1.5. Phases of Play

The game will play out in different arcs referred to as Episodes. Each Episode will test your mettle by limiting how much healing you can do and how often you can use some Abilities. Your GM may make an Episode span a single session of play or split the Episode up over more than one session, if needed.

Each Episode has four phases of play that you will switch between:

Opening Credits: A chance for the GM to set up events. The GM will also give players a chance to introduce or reintroduce your character. The Opening Credits also gives you a chance to use Episodic Abilities.
Freeplay Phase: A flexible phase where players can roleplay and interact with the world without worrying as much about taking turns.
Encounter Phase: A more strict, turn-based phase of play where players will take turns. Each turn will limit what all a player can do. An Encounter has four phases of its own:
- Initiative Phase: Stars an Encounter. The GM works out a Turn Order for the Encounter by putting Players through a series of Tests.
- Main Phase: PCs and NPCs take turns in the established Turn Order. This repeats itself in a series of Rounds.
- Reward Phase: When the GM ends an Encounter, PCs gain Experience and can recover.
- Pause Phase: Most often used during a parlay, this phase temporarily allows PCs and NPCs to role-play more freely. This phase is the same as Freeplay, but you must always announce any Abilities that you use. The GM will end this phase by transitioning back to the Main Phase or on to the Reward Phase, depending on how players triggered the end of the phase.
Closing Credits: A chance for the GM to depict scenes of resolution or to tie events into the greater arc of the story. The GM will also give players a chance to play out their own resolutions to their part in the story. Players will also be able to reset the status of their character in preparation for the next Episode.

Opening Credits

At the start of each Episode, the GM will be go around the table and do the Opening Credits. Each Player will introduce or reintroduce themselves and their Player Character. To help add some immediate flavor, the GM may also ask you to describe a 5 second, opening credits-style "clip" of your character. This could be as simple as your character opening a jar with a knife, cheating at cards, or eating cabbage stew with their family. This scene should help capture the essence of your character and depict a small, non-consequential event.

After introductions, the GM may play out a "Cold Open" scene that sets up some of the events and stakes to come. This could be a peasant dying in an alleyway or a monarch making a speech about raising taxes.

To conclude the Opening Credits, anyone that has an Episodic Ability can use it. These Abilities often grant points or effects that you can cash-in later in that Episode. Anything gained from an Episodic Ability will not carry over to the next Episode. No one can use any other type of Ability during the Opening Credits.

Freeplay Phase

During Freeplay the GM will lead by describing the scene and the events unfolding around you. Each Player can then choose to act on that information to explore and progress the story.

While Freeplay does not have a strict turn-order, the GM may work to give each player a chance to act. The GM may even use a loose turn-order to add tension into time-sensitive parts of the story. That said, you should treat each Player's actions in Freeplay as overlapping, time-wise, with events often happening in parallel.

Novice Note: Getting Involved

A great player will find reasons and motivations for their character to get involved and encourage other player characters to step up to challenges. Situations may arise in which players are hesitant to act. In those moments of indecision you should find a reason to step up to the challenge or to talk another player's character into stepping up for you. Encouraging other players is a great way to help a shy or hesitant player get more "screen time."

For your first times playing, you should strive to work together with your fellow players and your characters should strive to become a family, of sorts, that watches out for one another and is "in this together!" After you have experience a more cooperative style of play, it will be easier to explore other dynamics while keeping the game fun for everyone.

During Freeplay, you are free to take any actions available to your character including improvised activities that any normal creature could do. Abilities from your Character Sheet (such as casting spells or attacking with weapons) will list how long they take, but during Freeplay, you can often ignore those Ability Times unless they take minutes or longer to complete.

When you want to improvise something, you will need to describe the action for the GM and the other players. For simple tasks, like opening an unlocked door, the GM will then describe the effects of your action. For more difficult tasks, like if someone barred the door, the GM may ask that you perform a Test using one of your Skills. The Score for that Test will then determine how well you performed, and what effects the GM will describe for your actions.

If you describe a task that would be near impossible for most anyone, like performing open heart surgery in a swamp with not but a dirty stick, the GM may inform you that the task is not possible and describe a failed attempt with no Test needed to determine the outcome.

GM Note: Fostering Creativity

When players suggest outlandish improvised actions, try not to punish them for the suggestion, as that can stifle creativity.

At times, players may come up with creative solutions that, if allowed, would become a go-to solution or possibly break the game in some way. In these situations, it can help to be forthright with your concerns. A good way to proceed is to allow the player to do their creative solution once, but express that you will expect different solutions in the future. You could also inform the players that future attempt at that solution will come at a Disadvantage. This allows the players to exercise their creativity while ensuring that The Story Rule is not broken.

Encounter

When tense moments arise or a fight breaks out, the GM will announce the start of an Encounter. During an Encounter, you will play the game one Round at a time with all players involved taking one Turn per Round. Your Turn will allow you to act, albeit in a limited way.

An Encounter has four phases of its own:

Initiative Phase: Determine Turn Order.
Main Phase: The game proceeds with Players and NPCs taking turns in the Turn Order created in the setup phase. This order repeats in a series of Rounds.
Reward Phase: The GM announces the end of the Encounter. Players gain Experience and can recover.
Pause Phase: An optional phase reserved for temporary stays of tension. This phase is the same as Freeplay, but your choices may return the game to the Main Phase.

Initiative Phase

When the GM announces the start of an Encounter, the Initiative Phase begins. In the Initiative Phase, you will determine the Turn Order for all PCs and NPCs involved in the Encounter.

Turn Order

To determine Turn Order, the GM will first group the list of NPCs by creature type. The GM will then sort each group in descending order of their Edge Save Modifiers. The GM may then further group or split up NPCs so there are two to four groups total. These groups form the skeleton of the Turn order.

The next step is for each PC involved in the Encounter to perform a series of Edge Saves: one for each group of NPCs. If a PC Fails the Test (by rolling a 6 or lower) the GM will add that PC to the Turn Order so they will take their Turn following that group of NPCs. If more than one PC Fails the same Test, they can decide who goes first among them or compare their Edge Save Scores to determine who goes first. For each Passing Score, the PC will continue on to the next Edge Save against the next NPC group. PCs that happen to Pass all the Saves presented get to go first in the Turn Order.

If a PC is "Sneaky" during this phase, that PC has an Advantage on the Edge Saves. (More on being Sneaky in the chapter 1.10. Covert Operations.)

Example: Setup Phase

The players decide to attack a group of enemies.

There are three types of enemies with the following Edge Save scores: Wolves(2), Goblins(1), and Orcs(0). The GM writes them down in that same order.
The GM asks the players ( #Alice, #Bob, #Carol, and #David ) to roll a Edge Save Test for the first group: the Orcs. #Carol is Sneaky , so she can roll her Edge Save with an Advantage.
#Alice gets an 10, #Bob gets a 8, #Carol gets a 12, and #David gets a 7. All players got a Score of 7 or higher. They all announce that they "Pass" the Test. The Orcs will go last.
The players roll again, this time to check if they go after the Goblins. Again, #Carol can roll with Advantage.
#Alice gets a 3, #Bob gets an 4, #Carol gets a 9, and #David gets a 7. #Alice and #Bob announce that they have "Failed" the Test. #Alice and #Bob decide together that #Alice should go first. The GM writes #Alice down following the Goblins in the Turn Order, then places #Bob after #Alice.
The GM asks for one final roll for the Wolves. #Carol still has an Advantage.
#Carol gets a 10 and #David gets a 4. #David announces that he "failed." The GM adds #David to the Turn Order following the Wolves.
#Carol has passed all Tests and gets added first in the Turn Order.
The GM announces the final Turn Order:
#Carol, Wolves, #David, Goblins, #Alice, #Bob, then the Orcs.

Main Phase

The Main Phase proceeds with each character in the Turn Order taking their Turn. You will play your character's Turn, when it arrives, and the GM will play each NPCs Turn. Once every character has taken their Turn, the next Round begins and each character takes their Turn again, as before. The Encounter continues like this, Round after Round, until the GM transitions the Encounter to the Pause Phase or the Reward Phase.

Most of the time, you will use Abilities on your Turn to attempt to sway the situation in your favor. Some Abilities also let you use them at other points in the round, responding to events the moment they unfold.

Using Abilities

The Abilities that you can use in an Encounter will have one of five different Ability Times:

Action: Spend a Beat to use on your Turn.
Free Action: Use on your Turn (without spending a Beat.)
Reaction: Spend a Beat to use it at any point in a Round, provided its Reaction Trigger has occurred.
Free Reaction: Use it at any point in a Round, provided its Reaction Trigger has occurred (without spending a Beat.)
Slow Action: Spend a Beat to start the Ability on your Turn, but it doesn't take effect until the start of your next Turn.

Each character will have two Beats to spend per Round. Your two Beats reset at the end of your Turn. If you use all your Beats to perform Reactions before your Turn starts, then you will have no Beats left to use on your Turn, but you will still be able to use movement and perform Free Actions. Conversely, if your Turn arrives and you still have Beats, you will want to be sure to use them to perform whatever Abilities you can, as Beats do not carry over at the end of your Turn.

Helpful symbols

An easy way to remember if an Ability requires a Beat or not is to look at the symbol for the Ability's Time. If it has an outline, then it requires a Beat:

Requires a Beat: Action, Reaction, Slow Action
Doesn't require a Beat: Free Action, Free Reaction

Improvised Free Actions

Improvised Free Actions are a great way to add flavor to an Encounter without worrying about using up your Beats. You can perform at least two improvised Free Actions on your Turn to do simple, fast interactions with the world, like talking smack to enemies, pushing over a small objects, or opening doors. The GM may even allow more than two Free Actions, if they could all be reasonably done together in a 6s span of time alongside whatever Abilities you use.

Improvised Free Reactions

You can always use an improvised Free Reactions (without spending a Beat) to briefly respond to what someone else has said. Depending on the situation, your GM may also allow other improvised Free Reactions.

Turn

Each character's Turn represents 6 seconds of time which overlap with everyone else's Turns. This overlap is staggered, meaning that each character's Turn starts at a different point in time. On your Turn you get to lead the narrative, move, and act on what's happening around you.

You can use Movement at any point in your Turn, dividing it up as you see fit before, after, or between your other Abilities and improvisations. To fully understand Movement, we must first go over how the game conveys Distance.

Distance

To measure distances, The Kleptonomicon provides two descriptions for each measurement: a Theater of the Mind measurement and a unit measurement.

The Theater of the Mind measurement is descriptive in nature to help when playing without a map. If you are using a map and miniatures, the unit measurement will help to place the given Distances onto the map.

Most of the game will use the following six Distances. Each is double that of the one before it, except the last:

Abilities use these Distances to describe how far they can reach. Your Melee Attack can hit creatures within a Swinging Distance(1u), while your Ranged Attack can reach up to a Shooting Distance(16u). Spells, like the Magic Attack, will often have a reach of a Throwing Distance(8u).

Movement

On your Character Sheet, you will find a list of Movement Styles (under the "References" section of the "Exploration" box.)

Each Movement Style provides you with a different mode of travel that you can use to get around the world. By default, a Movement Style lets you move a Spitting Distance(4u) in the manner described by that Movement Style before it becomes unavailable to you until your next Turn. Walking, for example, lets you move a Spitting Distance(4u) along horizontal, solid surfaces.

If the word "Half" precedes a Movement Style (e.g. Half Jump(2u)) it will instead become unavailable after moving a Spearing Distance(2u) in that style. Conversely, if the word "Double" precedes a Movement Style (e.g. Double Jump(8u)) then you can move a Throwing Distance(8u) in that style before it becomes unavailable.

The largest Movement Style found on your Character Sheet also defines a cap of total amount of Movement you can use across all your Movement Styles combined. Any easy way to track this is to give yourself a pool of Movement that you can use at the start of each of your Turns equal to the Distance you could cover with your largest Movement Style. You can then spend that pool of Movement into each Movement Style (up to its own maximum) until your pool of Movement is gone.

Most Level 1 characters will begin with the ability to Walk(4u) and Half Jump(2u). That means the total amount of Movement they can use on a Turn is equal to a Spitting Distance(4u).

Remember, you can use your Movement at any time on your Turn, dividing it up and spending it into any Movement Style or combination of Movement Styles before, after, or between your Abilities and improvisations on your Turn. When you use a new Movement Style, that Movement Style becomes active and its ruleset will take over.

Example: Movement

#Alice starts her Turn.

On #Alice's Character Sheet is says she can Walk and Half Jump.
#Alice knows she has 4 units of Movement she can use on her Turn (since her largest Movement Style is Walking at 4 units.)
#Alice spends 1 unit of Movement to Jump 1 unit. #Alice has 3 units of Movement remaining.
#Alice casts a Spell Ability.
#Alice spends 1 more unit of Movement to Jump 1 unit back to where she was before. Since #Alice can only Half Jump (a range of 2 units) she cannot Jump any further this Turn. #Alice has 2 units of Movement remaining.
#Alice spends her remaining 2 units of Movement to Walk 2 units. Since #Alice can Walk up to 4 units, she did not hit her Walking limit.
#Alice is now out of Movement and so she cannot move any further this Turn.
#Alice heals someone, then ends her Turn.

Interrupted Movement

In your travels, you may come across a Flying creature that you wish to knock out of the air. You can do this by Interrupting its active Movement Style. Not all Movement Styles will describe an effect that occurs when it's Interrupted. If a Movement Style describes no such effect, then Interrupting that Movement Style has no effect. As an example, Interrupting Flying will always lead to the creature Falling — which, in-turn, can lead to them taking Damage. Conversely, Interrupting a creature that is Levitating will have no effect and the targeted creature would stay in the air, rather than Falling to the ground.

Some Abilities explicitly state that they Interrupt Movement. If you have none of those available to you, you can also Interrupt Movement by inflicting two Stacks of the Slowed Condition on your target (see 2.7. Status Conditions and Saving Throws.) If none of your Abilities inflict the Slowed condition, you can, attempt an "Improvised Maneuver" using one of your Basic Attacks. This lets you add the ability to inflict the Slowed Condition to your Basic Attack, but you will also have a Disadvantage on the Ability Test. The Disadvantage will make it difficult to pull off, so be sure to check what other options you have first.

The Movement Style List appendix contains a list of all the Movement Styles and their associated rules. The Movement Style List divides the Movement Styles in two: "Common" and "Uncommon" Movement Styles. The "Common" Movement Styles include the following:

Walk

Move along a relatively horizontal and solid surface. If there is no surface below you, you will begin to Fall (see Fall Damage) and cannot otherwise move yourself.

This is the default Movement Style that is active if no other Movement Style is active.

While this Movement Style is active, you can become Prone. While Prone, half any all Movement spent on this Movement Style before moving. You can become Prone as a Free Action. You can also stop being Prone as a Free Action, if you also spend a Swinging Distance(1u) of Movement. (Note: Abilities like the Basic Attacks are often affected by a Prone target, making that target harder or easier to hit.)

Jump

Move through the air, launching yourself from a relatively horizontal and solid surface. If, at the end of your movement, you do not land on a similar surface, you will begin to Fall (see Fall Damage.)

Veteran Note: You can break up your Jump into separate, smaller Jumps.

Climb

Move along walls or ceilings. If Interrupted, you will begin to Fall (see Fall Damage.)

Swim

Move through water in any direction. Halting movement keeps you where you are in the water unless there is a current, then you will drift at the speed of the current.

This Movement Style becomes the default Movement Style while you are in water.

If Interrupted, you will begin to float upward a Swinging Distance(1u) per Turn. If you have more than half of your Good spots filled, you will instead begin to sink a Spearing Distance(2u) per Turn. You may also begin to sink if you are carrying something that isn't buoyant and that is as heavy or heavier than you are.

Improvised Movement

Most Level 1 characters will not have a Climb or Swim Style listed on their Character Sheet. If you do not explicitly have a Movement Style, you are not totally barred from attempting to use that Style of Movement.

To improvise a Movement Style, first describe to the GM how you are going about that Movement Style and any preparations or precautions you are taking. The GM may then grant or deny you that Movement Style. Before granting you the Movement Style, the GM may also make you perform a Test (like an Athletics Test.) Failing the Test may count as an Interrupted version of that Movement Style or bring about some other negative consequence.

Unless the GM says otherwise, when you gain an Improvised Movement Style, you will gain the "Half" variant of that style. To gain a normal amount of that Movement Style, you would need to improvise well. For example, if you tip a bed frame up against a wall to create a makeshift ladder, the GM may let you Climb(4u) it instead of Half Climbing(2u) it.

The Dash Ability

If you ever need more Movement on your Turn, you can use the Dash Ability. This Ability effectively doubles all your Movement Styles for the Turn (also doubling your total limit on Movement.)

If you use the Dash Ability a second time in the same Round, you will need to first make an Athletics Skill Test. Fail and you become Slowed. Pass and you will have triple your original Movement limit for the Turn.

Example: Jumping Further

#Bob uses Dash to double all his Movement Styles. #Bob's Half Jump(2u) is now a Jump(4u). #Bob uses his increased Movement to make four 1-unit jumps over the mines in the floor.

Movement Reactions

You will want to take care as you move around a battlefield. Enemies may be able to take Reactions in response to your Movement. The most common Reaction you will face will be that of the Opportunity Attack, which others can use to perform a Melee Attack against you when you move out of Swinging Distance(1u) of them.

Ending your Turn

You will often gain Status Conditions during an Encounter. These Status Conditions can impose negative or positive effect on you. At the end of each of your Turns, you must erase one Stack from each Fleeting Condition on your Character Sheet unless you gained that Stack on the same Turn that is ending. Erasing Status Condition Stacks will lessen or entirely remove their effect. (For more information on Status Conditions, see the chapter 2.7. Status Conditions and Saving Throws.)

Note: Enemies also erase one stack of each Fleeting Condition at the end of their Turn.

Note: At the end of your Turn, you should look to see if the effects of any Abilities have expired. You may need update values on your Character Sheet to reflect those changes.

The GM During the Main Phase

The GM will play the NPCs during an Encounter, taking their respective Turns to act when they arise. The GM will also play as the environment itself, making the volcano explode or the storm begin to swell.

Each NPC works in the same way as PCs. Namely:

The NPCs can use Abilities. This includes spending Beats to perform Reactions or using Free Reactions in response to Reaction Triggers that occur.
The NPC will take their Turn according to the Turn Order. On an NPC's Turn they can:
- Use Movement.
- Use their remaining Beats to perform Abilities.
- Perform Free Actions, including improvised Free Actions.
- At the end of their Turn, clear one stack of each Fleeting Condition they have.

For a more complete guide on running encounters from the GM's perspective, see TODO.

Reward Phase

At any time, the GM can announce the end of the Encounter.

When an Encounter has officially ended, the GM will give you Experience Points. You will receive one Experience Point per Encounter, but the GM may reward a second Experience Point for achieving secondary goals or more optimal outcomes. You can track Experience Points on the Experience Tracker on Page 2 of your Character Sheet. Once you have gained enough Experience Points, you can Level Up, gaining new Abilities, Upgrades, and Perks.

If you took Damage in the Encounter, you will have a chance to use your Dodges Up, Shields Up, and Heal Up Abilities now that the Freeplay is returning. These Abilities restore your ability to Dodge attacks, your total Shield, and your Health and Vitality levels. (For more on these Abilities, see 1.8. Abilities and 1.9. Basic Abilities.)

Pause Phase

At times, the GM may wish to pause an Encounter without officially ending it. The Pause Phase is most used when someone calls for a parlay or wishes to take a moment to deliver a monologue. The Pause Phase works the same as the Freeplay Phase, but players will need to announce all Abilities that they are using (where in the Freeplay Phase, GMs often let you Heal Up and use the other recover Abilities without announcing it.)

The Pause Phase concludes when the GM transitions the game back to the Main Phase or on to the Reward Phase. If you trigger the end of a Pause Phase by spending a Beat, that Beat will be unavailable on your next Turn of the Encounter if the game returned to the Main Phase.

Closing Credits

At the end of each Episode, the GM will announce the Closing Credits. The GM may play out the adventure with a scene or two that helps tie up the adventure. This could be a random family happy discussing the vanquished troll at dinner or a back-alley deal that hints that the greater threat is still out there.

If some time will pass before the next Episode, the GM will also ask each Player if they would like to play out any "resolution" style scenes, where their Player Character discusses the Episode's events with other PCs or NPCs, like their friends or family. In these scenes, players do not need to stick to characters that already exist in the world and could be as simple as discussing the day's events with a local sandwich maker.

After the resolution scenes, players will have an opportunity to reset much of their Character Sheets. Below is a list of resets to perform. New Abilities that you gain may add to this list. (Later chapters will describe each in more detail):

Set your Recoveries to their max.
Reset your Dodge Points and Shield to the max found in the Dodges Up and Shields Up Abilities, respectively.
Set your Health and Vitality to their respective maxes.
Clear all Status Conditions.

The GM may alter what you can reset between Episodes if two Episodes are close together. For example, the GM may halve any values restored to carry over the effects of a difficult fight to the next Episode.

Next Up: 1.8. Abilities