Stealth, Disguise, and Espionage Rules

Stealth, Disguise, and Espionage Rules

Land of Norune

The mechanics for stealth, disguise, and espionage rely on a few overlapping mechanics, and failing to adhere to them can quickly devolve into metagaming, which is a rules violation. Of the key mechanics that apply to all three:

  1. You must enter the scene by posting before using the mechanics.
  2. You must be an active part of the scene, not just observing.

Stealth – (Opposed rolls 1d20+stealth mod)

Stealth is the act of not being noticed. Whether that is through simply no one seeing you, or through going unnoticed as a face in the crowd, or avoiding detection by not making discernable sounds, anything that isn’t directly mentioned but falls into the definition would be treated as stealth.

This comes in handy when you are trying to slip out of a crowded function, sneak unnoticed beyond a guards checkpoint, or creep around a dark alley unseen. Stealth relies upon avoiding notice more than any deception. Stealth would typically be handled with opposed rolls. Two parties: the one sneaking and anyone who the sneaking individual is trying to avoid who would be alert (a player in a scene who determines they would not be alert enough to detect a sneaking individual may opt out and is not required to roll, once opted out, they may not roll again unless another party successfully detects the stealth and alerts them).

When a sneaking party wishes to initiate a sneak around other people, or to sneak beyond a point where individuals are located, they would indicate their intention in their post using language that makes it clear they’re trying to sneak, and then roll a D20 with stealth selected as their modifier. If they are rolling to sneak beyond an NPC guarded checkpoint, they would do the same, but instead of an opposed roll, they’ll consult the NPC scorelist to determine whether the area they are sneaking is accessible without being noticed.

  Anyone opposing the roll, would then roll the same: a D20 with stealth as the modifier. If the sneaking party rolls higher, they successfully sneak. If /any/ of the observers roll equal or higher, they detect the observer.

What happens next, depends on what the sneaking party was doing:

  • Trying to slip out of a crowd unnoticed? You are noticed.
  • Trying to slink through an alley unseen and unheard? You make a noise, and another opposed roll is made. If the observers win again, you are discovered, if the sneaking party wins, they may escape back the way they came, or make an additional attempt to sneak by.
  • Bypassing a guard or checkpoint? You alert the guard and may now have to deal with the consequences of being seen sneaking somewhere you aren’t meant to be.

Other situations may exist which aren’t specified here, use reasonable judgment to discern what you are trying to do and which of the above it is closest to and act accordingly. If you are trying to sneak past an NPC, consult the following table to determine the roll you have to beat.

  • Commoner NPC in town: 8
  • Commoner NPC in ‘alert’ state (out in the woods, recent conflict in town, etc…): 10
  • Guardsman Patrol / Checkpoint: 13
  • Guardsman in alert state (recent conflict in town): 15
  • Guard inside secure area (Faction/guild base interior, government building, vault, etc…): 18

As the above shows, depending on the circumstances, stealth can get trickier to accomplish, and that is by design. Can you stealth your way into a faction base or through a government building? Absolutely. Is it easy? No, not at all. As a supplement to stealth and to give you an edge, you may wish to consider disguise.

Disguise

Can be used in coordination with Stealth, Disguise is the effort of appearing as someone other than yourself. The very act of deception to this degree shows intent and planning,  making this a dangerous activity with serious potential consequences if caught. This can utilize costumes, make-up, forgery, and even magic. 

There are four different types of disguise and they’d be used in different situations, when playing, be sure the situation you’re using is appropriate to the style you’re working with.

  1. Simple Forgery – Just a couple of forged documents, they don’t change how you look and won’t fool anyone who has a passing familiarity with you, but for strangers, you can make them think you’re someone other than who you are. (Effect item? +1 stealth)
  2. Quick and dirty – A change of clothes, some quick make-up, this is used to make you not look like yourself in order to get out of a spot in a pinch. It can be set up in about ten minutes, and while it won’t sustain for long, it is only intended to last ‘long enough’ to get through a spot. (Effect item? +2 stealth)
  3. Temporary professional – This can take an hour or more to set up, and will only last until you take it off again, but during that time, you’ll be less likely to be identified as you. (single-use Effect item? +3 stealth)
  4. Alter Ego – Using a skilled set of prosthesis, make-up, and attire, alongside clever forgery, you create an alter ego that you can utilize over and over to create a persona other than you that may be seen multiple times. This takes a long time to create and establish, but once done, you can typically shift into it with relative ease, taking from twenty to thirty minutes to shift forms. (unlimited-use Effect item? +5 stealth)

If using magic to flavor your disguise, keep in mind that the cost of components for the magical effects should remain on par with the corresponding item cost for the effect bonus you’re after. It is merely flavoring it differently, but will utilize the same function mechanically.

Espionage (Spying)

Infiltration of a group, guild, faction or the like. Espionage is a means of gathering intelligence and spying on others. It will frequently make use of the Stealth and Disguise mechanics, and is extremely dangerous and so there are a number of rulesets involved in it. Please take note that getting caught as a spy will have dramatic effects which can limit your options for future roleplay, so bear that in mind.

As espionage can be a divisive and controversial aspect of roleplay, it must be approached very carefully out of character. To that end, here are recommendations and limitations you should keep in mind:

  • Spy characters must always use the same character profile via the HUB. If you are using two different character profiles to represent the same individual, your acts will be classified as metagaming. You may use disguises and such, but you may not create two profiles to act as the same character even if those profiles match stat for stat.
  • Prior to performing an infiltration RP. You should meet with a lorekeeper and the faction/guild/group leader to discuss the intent in an OOC meeting. This is to establish intent. The Lorekeeper involved should not be a part of the group being infiltrated or a member of the infiltrating group. The lorekeeper is intended to be an unbiased party to report on the meeting to staff should issues arise. (Also, if you are involved in multiple espionage actions against multiple groups, the same lorekeeper should not be presiding over all of them)
  • Once the meeting is held, a corresponding document of that meeting (complete log from start to finish of the meeting either from discord or SL, with the only allowed edits being removal of non-meeting related entries, random HUD dialogue, radar notices, friend log-on/log-off notices, etc.) shall be created. Aside from the log, it should also include a statement of intent from the spy (What your intent is with the spying: Securing a particular piece of evidence, planting a particular piece of misinformation, establishing long-term trust of the faction, etc…) This is to ensure that down the road, if questions arise as to unfair treatment, there is a clearly defined goal. Try to be as unambiguous as possible with goal statements as they may come into play if staff involvement becomes necessary.
  • While not required, it is advisable to create a similar document for turn-coats. If you flip a member of a faction, guild, or group into being a spy for an outside group, it can very, very quickly devolve into metagaming accusations. These documents are intended to create a clean line of intent, on file, that can be referenced later should accusations arise.
  • If the leader of a faction, guild, or group refuses, they must create a document in conjunction with the lorekeeper citing the exact reasons for the refusal. These reasons must be universally applicable. Meaning if an IC reason is cited, that reason must apply to everyone. Examples of reasons which are always justified for refusal include: If the character is a known member of another group which is not on friendly terms with the group being infiltrated. If a character has been exposed for espionage previously. If a character is a known criminal element within the locale the group operates in.
  • If the leader of the faction, guild, or group refuses based on OOC reasonings, these too must be documented for the record and justifications must be specific. Refusing just to avoid a spy in your group is not acceptable as justification.
  • Once officially recorded, documents will be retained in a PDF format, copies should be held by the group lead, the player of the spy, the lorekeeper, and the administration team. (While it is not required, this is purely a safeguard against tampering later on.)

While espionage could be performed without going through a lorekeeper and strict documentation, doing so conveys zero protections against later accusations so is officially discouraged.

In the event of dispute, logs of the acquisition of any stolen information will be requested. So if you are engaged in espionage, it is highly advised you keep RP logs of any information you plan on reporting on as the inability to prove how information was obtained will leave you reliant on testimony from involved players…typcially the ones you stole the information from which is not the most reliable when defending yourself against accusations of metagaming.

Dangers of Stealth, Disguise, and Espionage

Getting caught while attempting to do any of these things will have consequences, with the severity depending on what you are doing when caught, and who catches you. In-Character actions carry In-Character consequences. The very act of initiating stealth checks carries with it the tacit acknowledgement that these rolls are possible to fail.  If someone catches you using the legitimate rules provided here, you are outed and must endure the consequences.

Metagaming Risk

It is extremely easy to cross the line into metagaming when using this ruleset. You MUST pay close attention to ensure you do not cross that line. To use any information, make use of stealth or disguise, or do anything of the sort, you have to be posted into a scene. Any information used prior to posting in…is metagaming. You must also be actively posting in the scene as it goes in, you are not permitted to make a single post to create the presumption of being there and then be silent the rest of the scene. Random idle posting is permitted, i.e.: <Charactername> leans against the bar observing the crowd around them.

Distrust / Infamy / Bad Reputation

Getting caught skulking about, getting an identity burnt, and especially getting caught spying can have a severe detrimental impact on future interactions. This reputation can spread and make further efforts at stealth, disguise, and espionage much more difficult. Repeated failures can make it borderline impossible. So know when to use such tactics, and more importantly, when not to.

Burnt Identities / Documents

When creating a false identity, or using forged documents, if the fakery is discovered, those documents or that identity is considered ‘burnt’ meaning if you use it in the future, anyone involved with the identity or warned about the identity will automatically know its fake. While a burnt identity doesn’t mean your real identity is known by default, it will make it easier to discern as people will know you’re pretending to be someone you aren’t, which makes digging for the truth a bit more simplistic.

Mole Hunts

More specific to espionage, if a Faction, Guild, Group, etc. figure out that there’s a spy in their midst, they may trigger a mole hunt. During a mole hunt, it can be difficult to retain your cover and so the odds of being caught go up. This sort of thing could happen when private information or plans are leaked, or a sudden change of behavior of a rival group being plotted against. For example, if guards always patrol the same path at the same time, and right before a planned heist, the pattern changes, it could trigger a mole hunt in the heist group, as the logical assumption becomes “someone talked.”

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Land of Norune

Stealth, Disguise, & Espionage Rules  v1.1

Original by Kanika Parness, revision by Kiya Foxtrot August 17th, 2025