HERO System (5th ed.): Franklin's House Rules for Intellect Skills

HERO System (5th ed.)
Franklin's House Rules for Intellect Skills
All original work herein is copyright © by Franklin W. Cain. All rights reserved. (Last updated: 27 January 2007)
Skills ( List ) . . . Agility | Intellect | Interaction . . . Background ( List ) . . . Languages . . . Transport Familiarity | Weapon Familiarity . . . Martial Arts

General Info
List of Intellect Skills
~~Analyze~~

I will not be using this skill. Instead, I will permit heroes to use Deduction, usually with an appropriate "PS: [Whatever] Analysis" as a Complementary Skill. Examples include:

PS: Melee Style Analysis (for a martial artist)
PS: Battlesuit Systems Analysis (for powered armor)
PS: Mutant Powers Analysis (for mutant-based superpowers)

If a Power requires the use of this skill (e.g.: if a martial artist has a Power write-up that has the Requires a Skill Roll Limitation defined for Martial Arts Style Analysis), then the Background Skill becomes a required Complementary Skill (no longer optional).

Artist

This new Intellect Skill covers visual artistic expression, primarily in a two-dimension medium (i.e., drawing and sketching), but it can also include working in a three-dimensional medium (sculpting, model building, etc.). The artwork attempted can range in complexity and sophistication, from as intricately detailed and realistic as Da Vinci's anatomical studies to as simplistic and impressionistic as a cartoonist's work, from as primitive as a Neanderthal's cave painting to as futuristic and high-tech as a totally digitized movie.
Artist focuses on creating something new and/or unique. (For copying something that already exists, use Forgery instead.)

Bugging, aka Eavesdropping

I will not be using this skill. Instead, use Systems Operation (along with "PS: Surveillance Devices" or other appropriate Systems Familiarity).

Computer Programming

This Skill can also be thought of as giving fail-safe, error-proof instructions, an invaluable talent for parents of mischievious five-year-old boys, as well as for supervillains with bumbling sidekicks... All humor aside, this Skill can be acquired by a wizard or necromancer, and called "Commanding the Mindless" (i.e., used for automatons, such as golems and mindless undead).
Be sure to acquire the appropriate Systems Familiarities.

Concealment

Criminology

Cryptography

Deduction

Demolitions

Disguise

Electronics

Be sure to acquire the appropriate Systems Familiarities.

~~Forensic Medicine~~

This skill has been downgraded to a Science (i.e., a Background Skill, not an Aptitude Skill).

Forgery

This skill has a base cost of three points (3 pts.).
Forgery covers duplicating someone else's work, with a special emphasis on making the duplicate look as "authentic" as possible. (For creating something unique, something that is truly your own work, use Artist instead.)

Gambling

This skill has a base cost of three points (3 pts.).
Be sure to acquire the appropriate games.

Inventor

This Skill can also be thought of as creating a technical object or process.

~~Lipreading~~

This skill has been downgraded to a Professional Skill (i.e., a Background Skill, not an Aptitude Skill).

Mechanics

Mimicry

Navigation

This skill has a base cost of three points (3 pts.).
Navigation covers determining one's position and course, usually with respect to a planet (i.e., on a planet's surface, either land or sea, or in a planet's atmosphere or oceans). Navigation is usually accomplished by means of dead reckoning (i.e., sheer memorization), a map and compass (or other instrumentation), or else terrain features.

Aviators and mariners can use their Professions as an (optional) Complementary Skill when plotting their vessel's course.
For navigating in a city, use the appropriate City Knowledge as an (optional) Complementary Skill.
For navigating via terrain features (aka Orienteering), use either Survival or the appropriate Terrain Knowledge as an (optional) Complementary Skill.

Navigation can be "enabled" to cover non-standard usage, by acquiring the relevant Background Skill, as shown below. Note that these Background Skills are required (not optional) Complementary Skills, to use Navigation in the manners listed.

For navigating close orbital distances, use Mathematics, Physics, or Astrogation.
For navigating interplanetary distances (or interstellar distances in "normal" space, for those civilizations without FTL travel), use Astrogation.
For navigating within hyperspace, use Hyperspace Navigation.

To be expert with all forms of navigating, improve Navigation. To be expert with a specific form of navigating, improve the relevant Background Skill.

Paramedic, aka First Aid

Security Systems

Be sure to acquire the appropriate Systems Familiarities.

Shadowing

Survival

This skill has a base cost of three points (3 pts.).
A beginning survivalist is assumed to be familiar with those terrain types most common to the campaign. (Usually, these default terrain types will be Grassland/Prairie and Forest/Woodland.) To become familiar with other terrain types, the hero will need to learn the appropriate Terrain Knowledge.

Systems Operation

This Skill can also be thought of as using a complicated device, usually (but not necessarily always) a technological device.
Be sure to acquire the appropriate Systems Familiarities.

Tactics

This Skill can also be thought of as evaluating a confrontation (i.e., an immediate conflict).

Tracking

Ventriloquism

Weaponsmith

This skill has a base cost of three points (3 pts.).

https://fcain.tripod.com/h5skills/intellect.html
All original work herein is copyright © by Franklin W. Cain. All rights reserved. (Last updated: 27 January 2007)