Cheat Sheet

Saving Throw

Save = d20 ≤ Ability Score

  • STR: power, endurance, physicality
  • DEX: flow state, reflex, finesse
  • CTRL: concentration, presence, mental resilience
  1. Player declares action with potential for meaningful failure.
  2. Referee sets attribute for the Save.
  3. Referee communicates position and consequences of failure.
  4. Player rolls d20 Save, attempting to roll under or equal to Ability Score.
  5. Referee describes the outcome of the Save.

Time

  • Round: ~10 seconds, used during combat.
  • Turn: ~10 minutes, used during exploration of a site, like a dungeon.
  • Watch: ~8 hours, used during overland travel and exploration of the wilderness.
  • Cycle: 1-2 weeks, used between sessions to represent downtime activities.

Distance

  • Close: within arm’s reach
  • Nearby: paces away, within earshot. You can get there in a round and still act.
  • Far: bowshot away, whites of someone’s eyes visible. You can just get there in a round.

Guard

Guard (GD) represents dmg avoidance while on guard in combat.

Burden

PCs have 10 inventory slots called burden, representing various belts, backpacks, satchels, etc. Full burden reduces GD to 0. Most items take up 1 slot.

  • Bulky: 2 slots
  • Bundle: 3 to a slot
  • Stack: 10 to a slot
  • Petty: 0 slots (but lots may take up a full slot).

Currency (silver pennies) up to 500 is petty. Anything above takes up a burden slot.

Burden may fill with Fatigue and other effects like Wounds. Special rules may apply for clearing some effects. Others are permanent.

Fatigue

  • Occupies 1 slot.
  • Added to Burden for not resting, spellcasting, combat maneuvers, and more.
  • All Fatigue is cleared after resting for a full Watch.
  • If no slots are available, the player must drop an item to fill the slot with Fatigue.

Deprivation

  • If deprived of needs (food, water, sleep, etc), you cannot restore Ability Scores or Guard.
  • If deprived for more than a day, add a Fatigue to Burden.

Damage and Healing

  • Resting for a turn restores all GD. STR/DEX/CTRL dmg recovered 1 pt / full day spent resting. Medical aid speeds this up.
  • If an attack reduces GD to exactly 0, you suffer a Scar.
  • Some attacks reduce DEX and CTRL as well.
  • 0 STR = death; 0 DEX = paralysis; 0 CTRL = delirium

Skill Test

  1. Player declares a task with potential for meaningful failure.
  2. Referee communicates that skill, time, and tools are needed.
  3. With 0 or 1, the test fails. With all 3, the test succeeds.
  4. With 2, the player has a 2-in-6 (5+) chance to succeed, with situational bonuses and penalties added.
  5. Referee describes the outcome of the test.
  6. If there is a yield, it also depends on skill, time, and tools: With 2, the yield is d4. With 3, the yield is d6. Situational bonuses can increase the yield die to max of d12.

Social Checks

  1. Player wants something from an NPC.
  2. Referee determines motivation and disposition (2d6).
  3. Player and NPC interact. If there is doubt as to whether a tactic will work, the player has a 2-in-6 (5+) chance to succeed, with situational bonuses and penalties added.
  4. Resolve interaction. If unresolved, start from the beginning, but PCs must use new tactics.

Combat

  1. PCs make a DEX save to act first before enemies.
  2. Enemies make actions simultaneously.
  3. All PCs make actions simultaneously, followed again by the enemy, alternating rounds.
  4. One side is destroyed, surrenders, or flees.

PCs can move as part of their action. Actions include

  • Attacking
  • Reloading
  • Moving again
  • Combat maneuvers

Attacking

Attacker rolls weapon die. Armor subtracts dmg. Remaining hits GD.

  • Multiple attackers vs single target: Roll all dice, keep the single highest result.
  • Multiple weapons: roll all dice and keep the single highest result.
  • Impaired attacks: 1d4 (including unarmed)
  • Enhanced attacks: 1d12
  • Blast: Hit all area targets, separate roll/target.

Retreat = DEX save + safe destination to flee to.

Combat Maneuvers

Target makes save vs effect (trip, disarm, grapple, etc). Attacker makes relevant save to avoid Fatigue (regardless of whether maneuver succeeds).

Gambits

On an attack roll of 4+, attacker may discard the roll to perform a gambit. Some gambits require target to save. Gambits can include:

  • Adding +1 to an attack
  • Moving after attacking
  • Repelling an enemy away
  • Stopping an enemy from moving

Discard an 8+ and the gambit auto-succeeds.

Critical Damage Save

Damage that bypasses Guard and Armor decreases the target’s STR by the amount remaining.

Critical Damage Save: STR save using their new STR score.

Critical Damage: Character can do nothing but grasp for life. Left untreated, they die within the hour.

Exploration

  1. Party declares their actions.
  2. Referee describes what happens.
  3. 1 player rolls the Site Die and referee decrements Site Clock by that amount.
  4. PCs mark usage on light sources.

Site Clock and Site Die

The Site Die starts as d6. The Site Clock starts at 20.

  • Below zero, a random encounter occurs.
  • At 3, an encounter omen is found.
  • At exactly zero, reset Site Clock to 3.
  • After resting, increment the Site Die 1 step.

Light

  • Torches: Nearby objects and close details. 6 turns.
  • Candles: Close objects and details. Can blow out. 6 turns.
  • Lanterns: Nearby objects and details. Oil as fuel. 24 turns.

Panic

CTRL Save when in darkness, surrounded by foes, facing a great fear, or suffering dmg to CTRL.

Panic = 0 GD + attacks impaired.

Wilderness

  1. Referee determines weather.
  2. Party selects wilderness actions.
  3. Referee describes what happens.
  4. Light sources are ticked off, if needed.
  5. Wilderness Event die is rolled.

Wilderness Events

  • 1: Random encounter
  • 2: Threat to party resources
  • 3: Local disaster
  • 4-6: Nothing happens

Wilderness Actions

  • Travel: Navigator makes skill test to avoid getting lost.
  • Explore: Party finds hidden and landmark features.
  • Lookout: Lookout keeps an eye out for trouble.
  • Supply: Forager/Hunter make skill tests to hunt, fish, and forage, or shop in a settlement.
  • Make Camp: Sleep, consume ration, craft, cook. 3 person lookout rotation needed when sleeping.

Downtime Cycle

  1. Party resolves upkeep. Can take odd jobs for upkeep funds.
  2. Each player selects a downtime action.
  3. The referee describes the outcome.
  4. The referee progresses Faction activities.
  5. The party resupplies, including hiring hirelings and retainers, buying pets or mounts, and looking for rumors.

Lifestyle Upkeep

  • Meager: 5sp. Dirty, malnourished, threadbare clothing
  • Comfortable: 25sp. Clean, fed, respectable clothing
  • Luxurious: 125sp. Pampered, fed, fashionable clothing

Downtime Actions

  • Must not endanger the party or self.
  • Cannot be done while recovering ability scores or wounds.
  • Require a tracker of 1-5 milestones and a cost for each milestone.
  • Potential actions include training a skill, training an animal, researching, crafting, making connections, searching for a rare item.

Spells

Spells are petty. Spell scrolls are expended on use. Spells can be copied into grimoires.

  • To case, invest Magic Dice (d6) equal to available burden slots. Based on spell, refer to number and sum of dice used.
  • On 4-6, add a Fatigue. On doubles, suffer a mishap. On triples, suffer a doom.