To read some text correctly or write text correctly, a character must make a dice roll using his/her Administration (including Literacy specialism) + IQ.
The difficulty depends on the task being performed, as follows:
| Reading tasks | Difficulty |
| Recognising and reading letters accurately | 1 |
| Putting together letter sounds to work out a simple word (e.g. dog, cat) | 2 |
| Reading and correctly interpreting a simple sentence | 3 |
| Reading and correctly interpreting a normal sentence | 4 |
| Reading and correctly interpreting a complex sentence with oddly spelt words | 6 |
| Reading and correctly interpreting a very long complex sentence with jargon | 8 |
| Writing tasks | Difficulty |
| Writing individual letters accurately | 2 |
| Spelling a simple word (or sentence of simple words) accurately | 4 |
| Writing a normal sentence with correct punctuation and grammar | 6 |
| Writing a complex sentence with unusual words or words that are difficult to spell | 8 |
| Writing a very complex long sentence with words that are jargon (e.g. legalistic phrases, etc.) | 10 |
To do more than recognise letters, a character must also understand the language in which the text is being written.