk who object to poison use. Applying poison to a blade can be done in as
Third, if necessary, forbid characters to use little as a Full Phase, but doing it safely requires a
poison altogether. After all, it’s not heroic — it’s minimum of 1 Minute (typically per dose applied).
something assassins, thieves, and other Evil people Putting the poison on quicker requires a DEX Roll
do. While heavy-handed, this method may prove to do so safely (see Injected Poisons, above).
the best and easiest for many campaigns. Evaluating a poison or poisoning victim typi-
cally requires a minimum of 1 Turn. Again, if pos-
sible characters usually take more time to improve
As noted above, Poisoning requires equip-
the chances of making a correct identification... but
ment. Characters need raw materials to make poi-
if a character’s trying to save a person who’s been
sons from, the gear to brew or concoct the poison
poisoned, he may not have the luxury of time.
in and with, and sometimes weapons, needles,
or other devices to introduce the poison into the
victim. Standard rules for lack of equipment or
using poor-quality equipment apply.

Some characters may have the innate ability to

poison people by bite, claw, or touch. This is usu-
ally bought just like an ordinary poison, but with-
out some Limitations (such as Focus). Characters
with appropriate Healing or Transform powers can
counteract poisoning (see sidebar). Some Defense
Powers may prevent a character from being poi-
soned with an injected poison because it’s difficult
(if not impossible) to pierce the character’s skin
with a blade or needle. And of course Life Support
(Immunity) can protect a character from poisons.

The consequences for failing to create a

poison, identify a poison, prepare an antidote, or
apply poison to a blade are discussed above. In
general a Poisoning roll failed by 1-3 has no nega-
tive impact beyond the failure itself. A badly failed
roll (by 4 or more) tends to mean something bad is
happened — most likely that the character acciden-
tally poisoned or hurt himself. Working with toxins
is not a job for the faint of heart, slow of wit, or
unsteady of hand.