Search times ...

[afschell]

I've "searched" high and low, but cannot seem to find any canon on how long it takes to thoroughly cover an area. Is there anything out there that specifies how much time it takes to inspect a 10'x10' room (for example)?

[Humabout]

I don't know of any, but I usually wing it as "5 - 10 minutes" depending on how cluttered it is. If finding something "in time" is a big deal, I would probably call it a roll against Search with success giving k x [Margin of Success] [time units] before the deadline, where k = a constant and [time units] are appropriate to the circumstances and mission. The idea is that the better you do, the more time you have to act on what you find in a meaningful way.

Frex, if you need to find a picture of a red and white flag with a deal containing a vicuna, cornucopia, and quinoa tree, and you need time for a deduction roll and to book a plane flight to Lima, Peru to catch up with Carmen Sandiego, 6xMoS seconds doesn't really mean much, but 6xMoS hours does.

Note: k can be any positive real number or a dice roll, too!

[weby]

There are no official rules for such.

My house rule is:

The normal times to do different types of searches in time/hex:
1 second: Cursory look: basically see objects behind other objects and the like. The type of search you do to see if someone left their purses or jackets or similar after an event..
6 seconds: Basic Search: Look quickly through any desk drawers, move every piece of movable furniture a bit, look though the closets and so on.
60 seconds: Thorough check: check all pockets in the clothes in the closets, examine every object briefly, Scan the headlines in an archive, pull out the drawers to see nothing is behind them and so on.
600 seconds: Read Through, evaluate: In places with a lot of stuff like a archive, Teenagers room or a jewelry store look though all and read headlines from papers, evaluate the jewelry values or search for a single joint..

These are then modified by the time taken as normal.

[Gollum]

I know that it won't really help but ...

Giving a search time for a room wouldn't be realistic at all. Even if the size of the room is well known. Which is surely why GURPS authors didn't do it ...

Indeed. It all depends on what is in that room.

• If the room is empty, searching it will be quick. Characters just have to search for secret doors or trapdoors. 5 minutes could be enough.
• If there is some furniture, it is much longer. Characters have to search each piece of furniture. About 5 minutes more for each one (at minimum).
• And if there is a desk with a lot of papers among which characters are looking for a specific document (a letter, a parchment ...), it can take an hour, or even more, depending on the number of other papers.

Thus, everything depends on what is in the room and what the characters are looking for.

Sometimes, as GM, I even reverse the problem. I ask for a Search roll and let the margin determines how much time was spent.

[evileeyore]

I presume that on a success, the Character finds whatever it is they are searching for immediately (one second)!

From there I use an expanded Take Extra Time* chart to figure out how long it takes them to find something.

So a well hidden secret door (-10) would be difficult to find and could take up to 15 minutes to find (+10 on the roll).

I do allow the Players to say "We take as long as it takes", but I double how long it takes, because presumably they are being "extra thorough" (this has the knock-on effect of doubling the number of rolls on the Wandering Damage Chart they risk). If there is nothing to find, I do tell them after a 30 minute search that "you're pretty sure there is nothing you can find here with the methods you are using" (also I rarely make something so hard to find that it takes more than an MoS of +10).


Note I also use Douglas Cole's 'Roll of 14' rule: The skill roll is presumed to be a 14. The Players know this, they know their skills, so they can tell me how slowly they move in dangerous areas (thus is the point man getting a bonus on his Passive Search? Or is it a Penalty?). Other things can apply as well, for instance are they being sneaky? Takes twice as long.

I do not do the "roll the dice for every 10 feet you move down the dungeon corridor" thing. I run ACTION!, not "measure twice, cut once" games.

For "tossing rooms"? I have a penalty on how hard stuff is to find, the Players tell me how long they are searching (thus setting their bonus) and what their Margins are. I determine success or failure based on that.



* My "expanded chart":

60x +6 (1 minute)
120x +7 (2 minutes)
240x +8 (4 minutes)
480x +9 (8 minutes)
900x +10 (15 minutes)
1800x +11 (30 minutes)
etc

[Gollum]

Originally Posted by evileeyore

I presume that on a success, the Character finds whatever it is they are searching for immediately (one second)!

Why? If he is searching for a pouch full of golden pieces hidden under a pillow, for instance, going near the bed and lifting the pillow takes much more than one second. And it is still a very easy search.

[arnej]

Originally Posted by afschell

I've "searched" high and low, but cannot seem to find any canon on how long it takes to thoroughly cover an area. Is there anything out there that specifies how much time it takes to inspect a 10'x10' room (for example)?

Here's what my GM (gmjasongurps) uses for us:

Searching rooms for interesting things

It takes 30 seconds per square yard of a room to do a normal, visual search. This is a Search roll with bonuses from Acute Vision and other appropriate advantages. Objects in plain sight are always at +10 to spot.

Looking Around
Doing a Visual Scan search takes 1/10th of the normal time, only involves visual searching while moving around the area. A Visual Scan only minimally exposes searcher to possible environmental dangers. This gets a good overall idea of what can be seen and identifies obvious items (+10 plain sight) but only reveals hidden or hard to find items on very good or Critical Success rolls. Search at -9

Casual, Regular and Thorough Searches
Doing a Casual Search takes ½ normal time, involves minimal hands on and exposes searcher to possible environmental dangers with a minimal chance to spot them. Will detect some items not in plain sight items but generally not well hidden items. Search at -4

Doing a Regular Search takes the normal time, is hands on, and allows for slight detection of any present dangers. This search involves moving through the area, touching and moving things, looking in, under and behind them. Exposes searcher to present environmental dangers. Search at +2

Doing a Thorough Search takes twice the normal time, gives a greater bonus to the Search roll and exposes searcher to present environmental dangers, giving them a normal chance to spot them first. This search is similar to the Regular Search but more methodical. Search +5

Quick or Careful
The default, Normal Search takes the listed amount of time and gives the searcher a slight chance (-2) of detecting any present environmental dangers. A searcher may be Quick or Careful to change these chances.

A Quick Search cuts the time in half and gives a penalty of -4 to detect any present environmental dangers.

A Careful Search adds 50% to the time needed and gives a bonus of +0 to detect any present environmental dangers.

All rolls will be made with lighting penalties as well as range penalties (if you are right there searching, there is no penalty)

The amount of “stuff” in a room will modify the skill as well.

(Tables that did not translate well to posting)

Searching for Traps
Normal Search takes 1 minute per sq yd of area being checked. Often floors, doors, walls and other objects will be searched.

[evileeyore]

Originally Posted by Gollum

Why? If he is searching for a pouch full of golden pieces hidden under a pillow, for instance, going near the bed and lifting the pillow takes much more than one second.

It does? Is this a particularly large room with the searcher on the opposite side? Why would it take extra time when the Character is specifically looking for a pouch full of gold pieces?

Note I said "for tossing a room" the Players tell me how long they are searching, then I tell them what they find based on their MoS.

And yes, I run ACTION! style games, so the super-thief (Search 20+) who decides to "scan the room in one second and grab what I can find in that time that is easy to stuff into a pouch" if the Player rolls well the PC will just so happen to check the exact right spot to find some piece of treasure (if there was one).

And just because they found something, doesn't mean it's easy or quick to take.

[cupbearer]

LOL this was my next thread, trying to fill some perceived gaps in my upcoming fantasy epic GURPS game...... and can't find search rules..... :(

Very surprising considering Gurps dungeon fantasy exists, and searching is like, a pretty big part of dungeon-crawlesque games.

Great suggestions so far BTW, but.... does anyone have a rule they use that is derived from existing gurps material? I want to use a rule for searching that makes sense in the world of gurps physics/assumptions.

danka.
Oliver.

[Gollum]

Originally Posted by evileeyore

And just because they found something, doesn't mean it's easy or quick to take.

OK. I understand better ...

But, just note that even in a fully heroic genre, it sounds unbelievable to find the pouch under the pillow without going near the bed and lifting up the pillow (or running your hand under it). Which takes more than one second, even in a little bedroom ... Unless the character has a very specific vision advantage which allows him to see through the pillow, of course.

And what about searching for a documents among dozens of other papers scattered on a desk? How can it be done without taking each paper in your hands and glancing at them until you find the good one? It cannot takes just one second. Even for a master of search with a skill as high as 20+.