Rule Number One: Drama is better than Accuracy.

The GM should know what challenge he wants the player to face, look at their skill, and set the difficulty accordingly. For a simple task, go for a step or two below the best in the party; for something more serious, go the other way.

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The following are examples from the book on what the different difficulty levels on The Ladder entail. Some of the examples are a bit contradictory in places, and the table should be further refined, but it's a good guideline. (FUG 14-15)

• POOR (Neglible Difficulty) - Generally don't require a roll. As long as someone can physically do it, and understand what's being asked, it should be automatic.

• MEDIOCRE (Simple Tasks) - Most tasks an ordinary person meets routinely. Can be overcome without drama or struggle, assuming basic competence.

• AVERAGE (Mundane Tasks) - Would challenge the average person, but routine for experts and professionals. Someone with basic skills could do it in a pinch, but not with regularity.

• FAIR (Difficult Tasks) - Out of the realm of someone with only basic training. Noteworthy, and rarely approached with out preparation.

• GOOD (Daunting Tasks) - Skilled pros will balk, and a person may go their whole life without such a challenge. Requires a lot of training, talent, or both.

• GREAT (Staggering Tasks) - Only the best of the best need apply. Only a handful in the world could do this with any sort of consistency.

• SUPERB (Nearly Impossible Tasks) - Expanding the very nature of the task at hand. Revolutionary.

Activity	Poor	Mediocre	Average	Fair	Good	Great	Superb
Computers	Turning it on	"Hello World"	Installing Linux			Developing an entirely new programming language	Developing the new Killer Ap.
Climbing	A ladder	A knotted rope	A cracked stone wall with handholds	A cliff face with equipement	The side of a building	A cliff face, bare-handed; Everest	A cliff face, bare-handed, in the rain
Driving	Start the car	Drive the car	Drive the car in the rain; parallel parking with <1' clearance	Drive the car in a blizzard; flying a small plane	Drive the car in a blizzard at high speed; flying a fighter jet	Race in the Indy 500; dogfighting	Stunt drive in an action movie.
Cooking	Microwave popcorn	A recipe	From scratch		For a good restaurant	For one of the world's finest restaurants	Iron Chef
Juggling	Catching a ball	Juggling three balls	Juggling four balls	Juggling knives
Medical		Bandage a cut; treating a sunburn	Applying a tourniquet; CPR; splinting a broken arm	Simple surgery; , stitch a deep cut	Surgically repair a serious stab wound	Open heart surgery; repair a punctured lung	Surgically re-attach a severed limb; multiple organ transplants
Music		Not scaring the pets	Marching band			Soloing for the New York Philharmonic	The next Beethoven's Ninth
Research	Reading the headlines	Searching with Google	Researching something obscure in the library				Researching a new branch of science
Survival	Eating and drinking healthily	Starting a campfire	Build a shelter from the rain	Find potable water in the forest; digging a well; skinning an animal	Find potable water in the desert	Live in the desert for a week with no supplies	Live among the wolves as one of the pack
Swimming	Getting into the pool	Jumping off a low diving board	Rescuing someone in calm water			Swimming the Channel
Other	Getting a joke on Leno	Writing a business letter; loading a gun; getting on a horse	Sewing a dress;	Building a house; rebulding a car engine	Designing an office building	Jackie Chan

To put it into D20 terms, I'd be inclined to rank things as the following [D Cs]?:

Poor (5) - Mediocre (10) - Average (15) - Fair (20) - Good (25) - Great (30) - Superb (35) - Epic (40) - Legendary (45)

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FATE Mechanics