//"Do these wagon wheels fall off often?" -- Emory
It's possible to mistake your breadth of experience for depth, and fail to hear wiser voices. Similarly, you can make false assumptions about a culture based on experience with a few of its individuals. There's always more to learn. There's always a new perspective.


Cosmopolitan

//"The clear skies, the lure of the open road, it's perfect!" -- Tana
You've lived your life among people from all over. Maybe you lived in a bustling city, or maybe you traveled the world. You listened to their stories and saw their ways of living.
You've learned to approach situations by understanding many perspectives.


//"When everyone hates you, it's hard not to hate them back." -- Basler
Sometimes, circumstances push people to a breaking point. Other times, doing the right thing becomes impossible, and you're left with doing the necessary thing.


Underclass

//"Nobody fights for people like us. So we fight for ourselves." -- Basler
You grew up among people who were neglected or rejected by a surrounding society. Your family or neighbors could have been criminals, migrants, members of a disliked minority or species, or anything else.
You've learned to approach situations via pride.


When the gulf between is and ought becomes too much, which will you choose?

Dreamer

Tomorrow beckons, if you can fix today. You can't change the world alone. But you aren't, are you?

During play, you can speak from one of several agendas.
These agendas can be assigned individually to several people, or all given to a single player ("the Game Master" or "the GM").
The agendas can change hands during the game. You cannot take an agenda away from someone else, but you can ask someone else to give up an agenda.
If you've been assigned a agenda, you are bound to speak from it.


The Storyteller

The Principal Characters (PCs) are the focus of the game. The game also has Ensemble Characters (ECs), sometimes called Non-Player Characters (NPCs).
Your job is to narrate the ECs' actions and reactions. Decide on their agendas, then enact them in interesting ways.
ECs are allies, antagonists, or anyone else involved in the story but not at the heart of it.


Admiration, Trust, or Acceptance.
With Ecstacy: yields Love.
With Terror: yields Submission.


Admiration

Oracle cards can answer questions. Draw one card for a simple answer, or two cards for a complex one.
Use these cards to answer what someone is feeling, or what emotion a thing or event would spark.
Each emotion has two neighbors. You can use the emotion itself, or choose to mix it with a neighbor.


Emotion

You control that which depends on you, and sometimes the weight grows too much.

Guardian

You feel responsible for something or someone else. Their need propels you.

//"Everything's different out here. That's why it's called a cloister" -- Basler
Your early life didn't prepare you for the sheer variey of people and things the world has to offer. You might make a basic blunder, or ask a troubling question. When in doubt, there might be someone you rely on for answers, or you may rely on your upbringing's incomplete picture of things.


Insular

//"This is all very different from the cloister" -- Emory
You grew up secluded from the rest of the world. Whether you lived on a lonely mountain village, a religious retreat, or in an enclave within a city, the ways of the outside world are a mystery.
You've learned to approach situations through curiosity.


//"The gizmo broke and I gotta fix it. Well, at least I have my tools." -- Basler
Nothing works perfectly, especially new inventions that have seen more use than testing.


Tech

//"Y'see, this gizmo here can automatically pick any lock in the kingdom!" -- Basler
You focus on science, technology, or artifice to get things done.
This could include familiar inventions like handguns or balloons, or magitek such as glowing crystal fire-rods, or products of magic such as alchemical potions.
You can use, repair, or replace your toolkit of inventions.


Social

Two neighborhoods play off each other via fashion or pop culture.


//"They definitely saw us!" -- Basler
You are being actively hunted, by someone or something that wishes you ill.
You must stay hidden, disguise yourself when in the open, or take other steps to avoid attention.
Your pursuers might have some idea about your immediate goals, and work to thwart them as well.
What new discoveries does your escape lead you to? How do you change your identity or habits to escape notice? What threatens your sanctuary that's just as dangerous as your pursuers?


Pursued

//"I think they saw us." -- Tana
Someone or something powerful or dangerous is seeking you out, and you'd rather not be found.
You risk discovery if you present yourself to guards, spies, or allies. There might be a bounty on you, or hunters after you.
Can you lay low, or do you need to leave the area? Who can you trust, and who would rat you out? What do you sacrifice to keep safe?


Wanted

The Referee

Your job is to adjudicate questions about the rules of the game, and to make changes to the rules with the group's consent. Any player can suggest how to handle a rule, but you have the final say.
Example rulings:


Ecstacy, Joy, or Serenity.
With Vigilance: yields Optimism.
With Admiration: yields Love.


Ecstacy

//"Whoever corrupted this creature will pay. Let's press on." -- Woody
A Monstrous threat is powered by its rage or aggression, but those can be its downfall as well.
Monstrous creatures often lack a sense of self-preservation, fighting relentlessly when others would retreat.
You may avoid the challenge of a Monstrous threat by taking advantage of its twisted, feral nature.
Monstrous threats may:


Monstrous

//"That ain't no ordinary wolf, folks.." -- Basler
Monstrous threats are altered forms of the familiar. They are fiercer, more feral, or disturbingly unnatural.
The characteristics of a mundane thing become exaggerated and gruesome. Muscles knot and bulge. Jaws elongate and bristle with vicious fangs. Hide thickens and goes patchy. All is as seen through the lens of nightmare.
You may be challenged by a Monstrous threat's adaptations, or by its relentless aggression.
Monstrous threats can:


The Warren is the hidden heart of the city. It is an impenetrable maze of dark alleys, boarded-up shops, narrow streets, ancient graveyards, and more. It is the city's secret suffering.
A struggling Warren is the city's surrender to despair. Strangers receive furtive looks when they visit this neighborhood, and long-time residents talk wistfully or bitterly about "the way things used to be".


The Warren

The Warren is the hidden heart of the city. It is an organic tangle of alleyways, residences, nameless shops, side streets, historical buildings, and more. It is what the city does with itself when no one is looking.
A flourishing Warren keeps the city's heart beating. The things that make the city unique, such as its culture, tastes, and trends, emerge from here unannounced. The city's history is likewise on display for curious visitors.


//"You mean the real villain all this time was...?!" -- Emory
If you discover the reason for a Tense situation, you can often find ways to diffuse things.
If you don't get caught up in the tension, maybe you can talk the others down, or pacify them.
You may avoid the challenge of a Tense situation by getting all the facts and making careful choices in your approach.
Beings in a Tense situation may:


Tense

//"Deep breaths. Stay calm. Show them we're friends." -- Tana
The encounter includes a highly charged situation that affects some or all of the beings present.
Maybe someone expects something momentous to happen at any moment. Maybe two or more parties are on the verge of taking drastic action.
You may be challenged to navigate a Tense situation without making it blow up, or losing an important opportunity. 
Beings in a Tense situation may:


Two neighborhoods are connected via criminal activity. This could range from petty theft or pickpocketing, to smuggling of contraband, to intimidation or murder. Not every criminal is disliked; someone who steals from the rich to give to the poor will be popular among the poor.
An unstable Criminal dynamic might mean gang war between rival criminal factions. It might also mean a single leader is responsible, and they could be taken down via force or guile.


Criminal

Two neighborhoods are connected via criminal activity. This could range from petty theft or pickpocketing, to smuggling of contraband, to intimidation or murder. Not every criminal is disliked; someone who steals from the rich to give to the poor will be popular among the poor.
A stable Criminal dynamic often means organized crime, such as a cartel, criminal fraternity, thieves' guild, or the like.


No card in front of you (e.g. Character cards) may be flipped more than once to generate a hit.
You may flip group cards (e.g. Plot cards) or draw/pick a new card (e.g. Condition card, Random oracle card).


Gauntlet Crisis

Some situations are grueling and exhausting, wearing down your reserves faster than you can recover. Sooner or later, something has to give.
When you encounter such a crisis, decide what it would take to survive it, such as escaping an enemy or saving a friend.


//"The flood washed away our campsite! Now what?" -- Basler
Your gear has been broken, lost, or taken, or you are out of some important resource.
You must scavenge for substitutes, or make do with barely-adequate improvisations. If you lack basic necessities like food, you must hunt for them soon.
Where must you go to get what you need? Who has it, and what do they demand for it? How do you change habits or tactics to deal with the problems cause by what you lack?


Ungeared

//"This is the last of our fresh water." -- Woody
Vital gear has been damaged, or resources are running low.
You might have lost something and been forced to make do. You can't overuse what you have, lest things get worse. You might need to ration what you have.
What have you lost that's hardest to live without? Can you use some ingenuity to get by with whatever's left, or what you can scrounge? Who in the area has a replacement, and what do they want for it?


Undergeared

Conditions are a way to achieve success at a cost. You can use conditions in many ways.


Condition Examples

You've been affected by injury, delirium, debts, magical curses, or other problems.
You can take a condition to get a hit. Describe how. Players who challenge you can suggest conditions to meet it.
The condition is fictionally true and limits your actions. If you narrate an action the condition would interfere with, you must meet the challenge of the condition in addition to any other challenges.
You can flip a front-side condition to worsen it and get a hit. Describe how.
Clearing conditions takes time. Use this time to drive drama, build the world, or explore how you clear the condition.
Discard any conditions that no longer apply in the fiction.


Condition Cards

You failed to meet the challenge! Narrate how it happened.


Miss

You can choose to draw a card of this type to see if you meet a challenge.
The card will suggest ways in which the challenge was met. You can use one of these, or make up your own.
If a card indicates that you missed, you may not try to meet the challenge in other ways.
A GM or other facilitator may adjust the ratio of hit or miss cards in this stack to reflect the difficulty of a given action.


Random Outcome

Financial

The Marketplace is the commercial core of the city. The vendors may be few and far between, the fires of the forge may lie extinguished, and farmers' crops may rot in warehouses - or be taken away at insultingly low prices.
A struggling Marketplace lacks either supply or demand. If the wares are not available, or nobody has either the wealth or the interest in obtaining what's there, commerce will wither on the vine.


The Marketplace

The Marketplace is the commercial core of the city. It might include a rowdy labyrinth of vendors hawking their wares, a smoke-smothered block of forges and anvils where blacksmiths arm the soldiery. or warehouses full of grain or rice.
A flourishing Marketplace balances supply and demand. The Marketplace produces the bulk of the city's wares, then makes them available to those with money equal to their need. If both seller and buyer exist for something, the Marketplace ensures they will eventually meet.


A Harbor is the home of trade and travel, to and from the city. It is often the last sight a regretful traveler sees before leaving. Commercial transports, whether caravans, trains, or zeppelins, are uncommon or sometimes found in states of neglect.
A struggling Harbor is doing its best to keep the city afloat. Whether conditions are bad here, or whether the city's trading partners have fallen on hard times (or abandoned it), all the neighborhood can do is keep moving whatever's left.


The Harbor

A Harbor is the home of trade and travel, to and from the city. It is often a visitor's first introduction to the city. Commercial transports, whether caravans, trains, or zeppelins, are found everywhere here.
A flourishing Harbor is the life and breath of a city. Anything people need or want that isn't obtained locally must be brought from somewhere else, and it all comes through the Harbor.


The Sanctuary is a city within the city. It might be an isolated enclave, a brow-beaten borough, a place to abandon the unwanted, or something else. A sanctuary can barely sustain its residents, whether due to lack of goods or intentional deprivation.
A struggling Sanctuary needs support from outside. The inhabitants might ask for, or demand, or beg for assistance. The uniqueness of the Sanctuary is threatened, or seen as a threat.


The Sanctuary

The Sanctuary is a city within the city. It might be a walled-off enclave, a culturally distinct community, a gentrified neighborhood, a historical relic, or something else. A sanctuary has its own shops, homes, and infrastructure, enough to sustain its residents and sharing their aesthetic tastes.
A flourishing Sanctuary is self-sufficient. The citizens are healthy and prosperous. The uniqueness of the Sanctuary is maintained and respected.


//"They had some nice gemstones too!" -- Basler
The elements represent a complex system with rules that can be exploited.
Each element is usually weak to another element, such as fire being weak to water. Elements are also bound to their natures. Fire needs some sort of fuel to persist, for example.     
You can weaken or neutralize an Elemental threat by exploiting its vulnerabilities or using its nature against it.
Elemental threats may:


Elemental

//"Earth sprites. They have the ore we seek." -- Tana
This encounter involves powerful elemental forces. This can mean creatures made of such forces, or dangerous sources like a volcano or a violent storm.
You may be challenged by the raw power of an Elemental threat, or it can cause environmental dangers or obstacles.
An Elemental power may:


Life is pain. There's no reward for this, only the next battle. When will you fall?

Soldier

Life is struggle. Everyone has to fight, all the time. What do you fight for?

//"I'll have a magic circle up in a moment!" -- Tana
Spectral beings came to the waking world for a reason, whether for mischief, malice, or other needs. The bonds holding them to life are tenuous, and if they're given what they want, or can no longer get it, they might be forced back.
Spectral encounter may not pose a challenge if their objective is obtained, threatened, or destroyed. A Spectral threat may:


Spectral

//"My arrows go right through it." -- Woody
This encounter includes something ghostly or purely spiritual.
Spectral entities might have obligations or passions binding them to the mortal world. They may be frightened, angry, or confused. They might wish to go - or stay.
You may be challenged by a Spectral threat if you can't interact with it, or if its otherworldly nature has dangerous effects.
A Spectral threat may:


You may not flip any cards in front of you (e.g. Character cards) to generate hits.
You may flip shared cards (e.g. Plot cards) or draw/pick a new card (e.g. Condition card, Random oracle card).


Uncertain Crisis

Some situations cannot be solved by skill or virtue, but only good fortune.
When you encounter such a crisis, decide what it would take to escape it, such as leaving the area successfully.


//"The leaf dragon's toxin got me... Sorry..." -- Woody
Your body is out of resources. You pushed yourself to a breaking point.
You can't fight effectively. Each new step is an effort. Focusing on anything other than survival is difficult.
Where do you recover? At what cost? Do you experience dreams or delirium? What rare ingredient does your medicine require?


Exhausted

//"This forest goes on forever, Woody. Can we just stop a moment?" -- Tana
Your body is trying to keep itself going, but is under attack or is being deprived.
You can't push yourself too hard, and it's hard to concentrate.
Do you need shelter, medicine, food and water, or just sleep? What are your symptoms? Is there anything you take to ease them? Did you hide them to press on?


Weakened

//"That thing was terrifying! Your kingdom is messed up!" -- Basler
Not every hybrid has a perfect command of its own nature. Hybrids must also obey the rules of all their component parts.
A Hybrid may not pose a challenge if the characters exploit its weaknesses.
Hybrid beings may:


Hybrid

//"A Gryphon. The heraldic symbol of my kingdom. Majestic!" -- Emory
A Hybrid being is made up of two or more things, not always living.
Such beings can be part-human (mermaids, harpies), mixed animal (cockatrices, pegasi), shapeshifters (werewolves), or weirder (tree-ogres).
A Hybrid may pose a challenge if characters are unfamiliar with the combination.
Hybrid beings may:


//"Not so much fell as fell apart..." -- Basler
Being sustained by dark magic, the undead are equally vulnerable to it.
Many cannot abide holy objects, places, or effects. Others are bound by orders to only guard a certain place, or do a certain thing.
You can avoid the challenge of an Undead threat if you learn what raised them and why, and use that knowledge to outsmart or dispel them.
An Undead threat may:


Undead

//"This unholy abomination will fall!" -- Emory
Necromancy, curses, or strange phenomena can bring a deceased creature back to a false life. The being is sustained by magic, not biology. Some undead are mindless; others are disturbingly cunning. They are frightening reminders of mortality, often endowed with dread powers.
You may be challenged when you confront the undead using the  same tactics you would use against mortal foes.
An Undead threat may:


//"Next time, I'll let my sword do the talking." -- Emory
While Bases can be big and imposing, their nature can work against their occupants.
Tents, side-passages, stacked crates, and many other things can help a character even the odds. Camps have a lot of supplies that can be looted or bargained for.
A Base may:


Base

//"Aheheh.. We come in peace?" -- Basler
The encounter includes a place where creatures stay for a common purpose.
A Base can be a temporary encampment, an outpost, a secret headquarters, a wild animal's den, or some other protected space.
You may be challenged if you try to find something specific in the base, find your way out or through, or confront its occupants and their preparations.
A Base may:


Grief, Sadness, or Pensiveness.
With Amazement: yields Disapproval.
With Loathing: yields Remorse.


Grief

//"As opposed to ironclad thugs lording it over the peasants?" -- Basler
While committing to a way of life gives you strength to press on, it can make people inflexible or stubborn. Some will reject anything outside their experience, while others will actively fight against it.


Strict

//"Knights should be glorious champions of honor!" -- Emory
You knew from a young age that there's a right and wrong way to do things. You might be from a noble family where things are done just so, or your parents might have lived in constant fear of something, and their caution rubbed off on you.
You've learned to approach situations through protocol.


The Underground is what people don't want to see about the city. It is the filthy waterways and skull-strewn tombs. It is the home of the city's underprivileged and forgotten.
A struggling Underground has been abandoned or is being misused. It might provide hideouts for violent criminals, or prove dangerous to visitors through mere neglect.


The Underground

The Underground is what people don't see about the city. It is actual underground construction, like sewers or burial chambers. It is infrastructure, like aqueducts, that everyone needs but nobody cares about.
A flourishing Underground ensures quality of life for the city's inhabitants. The city's needs, like water and waste, flow where they must.


//"Basler, stop cringing. He's not talking about you." -- Woody
Evil hasn't won, though it keeps trying. Powers from beyond are bound by their own rules too, and can be defeated accordingly.
Characters who arm themselves with occult lore or divine blessings may circumvent or neutralize a Diabolical power.
A Diabolical encounter may:


Diabolical

//"Back, foul fiend! Light will overcome you!" -- Emory
A Diabolical encounter has the touch of evil. An actual summoned demon, a possessed victim, or a dark and malevolent force are all Diabolic.
You may be challenged if you engage with the Diabolical without proper protections or if you unknowingly encounter its influence.
A Diabolical encounter may:


You successfully met the challenge! Narrate how it happened.


//"Those who go their own way often find the path lonely." -- Emory
Rules aren't always made to be broken. You can offend others, or even hurt them or yourself when you go where you don't belong or do what you ought not do.


Unfettered

//"As a princess, I had power. As a ranger, I have freedom." -- Woody
Whether you were a scion of privilege, a child wandering the halls of an artisan's guild, or a free spirit roaming a mystic forest, you were accustomed to going where you wished and doing whatever seemed best.
You've learned to approach situations through force of will.


//"So, he was a king's guard in disguise. He looked like a bad guy!" -- Woody
Only fools rush in, and this time, you were the fool.


Instinct

//"My eye watches the target. My hand lets go the bowstring. I do nothing." -- Woody
You do things without thinking. Your heart, your conscience, a divine command, or something guides your actions.
Instinct lets you act when everything says to hesitate, or when uncertainty overwhelms you, or when speed counts more than reason.


//"...For the right price." -- Basler
Not everything can be reduced to a simple transaction, but some people can't see any other way. It becomes easy to ignore pain and devalue life when money or power becomes a cocoon against existence.


Mercantile

//"Welcome to the Labri Market! You can find anything here." -- Basler
You grew up among those who made their living through trade. This could be the busy markets of a city, an oceanic trade route, or the corridors of power in an embassy or castle. You understand that some people have wants or needs, that others can satisfy them, and the power that comes from mediating between the two.
You've learned to approach situations through canny negotiation.


//"You don't wanna know" -- Basler
The problem with secrets is keeping track of who knows what. The value of a secret is lost once it's revealed. And some secrets weigh on the conscience.


Secrets

//"Basler, where did you get that knife from?" -- Tana
You deal in concealment, stealth, and subterfuge. Your tools are things people don't want known, or weren't expecting.
You could use hidden weapons, court gossip, cloak-and-dagger skulduggery, or the secrets of the heart.


The Principal

You get to create and play a Principal Character (PC), one of the protagonists of the story.
Your job is to narrate your character's actions and reactions. Decide on their agendas, then enact them in interesting ways.
When someone asks "what does your character do, say, or think?", you get to answer.


What or who will you unmake, in your goal of making something new?

Synthesist

Rage, Anger, or Annoyance.
With Loathing: yields Contempt.
With Vigilance: yields Aggressiveness.


Rage

//"The Power is much like the ocean. You can sail in it, or drown in it." -- Tana
When called, the Power always comes. That doesn't mean you can always command it.
The costs and consequences of using magic can be anything, even for a familiar spell.


Magic

//"I don't know, I just felt ... something ... flow through me!" -- Tana
The mystical, the eldritch, the arcane. The Power has many names. What do you call it?
You can achieve a variety of supernatural outcomes with magic, such as healing, curses, enchantments, and more.


Amazement, Surprise, or Distraction.
With Terror: yields Awe.
With Grief: yields Disapproval.


Amazement

//"Just as long as it doesn't fall on us." -- Basler
You may have trouble engaging with a Large encounter due to the size difference, but that trouble goes both ways. It can be hard for Large things to perceive or target smaller foes.
You may counter the challenge of a Large encounter by  exploiting your respective sizes somehow.
A Large threat may:


Large

//"The bigger they are, the harder they fall!" -- Tana
This encounter includes something of enormous size. It might be naturally large, like a dragon or a giant, or have been enlarged by magic or other forces.
You may be challenged if you can't overcome your diminutive size relative to a Large threat.
A Large threat may:


//"I kinda told the thieves' guild I'd take care of something" -- Basler
You have significant debts that demand your time or attention. The stakes may be higher, or just more immediate. You may risk notoriety or condemnation.
Your patron is watching closely and may try to threaten or coerce you further. Other interested parties or powerful forces may interfere, perhaps to stop your task or hurt your patron.
Do you have to lay low, face the heat, go on the run? Who offers a devil's bargain to make this go away?


Indebted

//"We will deal with the brigands, your highness." -- Emory
You have a heavy responsibility, and someone is watching to make sure you uphold it. There will be consequences if you delay or decline.
Your patron might grow impatient or demand more. Rivals or enemies might interfere. The task might need to be kept secret, lest someone be hurt.
Do you have to fight, haggle, or steal something to make good? Do you end up making new enemies? New friends?


Obliged

//"Hey, that raven looks familiar... Basler?!" -- Tana
You've been physically remade into something new by powerful magic. You can still function, but it's a big adjustment.
Other people may react with fear, curiosity, or hostility. You may be unable to speak or explain yourself to them.
Who or what could undo the magic that holds you? What must you do, obtain, or discard to return to your former self? Who now hates or hunts you?


Transformed

//"Don't let them peck you, or you'll croak with the voice of the Raven God" -- Woody
Powerful magic has physically changed your appearance or abilities. Your new features might be helpful in limited ways, but mostly they're a hindrance.
You'll have trouble doing things you took for granted, or draw attention to yourself if seen.
What's the worst side effect of the change? What mystic ingredient or substance can hold the change at bay, or undo it? Who looks at you funny, and what might they do next?


Altered

There's only so much good luck to go around. Will you run out of yours, or take someone else's away?

Opportunist

Life is unpredictable. When an opening comes, seize it. When a chance comes, take it.

External

//"That berry was delicious. Hey, who are all of you?" -- Emory
A powerful and baneful magic has you in its grip. You might be under a geas or other powerful compulsion, to act or not act in a certain way.
The rules of the curse may be a mystery. You may suffer pain or great misfortune violating them.
What quest does lifting the curse entail? What sacrifices or dangers do you brave to undo it? Must someone else pay a price on your behalf?


Cursed

//"Be careful. If anything in the forest looks edible, it's a faerie trap" -- Woody
A spell or other supernatural power is affecting you. It might cause discomfort, distraction, or inconvenience. Your perceptions might be twisted somehow.
You must be careful when doing things that would set off the spell.
What weird rituals or strange ingredients diminish or slow the effects on you? What obnoxious compulsions or taboos does it force on you? What price must you pay to free yourself?


Magicked

Challenges follow the principle of "say yes or roll the dice".
Use challenges to increase or decrease the difficulty of a situation. For example, a risky combat scene might pose several challenges in succession. A simple social encounter might pose only one challenge.
The player posing the challenge should give an idea of what failure looks like. That player, or the Storyteller, might narrate the specifics of failure.
The same action should not be challenged multiple times unless there are both distinct and interesting ways for it to fail. For example, a demonstration of new magic might go awry by itself, but might also anger a jealous wizard who observes it.


Challenges

Any player may challenge a PC's action if failure is likely and success or failure are both interesting for the story.
When your PC is challenged, you must generate a hit in order to succeed. Other rules provide ways to generate hits.
If you fail to meet a challenge, your PC's intentions are thwarted, or complications arise. There's no challenge if this can't happen.


//"Sounds like fair odds to me. Have at you!" -- Emory
The strength of a gang is in its numbers. Dealing with individual members can be very different from confronting the gang as a whole.
While an assembled gang acts instinctively, individuals can be made to consider actions more carefully.
You may avoid or circumvent the challenge of a gang by disrupting the group, or by addressing individual members.
A Gang may:


Gang

//"They outnumber us 5 to 1, folks!" -- Basler
This encounter includes a group of people or creatures bound together in common purpose.
Gangs can be organized, like criminal gangs or military units, or they can be informal groups, like angry mobs or startled herds of animals.
You may be challenged by a Gang's numerical advantage, or by its planning and influence.
A Gang may:


Artistic

Uptown is the city's fallen crown. Bourgeoisie merchants with pretentions to greatness, shabby aristocrats fallen from favor, or forgotten influencers might all be found here.
A struggling Uptown is a hollow vessel once filled with power, or a puppet dancing on someone else's strings. Residents might uphold the veneer out of pride, or dream of ways to reclaim real glory.


Uptown

Uptown is the city's crown. It is home to the elite, including skilled creators, wealthy merchants, influential politicians, and beloved performers. Visitors might beseech an Uptown resident to fund their ventures, or seek their attention for some new idea or creation.
A flourishing Uptown can exert its will, for good or ill, on the surrounding city. They say "power is where you say it is", and the city says that social power lives here.


//"Save the beak. We need it to claim the reward!" -- Basler
Fame has its price.
If the stories that have gotten around are accurate, you might know how to take on this encounter - maybe.
Sometimes tales are false, and notorious things prove to be very different than you expect.
You may avoid the challenge of a Notorious threat when you correctly leverage its lore, or when you look at it with fresh eyes and discover the truth behind the stories. 
Notorious threats may:


Notorious

//"That's Gretamaw, the Beaked Butcher!" -- Basler
This encounter includes someone or something that bards sing about.
A Notorious monster whispered of by fearful villagers. A place of power that most folks avoid. An artifact of legend, replete with arcane power. A person known for great or terrible deeds.
You may be challenged by the weight of Notorious reputation, by those who follow or worship it, or by the very power that made it famous.
Notorious things may:


//"I can't feel the grimoire! I can't feel ANY magic!" -- Tana
A sense or faculty you normally depend on has been temporarily lost. You might have pushed yourself past a limit, or been affected by a disease or magical effect.
You are unable to use the affected abilities. If your mind or senses are affected, you may make important mistakes in judgement.
What changes for you, physically or emotionally? What new understanding do you gain? Do you try to go back to how you were, or go forward to something new?


Impeded

//"This arm is useless for drawing a bow right now." -- Woody
Your body, mind, or senses are in temporary disorder. You might have overtaxed yourself, or suffered from injury or stress. You may be in the grip of a powerful or magically-caused emotion.
You will have trouble using affected abilities, making rational decisions, or spotting important clues or danger signs.
Who fixes you up so you can at least keep going? How do they help, and what does it take? What support do you now need from those around you?


Hindered

//"When I said people were gullible, I didn't mean me too!" -- Basler
No battle plan survives contact with the enemy, but not all planners are humble enough to realize that. Getting by on the world can sometimes mean exploiting people, or seeming like you're doing so.


Wits

//"The world is full of opportunities!" -- Basler
Characters who live by their wits take advantage of the things (and people) around them. They turn difficulty into opportunity, or find a new way to look at a situation.
Wits lets you find solutions within the problem you face, create plans, and know when to abandon those plans.


//"You know what metal does? Heats up. Fireball!" -- Tana
Every armor has a weakness or comes at a cost, like making someone slower or something heavier. Some armor has weak spots or is vulnerable to a specific attack. Armor can also suffer if not regularly maintained.
You can confront an Armored obstacle without a challenge if you can find and exploit one of these weaknesses.
Something armored may:


Armored

//"My daggers bounced off that plate mail! What now?" -- Basler
This encounter includes something important that is heavily defended.
This could mean body armor of leather or metal, hardened barriers of stone, or wood, a protective aura of magic, a divine blessing, or something else.
You may be challenged if you try to penetrate or circumvent the armor to get to what's inside.
Something armored may:


To be the worst of what they say you are. How easy to do it accidentally. How tempting to choose it.

Rebel

Your power, presentation, reputation, or history cause common folk to fear or reject you.

The lorekeeper

Your job is to establish the history, setting, and canon of the world in which the game happens.
When someone asks, "what do our characters know about X?" and it's not a question for an Ensemble Character (EC) to decide, you get to answer.
Any player can suggest an answer, but you have the final say on what's true. If a specific PC's heritage, origin, or interests concern the question, consider deferring to them.


//"They're going the same way we are. Come on." -- Woody
The Portentous is the first step on a larger road. It both surprises characters, and prepares them for what is next.
You may avoid the challenge of Portentous encounters by meeting the future they suggest with your eyes open.
Portentous encounters may:


Portentous

//"Where are all those crows going?" -- Tana
This encounter foreshadows something important. It can be a mystical experience, laden with dreams and prophecy, or just a mundane glimpse into a momentous reality beyond.
Ominous encounters not only foretell change, but confront a character with a question: are you ready for what comes next?
Portentous encounters may:


Terror, Fear, or Apprehension.
With Admiration: yields Submission.
With Amazement: yields Awe.


Terror

The Temple is devoted to the spiritual and religious elements of the city and its inhabitants. It might be a disgraced or amoral mega-church, a collection of squabbling rival churches, or the remnants of an older and forgotten belief system.
A struggling Temple has been abandoned by its flock. The city as a whole might consider faith a dead end or a scam. The priests and leaders may have become corrupt or greedy, or simply have lost faith in their own institutions. If there are real gods, it's even possible they have abandoned the city.


The Temple

The Temple is devoted to the spiritual and religious elements of the city and its inhabitants. It might be a single colossal church, a network of holy places for every faith, or tiny shrines to tiny gods scattered across the city.
A flourishing Temple attracts a faithful flock. Worshippers come to pray, to donate, and to find their inner selves. Priests, wise men, and perhaps actual spirits may intercede to help troubled souls or provide advice.


Loathing, Disgust, or Boredom.
With Grief: yields Remorse.
With Rage: yields Contempt.


Loathing

A Boulevard is where the city's artistic and aesthetic offerings connect with individual citizens. Something is lacking, whether a supply of attractions to experience or a demand for them from the populace.
A struggling boulevard lacks a healthy crowd of visitors. Whether fallen from former glories, or built around a nucleus of hope and ambition, it's not giving people a reason to come right now.


The Boulevard

A Boulevard is where the city's artistic and aesthetic offerings connect with individual citizens. Shops, eateries, arcades, and more offer visitors chances to spend their money and their time.
A flourishing Boulevard boasts big crowds. The neighborhood attracts tourists and locals alike by offering a variety of sights, sounds, and smells.


//"You've left yourself alone too long" -- Tana
Without experiencing what other people in your life can do, you may fear what you need most from them: an outlet. When you act distant, others will reciprocate.


Solitary

//"I got this, leave me alone" -- Woody
For much of your life, you've been on your own. You might have been orphaned or abandoned or kidnapped. You might have run away from home, or home might no longer exist.
You've learned to approach situations through isolation.


//"Emory! Fall back! This isn't our fight!" -- Tana
Courage can twist into cowardice or recklessness. Not everyone knows the right time to run from a battle, or when a battle really needs to be fought. And not everyone is prepared to fight every battle they face.


Courage

//"It doesn't matter if I win. It matters if I don't try." -- Emory
Courage is strength in the face of grief or pain. It's not just a willingness to do something, but to do it when there's every reason to hold back.
Courage lets you fight when afraid, speak when being shouted down, stand up when you're injured, or take an unpopular stand.


People from one neighborhood in the dynamic buy or sell goods and services to the other. It might be hard to find what you're looking for, however.
An unstable Commercial dynamic indicates a market in flux, such as prices rapidly changing, too much supply, or too little demand. Workers might be in short supply, or customers are drying up.


Commercial

People from one neighborhood buy or sell goods and services to the other. Advertising, word of mouth, or tradition might entice new visitors.
A stable Commercial dynamic means there's enough to go around, or that the market is adaptable enough to come up with something new when tastes change.


CORE

CITY