15.2 Awareness

There is no clear and consistent relationship between distances and Awareness modifiers. It’s basically impossible to read a book from thirty feet away, but a large statue is almost as obvious from that distance as it is from up close. On the other hand, a lit torch at night is visible from incredible distances. This is very difficult to define in rules, but people generally have good intuitions for what seems reasonable, so this is simply left as an especially tricky area for the GM to determine in the moment.

Keep in mind that different senses can react differently to distances. Scent tends to work best when smelling things that are upwind of you, but Rise obviously doesn’t have rules for determining the wind speed and direction at any given moment. It’s fine to keep these details completely abstracted, and just say that a successful Stealth check includes staying downwind without going into too much detail.

Alternately, you can be very specific about the circumstances. If a rogue is trying to sneak up on a wolf, you can tell them that the wind is currently blowing from north to south. Based on that wind direction, the wolf will gain an Awareness bonus if they approach from the north or an Awareness penalty if they approach from the south. As always, the most important thing is to clearly communicate expectations with your players.