To spot or find a hidden item, the searcher must test his INT+Awareness against a modified difficulty determined from the table below.
| Base Difficulty to Spot / Find | 15 |
| Visual Search | Mod |
| Efforts made to hide object* | +5 |
| Concealability > required | +5 |
| Concealability < required | -5 |
| Dark/Impaired Visibility | +3 |
| Searcher Using Thermograph | -5 |
| Searcher Under Stress/In Combat | +3 |
| Searcher Drunk, Drugged or Tired | +4 |
| *Only if the Concealability required is met. | |
| Manual Search - Object Size | Mod |
| P Concealability | +0 |
| J Concealability | -5 |
| L Concealability | -10 |
| N Concealability | NA |
| Manual Search - Time Spent | Mod |
| Cursory (1 round) | +5 |
| Brisk (2 rounds) | +0 |
| Standard (3-6 rounds) | -5 |
| Detailed (Up to 1 min) | -10 |
| Very Detailed (1 to 2 mins) | -15 |
| Semi Strip Search (3 to 5 mins) | -20 |
| Strip Search (10 mins) | -25 |
| Searcher is Intimidated/fearful | +5 |
| Searcher is completely in Control | -5 |
| Searcher Under Stress/In Combat | +3 |
| Searcher Drunk, Drugged or Tired | +4 |