Core Resolution

This document defines the first-pass core procedure for resolving uncertain or risky actions.

The current draft uses a capped d10 dice-pool model. The acting character rolls a pool of ten-sided dice, reads the single highest die for the main outcome, and checks matching dice for extra effects. The roll never uses addition, subtraction, target numbers, or counted successes.

In ordinary play, characters should only roll when the outcome is genuinely uncertain and the result will matter. Trivial actions, uncontested expertise, and scenes where failure would add nothing should be handled through description and established competence instead.

Each risky action currently follows five steps.

This structure keeps the roll connected to fictional intent instead of reducing every action to a disconnected skill check. The action is not only about whether the character can do something in the abstract. It is about what they are trying to change in the current situation and what the world may demand in return.

The first-pass model uses the following structure.

The roll never adds die values together and never counts successes. A larger pool improves the chance of a strong high die and creates more room for matches, but the result remains quick to read at the table.

This same structure should be able to carry , perilous travel, social tests, ritual procedures, emergency magical work, and dangerous exploration. Later subsystems can add tags, Talents, costs, or scene procedures without replacing the chassis. Recurring mechanical effects should also remain concrete enough to fit the Rules Data Model.

The main outcome is determined by the highest die in the pool.

These bands should usually produce both forward movement and changed pressure rather than static dead stops. Even Trouble should alter the scene: a threat advances, a cost lands, a door closes, a lie is exposed, a Condition appears, or the characters learn something at a price.

Matches are the secondary read on a roll.

A roll can produce both a high match and a low match. This allows a character to achieve something remarkable while also giving the Storyteller stored pressure for later escalation.

High matches are always interpreted through Talents or other specific permissions. They should add effects such as extra leverage, protection, declaration rights, insight, improved position, extended reach, or reduced fallout. They should not simply restate the base success.

High-match strength has two parts: the number of matching dice and the value shown on those dice. The value band controls quality, while match size upgrades scale. A 6-7 match is common and should usually create only a minor Talent effect. An 8-9 match creates the Talent’s standard extra effect. A 10 match creates a strong effect.

Low matches generate Storyteller points according to the matched dice.

High-match strength is Talent-facing.

Talent tier may limit which high-match rows a character can use. If a Talent’s tier grants only Pair access, a stronger match can still improve the available Pair effect as described by that Talent, but it does not automatically unlock every stronger row.

When a roll contains more than one high match, use the strongest relevant pattern unless a Talent says otherwise. Read match size first, then matched value band. For example, three 8s outrank a pair of 10s, while a pair of 10s outranks a pair of 6s.

If pressure would reduce a pool below 1 die, the character still rolls one die under strain.

When rolling under strain, read the highest die normally. If the die shows 1, 2, or 3, the result also gives the Storyteller 1 point even without a low match.

This keeps desperate action playable while making overmatched action visibly dangerous.

The following tables show the approximate chance of each outcome and match pattern for pools from 1 to 10 dice. Percentages are rounded to two decimal places.

Before a roll, the Storyteller should state the action’s starting risk position and likely consequence level.

Risk position answers how exposed the character is while attempting the action. A simple first-pass ladder is Controlled, Risky, and Dire.

Consequence level answers what the likely price will be if the action goes poorly or only partly succeeds. A useful first-pass ladder is Minor, Serious, and Severe.

This distinction matters because not all dangerous actions fail in the same way. A ritual in a protected sanctuary may be difficult but relatively contained. A negotiation in front of hostile witnesses may be mechanically modest but politically severe. A cliffside retreat under storm pressure may be physically simple but positioned disastrously.

The Storyteller should therefore describe consequence in setting-facing terms whenever possible: wounds, strain, social offense, lost standing, broken tools, exposed lies, contamination, attention, or unstable resonance are all stronger outcomes here than anonymous penalty text.

The game should support situational change without turning every roll into arithmetic clutter.

For now, the draft assumes three common ways to affect a pool before dice are cast.

The important choice is structural: the rules should reward good setup and teamwork, but ordinary actions should remain readable after the pool is built. The table should care about why dice were added or removed because those fictional reasons shape the consequences that can follow.