Old Evade
Time: Action Target: Self
Effect: Buff
Gain two Persistent Stacks of Evasive. You can lose Stacks of Evasive in the following ways:
- Lose all Stacks if you perform an Ability other than those prepared by this Ability or those used through Subtle Ability below.
- Lose all Stacks if you use Movement (without using the Sneak Ability below.)
- Lose Stacks as described in Subtle Ability, Sneak, and Hide (prepared below.)
While Evasive:
- Others have a Disadvantage when directly targeting you with Abilities.
- Prepare the following Reactions that expire when you are no longer Evasive. While Evasive, your exact location is not always known. Using the following reactions may require creative descriptions of your tricks and maneuvers:
Subtle Ability
Time: Free Action or Free Reaction Target: self
Trigger: A creature uses Movement or starts an Ability
Test: Subtlety
Choose an Ability or improvised act to start now as your Subtle Ability (using a Beat, if it requires one.)
The chosen Subtle Ability will have extra effects when it takes effect, as determined by your Subtlety Skill Score:
- [..6] Lose a Stack of Evasive. Nearest foe gains a stack of Alert.
- [7..] Your subtlety was a success. Any creature affected by the chosen Subtle Ability has a Disadvantage on Saves and takes 1 extra Damage, if the Ability deals Damage.
Regardless of your Score, you will also lose a stack of Evasive if your Subtle Ability deals Damage to a creature.
Your chosen Subtle Ability will take effect according to its Ability Time:
- Action, Free Action, Reaction, or Free Reaction.
- Slow Action.
- It takes effect at the start of your next Turn.
- Improvised Acts.
- Use one of the above based on what fits best.
Bonuses
- Distant. If no foes are in True Shooting Distance(16u), you automatically Pass the Subtlety Test.
- Quiet. If the chosen Subtle Ability is Quiet, you have an Advantage on the Subtlety Test.
- Silent. If the chosen Subtle Ability is Silent, you automatically Pass the Subtlety Test.
Penalties
- Loud. If the chosen Subtle Ability is Loud, you have a Disadvantage on the Subtlety Test.
Sneak
Time: Free Action or Free Reaction Target: Self
Trigger: A creature uses Movement or starts an Ability
Test: Sneaking
Effect: Movement
Use Movement to move in unseen or obscured ways. If used as a Free Reaction, you can spend unused Movement from your previous Turn.
- [..6] Lose one Stack of Evasive. Nearest foe gains a stack of Alert. If used as a Free Reaction against a triggering Ability, resolve that Ability's immediate effects before your Movement.
- [7..] You move unseen or in obscured ways. Your Movement won't trigger reactions. When used as a Free Reaction triggered by an Ability, resolve that Ability's immediate effects after your Movement. Your Movement can make you an invalid target for a triggering Ability.
Bonuses
- Distant. If no foes are in True Shooting Distance(16u), you automatically Pass the Sneaking Test.
- Unseen. If you have at least half cover from all foes, you have an Advantage on the Sneaking Test.
Penalties
- Close. If a foe is within Spitting Distance(4u), you have a Disadvantage on the Subtlety Test.
Hide
Time: Free Action or Free Reaction Target: Self
Trigger: *A creature uses Movement, chooses you as the target of an Ability
Test: *Hiding Skill
Effect: Defense
- [..6] Lose one Stack of Evasive. You can Dodge now. Nearest foe gains a stack of Alert.
- [7..] You are unseen or hard-to-see. You can Dodge now without spending a Dodge Point.
A creature can use a Beat to Search for you, forcing you to use this Ability. The Hiding Test becomes a Contest against their Analysis Score. Lose the Contest and you lose two stacks of Evasive. Win the Contest, but Fail the Test and you will loose one stack of Evasive.
Bonuses
- Distant. If no foes are in True Shooting Distance(16u), you automatically Pass the Sneaking Test.
- Unseen. If you have at least half cover from all foes, you have an Advantage on the Hiding Test.
Penalties
- Close. If a foe is within Spitting Distance(4u), you have a Disadvantage on the Hiding Test.
Basic Ability or Fighter Upgrades:
- Dashing(1).
- On a Passing Score, you can use Dash as a part of Sneak (Dash still requires a Beat.)
- Dashing(2). Requires Level 5.
- On a Passing Score, you can use Dash twice as a part of Sneak (each Dash still requires a Beat.)
Basic Ability or Rogue Upgrades:
- Powerful(1).
- On a Passing Score, Subtle Ability chosen Ability deals another 2 Damage (3 extra Damage.)
- Powerful(2). Requires Level 5.
- On a Passing Score, Subtle Ability chosen Ability deals another 2 Damage (5 extra Damage.)
- Powerful(3). Requires Level 10.
- On a Passing Score, Subtle Ability chosen Ability deals another 2 Damage (7 extra Damage.)
Basic Ability or Mage Upgrades:
- Magical(1).
- Hide no longer has the 'Close' Penalty.
- Magical(2). Requires Level 5.
- Sneak no longer has the 'Close' Penalty.
Example Covert Operation
Examples: Sneaking through a goblin camp.
The party is sneaking through a goblin camp with 6 goblins in it. The game is in the Freeplay phase.
- Each player used Old Evade and has 2 stacks of Evasive.
- Two goblins are on watch and have one stack of Alert, while all others have no stacks of Alert.
- Each player uses Sneak to try to get by the 3 goblins.
- Most players Pass the Test, but #Alice Fails, causing her to lose a stack of Evasive and causing the nearest goblin to gain a stack of Alert.
- The GM announces that a goblin stops whittling for a moment, then returns to his spear-making.
- The players take a path past 1 more goblin, one of the half-Alert guards. The players roll Sneak again. This time #Carol Fails, losing her final stack of Evasive.
- The goblin with two stacks of Alert says "What's that!?" The GM announces that each player has one more Turn before the goblins take a turn.
- The players all choose to try to find hiding places. #Alice and #Carol go Prone in the tall grass while #Bob jumps behind a bush.
- Because #Bob used Movement to find his hiding place, and he is still in Shooting Distance(16u), #Bob must make another Sneaking Skill Test. #Bob fails the Test. Since one of the goblins was already at two stack of Alert, #Bob loses his Evasive status.
- The GM announces the start of an Encounter.
Now an encounter has started. Below is an example of encounter stealth.
- The Turn Order is rolled to get: #Carol, #Alice, Guard Goblins, #Bob, then the other Goblins.
- Since 2 goblins had no stacks of Alert, they start with two stacks of Slowed and Restrained. There are also 2 goblins with one stack of Alert. They begin with one stack of Slowed and Restrained.
- #Carol decides to take advantage of the surprise, attacking a guard goblin with an Advantage. #Carol loses her Evasive status.
- #Carol then jumps behind a bush and uses her second action to hide, regaining her Evasive status.
- #Alice starts her turn.
- #Alice casts a Spell Ability with Advantage. #Alice damages the three closer goblins and loses her Evasive status.
- #Alice uses her second action to Old Sneak, regaining her Evasive status.
- It is now the turn of the three Alert goblins.
- One goblin attacks #Bob, dealing some damage.
- A different Alert goblin walks up to #Carol to attack. #Carol uses a covert Reaction to try and attack the goblin first. #Carol rolls her Subtlety Skill for a Mixed Score. #Carol successfully attacks the goblin with an Advantage, then loses her Evasive status. The goblin then attacks #Carol back.
- The final Goblin walks up to #Alice and attacks. #Alice uses a covert Reaction to remain hidden. She rolls her Hiding Skill and gets a High Score. No goblins will be able to attack #Alice until her next turn is over. The goblin decides to attack #Bob instead.
- #Bob takes his turn. #Bob attacks a goblin twice.
- The rest of the goblins take their turn, attacking various people.
- After a round of combat and killing a few goblins, the heroes decide that the goblin chief is too difficult and that they should sneak away.
- The heroes each use the Sneak Ability.
- At one point the goblin chief performs a sweeping attack that would hit two of our Evasive heroes, #Alice and #Bob. #Alice gets a Mixed Score on her Hiding Skill Test, meaning she cannot be targeted and remains Evasive. #Bob gets a Mixed Score on his Sneaking Skill Test. #Bob evades the attack but is no longer Evasive.
- Because #Bob lost his Evasive status, the players must spend a whole second round trying to remain Evasive. This time they succeed.
- Gameplay transitions to a Encounter/paused_phase and a more loose style of Covert Operations.