Determining the Scope of Lore

Lore skills are one of the most specialized aspects of Starfinder, but they require GM oversight, particularly in determining which Lore subcategories are acceptable for player characters to select. A Lore subcategory represents a narrow focus, and thus it shouldn't replace all or even most of an entire skill, nor should it convey vast swaths of information. For example, a single Lore subcategory doesn't cover every deity's favored weapon—that's covered by the Religion skill—but a character could have a Lore subcategory that covers the traditions of a single deity, like Newborn Lore. One Lore subcategory won't cover every item or even an entire category of item (like consumables), but it could cover a narrow focus, like using Life Science lore to learn about pharmaceuticals and biotech augmentations. A more narrow skill, like Pharmaceutical Lore, might further lower the DC. A single Lore subcategory couldn't cover the entire multiverse, but it could cover a whole plane (other than the Universe).