| Level | Cost | Abilities | Total* |
| Exploration = Skill Level + Perceptive Trait | |||
| 1 | 10 | Forage | 10 |
| 2 | 5 | Specialty 1 | 15 |
| 3 | 10 | Harvest Game | 25 |
| 4 | 15 | Specialty 2 | 40 |
| 5 | 20 | Concealment | 60 |
| 6 | 25 | Specialty 3 | 85 |
| 7 | 30 | Chosen Prey -or- True Seeker | 115 |
| 8 | 35 | Specialty 4 -or- Nature’s Path | 150 |
| 9 | 40 | Chosen Prey -or- True Seeker | 190 |
| 10 | 45 | Specialty 5 -or- Greater Concealment | 235 |
| 11 | 50 | Chosen Prey -or- True Seeker | 285 |
| 12 | 55 | Specialty 5 -or- Snakewise | 340 |
*this is the total amount of cp spent on the skill at the corresponding level
Exploration
This ability allows a survivalist to track monsters/npcs, as well as to engage in pathfinding (both of these require marshal input). Basic effectiveness is based off of Survival’s skill level, plus any levels in the Perceptive trait. Difficulty is determined by a number of factors, including age of the trail, weather conditions, etc. Exploration can also be used to hide a trail, which, again, requires marshal input. Note that no matter how skilled a survivalist a character may be, tracking and pathfinding is simply impossible in some situations.
At event sites, Explore Tags (the most common type of Encounter Tag: see Ch. 8 Game Concepts for details on other types) may be found hidden in the wilderness; if you see one of these and have an Explore rating equal to or greater than the value listed, you may read its description and follow through with its instructions. If you don’t, it is out of play to you entirely. Specialties do not apply to Explore Tags directly, but once turned in, the marshals may grant further insights based on them.
Forage
This ability allows a survivalist to harvest in-game plants, mushrooms, and other ingredients from the land itself. These types of things may be found outside during events or on specific adventures. Only characters with this ability may pick up and identify them; anyone else who does so destroys the item. Also, this ability allows a character to search for items during downtime actions to much greater effect than the unskilled. Do note that searching for items during downtime is a difficult process.
Specialties
Every even level of Survival grants a Specialty. Specialties allow characters a greater degree of success on Exploration actions to find a specific type of quarry, location, or foraged item. When searching for an applicable target, the character’s Exploration level is increased by 2 for every level in its specialty.
Harvest Game
This handy ability allows characters to collect skins, food items, and special ingredients off of select monsters or animals. Upon killing (or coming across the corpse of) an animal or monster, the character must search them, saying “Harvest Game.” If the creature has anything that is harvestable, they will reply “yes” or “no.” If affirmative, the character can then say “Harvesting,” and then spend 1 full minute working on the carcass. After this, they get the item and tag (or at least a tag). Note that this kind of searching will also reveal any normal carried items the creature might have.
Concealment
With this ability, a character can conceal themselves in the wilderness, in shadow, or somewhere where they are almost entirely covered (like under a table or bed). Characters attempting to conceal themselves must quietly speak (not whisper) a three count (“Concealing 1, Concealing 2, Concealing 3”), which still must be audible to those close by. If another character hears this count, they can thwart the concealment by simply saying “Reveal,” and pointing at the concealing character. If this happens, the concealment fails.
If the attempt succeeds, the character crosses their arms across their chest, which is the required gesture for a concealed character. Concealed characters may remain as such for as long as they like, but if the character moves, speaks, slips, falls unconscious (real or in-game) or uncrosses their arms, the effect ends. Perceptive characters who “see” a Concealed character out of game can spend a FoPerception to immediately Reveal them, breaking the effect. If they don’t have a feat left, or don’t wish to use one, all that they are left with is the fleeting impression of something not being quite right. They may NOT point out a concealed character to someone else, or even suggest that something is in that direction: they just have a feeling.
Chosen Prey
This ability represents a hunter’s focus on a particular kind of non-humanoid game (either natural or unnatural), granting them specific knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of their anatomy. Functionally, this ability grants a survivalist a permanent +2 to all Power Strikes called against that kind of creature, which applies to all weapon types.
This ability does not stack with itself and cannot be chosen multiple times for the same prey. Rather, a survivalist simply gets to choose another creature type to which their bonus applies. Note that a survivalist need not have a specialty in their chosen prey to declare them as its target.
Note: survivalists can only declare actual animals, monsters, or accursed creatures as the target of this ability; humanoids are not subject to its effects.
As well, calling chosen prey while searching a creature will increase the odds of receiving a harvestable item from them, and each applicable level of Chosen Prey counts as a free feat of Perception when Investigating the remains.
True Seeker
This ability allows a survivalist to perform a feat of nearly impossible Exploration, up to a number of times per season (game year) for every time it is chosen. True Seeker will allow a character to find locations, objects, people, and animals which otherwise would be impossible to track with regular exploration, such as long-forgotten ruins concealed by magic, ancient relics of immense power, and mythical beasts of terrible might.
Functionally, a survivalist declares as a downtime action that they are using True Seeker on a particular target/location. The next game, they will be set on the path to find their goal, barring all but the most extreme circumstances.
Alternately, a True Seeker may expend a use of this ability to improve their mundane Exploration for the duration of an event (called as “True Seeker” in the presence of a marshal), gaining an effective +6 bonus for all in-game Exploration purposes until the event’s end.
Nature’s Path
This ability grants a survivalist a special sort of gentle influence with natural creatures, allowing them a measure of communication with beasts of all types. The character declares “Nature’s Path” upon an animal or group of animals they want to influence. Thereafter, the beasts may not attack said character unless directly threatened, and they must take their actions in the best possible light. Creatures that are hostile become neutral when exposed to this ability. Creatures that are neutral become downright friendly in said circumstance. Creatures who are friendly already (a rare occurrence) will remember the character as a “friend” thereafter. Nature’s Path may be used at will, but only once on a particular creature/group, per day. The duration of this ability persists until circumstances change, but if a survivalist uses it several times on the same creature—over an extended period during recurring encounters—its effects can become permanent.
Greater Concealment
This ability is a substantial improvement to normal concealment, and it allows a survivalist to move at slow walk while concealed, assuming they are among shadows, in the woods, skulking behind buildings, or generally making a real effort not to be seen. All other restrictions apply, and the survivalist must maintain the required gesture at all times.
In addition, a character with this ability need only say “Greater Concealment,” instead of taking the normal 3 count, to become hidden. They may still be revealed by someone who hears the tagline or sees them assuming the gesture, however.
As well, if a Perceptive character attempts to use a basic feat to reveal someone who is under the effects of this ability, the survivalist may call “Greater Concealment” in response, meaning that the feat is wasted and the survivalist is unrevealed. A Greater Feat of Perception or better, however, will reveal them as normal.
As with normal concealment, Perceptive characters will still feel uneasy around those under the effects of this ability, though this gives them no indication of direction or location.
Snakewise
This unusual ability marks a survivalist who has become so used to the effects of poisons and toxins—natural or otherwise—that they are now completely immune to such; characters with Snakewise call “No Effect” when targeted by Poison or Quick Venom. As well, being Snakewise means that a character is expert at using blade poisons actively, so that all Poison or Quick Venom Strikes they use, regardless of source, are called at double damage/effect level. Finally, any downtime foraging a Snakewise character does for the express purpose of finding poison-making herbs or ingredients is much more likely to be successful, and will likely result in more being found, as well.