Spelljammer
Memory
Memory (Talent)

The character possesses an exceptional capacity for recall, pattern recognition, and mental organization, allowing them to retain and reconstruct information with extraordinary precision.


Base Effect (All Ranks)
  • The character gains a +1% bonus per rank to all basic lore rolls, including but not limited to:
    • Armor Lore
    • Artifact Lore
    • Monster Lore
    • History, Arcana, Geography, etc.
  • The character may attempt a Memory Recall roll when trying to accurately remember details:

Memory Recall skill roll: (5% × Rank) + ((KNOW – 15) × 3)

On a success, the character recalls information with high accuracy (see below).


On a successful Memory Recall roll, the character may:
  • Perfect Recall: Remember text, symbols, maps, or spoken words nearly verbatim, even if only briefly seen/heard.
  • Scene Reconstruction: Reconstruct a previously observed location:
  • Layout of a room or corridor
  • Position of people or objects
  • Sequence of events over a short period
  • Detail Extraction: Recall small but critical details that others might miss:
    • A symbol on a ring
    • The number of guards
    • Subtle inconsistencies
  • Time Anchoring: Accurately remember when something occurred relative to other events.

Rank 2 – Keen Recall
  • Can recall details from the current day with near-perfect clarity.
  • Gains a +10% bonus to Memory Recall rolls involving events within the last 24 hours.

Rank 5 – Structured Mind
  • Memory becomes organized and cross-referenced.
  • When making a lore/knowledge roll: On success, the character gains one additional useful related fact (GM-discretion).
  • If character spends one minute concentrating on a particular topic, they gain a +5% bonus to a single knowledge roll.

Rank 8 – Pattern Recognition

The character’s mind instinctively identifies recurring structures, behaviors, and inconsistencies, allowing them to anticipate outcomes and detect deception.

Pattern Recognition may be used when the character:
  • Observes a creature, NPC, or group for at least 1 round
  • Examines a scene, object, or symbol for at least 1 round
  • Witnesses a repeated action, tactic, or sequence

The player may then declare a Pattern Recognition attempt at the beginning of the round. This uses one of their actions for the round.

Pattern Recognition skill roll: ((rank - 7) x 8) + (((PER + KNOW) – 30) x 1.5)

On Success, choose ONE of the following effects (2 effect at rank 12+):
    1. Tactical Anticipation
    The character reads behavioral patterns in combat or tense situations. Gain +2 to initiative or Gain +10% to defense against one chosen opponent for the remainder of the battle.

    2. Weakness Identification
    The character recognizes flaws in structure, armor, or behavior. Gain +4 damage on the next attack or relevant action against the target.

    3. Deception Detection
    The character spots inconsistencies in behavior, speech, or appearance.
    • Gain a +15% bonus to detect:
      • Lies
      • Disguises
      • Illusions (non-magical automatically; magical at GM discretion)
    If already suspicious, success may allow the character to pinpoint what feels “off”.

    4. Environmental Insight
    The character recognizes patterns in surroundings. This has a more long term impact that should last for the entire "scene".
    • Gain +15% to Detect traps
    • Navigate complex layouts
    • Predict likely points of ambush or concealment

    Additionally, the GM should reveal one tactical or structural advantage (e.g., “That archway is a chokepoint,” or “Those crates provide cover”).

    5. Predictive Behavior
    The character anticipates the next likely action of a target.
    • The GM provides a probable action the target will take for their next action and, If the character acts in response to that prediction, they gain a +10 defense.

    (This is not mind reading—just strong probability based on observed patterns.)

On Failure
  • No effect
  • The character may not attempt Pattern Recognition on the same target/situation again unless circumstances significantly change


Rank 10 – Mental Replay
  • The character can “replay” memories with clarity.
  • Once per scene, the character may re-examine a past observation and ask one specific question about it (e.g., “Was the guard limping?”, “Which hand held the key?”)
  • Gains advantage in complex situations: +10% to planning or strategy rolls when prior observation is relevant


Rank 12 – Perfect Indexing
  • The character’s memory becomes vast and instantly accessible.
  • Automatically succeeds at recalling anything they have clearly seen, read, or heard (GM discretion for edge cases)
  • When making a knowledge/lore roll: On success, may choose to gain either:
    • Deeper insight, or
    • Faster recall (no time required)

Rank 15 – Eidetic Mastery
  • Memory approaches superhuman levels.
  • The character may:
    • Recall sensory details across all senses (sound, smell, texture, etc.)
    • Instantly compare current situations to past ones
  • Once per day, may treat a failed knowledge, lore or Memory Recall roll as a success (absolute failure as near success and blunder as partial success)
  • May retain and recall vast bodies of information (entire books, long conversations, complex maps)


Old Description (and ChatGPT Prompt)

A character with this skill has a very good memory. A successful skill roll (5% per rank plus ((KNOW - 15) x 3)) allows the character to dredge up some forgotten tidbit of information or remember, verbatim, the layout of a map that he saw only briefly, etc.

Additionally, all lore rolls (Armor Lore, Artifact Lore, Monster Lore, etc.) are increased by 1% per rank of Memory.

GM: The above is the description of the talent Memory. Flesh out this talent by keeping as a base effect the ability to add +1 per rank to all knowledge rolls. The first ability - skill roll to dredge up a forgotten tidbit of information - is never used so find something more interesting. Create additional memory effects that occur as the character increases their rank with this talent.