[Social Engineering] Skill-based Cold Reading / Sherlock Scan?

[vicky_molokh]

Greetings, all!

I'm interested in gameable mechanics used to represent the cinematic Sherlock Scan or the realistic Cold Reading method. Why yes, I'm watching the Mentalist, why are you asking?

My first thought was Fortune-Telling, but it seems that this is the skill of presenting known facts (including those gained from real/'real' divination); this is further proven by the need to specialize by prop/method (crystal gazing, tarot etc.). The other idea was some of Psychology, Empathy and Body Language, but those mostly deal with figuring what kind of person the target is.

So . . . what would one use to figure stuff like a recent death in the family, the meaning of a heirloom someone is carrying, the Afghan history of Watson etc.? The general trivia of a person's biography as opposed to specifically the mental profile?

Thanks in advance!

[David Johnston2]

That's not really "Cold Reading". Cold reading is when you walk into a crowded room knowing nothing and say, "I sense the presence of a female spirit looking to communicate with her grandchild. I'm getting the letter "M"."

Apart from that, yes what Jane does is an application of Body Language. The more wildly impressive versions are sense-based wild talent Mind Reading.

[johndallman]

Originally Posted by vicky_molokh

My first thought was Fortune-Telling, but it seems that this is the skill of presenting known facts (including those gained from real/'real' divination)

Doesn't seem like it to me:

Originally Posted by Basic Set, p196

This is the art of interviewing someone in order to learn more about
his lifestyle and personality, and then using this information to make an
“educated guess” about his future that you can pass off as supernatural divination.

Looks like Cold Reading to me.

[whswhs]

If you read Fortune-Telling, you will find that it actually is defined as a method of extracting information from people in the guise of presenting them with information. That's exactly what you are describing. Cold reading would be a form of that, I think. I suppose you could specify a penalty for it. Or perhaps you could adapt the rules for Cutting Out in Social Engineering.

Bill Stoddard

[Purple Haze]

The "Sherlock Scan" is not entirely cinematic. The Holmes character is based on the surgeon Joseph Bell, whose characteristic scan was well known. When A Study in Scarlet was published Robert Louis Stevenson wrote to Doyle to compliment him on his portrait of his friend Joe Bell.

[Refplace]

would consider all the following for Patrick Jane in the Mentalist. He is a cinematic character.
An Observation Wild card skill and or Talent.
Luck
Body Language at a real high level.
Fortune Telling; He was a Mentalist stage and private con artist so perfectly appropriate to have that skill and he applies it as a reading rather then actual psychic or magic ability.
Hold Out, Observation, Psychology, Acting, Autohypnosis, Hypnosis, Connisseur, Current Affairs, Criminology, Detect Lies, Fast Talk (maybe his only actual "social" skill), Filch, Fortune Telling, Literature, Public Speaking, Search, Sex Appeal (we dont see it often but the dating episode and he can charm the ladies to get his way.), Sleight of Hand.

Most of those skills can help him with his reading.
Many of them I would lump under his "Mentalist" Wild Card skill.

Besides that he has Empathy, and possibly Discrim smell. He has identified some perfumes and other things by smell that may warrant that.
I think sense based Mind Reading is going too far but if someone wanted to play him as an inspiration I probably would allow it.
He really does a lot with leading questions and observation. And he definitely has luck. Probably Serendipity too.

[Ed the Coastie]

I remember my Usual Suspects having a discussion about this when one of the players wanted to create a similar character. If memory serves, we made Cold Reading an Average technique under Fortune Telling. Unfortunately, I can't find my notes on it.

[Figleaf23]

Originally Posted by vicky_molokh

Greetings, all!

I'm interested in gameable mechanics used to represent the cinematic Sherlock Scan ...

Apropos of nothing, I note that the text describing the Sherlock Scan contains a paragraph that incorrectly identifies the process as inductive reasoning.

[NineDaysDead]

Originally Posted by vicky_molokh

Greetings, all!

I'm interested in gameable mechanics used to represent the cinematic Sherlock Scan or the realistic Cold Reading method. Why yes, I'm watching the Mentalist, why are you asking?

My first thought was Fortune-Telling, but it seems that this is the skill of presenting known facts (including those gained from real/'real' divination); this is further proven by the need to specialize by prop/method (crystal gazing, tarot etc.). The other idea was some of Psychology, Empathy and Body Language, but those mostly deal with figuring what kind of person the target is.

So . . . what would one use to figure stuff like a recent death in the family, the meaning of a heirloom someone is carrying, the Afghan history of Watson etc.? The general trivia of a person's biography as opposed to specifically the mental profile?

Thanks in advance!

Psychometry (Affects Living, +50%; Directed +50%; Hypersensory, -50%; Reflexive, +40%; Reliable +10, +50%) [38]

[Langy]

Originally Posted by Figleaf23

Apropos of nothing, I note that the text describing the Sherlock Scan contains a paragraph that incorrectly identifies the process as inductive reasoning.

What's incorrect about it? Inductive reasoning is the type of reasoning that Sherlock Holmes uses; he only very rarely uses deductive reasoning, even though he uses the term 'deduction' regularly.

Induction is the process of arriving at a general rule from specific examples, or at specific examples from a general rule. That's basically what a Sherlock Scan is.