Call of Cthulhu Rules

You do not need a rule book of any kind. I have everything. If you have a question just ask.

CHARACTER CREATION - Peoria 1987 Chronicle

Stats are all directly assigned. For balance and realism based on the characters age.

1 x 8
2 x 9's
2 x 12's
1 x 14
1 x 16
Edu is Age (1986) -5.

Tom (Example - age 17)

Characteristics & Rolls
STR 08    DEX 12    INT 14   Idea 70%
CON 12    APP 09    POW 16   Luck 80%
SIZ 09    SAN 99    EDU 12   Know 60%
Rerolls: 0 @ 0 posts.

Skill Bonus (based on stats)
Agility / Parry (+2)
Communication (+7)
Knowledge (+4)
Manipulation / Attack (+5)
Perception (+8)

HP - 11

TYPICAL CHARACTER CREATION

Use the dice roller to roll all Stats in order. You may reroll any one stat and it must improve. So keep rolling until it improves.

3d6   Strength
3d6   Constitution
2d6+6 Size
3d6   Dexterity (determines Initiative order)
3d6   Appearance
2d6+6 Intelligence (determines skill points for personal interests)
3d6   Power (determines starting Sanity)
3d6+3 Education (determine skill points for your career skills)

Con+Siz/2 (round up) = HP (the higher the better)
Pow = mental fortitude and personal magnetism (the higher the better)
Str + Siz (determines hand to hand damage bonus, the higher the better)

Characters may increase their Edu by 1 if they can make a Int x5 roll.

Age starts at Edu +5. Each added 10 years of age adds 1 Edu.

Careers



Career and Skill Points

Careers who would have some background in the occult or investigations into the unknown. Prefer no military but former military from previous wartime service is allowed.

Characters get 20 x Edu for skill points to be assigned into Career related skills. They also get 10 x Int for personal interest skill points to assign to any skill approved by the Keeper.

Skill Bases

Agility Skills
[ ] Climb (40%)
[ ] Dodge (DEX*2)
[ ] Hide (10%)
[ ] Jump (25%)
[ ] Martial Arts (00%)
[ ] Opr. Hvy. Mch.(00%)
[ ] Ride (05%)
[ ] Sneak (10%)
[ ] Swim (25%)
[ ] Throw (25%)

Communication Skills
[ ] Bargain (05%)
[ ] Credit Rating (15%)
[ ] Fast Talk (05%)
[ ] Other Language (Other) (0%)
[ ] Own Language (Native) (EDUx5%)
[ ] Persuade (15%)
[ ] Psychology (05%)

Knowledge Skills
[ ] Accounting (10%)
[ ] Anthropology (00%)
[ ] Archaeology (00%)
[ ] Art: _________ (05%)
[ ] Astronomy (00%)
[ ] Biology (00%)
[ ] Chemistry (00%)
[ ] Geology (00%)
[ ] History (20%)
[ ] Law (05%)
[ ] Library Use (25%)
[ ] Medicine (05%) 
[ ] Natural History (10%)
[ ] Navigate (10%) 
[ ] Occult (05%)
[ ] Pharmacy (00%) 
[ ] Physics (00%)
[ ] Psychoanalysis (00%)

Manipulation Skills
[ ] Conceal (15%)
[ ] Craft: _________ (05%)
[ ] Disguise (10%)
[ ] Drive Auto (20%)
[ ] Electr. Repair (10%)
[ ] First Aid (30%)
[ ] Locksmith (00%)
[ ] Mech. Repair (20%)
[ ] Operate Hy Machinery (00%)
[ ] Photography (10%)
[ ] Pilot ___________ (00%)

Perception Skills
[ ] Listen (25%)
[ ] Spot Hidden (25%)
[ ] Track (10%)


Combat Skills

Unarmed
[ ] Fist (50%)
[ ] Grapple (25%)
[ ] Head Butt (10%)
[ ] Kick (25%)

Firearms
[ ] Pistol (20%)
[ ] Rifle (25%)
[ ] Shotgun (30%)
[ ] Thompson SMG (15%)

Melee
[ ] Sword (15-20%)
[ ] Wood Axe (20%)
[ ] Knife (25%)
[ ] Club (25%)

Veterans of the Great War

Veterans get an additional Int x10 points in skills but they can only be spent in the following skills:

Dodge
Throw
First Aid
Mechanical Repair
Shot Hidden
Bayonette/Spear
Rifle
Machine Gun
Knife

There are also consequences for having participated in the Great War. Sanity is badly effected as a result of witnessing the horrors of war.

Skill Category Modifiers

Skills are broken down into categories. Each of these categories has a base skill modifier derived the characters attributes. A Primary Attribute offers a +1% for each point over 10 and a -1% for each attribute point under 10. A Secondary Attribute offers a +1% for every 2 points the attribute is over 10 and a -1% for every two attribute points under 10. A Negative Attribute subtracts 1% for every attribute point over 10 and a +1% for every attribute under 10.

Agility / Parry (Dex - Primary, Str - Secondary, Siz - Negative)
Communication (Int - Primary, Pow and App - Secondary)
Knowledge (Int - Primary)
Manipulation / Attack (Int and Dex - Primary, Str - Secondary)
Perception (Int - Primary, Pow and Con - Secondary)

In-Character Posting Incentive/Reward

For every 20 posts or fraction there-of made by a player their character will get one free reroll to be used at any time. These rerolls will be kept track of on the character sheets and be awarded on the 1st of each month. Rerolls can be used at any time and on any roll except Sanity rolls.

Additionally, for every 180 in-character posts the character will gain a +1 to any Statistic excepting Education.

Keeper Revelation and Roleplay Awards

The Keeper will determine in advance appropriate San awards when a player/character makes a revelation which is critical to the characters understanding of the story. The player will only be told that they received the award not how much sanity they may have gained.

GENERAL RULES

Skill Rolls

This is a percentile based system so all skill tests are rolled using d100.

Critical/Special/Fumble/Malfunctions

Standard Success - under the skill percentage.
Critical Success (Impale) - 5% of Skill.
Special Success - 20% of Skill.
Fumble - any roll of 96-100% on any skill.
Malfunction - firearms have individual Malfunction number.

Resistance Table



Hidden Skill Rolls

Certain skill rolls for the PCs are made by the Keeper. Skills such as Conceal, Disguise, Hide, Listen, Persuade, Psychology, Sneak, and Spot Hidden are rolled in secret without the player knowing if they made it or not. The intent is to keep the player from knowing if their character is actually concealed, hidden or disguised as well as keep the players from knowing when they missed seeing or hearing something in the game.

If you want to use any of these skills just say so in-character or in a Private Line within a in-character post and I will roll in secret and narrate a result for you. Often times we will roll and not even tell you there was a roll just give you the information (Spot Hidden, Listen etc). This helps us keep the players from knowing if they missed something.

Persuade (Persuade vs Power)

Persuade is a resisted test. Persuade is rolled and opposed by Power x5. Each point of success in the roll to Persuade serves as a negative penalty for the character trying to resist the Persuade test. If a PC makes a Persuade roll by 40% then the character you are trying to persuade rolls against their Power x5 -40. This cannot be used by player characters against other player characters.

Credit Rating (see below) modifies a character's Persuade roll by adding the successes generated in the Credit Rating roll to the Persuade test. If a character rolls Credit Rating and rolls under their score by 10 points and also under their Persuade by 10 points the target of a Persuade test suffers a -20 to their Power x5.


Telling Lies (Persuade vs Psychology)

Telling lies is a Persuade roll. Telling if someone else is lying is a Psychology roll. If you lie in-character the NPCs will be making Psychology rolls to detect them. All these rolls are made in secret. The results of these tests will be narrated.

The margin of success (points rolled under the Persuade skill) serves as a negative modifier against the Psychology roll. So if you lie making your Persuade roll by 20, its a -20 against the observers Psychology roll.

Credit Rating

If you have Credit Rating skill you must provide one or two sentences regarding what your Credit Rating is derived from. Examples are - "wealth and reputation of family", "academia", a specific field of research or study "anthropologist, Egyptologist, accountant". Also include the local of the Credit Rating - US, England, etc.

How I intend to use this skill is sort of like a "Super Persuade". People will help you if they recognize you or your name. But Credit Rating is not at full strength unless the other person has some knowledge of your field. So if you are a known anthropologist and dealing with an NPC who has Anthropology it will be full strength. If out of country it is 1/2. Out of country and out of field it is 1/4.

    In short - Credit Rating

Full % - in field (in country or out of country)
Half % - in related field
Quarter % - out of country and in related field
No roll % - out of country and out of related field

    Draw Backs

Draw backs of Credit Rating. The higher the Credit Rating the easier it is for others to find out about you and your families. Basically, if you have an 80 Credit Rating. Then 80% of your life can be found out by people in your field and in your country.


SANITY and INSANITY

Your Sanity starts off based on your Power (Pow) x5. But with each frightful or terrifying or unexplainable thing that happens Sanity slowly over time slips away. The Keeper will call for a Sanity roll whenever your character sees such things and if you fail, the rolls for how much you lose will be made in secret. Your running sanity will never be known to you. You will never know exactly how much you have. Just like now, in real life, you don’t know how much Sanity you have. If you are getting low, less than half Pow x5, we will tell you. Usually after an investigation we will tell you where your Sanity is at in relation to where it started.

Temporary Insanity

If your character looses 5 Sanity or more in a single instance he can go Temporarily Insane. Temporary Insanity can last for days, hours, or minutes. If you ever lose 5 of more in a single hit the keeper will also call for an Idea roll (Int x5). If you make this roll (rolling under your Idea) than you realize what it is you are seeing. That isnt good. Its better not to understand.

Your character starts to gain understanding of forces in the world that they were previously unaware of. This will be explained to you if it happens to your character. With each instance of Temporary Insanity you gain more and more insight into this world. You really dont want this insight because as it builds you can never regain what you have lost. Your Sanity.

Becoming a Believer

The first time you suffer from Temporary Insanity you become a "believer". Believers are never the same after they start to see what is going on around them. They can never go back to unbelieving, they can deny but that will not save them. Non-believers will never accept what you believe. They have to see it for themselves. Essentially, trying to explain what you believe could get you committed.

Indefinite Insanity

If you lose 20% of your total insanity in an hour of time (one hour in the characters time) then you go Indefinitely Insane. This means that you need help to recover. Your Insanity will remain until you get help. Seeing a Psychiatric Doctor or committing yourself to the asylum can help you recover. Committing each other also works.

Total insanity is when your character reaches 0 sanity Points. There is no coming back.

The Basics of Sanity and Insanity

Temporary Insanity - Lose 5 points in a single hit. Become a Believer with SUCCESSFUL Idea roll.

Indefinite Insanity - Lose 20% in an hour. Get help.

Total Insanity - Lose all Sanity. Roll up a new character.

Regaining Sanity

You can see a doctor - This is a very slow process. It takes weeks. But this is a game where there is down time so weeks are not unusual.

Journals - Journals help a person deal with their issues without having to see anyone. Each journal entry will result in a Sanity Increase. The increase will not be based on the quality of the writing. It will be based on the characters understanding of the events facing them. These are also great ways for the players to keep their characters notes together.

Overcoming Evil - When you overcome a great evil you are also rewarded Sanity Points. This is the principle method of regaining Sanity or at least stemming the tide.

Death of Innocents

Once a character is a "Believer"...If a character knowingly involves an NPC in anything that results in the NPCs death or permanent insanity the person(s) responsible must roll San or suffer an immediate d10 San loss.

If a character unknowingly involves an NPC in anything that results in the NPCs permanent insanity or death the person(s) responsible must roll San or suffer an immediate d5 San loss. These rolls will be made by the player.

If the NPC has immediate family the San loss is doubled. If the NPC is the characters own innocent immediate family or friends the San loss is tripled. If NPCs die as a direct result of a characters actions those responsible roll San or suffer an immediate d10 San loss. Doubled if the NPCs have immediate family.

Before a character is a "believer"...San losses are halved.

The idea here is to keep the players from relying on NPCs. There is a cost associated with causing innocent people death or insanity. If an NPC is informed of the dangers there is no San loss if the NPC then dies. This rule only applies to NPCs who are not informed of the danger or were not protected by those who did know the danger.

You are on your own. My guess is that most of the players like it this way but a ruling always helps to lend weight to the dangers associated.


Dark Knowledge

Books take a specified amount of time to read. 1 week, 2 weeks, 1 year etc. This is based on the type of book etc. Books require thought and sometimes translation or sometimes they can be written so poorly it is a struggle to understand what the writer is trying to say.

Therefore how quickly your character reads a book will be determined by the following...

If you make your roll it will take the full amount of time. (Full %)
If you make your roll by half it will take half the time. (Half %)
If you make the roll by a quarter it will take a quarter of the specified time. (Quarter %)

Only one person can read a book at a time. Translating a book into another language takes twice as long as reading the book and the book must have been read before the translation can be begun.



Income and Property

Starting Income

Incomes - Pauper d10x$50, Lower Class to Upper Lower Class d10x$100, Lower Middle Class to Upper Middle Class d10x$1000, Upper Class to Wealthy 3d10x$1000

Clothing

You don’t have to buy individual clothing. I use what I call wardrobes
- luxury $2000
- high $1000
- middle $250
- working $100
- low class wardrobes $50.

You usually will not have multiple wardrobes unless you have an occupation which would require it.

Cash on Hand

Characters are given an amount of income based on their profession. 10% of your yearly income is multiplied by your characters Intelligence. This is your starting property and cash. 80% is considered hard property and 20% is cash in the bank.

Gear and General Equipment

As long as it is available, and the character has the cash for it, most equipment can be purchased and have it at hand with proper preparation. But if it isn’t on your character sheet you don’t have it.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:31, Sun 14 May 2023.

Three essential items.

Please identify three personal possession you always have on your character. If you were stuck on a deserted island what would you have in your pockets. No weapons. Please list these at the first three things you have in your possessions.

Three Personal Strictures

Everyone has a personal code of behavior. Please list the three values that your character holds dear to them. They should be about friends and family and your dealings with the rest of the world. Please list these on your character sheet under strictures.
This message was last updated by the GM at 01:05, Mon 06 Oct 2014.

Shipboard Activities

Characters are allowed to increase any appropriate skill by devoting a number of hours equal to the current skill to training and study. After the number of needed hours of study the player rolls a d100 against the current skill and if the roll is higher than the current skill the character gains a d6-1 in that skill. If you have a 0% skill (not including your catagory modifier) the first d6-1 takes a full 8 hours of training and practice. No more than 8 hours a day can be reasonably devoted to training and study.

If a character aboard a ship simply wants to rest and relax and recoup from the stress of life (regain San) and they do nothing but rest and do nothing that involves difficult study or has anything to do with the occult or the mythos they can recover a d6-1 Sanity for each week or fraction of up to their Pow x5.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:07, Thu 23 Feb 2012.

Personal strictures.

Call of Cthulhu does not have alignments so instead I use a roleplaying tool I have developed to simulate a personal alignment. Finish these three sentences for your character and send them to me Private Message -

I would never (what is your limit)...
Friends and family (those you care about) are...
Tomorrow (What the future holds)...

In-game leadership.

Part of the problem I have found in almost every face-to-face game, and in RPOL in particular, is the decision making process of what to do next. Not having a clearly defined in-game leader in the group is alway problematic. Arguments, wasted time, player and GM frustration, general pain and suffering which should not be part of the experience.

This is always a problem in roleplaying games. It a problem all players have and it stems mostly from the fact that it is a game. The players have no vested interest in following the guy who would be seen as the smartest or the most charismatic.

In the real world a leader always rises to the top of any group of people. That person is generally seen to be the guy or gal with the best ideas and the most persuasive personality. They are not always the guy who wants to be the leader nor does he or she try to be the leader. It does not mean either that just because he is the leader he always makes the correct decisions.

The problem with roleplaying games when played face to face is that it is usually the same player in any group regardless of the character that player may be playing who becomes the leader of the game. Even if the character the "leader" player is playing at the moment is a blood thirty lunatic this player usually runs the game. Whether as an active leader in the game or simply by being the driving force in the scenario's development. For years, I have tried to get this real world dynamic out of the game world by replacing it with mechanics which reward players who submit some of their in-game decision making to the character who has the talent, stats and skills to be the leader of the game world. I believe the essence of roleplay lays in the submission of our characters to the character with the leadership stats. Not completely, just in the course of action decision making process. Good leaders ask for advice from others but that does not mean a leader who doesn't ask is necessarily bad.

I have played roleplaying games for years. I have been a member of many groups and played every major system. Its natural and normal for the players to choose a leader among them. It should be equally true that the characters choose a leader from among them. Some games have their players choose a leader character by vote. That is unrealistic because the actual vote should be influenced by the characters stats not by the personalities of the players themselves. This is roleplay.

The players are NOT required to accept the in-game leader but as the gamemaster I provide an incentive to the players for doing so. So let me be clear, I am not forcing you to accept the in-game leader but if you do I am going to give a bonus to certain things in the game which simulates the benefit of following a leader. Just because a character is the leader does not mean that he will always make the right decision, it just means that the decision will be made quicker. It also doesn't mean that you can not voice your characters opinion but the idea is that the other characters would make a suggestion perhaps rather than argue with the leader.

Their will be a heirarchy of leadership. The heirarchy is based on the characters combined total of Idea, Luck and Persuasion. I will put a leadership number on the characters visible profile so everyone will know where everyone stands. The character with the lowest leadership number will lead any given scene.

As a follower - you give up some of your characters decision making but gain a +2 Pow for purposes of all Pow and Luck rolls. This does not effect Sanity and is only in effect if you accept the leadership rule. But your character becomes immune to San loses caused by the decisions made by the leader. Players also get a starting +d10 rerolls for use on any roll except for Sanity loss rolls if they accept the leadership rules during character creation.

When in the leadership position - The leader gains something the followers dont get. They get insight into the decisions they make before they make them. They can ask me what their character thinks or feels may be the outcome of any particular decision their character may make but this only applies when they are the character in the leadership role in a given scene. Leaders still suffer the san loses associated with decisions that result in others deaths.

I realize that this seems a little strange from other games you may have played in and I am sure most of you will say "I roleplay fine" but I assure you that you will find that the game runs smoother and its an increadible challenge to roleplay to follow another character when you yourself may disagree. At the same time the advantage is that you dont have to try and lead so posting and playing becomes easier and much less frustrating.

Please send me a PM in your OOC Thread as to whether you accept the Leadership rules or not. You do not have to but it will help the game go smoother and be a much greater challenge to roleplay.
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:26, Sun 08 Jan 2017.

Pl...
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:27, Mon 29 Aug 2016.

How do I conduct research??

Simply by saying "I will spend time researching the following at the library...."

the strange bowl
the african mask
the african fetish
Doctor Hannigan
Captain Brett Moore

Each of these will take a number of hours and for each we will roll a hidden Library Use roll. (This prevents you from knowing which ones specifically you missed)

We then provide you a roll up of everything you discover.

The only limiting factor here is that a Library has a limited amount of knowledge in a given area. So a childrens library may only have a 5% Occult capability. So if you have a 99% Library Use you would still need to have rolled a 5% or less on your Library Use skill roll. Most major libraries have a 90% plus in general areas - Anthropology, Archeology etc.

Library Use

During down time each character can research two references a day. Library Use skill will be compared to the level of area knowledge the library contains in that field. If multiple characters work together they all use the highest characters Library Use Skill in place of their own Library Use skill.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:26, Mon 29 Aug 2016.

Persuade (Persuade vs Power)

Persuade is a resisted test. Persuade is rolled and opposed by Power x5. Each point of success in the roll to Persuade serves as a negative penalty for the character trying to resist the Persuade test. If a PC makes a Persuade roll by 40% then the character you are trying to persuade rolls against their Power x5 -40. This can be used by player characters against other player characters. But this is not a form of command. It Persuade must be broached in the form of a suggestion or request and must be considered logical and witin reason to the GM.

Credit Rating (below) modifies a characters Persuade roll by adding the successes generated in the Credit rating roll to the Persuade test. If a character rolls Credit Rating and rolls under their score by 10 points and also under their Persuade by 10 points the target of a persuade test suffers a -20 to their Power x5.

If you as a player who have accepted the Leadership rules then you can not attempt to persuade the Leader or suggest others deviate from the Leaders decisions. Remember the Leadership rules are simply used to accelerate the flow of the game. Its not for use in loding over the other characters unless the characters are direct subordinates of a character who has a lower leadership number than their own.

These rules are intended to facilitate the flow of the game and stimulate roleplay by influencing the players decisions with their characters. Not all leaders are good leaders but they may still be persuasive and thought to be the best guy for the job.

This skill should be viewed as the characters ability to get someone to accept a bribe etc. Basically, it is a skill to get someone to do something slightly outside their normal behavior but it isnt a command ability.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:39, Fri 20 July 2012.

Skill Increases

Once per month of RPOL play characters will roll for skill increase on any skill they used successfully over the course of that month.

To increase a skill through experience the player must roll a d100 and roll higher than their current skill level. If you roll higher then the character has learned something and the skill is increased by a d6% or an automatic 3% (players choice). If the player rolls a 96-100 on the roll the sill is increased 2d6 or an automatic 6%.


Power Increase

If a character successfully resists a Pow verses Pow test there is a chance their Pow will increase. The percent chance of increase is 21 - the characters current Pow x5%. The increase if successful is +1d3 permanant Pow.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:53, Mon 06 Oct 2014.

moved
This message was last edited by the GM at 11:27, Wed 18 Jan 2017.

OOC on the IC side of the Game

Please do not quote the other characters posts or use the Reply Button inside posts. These are distractions from the dialogue. Just read the other posts and post what only your character is saying or doing and try to keep the posts to less than 50 words. Once a day. This will make things more interesting to read and also make it quicker.

All OOC information such questions to me, your characters thoughts or rolls made etc  should always be PLed to the GM. There should basically never be any OOC information visible to the other players in an IC post.

I will be starting a OOC thread on the Private Message side for all general OOC conversations, rules questions etc.

Thanks. I have used this method for almost 9 years now and have found that it significantly increases the enjoyment for all the players.

Price Lists














This message was last edited by the GM at 04:41, Sat 26 Aug 2017.

Sanity

The SAN stat listed on the character sheets is the characters maximum Sanity (99 - Cthulhu Mythos skill). This is not current Sanity.

As characters loss Sanity points in the game, I do not tell the players what their current Sanity is. You will know at the beginning of a scenario and at the end of a scenario if you survive. If you survive a scenario and have thwarted (notice I didnt say destroyed) the evil in that scenario you can gain Sanity. I will tell you what your Sanity is at the end of a scenario.

Temporary Insanity - If a character ever losses more than 5 in a single instance I will ask for an Idea roll. So that will give you some idea of how bad the loss was. If you loss more than 5 in a single instance and you succeed at the Idea roll you will suffer a temporary insanity. Temporary insanity can last days.

Indefinite Insanity - If you loss more than 10% in a single hour in the game, you will suffer an indefinite insanity. Indefinite insanity lasts until you see a psychiatrist or go to a mental institution.

Permanent Insanity - You are at 0. No coming back. Permanently insane.

Curing Insanity

Permanent insanity is not curable within the confines of CoC. A character who becomes permanently insane will live out the rest of their life under private care or in an asylum. Other characters who see to their associates care and visit regularly can gain a benefit from visiting their insane friends if they visit them at least once a week (+1d4 San).

Indefinite insanity requires psychiatric care to be "cured". There are two types of care available.

Private care, which includes personal visits once or twice a week with a trained psychiatrist (+d8 per week with a successful Psychoanalysis roll from the doctor). A single week of successful care can alleviate the indefinite insanity. Visiting a personal psychiatrist can also help characters who are not insane recover lost Sanity Points (up to their Pow x5) Private care can costs between $10 and $400 per visit. A reportedly "excellent psychiatrist" normally runs about $100 per week with two sessions. The Keeper will roll Psychoanalysis for the doctor for each week the character receives personal care. A critical failure (96-100) causes 1d6 Sanity loss and causes insanities to reemerge.

Institutionalization provides the second best care for the insane. The care received is less personal and the quality depending on the actual quality of the institution (i.e. the cost). Typical institutions can help a character recover a d6 Sanity points per week (up to their Pow x5) they are in the institution. Most institutions will not take a patient for less than four weeks and usually cost between $5 and $40 dollars per week. One successful month in an asylum will typically cure a character who is definitely insane. The Keeper will roll Psychoanalysis for the institution for each week the character receives care. A critical failure (96-100) causes 1d6 Sanity loss and causes insanities to reemerge.

Training and Study

You only get 8 hours a day for study because a character must eat and sleep. If a skill that is at 0 takes 8 hours to get a d6-1 roll to increase or to take the automatic 3. If the skill is not at a 0 it requires a number of hours of study equal to the current skill total %. The starting skill is equal to the base the the () plus the skill category modifier. Skills which are 0% base only have the skill category bonus if undeveloped.

So if you have a 0% Archaeology and are confronted with an Archaeology test you do get a roll but it is at the Knowledge Base percentage.

Ok here is how you do this....

total available time for training is 56+96=152 hours.

Pistol starts at 26% so...

152 hours
-26 new skill is (26)+d6-1 (or take a 3)
126 hours left to train
-29 (assuming new skill is 26+3) new skill is (29)+d6-1 (or take another 3)
 98 hours left
-32 (assuming new skill is 29+3) new skill is (32)+d6-1 (or take another 3)

etc...until you use up all your time. You are likely to gain a 12-15 point bump in this skill.

But, in way of suggestion, I usually tell players to train low level skills rather than higher level skills because the benefit is greater. Consider learning a new language like Arabic...

0% starting skill.....

152 hours
- 1 new skill is (0)+d6-1 (or take a 3)
151 hours left to train
- 3 (assuming new skill is 3) new skill is now (3)+d6-1 (or take another 3)
148 hours left
- 6 (assuming new skill is 3+3) new skill is (6)+d6-1 (or take another 3)
142 hours left
- 9 (assuming new skill is 6+3) new skill is (9)+d6-1 (or take another 3)
133 hours left
-12 (assuming new skill is 9+3) new skill is (12)+d6-1 (or take another 3)

etc....until you use up all your time. You are likely to gain a 25-35 points in this skill.

Technically speaking players could spend just 1 hour each on a bunch of skills to just get a base number in them. Its metagaming so I require at least 8 hours or 1 day spent in study to raise a skill from training.

Firearm reminder...
Also, important to note that firearm percentages double in point blank range. So a 26% is actually a 52% within Dex in feet. A shotgun which is a base 36% for Brooke is a 72% at point blank range.