Environmental Talents

[Shostak]

Originally Posted by David Bofinger

Alertness I'm much happier to let go, I'm not sure it represents anything much in fiction. A character who doesn't know the forest but is good at spotting things in a forest because she's just good at spotting things? Not sure I believe it.

Alertness means being more aware of one’s senses. Someone who grew up in the forest might spot the spoor of a moose because they know where to look for it, whereas they would not necessarily notice the small clue left in a book on someone’s bed table, that someone appears unwell, or that the bandits’s arrow fletchings were all red. Similarly, Alertness can represent one’s ability to sleep lightly, which would help someone who grew up in the forest just as much should they find themselves in any other environment.