Deception

You trick and mislead others with disguises, lies and other subterfuge.

Actions

Create a Diversion (Mental)

With a gesture, a trick or some distracting words, you draw creatures' attention elsewhere. A gesture or trick gives this action the Manipulate trait; distracting words give it the Auditory and Linguistic traits. Roll one Deception check against the Perception save of each creature you want to affect. Whatever the result, those creatures get 1 level of Advantage against your attempts to Create a Diversion for 1 minute.

Success: Each creature whose Perception save was lower than your result loses track of you, so you can Hide or Sneak.

Failure: Each creature whose Perception save beat your result keeps track of you and knows you tried to trick it.

Impersonate (Concentrate, Exploration, Manipulate, Secret)

Requires: A disguise kit.

You put together a disguise to pass yourself off as someone or something else. A convincing disguise takes 10 minutes, though a simpler, quicker one may do if you aren't copying a particular person (GM's call). Usually creatures only get a chance to see through it if they have reason to look closely, such as being on high alert. When you deal directly with someone while disguised, the GM rolls a secret Deception check for you against that creature's Perception save. If you're copying a specific person, the GM may give the creatures you meet a bonus depending on how well they know that person, or roll even when you aren't dealing with anyone directly.

Success: The creature believes you are who you're dressed as. You may need a new check if your behavior changes.

Failure: The creature can tell you aren't who you claim to be.

Critical Failure: The creature can tell you aren't who you claim to be, and recognizes you if it would know you without the disguise.

Lie (Auditory, Concentrate, Linguistic, Mental, Secret)

You try to fool someone with an untruth. It takes at least 1 round, longer for an elaborate lie. Roll one Deception check and compare it to the Intellect save of each creature you're trying to fool; the GM adjusts for how believable the lie is and the situation. If a creature believes you at first, the GM may let it make another Intellect save against your result later, if it finds evidence, notices something off or has reason to doubt you.

Critical Success: The target believes the lie completely. A meaningful lie can set off effects such as Charming Liar.

Success: The target believes the lie.

Failure: The target doesn't believe you, and has 2 levels of Advantage against your further attempts to Lie to it for the rest of the conversation.

Critical Failure: The target sees through the lie, has 4 levels of Advantage against your further attempts to Lie to it for the rest of the conversation, and is more suspicious of you from now on.

Feint (Mental, Trained)

Requires: The target is within your melee reach.

With a misleading flourish you leave an opponent unready for your real attack. Roll Deception against that opponent's Perception save.

Critical Success: You throw its defenses off completely: it is Off-Guard against you until the end of your next turn.

Success: It's fooled for a moment: it is Off-Guard against you until the end of your current turn.

Critical Failure: The feint backfires: you have 1 level of Disadvantage on melee attacks against it until the end of your next turn.