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Layer 1: The Dice and Objectives

This first layer contains the absolute essential mechanics needed to play the game at its most basic level.

1.0: The Standard Roll (SR)

The Core Roll: All actions are resolved with a Standard Roll (SR).

(1.1) Roll two ten-sided dice (2d10). Designate one as the Main Die and the other as the Lucky Die. Your result is the number on the Main Die, unless both dice show the same number (a "double").

(1.2) Chaining Doubles: If you roll doubles during any roll that requires an SR, add their combined total (e.g., 14) to a running total and roll both dice again. Repeat this process for any subsequent doubles. Your final SR is the sum of all chained doubles plus the final, non-double result from your Main Die.

(1.3) Advantage & Disadvantage: With Advantage, use the higher of the two dice for your non-double result. With Disadvantage, use the lower. This only applies to the final roll in a chain.

(1.4) Critical: Any double is also a Critical. A Critical result grants a bonus to the effect of the roll. The player chooses which of these effects to apply, justifying their choice with the description of their actions.

  • Edge (cutting/tearing effects): Apply Weaken Tag
  • Point (piercing/penetrating effects): Apply Blight Tag
  • Surface (blunt/impact effects): Apply Daze Tag
  • Restore (healing or value recovery effects): Restore the target clock to its maximum or revive an eligible target
  • Value Loss: The total value loss dealt to the target's clock is doubled. This is calculated after subtracting the target's Resistance from your EV.

(1.5) An effect is considered successful if it meets any of the following conditions:

  • It causes a change in the targeted clock (HP, SP, or EP)
  • It applies a tag (such as Weaken, Blight, or Daze)
  • It imposes movement or a condition (e.g., knockback, stunned, silenced)

(1.6) An effect is considered a miss only if the initial roll is made with Disadvantage and the lower of the two dice is a 1. This represents a catastrophic fumble or clear misfire.

  • A miss always fails, regardless of the total calculated EV or ER and the targeted Resistance or TN..
  • This applies to any EV or ER and leads to a result of 0 progress on the clocks and some kind of narrative complication.
  • Misses do not apply value loss, keywords, tags, or effects of any kind.

(1.7) When a character achieves a final Standard Roll (SR) result of 31 or higher, it is a Super Critical. A super critical is also considered a critical and retains the effects a critical grants

(1.8) In addition to the critical effects of the action, a Super Critical grants the following benefit:

  • Heroics: Immediately remove 1 point from the current Situation Clock. This represents an act of legendary prowess that quickly overcomes the situation.
  • Machina: For play that occurs without a situation clock the super critical grants the player a significant positive result for the roll. The Curator should empower the player to take narrative control and describe the results of their roll.

2.0: Depleting Clocks: The Core Mechanic

Your goal is to deplete a target's Clock to 0. If your roll exceeds the Target Number (TN) you deplete the targeted clock by the difference.

(2.1) Progressing the Scene (vs. The Situation): Any clock you resolve depletes the situation clock by 1.

  • (2.1.1) Target Defense (vs. Entities): Your Effect Value (EV) (SR + Level + Stat) must exceed the target's Resistance (Sum of 3 highest Stats). The difference between the EV and Resistance is the amount the targeted clock is reduced
  • (2.1.2) Challenge Difficulty (vs. non Entity Clocks): Your Effort Roll (SR + Level + Stat) must exceed the challenge's Target Number (TN). The difference in the Effort Roll and TN is the amount the targeted clock is reduced.
  • (2.2) A clock is resolved when it reaches 0.
  • (2.3) When the Situation Clock reaches 0 the Situation reaches its endpoint.

(2.4) The length of a Clock determines how much effort is required to resolve a challenge. Use the provided tables as a guideline to set the starting value for Task Clocks.

(2.5) Using Clocks in Play:

  • Binary Checks: For simple, pass/fail tasks, a Clock of 1 is often sufficient.
  • Complex Tasks: Longer Clocks are excellent for representing multi-stage challenges.
  • Curator Discretion: These numbers are a guide, not a rigid rule.

3.0: Target Numbers (TN)

The TN represents the difficulty of the task. A player must roll higher than the TN to succeed.

(3.1) A reference list of TNs to set difficulty:

  • 3 - Trivial
  • 6 - Easy
  • 9 - Average
  • 12 - Difficult
  • 15 - Challenging
  • 18+ - Heroic

(3.2) Your total roll must be strictly greater than the Target Number or Resistance. Meeting the target number is not a success. This makes the amount by which you succeed a direct and meaningful measure of your effect.

4.0: Story Structure

The Story is the overarching narrative, composed of two main phases: Episodes and Downtime.

(4.1) Episode: This is the active, story-driven period of play.

(4.2) An Episode consists of a smaller unit referred to as Scenes (3 is Average).

(4.3) Scenes are any combination of Travel, Situations, and Rests.

(4.4) Downtime: This is a longer period between episodes focused on rest, recovery, and long-term advancement.

5.0: Priority and Turn Order (Card-Based System)

At the beginning of a situation that requires turn order to be tracked, priority is determined using an initiative deck.

(5.1) Setup Each combatant and any recurring environmental effects are assigned a unique card.

(5.2) The Round and Turn Order The Curator draws the top card of the initiative deck. The character on that card has priority and takes their turn. After a character's turn is complete, their card is placed in a discard pile. This process continues until the initiative deck is empty.

(5.3) Subsequent Rounds When the initiative deck is empty, the round is over. If the situation is not resolved, the cards of all surviving combatants are collected from the discard pile and shuffled to create a new deck for the next round.

(5.4) Action Economy A character's Alacrity stat determines their total number of available actions per round (not per turn). This pool of actions is refreshed at the start of each new round (when the deck is shuffled) and can be spent across any number of turns a character may get within that round.

(5.5) Ceding Priority (Pass Action) A character may choose to end their current turn early by using the Pass action. The resolution depends on whether they have actions remaining in their pool for the round.

  • If the character has actions remaining: Their initiative card is moved to the bottom of the deck. They will act again later in the round after all other cards have been drawn.
  • If the character has zero actions remaining: Their turn ends and their card is placed in the discard pile as normal.
  • You cannot use the Pass action if your initiative card is the last one to be drawn in the current round.

(5.6) Seizing Priority (Interrupts) If an effect (such as a successful Parry reaction) allows a character to immediately gain priority, the turn order is manipulated as follows:

  • The character seizing priority has their card pulled from its current location (either the deck or the discard pile). They immediately become the active character.
  • The turn of the character who was just interrupted ends. Their card is placed directly on top of the initiative deck.
  • The character who seized priority now takes their turn, spending actions from their action pool as normal. Any free actions granted by the interrupting effect (such as from a successful Parry) do not consume actions from this pool.

(5.7) Entering a Situation Mid-Round When a new combatant joins a Situation after the initiative deck has been partially drawn, their initiative card is shuffled into the remaining, undrawn portion of the deck. This reflects the chaos of a developing situation and gives the new combatant a fair, unpredictable chance to act within the current round. Their card will be included in the full shuffle at the start of the next round as normal.

6.0: Surprise

When a group or individual initiates combat against unaware targets, they gain surprise for the first round. Turn order is determined by creating two piles of initiative cards.

  • The cards of all combatants with surprise are shuffled into a "Surprise Pile."
  • The cards of all combatants who are surprised are shuffled into a "No Surprise Pile."
  • The Surprise Pile is placed on top of the No Surprise Pile to create the initiative deck for the first round.
  • Surprised entities still have Disadvantage on all Reactions during the first round.

MEET SPARKS: OUR EXAMPLE CHARACTER

To help illustrate how these rules work, let's create a character named Sparks. We'll follow her journey as she grows from a novice adventurer into a capable hero.

The Seed (Level 0) Sparks' journey begins at Level 0. All of her stats (Movement, Brawn, Wit, etc.) have a value of 1. The first and most important choice we make is her Seed Keyword, which defines her core potential. We've chosen Attuned (1.3) for Sparks. This means she has a deep, innate connection to a specific person or object. Let's say she carries an old, dented compass that belonged to her grandfather, and this is the object she is attuned to.

Sparks in Action: Her First Roll Sparks is trying to get through a magically locked door. The Curator decides this is a simple Environmental Challenge with a Target Number (TN) of 9. Sparks decides to channel her innate energy into her attuned compass, hoping its connection to her grandfather's adventurous spirit can bypass the lock.

This requires an Effort Roll. The formula is SR + Level + Stat.

Alex, Sparks' player, rolls 2d10 for a Standard Roll (SR). The dice land on an 9 (Main Die) and a 3 (Lucky Die). Her SR is 9. The Curator asks Alex which Stat she wants to use. Alex says, "I'm focusing my inner will, so I'll use my Force stat. (All her stats are 1 so the choice is based on the narrative)"

Alex calculates her total Effort Roll: 9 (SR) + 0 (Level) + 1 (Force Stat) = 10.

Her result of 10 exceeds the TN of 9! The magical lock sputters and clicks open. Since her roll exceeded the TN by 1, the door's "Clock" (which was just 1 in this simple case as a binary check) is reduced to 0. Sparks has overcome her first challenge.