soloing powered by the apocalypse

Calypso
A huge thanks to Vincent Baker for creating Apocalypse
World and for his generous posts explaining how it all
goes together, and to John Harper for creating Lady
Blackbird, which opened my eyes to how the fiction
can matter.
And to Simple World, without which I don’t think I
would have ever wrapped my head around this stuff.
Some of the other games that inspired or influenced
this one are In a Wicked Age, Scarlet Heroes, The
Shadow of Yesterday, Otherkind, Dungeon World/
WoDu, Blades in the Dark, Mythic GM Emulator,
CRGE, the Recluse solo engine, and Trollbabe.
None of us design in a vacuum; all of us stand on
giants’ shoulders to reach new heights. Thank you,
humbly, to all who contribute to the community so
generously.
This is the revised edition of The Calypso
Compendium. It is copyright Tam H. of
katamoiran games. The text is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
License (CC-BY).
Most of the art would not have been possible
without the generous artists who donate to the
public domain or those who have long since
passed. The art in this book (with the exception
of the two logos on the title page) is also
licensed under CC-BY.
Artist Credits: (Pixabay) JohannaIris, Mark
Frost, Jan Vašek, Grae Dickason, Ria Sopala,
Comfreak, Lothar Dieterich, Enrique Meseguer,
Stefan Kellar, Susann Mielke, Enki Art,
Saarvendra, Mystic Art Design, Alexandr
Ivanov, Leandro De Carvalho, Willgard Krause,
(Unsplash) Dmitriy Nushtaev, (Pexels) Lucas
Ricardo Ignacio. Walter Crane.
Sized to print two pages per letter sheet (zine
style). Fonts are JuniusX and Ysabeau. Cover is
Sans Guilt, Fluxisch Else, and Ortica. Other
fonts: custom De Vinne type, TM Unicorn,
Crickx Regular, Foglihten No. 7, FreeSerif,
Saniretro, CAT Childs.
01 WELCOME
how to use this book...2, dramatic
moves...3, the strive move...4, reserve
dice...5, traits & tags...6, conditions &
trauma...7, down for the count &
losing it...8, actors & relationships...9,
gear, vehicles, & armor...10, obstacles
& enemies...11, the oracle move...14

15 THE BASIC SCENARIO

overview...16, basic traits...17,
creating traits...18, character
creation...19, example character...22,
example of play...23

25 THE BASIC FRAME

the motif chart...25, mechanical
bits...28, elemental motifs...29

31 SCENARIOS
darkness falls...33, to catch the
wind...39, neon sunrise...45, secrets &
shadows...51, starfarer...57, the sword
& the rose...63, those three days...69

75 FRAMEWORKS
the 3-act frame...77, the beats
frame...85, a point-based frame...87,
a cyclic frame...91

93 APPENDICES
personality tables...95, dark
motifs...96, random events...97, a
little magic...99, minor motifs...101,
group play...103, compatibility...105,
simple traits...106, troupe play...107,
character & motifs sheets...109, motif
reference...113
 general

WELCOME TO
CALYPSO
Let's begin by declaring that playing an RPG is having a
conversation about fictional events anchored by and directed by
dice. Solo gaming, then, is controlling both sides of the
conversation, with more or less emphasis on one side or the
other, and using tools to emulate the side of the conversation
you might wish someone else was holding up for you.
Calypso is designed to support an open-ended, strongly
narrative (as in “writing with dice”) style of solo gaming. It's
built to encourage coherent stories that will surprise and
delight you as you experience them during play, and also after,
when you re-read them (don’t sweat your prose!).
It does not attempt to model a traditional experience, or try to
set “the GM” up as an entity separate from you. Instead, it
focuses on the rush of creation, of taking the
There is no prompts provided by the system and interpreting
GM or player them in context of the fiction you’ve created so
role; there is far. It also does not define genre or theme,
only you! instead asking you to set a few parameters up
front, to draw on your own well of accumulated
genre references, and then to control those dials through
which tables you choose to roll on in play.
It leverages the power of the Apocalypse World engine to build
fiction and to keep the narrative ball rolling, with a modular
approach baked-in. You can easily replace the character
generation or resolution mechanics with those from another
powered by the apocalypse game, as long as they expect a
modifier of roughly -1 to +4, or drop in the Moves and
subsystems that you want to use.
It is the product of almost three years of solo play and play-
testing, evolved, refined, and adjusted from the original
version. I sincerely hope you find as much joy in it as I do!

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HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

Open up a text editor or a notebook and get ready to write!
Read the general rules, and then choose if you’ll play the basic
scenario or a specialty scenario. Make a Motif chart, then
select a framework from the chapter of
Frameworks if you want one. We’ll assume you
have two dice that
Answer the questions posed by the basic
scenario, making any choices and rolling match and a
on the referenced tables. When you’re handful of light and
satisfied with your character and you dark dice to track
know what they want right now, move your reserve, but
to the next step in the basic framework.
you can easily use
Usually this will involve choosing or scratch paper.
rolling a Dramatic Move, then narrating
that move and any fallout in a way that’s consistent with the
fiction. Stop when your character is ready to strive for a goal
your instincts say they can’t achieve without risk, then build a
modifier based on the fiction, and roll!
Write as you go. The fiction, what you’ve established so far,
drives the game forward and determines what is and isn’t
possible; it serves as the most basic set of rules. Always keep it
in mind when determining what happens next, and use it to
provoke action and shape events. Add and remove Conditions
(which are markers of fiction that you find important) as the
fiction, the rolls, and the framework dictates.
Let the Agenda and Principles guide you, and don’t be afraid
to go with what seems logical and obvious. Give yourself
permission to turn to the oracle, to the dice, to handle the
parts of the story that don’t interest you or that feel
unimportant enough to warrant a full scene.
And that's really all there is to it. There's no right way or
wrong way, as long as you are enjoying yourself!

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DRAMATIC MOVES
Dramatic Moves are how you drive the story forward, and how you
implement the Agenda (the experience you are trying to achieve) and
the Principles (how you achieve the agenda).
Using a move to establish a threat that will result in a Condition or
calamity unless the protagonist acts is called a “soft” Move, and serves
to telegraph the danger of a situation.
Playing a Move through the full logical consequences, usually until a
Condition is inflicted, without a chance for the protagonist to act, is
called a “hard” Move, and often involves delivering on an earlier soft
Move’s telegraphed danger.
Use soft moves, combined with random events and motifs, frequently,
when you’re unsure what should happen next, when framing a scene, or
when using an Oracle. Use hard moves when a danger strikes on a miss,
when a danger is not averted and has previously been telegraphed with a
soft move, and whenever you feel it is fictionally appropriate.

DRAMATIC MOVES
1 Declare a new danger or inflict harm as promised.
2 Use someone’s character aspects against them.
1-3 3 Put someone in a compromising or high-stakes position.
A 4 Bring in someone interesting with an agenda.
5 Reveal an unwelcome truth.
6 Offer a hard bargain or an ugly choice.

1 Turn someone’s action back on them.

2 Show a drawback to or new facet of your gear or abilities.
3 Expose a weakness or a past mistake’s consequences.
4-6
B 4 Take something or someone away, or threaten to.
5 Show signs of something bad happening off-screen.
6 Tempt or provoke a reaction.

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THE STRIVE MOVE

When you act with purpose but your dramatic instincts say success
shouldn’t be free, define what you want to achieve and a danger you
find interesting. Dangers spring from the fiction and from prior
Dramatic Moves; getting hurt is always a risk. Roll two base d6s and
sum them with a modifier.

10+ You succeed, as intended, and avoid the danger entirely.

Choose a bonus: gain one light die, remove (or adjust) one of your
Conditions, or reduce another Condition by 1 rank.

7-9 Either you succeed or you avert the danger, your choice. You
may opt to choose neither and instead choose a bonus from the 10+
result. If you deliver on a danger, play a soft Move or follow through
on a previous soft Move with a hard Move.

6- You fail, and the danger hits, as a hard Move followed through
to the full extent. Add or increase a Condition, then take a dark die,
after. If you’re striving against a foe or obstacle, also add a Condition
to them that makes it harder to overcome them in that way.
To build a modifier, choose a Trait that applies to the action, then
add up the Tags under it that are relevant in context of the Trait,
the situation, and the action being attempted. The total number of
Tags is the modifier, up to the default cap of +4. When you narrate
the outcome, include this Trait and Tags.
You may choose to add light or dark dice to the roll; still choose just
two to sum (“keep”). You may always change your action if you
narrate instead how the goal is temporarily unobtainable. Finish the
Strive roll by adjusting Conditions as necessary.
Note that “act with purpose” usually includes resisting; Strive and
Oracle overlap. You are the final authority of when to Strive, when
to ask the Oracle the outcome, when to roll up a random event,
move, or motif, or when to simply declare a truth (with or without
cost). You determine what is a meaningful, dangerous challenge by
how you approach the fiction.

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RESERVE DICE
Reserve dice are a pool of light and dark dice you collect in play.
They are rolled alongside the standard 2d6, at your option, and
are removed from play after the roll.
Light dice, often earned on a success, represent part of the
fiction, usually fiction in your favor. When you gain one, give it a
name referring to that fiction, like “the high ground in this fight”
or “influence over the Spider”. Light dice are situational; they are
discarded when the situation changes enough that the fiction
they represent is no longer relevant.
Dark dice, usually earned on a failure, represent general life
experience. Dark dice are persistent, lasting until you roll them or
spend them for advancements.
A reserve die may also be recharging or perpetual. These dice are
returned to your pool after they are used instead of being
discarded, as long as the conditions to do so are met.
You may choose at any time to add one or more reserve dice to a
roll, adding together the best two dice rolled (rolling “with
advantage”). To roll a light die, narrate how you’re leveraging the
fiction it represents in a helpful or useful way. To roll a dark die,
narrate how you’ve learned something from an earlier failure.
You may also spend a light die to flat-out declare the answer to
an Oracle question after you roll it, if the fiction represented by
that die justifies it and you account for it in the fiction as usual.

HINDERING ASPECTS
If one of your Traits or other character aspects is an obvious
drawback in a situation that calls for a roll, roll a light die for that
aspect and keep only the lowest two dice (“roll with
disadvantage”). If the two kept dice include the aspect’s die or if
you fail the roll because of it, include in your narration how that
aspect causes you trouble. Don’t worry overmuch about this; the
dice are already not in your favor!

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TRAITS & TAGS

Traits and Tags represent narrative truths, truths that should be
honored in the fiction whether or not they are actively being used. A
Trait must be fictionally appropriate before its Tags can be used to
affect a roll, and Tags only “count” if they’re viable in the fiction. In
turn, the Tags and Traits you choose say something about the world.
If a Tag or Trait is in brackets, you may take it multiple times, choosing
a new facet each time. Some Tags suggest complications, like Wild,
Painful, or [Weakness]. These are a way to push your roll modifier
higher, at a narrative cost. When you use one, narrate what it looks like
in play, and let your dangers stem from it.
In general, Traits with more Tags to take, or broader Tags, will come up
more often, and create a game with a “bigger” scope. Remember that
when you’re soloing, balance is largely irrelevant.

EDGES
Edges are ways you exceed, break, or ignore the game rules, always at a
cost. Edges will occasionally refer to one or more Traits; these should
be taken as examples of valid Traits for the purposes of that Edge, not
as absolutes.

KEYS & ADVANCEMENT

Keys have two parts; a note to hit, and a way to change. When the
character hits their key, usually by doing a thing that’s relatively easy
but invites a little trouble or drama into their life, take a dark die.
When you invoke the “Change” clause, take one light die representing
the momentum of the change and two dark dice, and lose the Key. You
may choose a new one.
You add new aspects to your character sheet by saving and spending
dark dice. Buy new Edges for three dice, Traits for two dice, and Tags
for one die, as long as the narrative, and the character’s experiences,
supports the purchase. If the narrative demands the loss of something
you would have to spend dice to replace, lose it; gain a light die that
represents the loss and take a dark die.

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CONDITIONS & TRAUMA

Conditions are named aspects of the characters, situation, or
the setting, ranked in narrative impact from one to three, like
sprained ankle (1), foggy (2), or severed arm (3). They serve as
hooks to hang the fiction on, as reminders of what’s important
or noteworthy, and also influence how you strive.
You create Conditions through striving, and Conditions: tired, in
through Dramatic Moves. love, angry, hungry,
You have six Condition slots for conditions that lost, haunted, stressed
impact you at the moment and three Trauma Traumas: bitterness,
slots. Trauma is a special kind of Condition, unrequited love,
usually stable, often chronic, that might worsen racked with guilt,
over time, like a phobia (1) or foul curse (2). You arrogance, paranoia,
may choose at any time to move a Condition to a foolish optimism
Trauma slot, if it makes fictional sense to do so.
If a Condition or Trauma affects a Strive roll, include how in
your roll narration. If it is rank 2 and makes a Strive roll more
difficult, also roll with disadvantage. If it is rank 3 and makes a
Strive roll more difficult, you can only strive (with
disadvantage) in that way by choosing one:
• spend a reserve die and narrate how the fiction it
represents (light) or experience (dark) helps you cope.
• narrate how the Condition causes great suffering or impels
someone to act; deliver an extra danger on any outcome.
Conditions end when the fiction says they do or when they are
reduced to rank-0. This usually means that your character or
another actor makes an effort to resolve them or uses a Strive
roll bonus choice to declare it.
Traumas are stickier and more persistent. When you make a
Strive roll affected by a Trauma and earn a bonus, you may
pick “confront the Trauma” as your bonus. When you do,
move it into a Condition slot at the same rank, either as-is or
modified to something like shaken, dazed or euphoric.

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You may choose at any time to compensate for a Trauma,

reducing its rank by 1 (but never below 1) by rolling or
choosing a break, narrating a hard Dramatic Move, rolled at
random, along with any fallout, and gaining a suitable new
rank-1 Condition.

DOWN FOR THE COUNT

Your character never dies unless you and the fiction agree that
they do. When you gain a sixth Condition (excluding
Traumas), narrate a hard Dramatic Move showing how things
get irrevocably worse, then end the scene and frame a new one,
if you survive.
Clear at least one Condition that circumstances negate; ask the
oracle if you are unsure which Conditions to clear. Worsen an
existing Trauma by one step or add a new one.
When the next scene opens, narrate how and why the cleared
Condition(s) are no longer important, are cured, or are
otherwise fixed, and what it cost you.

LOSING IT
When a character fills all of their Trauma slots with rank-3
Traumas, they lose control, become sloppy, or otherwise act
out. Roll or choose how this
manifests, then narrate what events BREAKS
unfold because of this as a series of
two or more hard Dramatic Moves. 1 binge or exhaust self
2 flee or disappear
Remove two ranks split between one
or more Traumas, and then frame a 3 indulge vice or trauma
scene in the immediate aftermath of 4 put others in harm’s way
the character’s loss of self-control.
5 put self in harm’s way
Take a moment before resuming play 6 destroy something beloved
to rearrange Conditions, Traits, Tags,
Keys, and Edges as appropriate.

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ACTORS & RELATIONSHIPS

Actors do not roll. They generally influence the fiction the
way any other part of the setting does; by acting logically
and consistently with the fiction as established, whether
that’s to hinder or help your character, or to ignore them.
You may always choose to give your character a Condition or
Trauma like wildly in love (3), like a child to me (2),
frustrating rival (3), or happily married (3) that represents
their feelings towards an actor; give the actor one rank of
Conditions for every rank in this Condition.
When the relationship represented by a Condition could
help you in a safe, purely mental or emotional, or indirect
way, you may choose to reduce that Condition by one rank
and take a light die representing the actor’s help, training,
or words of wisdom.
If an actor is in a position to help you in a major,
immediate, or direct way, and is also exposed to risk, you
may instead choose to add a relationship bonus, up to the
value of any one of your relationship Conditions with that
actor, to your modifier.
All outcomes of a roll boosted by a relationship bonus are
gained or suffered equally by all parties contributing to it.
Choose any options as necessary, individually, as if each
actor were your character. Additionally, any actors providing
this assistance gain a Condition like feels used, broken arm, or
unconscious of the same rank as the boost.
When a Dramatic Move or other roll indicates an NPC is in
harm’s way or jeopardized, and no obvious target presents,
look at your highest relationship Conditions first.

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GEAR, VEHICLES, & ARMOR

Generally, assume that your character has all the equipment
they could be expected to be carrying, given who they are
and their circumstances. Ask the Oracle if you’re unsure if
they have or can get a specific item, and use up their stuff
with complications and while resolving dramatic moves.
This mundane, often implicit stuff doesn’t add a mechanical
bonus, though it may enable striving that would otherwise
be impossible.
For items that are meaningful to your protagonist, you may
opt to purchase a Trait to reflect their nature (like
“[Weapon]” as “My Father’s Sword” or “[Vehicle]” as “The
Flying Vixen”). These items are called Gear.
Gear, as a Trait, influences the fiction, and something about
the reality of the world, about what is possible, and about
what matters to the character. It can only be used to modify
a roll if the item in question is in a position to be relevant.
And, like all Traits, Gear can be lost, altered, broken, or
stolen as part of events and Moves.
When you would otherwise take a Condition, if you can
narrate how your Gear reduced or averted the condition, you
may instead mark off a Tag from that Trait. Marked Tags
are no longer usable to build modifiers; you don’t necessarily
lose the item or the ability, but its impact on future events is
reduced.
Restore one or more marked Tags when you narrate how
you takes the time to repair, clean, or otherwise fix the item
up, or when it is fictionally appropriate.

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OBSTACLES & ENEMIES

Obstacles can usually be removed as a significant threat
with a single Strive roll, as long as it is consistent with the
established fiction.
This may seem strange, if you are used to more traditional
games where danger is measured in concrete numbers, but
remember, you determine if a challenge is important or
meaningful by how you frame your approach to it. This
includes the questions you ask the Oracle about it, and how
you assign Conditions to it, and to yourself.
An obstacle’s Conditions affect interactions with it and
need to be removed through Strive bonuses before the
danger can truly be defeated in that way. They affect the
fiction, and affect your rolls as if they were your own.
Assigning one often occurs on a low roll or a Move, but
don’t be afraid to also create Conditions on the fly, either as
your instincts direct or the Oracle does. Use the tables on
pg. 83 to guide you.
I’m not sure what creature lairs in this dark place, so I roll a
motif, getting “Rose, beauty [thorns]”. I narrate approaching a
lamia as she sits staring into a pool. My instincts tell me she’s
formidable, so I choose to add “distrustful of strangers” as a
rank-1 condition, and “thorny protective aura” as a rank-2.
I attack. My goal is to wound, because her protective
Condition prevents a single Strive from ending the fight, and
my danger is “pricked by thorns”, probably toxic ones. I roll
with disadvantage, as if it were a personal rank-2 Condition.
I ask for help. I could choose to ask the Oracle how she
responds, or to just roll a Motif for her response, but I choose
instead to strive. I would include the rank-1 condition,
“distrustful”, as part of the narration as usual. If I roll well
and earn a bonus choice, I will reduce it to zero, overcoming it,
and her resistance to dealing with me.

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THE ORACLE MOVE

When you ask a meta question about the world, people, or
events, frame it as a “yes” or ”no” question, with a “yes”
representing the most favorable (or simplest) outcome. Roll
two dice, noting the order.

10+ Yes, or true. If the first die is higher than the second,
there’s a positive twist in your favor, an “and” qualifier. You
may choose to discard the “and” or a flawed assumption, if
there is one.

7-9 Yes, or true, but complicated in some way. Roll or

choose a Dramatic Move or a Motif if you need inspiration,
but remember, this complication does not need to be an
immediate, direct threat to you, if the fiction, or the
question, doesn’t warrant it.

6- No, or false. If the first die is higher than the second,

intensify the answer or circumstances (an “and”), using a
Move or Motif as if for a 7-9 result.
If the dice match, there’s a flaw in the basic assumptions
you made while framing the question that makes the
answer irrelevant. Incorporate this information as part of
your narration as you would a yes or no answer’s result.
You may instead choose to make a Dramatic Move that
results from the flawed assumption, including the truth as
an in-fiction reveal or detailing how your hero made a
mistake in your narration. If you do, take a dark die.
Note: you may adjust the modifier up or down between -3
(very unlikely) and +3 (very likely), but do this sparingly;
it’s much more important to get the result and continue
than to model the odds perfectly.

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THE BASIC SCENARIO
AGENDA
This is the experience we are
trying to achieve and our declared
goals for play.
Challenge yourself; follow the
fiction where it leads.
Challenging yourself is how you
grow as an author. It will keep you
coming back to find out what
happens next.
Complicate the protagonist’s life
in a meaningful way. Your
character lives in their world. Give
respectful weight to the choices
facing them, and look for the
meaning in those choices.
Play to find out what happens.
Allow yourself room to be
surprised, to experience instead of
plot. Let the dice steer your story
and surprise you.
DANGER
1 A natural threat presents.
2 An ally is in danger.
3 An enemy strikes without mercy.
4 An environmental hazard poses a threat.
5 Someone calls for help.
6 An ally, equipment, or resource betrays you.
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PRINCIPLES
This is how we achieve the goals
in the agenda.
Be a fan of the protagonist, but
make them prove they deserve
the role. Adversity develops and
shows character.
Answer in play: “what will it cost
to get what the character wants?
What I want?” These are not
always the same thing. Your
choices, as the gamer and as the
character, determine how hard it
will be and what it might cost.
Ask “if this is true, what else is
true?” Allow the fiction you’ve
created to carry you; follow the
threads you create in play.
Prioritize the obvious, and speed,
over deliberation.
Be honest, even when it hurts.
Ask difficult questions. When
you honor the fiction, your
character’s struggles have gravitas.
Ask questions with higher stakes
than you find comfortable as often
as you can.
 calypso

OVERVIEW
Read the overview of Character Creation on pg. 19. Choose four
Traits, with ten Tags between them, two Keys, and two Edges from
the options on pg. 17 or from a Scenario’s options, then proceed
through “The Beginning”.
When you see a word or phrase like this, look for a matching
table nearby and roll on it. If the table calls for multiple dice rolls,
you assign the dice.

THE BEGINNING
You start with two rank-1 or one rank-2 conditions, and a rank-1
trauma. You face an immediate danger.
TRAUMA CONDITIONS
1 arrogant or insecure 1 lost 1 hunted
2 lonely or outcast 2 angry 2 mocked
3 duty or obligation 3 hungry 3 attacked
4 louche or disreputable 4 hurt 4 confronted
5 resentful or bitter 5 cornered 5 seduced
6 idealistic or grieving 6 compromised 6 provoked

Create a Motif Chart (pg. 25), then roll two motifs, considering
what images are evoked, what problems are inferred, and what places
and people are implied to exist. Write down one motif for each
result, then use them to frame your opening scene.
Play a Dramatic Move against your protagonist and start narrating. If
you’re using a Framework, instead follow the directions given in it.
Keep the questions in the Principles and offered by your scenario in
mind, trying to answer as many as you can.
If you feel stuck, re-read the principles and agenda, especially “if this
is true, what else is true?”, then frame a question for the oracle, or
play a Dramatic Move.
Find Out: What do I want? What prevents me from achieving it?
What will it cost me to win it?

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BASIC TRAITS
[Forte]
[Asset], [Specialty], Experience,
Gift For It, Reputation
[Gift]
[Positive Benefit], Duration, Power,
[Drawback]
[Background]
[Training], [Education], As
Expected of Me, Conform,
Unexpectedly, Rebel
BASIC KEYS
The Key of the Ethics
Hit this key when you act in
accordance with your ethics and it
costs you a little. Change: act
unethically, by your lights.
The Key of the Curious
Hit this key when you dig into
something that isn’t your business.
Change: let an enigma or oddity go
unquestioned.
BASIC EDGES
Praxis
Add or choose a rank-1 Condition
that defines your usual approach to
problems, like fierceness, caution, or
stealth. As long as you have it, you
always have light dice equal to its
rank representing this approach.
17
In Shape
Dodge, Reflexes, Athletic, Sprint,
Endurance, [Specialty], [Sport]
Tough
Endure, Iron Will, Emotional
Intelligence, High Pain Threshold,
Assess Danger
Resourceful
Perceptive, Prepared, Seize
Opportunity, Lucky, [Resource]
The Key of the Helper
Hit this key when you act to help
someone at your own cost, expense,
or to your detriment. Change: let a
cry for help go unanswered.
The Key of the Selfish
Hit this key when you act to save
your own skin or something of
value to you, at someone’s expense.
Change: act selflessly.
Protagonist
When you hit a Key, take a light die
for the “main character” qualities
implied by that Key. If you keep this
die (count it as part of a roll result),
gain a rank-1 Condition or increase
an existing Condition by 1.
 calypso

CREATING TRAITS
Traits are words or phrases representing a character aspect.
Think about the skill, talent, training, or life experience
represented by the Trait, and then list six to eight words or
phrases under it that are used in context of it as Tags.
When a Trait has broad, overlapping Tags, it will be easier to
assemble a high modifier under more circumstances, and it will
come into play more often, while one with narrower Tags will
lead to a more dynamic experience with more complications.
Catchall Traits like “Modern Human” or “Athletics (Past)” can
be very useful, serving the purpose of defining part of your
character you expect to test often and can see a lot of easy
complications for, but don’t necessarily want to shine at – the
modifiers for them will tend to be low.

CREATING KEYS
Keys are always in the same format; a thing you do, or method
or goal you pursue, and a way to contravene that thing and
change. They should be narrow and specific, and encourage the
kinds of actions you want to see in play.

CREATING EDGES
When writing new Edges, look at the existing options in the
Scenarios for guidance. In general, an Edge will grant a light
die under specific circumstances, in exchange for a fictionally
appropriate Condition. Because Edges rewrite the game’s rules,
always impose a cost or consequence for using them.

Lucky [Edge]
You’re lucky, but you always seem to need to be. You can
choose to roll a “lucky” light die on any roll, but if you
count that die as part of the result, gain a rank-2 Condition
like unconscious, smitten or blind after the roll is resolved.

18
 general

CHARACTER CREATION
Begin by thinking about the kind of adventure you want to
experience. Roll up a few motifs, read through a Scenario, or look
for an interesting image; define your character in this context.
I’m using the Basic Scenario; I browse a bit and find an image I think I
can work with. A winged woman with a sword, in front of a slightly
futuristic city. My setting is a fantasy world, but near future.
Choose four Traits with ten Tags split between them, chosen from
the Basic options or a Scenario’s. Defer choices by taking the dark
dice that aspect would cost to buy later.
I choose [Gift] as my first Trait, and assign it “Winged-Folk”. For Tags
I take [Positive Benefit] twice, naming them “Fast” and “Graceful”, and
[Drawback] once, as “Sensitive Wings”.
Only one Trait’s Tags
For my second Trait, I choose [Forte], naming
apply to any given roll. it “Warrior”. For tags, I choose [Specialty], as
Using your Fighter “Sword”, [Asset], as “Fast”, and “Experience”.
[Expert, Fast, Swords] My third Trait is [Background], as “Modern
Trait to get a +3 to Human”, with [Training] as “Noble Scion”,
Strive during a duel is “As Expected of Me” and “Unexpectedly”. I
defer the fourth Trait and remaining Tag,
better than using Strong taking three dark dice.
[Swords] for a +1 – but
Try to imagine a few situations where you
when you gain the might want to build a modifier of +3, +2, or
Condition “Enraged” at +1 in different ways using your Tags and
rank-3 and lose the Traits; if you can’t, choose something else.
capacity to finesse, I immediately see the modifier I’d use for
Strong [Swords] might combat; Warrior [Sword, Fast, Experience],
be all you have left! for a +3. I can also see how I’d give aerial
chase – Winged-Folk [Fast, Graceful], at +2,
+3 if I narrate how my wings are sensitive or threatened.
Using a computer or calling a taxi is Modern Human [As Expected of
Me], only +1, meaning she will run into complications fitting in daily.
When she attends court, she’ll use Modern Human [Noble Scion, As
Expected of Me] and when she picks a lock, Modern Human [Noble
Scion, Unexpectedly].

19
 calypso

1-3 MOTIFS OF THE CROSSROADS

1 A hero, certain of their cause, who is ignoring all the signs of danger.
2 A murder threatening to drag down a confessor haunted by forbidden desire.
3 A valued artifact, sacred to birds, desired by a snake cult.
4 A doctor, gifted but shaken by their first failure, and their ailing sibling.
5 A gathering of scholars and academics, with a forgery discovered.
6 A once a year festival celebrating a local commodity, threatened by greed.

Don’t worry about overlap, but note repeats; this aspect will crop up
frequently, and be a strong element of this character’s story. Choose
two Keys, considering the fiction you’ve got so far and the fiction
implied by those choices as usual.
I pick The Key of the Daredevil, from Starfarer, giving me a dark die
when I do something unnecessarily risky, and, The Key of the Real, from
Darkness Falls, giving me a dark die when I pursue grounding activities.
It comes with a fictional problem to overcome, that I’m fading away. A
hazard of being Winged-Folk, perhaps, or possibly unique to our hero,
pointing to unusual heritage?
Choose two Edges, ways that you can manipulate the rules. Choose
what appeals to you; don’t worry about optimization.
I go with the default Basic Edges, Protagonist, and Praxis, which asks
me to define an approach. I know I want my default approach to be
aggressive, but decide to wait to define it more specifically.
Choose or roll a rank-1 Trauma, a long-term issue you must deal
with, and any Conditions your chosen Scenario requests.
Sola is driven to be the best from a sense of insecurity. I write down
“arrogant 1” as her Trauma; this will serve as her approach Condition
for Praxis, too.
I roll a Condition, as directed, and get hurt [2]. The danger is that an
enemy strikes without mercy [3]. I decide that I am sparring my rival
and she deals a low blow. I amend hurt [1] to hurt wing [1]. I pause to
narrate how we sparred, up through the blow that sends me spiraling
towards the ground. Time for me to set the Scene; I roll Shadows and
Love as my motifs.

20
 Graciela Sola Kant

Hurt Wing 2

Arrogant 1

Winged Folk [Fast, Graceful, Sensitive Wings]

Warrior [Sword, Experience, Fast]

Modern Human [Noble Scion, As Expected of Me, Unexpectedly]

Protagonist Daredevil

Praxis (Arrogant)

Real
 general

EXAMPLE OF PLAY
My starting motifs are "Shadows. Justified Caution (Fear of
Shadows). A terrible secret whispered in the dark." and "Love.
Selflessness (Jealousy). Beloved wings, given up for a true love."
I'm plummeting towards the ground, one wing damaged. I want to
steer to clear ground, and the danger is I’ll get hurt. My relevant
Trait is Winged-Folk, with the Tag Graceful, for a modifier of +1.
I'm suffering a rank-2 condition (hurt wing) that affects the roll, so I
roll with disadvantage. A 3, 4, 5; dropping the 5 gives me a total of
8, a partial success. I choose to avert the danger, but now I’m lost.
I almost recover but my bleeding wing betrays me. I hit the
ground hard, rolling at the last second to absorb the impact. I
register the silence, the smell of the trees, and the feel of the dirt
under my hands, and then I push to my feet with a groan.
I could roll an oracle, but my mind’s already come up with a solid
hook for the motifs I rolled earlier, so instead I play a soft move from
the Dramatic Moves chart, telegraphing danger. I “bring in someone
interesting with an agenda”, and roll up a motif just for them.
“Those Who…” seems a good fit; “The Exaltation of the Soul. Grey-
eyed Athena, wielder of the aegis, or gentle Venus, hand-in-hand with
her child Eros.”. I'm seeing a gray-eyed man, one who used to be a
knight against shadows, but gave it up for love along with his wings.
"That was clumsily done," a male voice remarks, dispassionately,
from where a peasant is leaning against a tree in rough
homespun, watching me. I climb to my feet, scowling.
Time for some oracle questions. First, did my sword land nearby?
Double sixes, so there's a flawed assumption that makes an answer
impossible, like “I wasn’t using a sword!” But I rolled a 10+, so I
choose to discard that qualifier and just go with a flat “yes”. Am I
closer to it than he is? A 6, so no, and the first die is higher; for the
“and” I choose “and he’s already holding it”.
I'm interested in this actor and his story, so I’m going to add the
Condition "bitter against nobles" to him, at rank-1, to cement his
current importance.

23
 calypso

I spot it, dangling carelessly from his hand like a stick, his gray
eyes amused as he notes I'm tensing up. Is this an outlaw, then?
"That belongs to me," I say, as arrogantly as I can manage.
I'm going to add a motif, “held at one's own sword’s point”. I don't
know what's going to happen next, so I roll a dramatic move, “show a
drawback to or new facet of your gear or abilities.”
I snap my fingers, invoking the enchantment on the sword that
always returns it to my hand.
This seems like something that might not be a given, so a Strive is
called for. Maybe he's a sorcerer, or countering my charm, or
magically null. I don’t have any Traits/Tags to apply, but I do have a
light die from Praxis because I narrated an arrogant approach. A 10
(6, 4, 2, dropping the 2 thanks to Praxis) is a success, and a clock
match. First, I choose my bonus; I reduce his “bitter” Condition to 0.
The sword tears free to fly to my hand, and I can tell he’s
impressed. "I’ll take you to the city," he says, begrudgingly.
I resolve the clock, with a motif, Phoenix, “it matters not, how dark
it is; I will be the light”, and a soft Move, “declare a new danger”.
The shadows under the trees boil, the insect-like creatures that
erupt jerky and erratic, and fanged like wolves. He curses,
sprinting towards me. "Do you know how to use that, little
bird?" he asks, and I heft the blade higher, squaring up to meet
the tide.
"You'd best hope so, old wolf."

4-6 MOTIFS OF THE FOOL

1 A skilled hunter, sworn to an order of knights, in love with one of the prey.
2 A prince, lonely, who serves dutifully but wants freedom.
3 A gentle teacher, determined and afraid, bearing the key.
4 The arrogant outcast belonging to a dying culture, desperate to return home.
5 A con artist in need, practicing their skills on a gullible mark.
6 A prisoner of their own wild gifts, afraid and hunted by the greedy.

24
 general

THE BASIC FRAME

Frameworks help you turn a strong start into
the momentum to reach a satisfying
conclusion. They also serve as a support to
help you ask and answer the questions you
are playing to find out, whether those
questions are your own or provided by
your chosen Scenario.
The most basic framework is the motif
chart; this is assumed to be in play for
every game of Calypso, no matter what
other frameworks you use.
Your motif chart serves as a short-hand
record of your game, of the experiences you
had during it, and as a way to fold earlier
experiences back into the current fiction. Just
reading it should give you ideas!

THE MOTIF CHART

The Motif chart is a d66 chart (six rows, six
columns, each labeled from 1 to 6 and with,
optionally, NPC, PC, Event, General, Main Plot,
and Subplot).
Motifs are imagery, themes, and plot threads like
stained glass casting firelight on snow, or I’ll prove my
father wrong, or who was that masked man? that
you create as you play. When a bit of fiction
strikes you as a question important to answer, as
an image to explore further, or as a potentially
satisfying call-back, add it to the Motif chart in
the next available spot.
Do this at least once per scene, but remember, the
game doesn’t end until you fill your motif chart. If
you are using labels, and a Motif fits in more than
one column, you choose which to put it in.

25
 calypso

Frame scenes by rolling three times on this chart

or on any motif chart and combining those
elements, literally, figuratively, or inspired by, into
the scene frame. If you are using labels, you may
choose the result of the first d6.
Look to your Motif Chart first when adding color
to your Dramatic Moves, dangers, and actors, and
when bringing in earlier plot threads. If a roll lands
on an empty cell, use the results on a motif chart
of your choice instead – surprise yourself!
When you’ve filled your motif table entirely (aim
to do this after ten to twelve scenes), wrap the
game up. Choose three or more motifs to carry
over into your next game, and take a persistent
light die for up to three for your next adventure.
You also gain the Edge “Renown” or a new
achievement for it.

Renown [Edge]
Name a notable deed or achievement when you take
this Edge. When you begin a new Motif chart, you
may choose to add a motif related to this deed.
When you use this motif, take a light die that
represents the deed, its consequences or impact on
the world, or your reputation in context of it.

THE CLOCK
Set a d6 in front of you, with “6” facing up. If any
die kept on a Strive roll matches this clock, roll a
motif, narrate an event inspired by it, and play a
soft Dramatic Move. Reduce the clock by 1. At 0,
make a hard Dramatic Move, then reset the clock.
Every Scenario has a special “match” and “time’s
up” for the clock; use these to add tension.

26
 general

USING MOTIFS
Throughout this book you will find charts of complex Motifs,
meant for inspiration, as a springboard for your context (the
fiction as established), to frame scenes, and to help populate
your story’s motif callback chart.
When you introduce one of these motifs to your game, think
about what actors, places, things that are implied to exist in it.
Look for the dynamic conflicts, and consider how it fits into
your fiction. When you add a motif to your callback chart,
rephrase it to emphasize those elements that resonate most
strongly with you.
[3-2] “A murder threatening to drag down a confessor haunted by
forbidden desire.” A victim. A priest or authority figure, guilty,
perhaps, or at the very least, implicated. A murder weapon And
surely a church, one secluded enough to encourage forbidden desires.
The Elemental motif charts have three extra elements
preceding the motif; a title, like “Autumn”, and a positive and
negative meaning, like “Plenty” and “Scarcity”.
Use these elements (flip a coin for positive or negative) and
simpler motifs when you need a quick theme or to elaborate on
an oracle answer.

27
 calypso

MECHANICAL BITS
There’s no way around it; the easiest way to roll on the 14-
element Elemental Motif charts is with a dice roller. You can
also use cards, with Ace (1) to Joker (14), in Clubs (Earth),
Diamonds (Air), Hearts (Water), and Spades (Fire). Either add
two cards from another deck, or choose which 14 a drawn
joker represents.
You can instead roll a d4 for suit and a d20 for the card, by
discarding any rolls over 14.
Only want to use d6s? You can! Roll a d6, re-rolling any result
over 4, to get the suit. Then roll two different dice (say,
“green” and “check”). Re-roll the green die until it isn’t 6.
If the check die is 1 or 2, the result is the green die’s value.
If the check die is 3 or 4, add 5 to the green die.
If the check die is 5 or 6, add 10. If the total is over 14, start
over, for most accurate odds, or just re-roll the check die, for a
one percent difference in likelihood.
Or just drop a pencil or die on the open page and see where it
lands. It won’t be exactly the same odds but who cares?

28
 general

1 MOTIFS OF THE EARTH power, resist, nature • resilience

1 Tower. Alliance (Solitude). A beauty in a tower, calling, greedy for affection.
2 Autumn. Plenty (Scarcity). Naming something gives it power.
3 Fairy. Despair (Hope). A soul, torn to pieces, and hidden away.
4 Status Quo. Order (Rebellion). Do the ends ever justify the means?
5 Whip. Pleasure (Pain). Indulgence without restraint leads to ruin.
6 Rose. Beauty (Thorn). A beautiful gesture, but consider the source.
7 Anchor. Security (Weight). A drunken jest taken seriously; a dare accepted.
8 Bear. Caution (Aggression). A blow strikes true, unexpectedly.
9 Crossroads. Choice (Restriction). Five spiteful ghosts, plotting revenge.
10 Armor. Protection (Overprotection). A knight, dying, offers a shield to a squire.
11 Law. Justice (Injustice). Six lords pass judgement on the seventh.
12 Fist. Power (Corruption). A glittering mask, briefly cast aside.
13 Fertility. Purposeful Growth (Wantonness). A casual proposition hides a dark motive.
14 Earth. Resist (Succumb). A rock pushed uphill, rolling back down.

2 MOTIFS OF THE AIR skill, strategy, society • intellect

1 Key. Open (Close). Recklessness leads to adventure.
2 Spring. Newness (Decay). Rejoice in the ephemeral, before it is gone.
3 Wolf. Outsider (Outcast). Together, we will succeed where one might fail.
4 Knowledge. Truth (Falsehood). Did you stop to think if you should?.
5 Succubus. Power at a Cost (Temptation). Poised on the line between love and obsession.
6 Serpent. Self-interest (Treachery). Long-nurtured patience, rewarded.
7 Palace. Luxury (Bureaucracy). A gilded cage for an irreplaceable songbird.
8 Messenger. Communicate (Miscommunicate). What price peace and safety?
9 Merchant. Calculated Risk (Debt). Fatuous contentment, willful blindness.
10 Stars. Insight (Overreach). What price when reach exceeds grasp?.
11 Fox. Cunning (Cynicism). There's a trick to it; you just have know where to look.
12 Empress. Generosity (Generosity with Strings). Parlay from a position of power.
13 Emperor. Authority (Tyranny). A crumbling throne, a dying line, a final heir.
14 Air. Community (Individual). A spider in a vast web, the threads of fate.

29
 calypso

3 MOTIFS OF WATER luck, weird, other • sensitivity

1 Fool. Freedom (Isolation). An eye willingly traded for knowledge.

2 Winter. Hard Choice (Selfishness). Bitter regret; lashing out in fury.
3 Vampire. Natural (Supernatural). What price is too high for immortality?
4 Chance. Safety (Risk). A chance encounter leads to unexpected fortune.
5 Unicorn. Innocence (Ruse). A treasured gift sacrificed to save another.
6 Veil. Disguise (Self-deception). When you part the veil, what stares back?
7 Mirror. Reflection (Vanity). Take care, lest you become what you fear.
8 Muse. Inspiration (Madness). Burning the candle at both ends.
9 Memory. Remember (Forget). A restless night of uneasy dreams leads to action.
10 Cross. Belief (Disbelief ). The way only opens with sacrifice.
11 Birds. Intuition (Logic). Shattered wax wings, carefully mended.
12 Moon. Sensuality (Fickleness). The quicksilver book of night with no moon.
13 Sun. Revelation (Blindness). A superior rival, challenged to single combat.
14 Water. Healing (Imbalance). Moonlight reflecting off dark water.

4 MOTIFS OF FIRE body, action, transform • vigor

1 Phoenix. Rebirth (Destruction). It matters not, how dark it is; I will be the light.
2 Summer. Passion (Exhaustion). The hum of bees on the heated night air.
3 Vigor. Ready (Spent). A long-overdue rest, welcomed with glad heart.
4 Sin. Virtue (Vice). A tearful confession, coerced, uncertain.
5 Satyr. Tolerance (Enthusiasm). People don't always know when they are happy.
6 Dragon. Desire (Obsession). A long-harbored desire, turned to obsession.
7 The Call. Adventure (Abandonment). A lover, abandoned for the promise of riches.
8 Sword. Strike (Parry). A double-edged sword, not yet bloody.
9 Lion. Strength (Arrogance). Who better to lead than the one who will seize it?
10 Shadows. Justified Caution (Fear of Shadows). A terrible secret whispered in the dark.
11 Hero. Heroic (Unheroic). Can you ever truly go home again?
12 Love. Selflessness (Jealousy). Beloved wings, given up for a true love.
13 Death. Change (Stasis). Death is only the beginning.
14 Fire. Transformation (Consumption). A wildfire, necessary but never kind.

30
Darkness Falls
To Catch the Wind
Neon Sunrise
Secrets & Shadows
Starfarer
The Sword & The Rose
Those Three Days

scenarios
 It was nearly dark when the lights
of Bone Hollow finally flickered
through the driving snow. His
quarry was in this town, and he
wasn't the type to let a little
blizzard stop him. Static caught
the corner of his eye, there and
gone, his gaze returning to the
road just as the dark shape rose
directly in front of his car. He
yanked the wheel, hard, to the
right, with a curse.

DARKNESS
FALLS
 scenarios

the sleepy town of darkness falls hides

violence ᛃ mystery ᛃ horror ᛃ demons ᛃ murder ᛃ answers
NEW AGENDA: Fill the protagonist’s life with darkness and horror;
throw the light into stark relief.
NEW PRINCIPLE: Juxtapose the normal and the horrific, the
mundane and the uneasily other.

THE PROTAGONIST
Choose four Traits, including one that shows why I’m on a case, then
split 10 Tags between them. Choose two Keys that show what I still
have faith in. I have Learned to Cope, and one other Edge. Choose a
rank-1 trauma; it defines me and is never far from my thoughts.
Establish the initial frame by rolling two motifs and an ominous place
and rolling two conditions.

TRAUMA CONDITIONS
1 formerly evil 1 looking for answers (lost) 1 afraid
2 brooding 2 barely above water (drowning) 2 confused
3 vengeful 3 without confidence (shaken) 3 vengeful
4 ruthless 4 fighting by rote (numb) 4 hungry
5 bottled up 5 already dead (haunted) 5 tempted
6 disavowed 6 a ticking bomb (unstable) 6 hurt (how?)

Answer Early: The authority here has a priority; what is it? What
mystery draws you here? Is this a homecoming? You aren’t welcome;
why? Roll motifs, elemental or on the facing page, for inspiration.
Clock. On a match, roll a motif and narrate an oddity inspired by it,
playing a soft Dramatic Move in the process. On 0, show how the
horror costs you something you care about.
Premise Beats. Someone reacts excessively to my questions | lashes out |
sets a trap | tries to seduce me | uses dark powers | abuses authority.
Play to Find out: What will staring into the abyss cost me?

35
 calypso

ARCHETYPES: The Skeptic, The Believer, The Cursed, The Drunk Priest,
The Doomed, The Ghost-Chaser, The Prodigal

1-3 MOTIFS OF SHADOWS

1 A dead man’s daughter, attacked by a fiend a year to a day after his death.
2 A witness, in hiding and armed, but unaware that the hunter draws near.
3 The letter said to come, so I did; I owe them that much.
4 A reporter, certain of the facts, missing in the woods.
5 A gathering of people, the will read, the winner whoever survives the night.
6 A chance encounter, and an offer to help unwittingly made to a ghost.

4-6 MOTIFS OF THE VEIL

1 An unwelcome inheritance, dreams of a stranger, a clue in the earth.
2 An experiment gone awry, that which has been opened unable to be closed,
the unseen seen and looking back.
3 A small-time psychic, offering details of a crime only the killer could know.
4 Madness plaguing the set of a film about madness, contagious like the flu.
5 A witch, surrounded by ritual and sacrifice, claiming innocence.
6 Twenty-one years ago it opened, and they disappeared. It’s almost time again.

OMINOUS PLACES
1 An all-night diner belonging to a retired cop, but haunted by ghosts.
2 A road through heavy forest, up a hill, ends in a hole in the ground nobody
will talk about.
3 A small town in a big forest, haunted, where time doesn’t flow as it should.
4 A long-shuttered school for troubled youth, rumored to be haunted.
5 A secret party at a deserted country estate, host to a dozen drunk college
students.
6 A country fair, the night wind cool as it blows off the lake, the fireworks
ready.

36
 scenarios
TRAITS
Agent
Profiler, Crack Shot, Empathetic,
Hard to Read, Hard to Rattle,
Human Nature, Streetwise,
Negotiate, Straight-laced, By the
Book, Crime, Investigate
Clever
Perceptive, Negotiate, Trickery,
Beginner’s Luck, Trivia, Fast-Talk,
Distract, Seize Opportunity
Cursed
Taint, Alter Perception, Inflict
Pain, Occult Lore, Read Mind,
Know Sin, Cause Nightmare, Heal,
Locate, Sense
Expert
Well-Read, Folklore, History, Peer,
Research, Talk Shop, [Field],
[Profession], [Specialty]
Framed
Bitter, Fight Dirty, Hardened,
Improvise, Served Cold, Know the
Score, Betrayal, Reformed, Why?,
Fugitive, Old Cellmates, Scarred,
Tough, Innocent
Humanity
Will, [Cause], [Love], Devotion,
[Ideal], [Virtue]
Investigator
Determined, Curious, Procedure,
Perceptive, Deduction, Interrogate,
Examine Closely, Handcuffs, Guns
37
Psychic
Sense, Medium, Exorcise,
Empathy, Telepathy, Telekinesis,
Psychometry, Visions, Pain, Blind
Focus
Social
Small Talk, Fast Talk, Interrogate,
Empathize, Music, Perform, Cold
Read, Charm, Persuade, Sense
Warped
Mutation, Deformity, Oddity,
Tentacle, [Animal] Shape,
Repellent, Cause Bad Luck,
Strong, Tough, Shield, Blast, Read
Minds, Hex, Terrify, Enthrall,
Poison, Beacon for Aberrations
KEYS
The Key of the Answer
Hit this key when you solve a
mystery or ferret out a truth
someone else would rather stayed
hidden. Change: let a secret stay
that way.
The Key of the Believer
Hit this key when you accept a
supernatural explanation without
seriously considering a rational one.
Change: dismiss a supernatural
event out of hand.
The Key of the Committed
You value something above all else.
Hit this key when you protect or
care for it. Change: let it go.
 calypso

The Key of Redemption Learned to Cope

You were the stuff of nightmares,
but you found your way back into
the light. Hit this key when you
resist the darkness within or when
your dark past causes you trouble.
Change: relapse and do something
terrible.
The Key of the Skeptic
Hit this key when you dismiss the
supernatural in favor of a rational
explanation. Change: accept the
supernatural at face value.
The Key of Vice
Choose one of the seven vices or
invent your own. Hit this Key
when you indulge in your vice.
Change: swear off the vice.
EDGES
A Cold Callous Angel
It feels like someone’s watching out
for you, but they don’t seem to care
about anyone else. When you
would gain a physical Condition,
roll an extra d6; on a 5+, if there’s
someone nearby who could take
the hit in your place, they do.
Cursed Powers
You can double your modifier at
any time, if your hellish powers
would help, but after the roll, gain
a rank-3 Condition like possessed,
perverse craving, or temporarily evil.
You have a wide variety of coping
mechanisms. When you face mind-
bending horror, you may take a
rank-1 coping condition (or
increase one by 1 rank) to move a
roll result up one step.
COPING CONDITIONS
1-3 4-6
1 talkative research
2 lash out nightmares
3 binge obsession
4 cruel berserk
5 fleeing self-destructive
6 go blank distract
Occult Immunity
When a supernatural power or
effect targets you, roll a light die
representing your resilience to
resist and, if necessary, to recover.
Toughness
Pick how you’re tough: physically,
emotionally, mentally. Each scene,
swap a Condition of that type for
one like focused, angry, or tired at a
rank lower.
Warped
Gain the Warped Trait, and three
Tags for it, along with a rank-1
Trauma about it. You always have a
light die representing either this
trauma or your unnatural nature.

38
 They say the water used to
run clear, once, and if she
could find the source of the
corruption, maybe Truffle
Hame would scratch out
another season. If the bandits
didn't end it instead. She told
herself that she wasn’t being
paid to deal with those, just
the water, and kept slogging.
An arrow buried itself in the
mud next to her feet.
“Stand and deliver!”

TO
CATCH
THE WIND
 explore wondrous realms in search of
adventure ᛃ sanctuary ᛃ hope ᛃ answers ᛃ power ᛃ treasure
NEW AGENDA: Fill your protagonist’s life with magical dilemmas
and experiences.
NEW PRINCIPLES: You are a wild card; people look to you to solve
their problems.

THE PROTAGONIST
One of my Traits is Human or Not-Human. Another is Strong, Tough,
Nimble, Wise, Genius, or Charismatic. Choose two more, then split 12
Tags between them. Choose two Keys that show my goals, a rank-1
trauma that spurs me to adventure, and two Edges that make me
special or especially talented. Establish the initial frame by rolling two
motifs, a strange place, and two rank-1 conditions.

TRAUMA CONDITIONS
1 orphaned 1 accused of a crime (blamed) 1 angry
2 usurped 2 pursuing a quarry (hunting) 2 cold
3 cursed 3 in need of money (broke) 3 lost
4 accused 4 following a map (determined) 4 hungry
5 disfigured 5 stubbornly myself (unique) 5 tempted
6 in debt 6 recently victimized (owed) 6 hurt (how?)

Answer Early: Why am I in this place? What do I hope to find or

achieve here? What challenge will make this difficult? What about me
will? Roll motifs, elemental or on the facing page, for inspiration.
Clock. On a match, roll a motif and narrate an encounter with a being
inspired by it, playing a soft Dramatic Move in the process. On 0, show
how ambush or misfortune costs you something you care about.
Premise Beats. Someone begs me for help | offers a rumor | tries to rob
me | offers a job | tempts me | casts a spell at me.
Play to Find Out: What will helping these folks cost me?

41
 calypso

ARCHETYPES: The Fighter, The Mage, The Thief, The Cleric, The
Looter-For-Hire, The Everybody’s Problem Solver

IMMEDIATE PROBLEM
1 Four against one? What kind of odds are those?
2 A cry for help; a wolf motif is causing an immediate problem.
3 The stranger at the back table waves me over…
4 The person who knows how to end my Trauma is here, somewhere.
5 A monster attacks someone, and I’m right there!
6 I’m mistaken for someone else, someone with a problem.

1-3 MOTIFS OF THE HERO

1 A grieving seeker, returning with one wronged, from The City of the Dead.
2 The wealthy mine owner, hiring swords to go after justifiably angry outlaws.
3 A weary and taciturn barkeep, who was once a legendary warrior.
4 The orb, sought by witches and by kings, possessed by a child.
5 A gift from a dying courier, a collision course with authority and evil.
6 The prodigal child, returning to find illness, and a hidden dark force .

4-6 MOTIFS OF THE WOLF

1 An heir, usurped, hidden behind a mask and a curse.
2 One deemed lacking is called to do the impossible.
3 A funeral calls the wayward child home, their skills now legendary.
4 A girl, descended from the sea, sings of return to it.
5 An ancient scroll, bearing the sigil of a wizard, and himself, imprisoned.
6 A wolf, as big as a pony, padding silently through mists, and then gone.

42
 scenarios
TRAITS
Human
Dabbler, Tough, Defy, Customs,
Duck, Sturdy, Curious, Free Will,
Indomitable, Legend
Not-Human
Fast, Strong, Tough, Beautiful,
Wise, Smart, Long-lived, Small,
Huge, [Elemental], Keen Senses,
[Weakness], [Special Ability]
Strong
Strong, Haul, Lift, Swordplay,
Brawl, Force, Athletic
Tough
Tough, Endure, Brawl, Iron Will,
Hard, Athletic, Defy, Pain
Nimble
Fast, Stealthy, Pilfer, Swordplay,
Climb, Acrobatics, Evade
Genius
Smart, Plot, Solve, Academia,
Science, Study, Entrap, Puzzle
Charismatic
Beautiful, Empathy, Lead, Strong
Sense of Self, Persuade, Cold Read,
Negotiate, Seduce, Perform
Wise
Wise, Know Heart, Empathy, Read
Situation, Scheme, Tempt, Counsel
Fighter
Swordplay, Brawl, Hunt, Survive,
Know Foe, Strong, Fast, Tough
43
Mage
Lore, Bargain, Communicate,
Evade, Research, Peers, Solve
Puzzle, Decipher Text
Arcane Magic
Components, Gestures, Grant
Bonus, [Element] Blast, [Element]
Wall, Summon [Creature], Shield,
Illusion, Polymorph, Animate
Dead, [Type of Magic]
Thief
Fast-talk, Stealthy, Security, Fast,
Scope Out, Contacts, Pilfer, Escape
Cleric
Beseech, Heal, Smite, Banish,
Nature, Deity, Herbs, Tough
Clerical Magic
Ritual, Holy Symbol, Heal, Cure
Disease, Cure Poison, Restore
Ability, Control Nature, Smite,
Create Food, Create Water, Bless,
Shield Other, Invigorate, Reverse
Spell, Revive Dead, Sacrifice
Adventurer
Delve, Spot, Henchman, Supplies,
Know Monster, Navigate, Quest,
Forage, Demand, Customs, Patois
KEYS
The Key of Balance
Hit this key when you seek to
maintain the balance. Change:
commit to one aspect.
 calypso

WONDROUS PLACES
1 A land devastated by centuries of environmental catastrophes.
2 A remote castle, rumored owned by a dragon, the young prince awkward but kind.
3 A town in the swamp that appears for one night every one hundred years.
4 A struggling market in a war-torn town, trying to conduct business as usual.
5 A sacred grove, razed for space for a great arena, the games soon.
6 A cemetery, where the dead rise again, but always wrong.

The Key of the Adventurous uphold the law when doing

You really like experiencing new
things, places, and people, for every
value of “experiencing” and “new”.
Hit this key when you have an
experience that is new to you in
some way. Change: pass up the
chance for a new experience.
The Key of Chaos
Hit this key when you break the
law or rebel against standards or
authority when doing otherwise
would be safer. Change: follow the
rules when it costs you.
The Key of Evil
Hit this key when you do evil
things for evil reasons. Change: do
a good deed at great cost to
yourself.
The Key of Good
Hit this key when you do good
things for good reasons. Change:
commit an evil act on purpose, for
gain.
The Key of Law
Hit this key when you abide by or
otherwise would be easier. Change:
disregard the law for your own gain.
The Key of Treasure
Hit this key when you spend
wealth gained through adventure.
Change: leave treasure behind.
EDGES
Burning the Candle
Choose a Trait and how you boost
it, like pushing yourself to your
limit or calling on ancient spirits.
When using this trait, you may add
+1, ignoring the modifier cap, for
every rank in Conditions you’re
willing to accept.
Magical Training
Gain a magic Trait with three Tags.
You may choose at any time to gain
or worsen an established Condition
related to your magic like fueled by
my soul or bleeding. While you have
this Condition, add its rank to your
modifier to strive using magic,
ignoring the cap.

44
The glowing red dot of a cigarette in
the shadows behind the streetlamp is
joined by two more as she raises eyes
full of crimson flame. "Hell of a
night for a walk," she says, fishing
out the envelope to offer it. "After
this, we're done. No more favors, no
more info, no more lies." She stops,
her eyes half-dimming. "Unless you
want to renegotiate our deal.”
NEON
SUNRISE
 when the sun goes down, you come out to seek
prey ᛃ profit ᛃ pleasure ᛃ status ᛃ power ᛃ redemption

NEW AGENDA: Show the costs of indulgence, for the indulger and
for the one offering.
NEW PRINCIPLES: It’s all about the deal; never give to anyone
without taking from someone.

THE PROTAGONIST
One of my Traits is a supernatural trait; if this doesn’t show what I do
to make a living, one of my other Traits does. Choose more Traits until
you have four, then split 14 Tags between them. Choose a Key that
shows what I value, a rank-1 trauma that keeps me in the dark, and
two Edges that keep me alive. Establish the initial frame by rolling two
motifs, light or shadow, and two rank-1 conditions.

TRAUMA CONDITIONS
1 self-loathing 1 framed (hunted) 1 angry
2 alone in the world 2 on a deal (hunting) 2 outside
3 cursed 3 in need of money (broke) 3 lost
4 guilty 4 deep, bad debt (indebted) 4 hungry
5 owned 5 a bad reputation (infamous) 5 tempted
6 addicted 6 double-crossed (owed) 6 hurt (how?)

Answer Early: Everybody wants something; what do I want? Need?

Where do I get it? What does it cost me? Who’d get hurt if they knew?
Who gets hurt now? Roll motifs, elemental or here, for inspiration.
Clock. On a match, roll a motif and narrate a temptation inspired by it,
playing a soft Dramatic Move in the process. On 0, show how giving in
to temptation costs you something or someone you care about.
Premise Beats. Someone treats me like prey | thinks I have something
they want | escalates to violence | grabs me for questioning | loses their
temper | tries to seduce me.
Play to Find Out: What will coming out ahead here cost me?

47
 calypso

ARCHETYPES: The Curse-Carrier, The Sweet-talker, The Retired-After-This-

Job, The Easy-Going Detective, The Desperate Gambler, The Pawn

LIGHT
1 An alley crime scene, you’re unwelcome
but needed.
2 A rain-soaked funeral; you’re here for
business as well as personal reasons.
3 A seedy bar, questioning a reluctant
witness.
4 In a dark alley, things already tense,
and they draw a weapon.
5 A dinner party, and one of them did it; The solarium; a nighttime swim, a secret
a wrong move will cost you access.
6 The basement is on fire, no sign of
them, and this victim is still moving.
SHADOW
The master bedroom; the key is here, but
not unguarded.
A deserted balcony; there’s another just
out of reach, and the door just past it.
The tile roof; it starts to rain, then
thunder, as the shadows crawl.
Cornered in the basement, and they
don’t look friendly.
agenda, a temptation.
A disused storeroom; a prisoner,
transformed, trapped, or distilled.

1-3 MOTIFS OF THE FOX

1 A drunken angel, muttering under a streetlight as shadows creep in.
2 The corpse in the driver’s seat, dead before he hit the water.
3 Rain threatening on a solitary walk along the docks at night.
4 A key player, fingers in every pie despite blatant retirement, asking a favor.
5 A cop, desperate for help, banished for insisting they’re all connected.
6 A drunken binge ending badly, in an alley, surrounded by predators.

4-6 MOTIFS OF THE PALACE

1 A widow, searching for a needed inheritance, stolen from the rightful owner.
2 Old graffiti, found near a body, telling where the next one will be found.
3 A young politician, looking for his own blackmailer, discovers his family has a dark secret.
4 A reporter, waking up dead, piecing together the last night.
5 The last survivor of an ancient house, pursued by an old foe, falling in love with a mortal.
6 A seer, drawing demons like a magnet, who fights but wants only peace.

48
 scenarios
TRAITS
Angel
Truth, Wings, Command Undead,
Manipulate Emotion, Inhumanly
Attractive, Ancient, Holy, Enforce
Bargain, Wrinkle Reality, Control
Light, Call Sword, Strong, Fast,
Regenerate, Read Soul, [Weakness]
Demon
Read Desires, Deceive, Bargain,
Tempt, Inflict Taint, Demonstrate
the Goods, Manipulate Emotion,
Devilishly Attractive, Ancient,
Enforce Bargain, Wrinkle Reality,
Control Fire, Nonflammable, Hot-
Blooded, Strong, Regenerate,
[Weakness], See Evil
Jewel Thief
Sneak, Dextrous, Locks,
Perceptive, Traps, Appraise, Break
and Enter, Case the Joint, Fast-
Talk, Second-Story Man, Sense,
Lucky
Mentalist
Cold Read, Human Nature, Trick,
Sleight of Hand, Cozen, Predict
Future, Dazzle, Scam, Lie, Detect
Lies, Exploit Weakness, Plan
Vampire
Blood, Undead, Strong, Tough,
Fast, Mesmerize, Dangerously Sexy,
Fast Healing, Shrug Off Bullets,
Night-vision, Dominate, Gaseous
Form, Fascinating, Alluring, Lift a
49
Car, Regeneration, Ancient,
Unnatural, Creepy, Relic, Old
Fashioned, Wealthy
Vehicle
Fast, Armored, My Baby, Gear in
the Trunk, Armed, Pristine,
Surprise Trick
Wizard
Wisdom, Trickery, Lore, Broad but
Shallow Knowledge, Chemistry,
Explosives, Minor Effect, Prophecy
KEYS
The Key of the Blood
The blood sustains your unnatural
existence and you crave it. Hit this
key whenever you indulge when it
would be safer or wiser not to.
Change: stop being a creature of
the night.
The Key of the Deal
Hit this key whenever you make a
deal or profit from an exchange of
value. Change: pass up a bargain.
The Key of the Real
You desperately crave real world
interactions, even as you fade into
Unreality. Hit this key whenever
you indulge in a grounding act of
some sort like eating, drinking,
having sex, or watching TV.
Change: become fully real or fully
UnReal.

The Key of the Reluctant Monster
You hate what you’ve become but
the temptation is unrelenting. Hit
this key when you wallow in your
power or dark nature. Change:
accept this is the real you or lose
your dark gifts forever.
The Key of the Tarnished Hero
You’re a person of honor, proud
and lonely, in search of truth – and
you keep it all under wraps,
because you’re flawed. Hit this key
when you do something proud,
lonely, or honorable and don’t brag
about it. Change: Let an innocent
suffer, bad men win without
opposition, or explain yourself.
The Key of the Ward
Name someone who needs you, like
a little sister or a best friend; hit
this key when you protect them
from your other life. Change: let
them in or let them get really hurt.
EDGES
Demonblood
When you have a deal with
someone, you can perform demon
magic to facilitate the bargain;
otherwise, you’re limited to minor
magics affecting yourself. You have
the Demon Trait with three Tags.
Seeming
You have a personal glamour that
affects how people see you, altering
calypso
minds and memories. Choose a
rank-1 Condition (if you can
change it at will) or Trauma (if
you’re stuck like this) like boy next
door or harmless salesperson to
reflect this; you always have light
dice equal to its rank for it.
Supernatural Prowess
When using a supernatural Trait,
you may choose to ignore the
modifier cap. If you do, but would
otherwise have failed the roll, gain
a rank-3 Condition like drained,
hungry, or out of control.
In Thrall
Choose two areas, one favored, like
strength or speed. You always have
a light die for each, and you may
set the favored die to 6. If a Thrall
die is 6 and kept, gain a rank-3
Condition like dominated, obsessed,
or possessed.
The Requirement
Choose a Trauma; your powers
depend on it. Add this Trauma’s
rank (ignoring the cap) to your
modifier to use those powers.
Vampire
When you drink blood, gain one
light die that persists. If you have
no Blood dice left, gain a rank-3
Condition like starving, frenzied, or
bloodthirsty.
50
 I closed my eyes, dredging the
power up from wherever it comes,
willing it to show me what'd
happened to my missing ex-
partner. The bedroom wall
vanished in a flare of wards,
revealing an arcane study. The
raven in the cage glared at me.
"Took you long enough," he
cawed, and my heart sank.
"Damnit, Aidan," I said,
grabbing the cage as I sprinted
back towards the hall. "You're so
going to owe me for this."

SECRETS&
SHADOWS
 scenarios

danger is everywhere and a sexy stranger promises

answers ᛃ safety ᛃ redemption ᛃ danger ᛃ trouble ᛃ nothing
NEW AGENDA: Fill the protagonist’s life with sexual tension,
dangerous, sexy people, and unexpected twists.
NEW PRINCIPLE: Everyone wants to consume you, in one way or
another. You are desired.

THE PROTAGONIST
One of my Traits is Modern Human. Choose three more, then split 10
Tags between all. Choose two Keys that show my hang-ups, and two
Edges that make me desirable. Choose a rank-1 trauma that makes me
distrust romance. Establish the initial frame by rolling two motifs, a
cute meet in an exciting place, and two rank-1 conditions.

TRAUMA CONDITIONS
1 distrustful 1 in a rut (bored) 1 mad
2 stubborn 2 trapped (miserable) 2 mortified
3 self-conscious 3 almost successful (ambitious) 3 bruised
4 wild power 4 running from a responsibility (rebellious) 4 teary
5 phobia 5 tell myself I like being alone (frustrated) 5 lost
6 naïve 6 have it all, but unhappy (discontented) 6 turned on
Answer Early: Why am I not satisfied with my life right now? What
keeps me from pursuing more? What makes me special enough to kill
for? To die for? Roll motifs, elemental or here, for inspiration.
Clock. On a match, roll a motif and narrate a desire inspired by it,
playing a soft Dramatic Move in the process. On 0, show how a
misunderstanding or mistaken impression puts you in a bad position.
Premise Beats. Someone reveals a secret agenda | lashes out | utters a lie
or is caught in one | tries to seduce me | tries to manipulate me | reveals
a weakness, flaw, or emotion.
Play to Find Out: What will falling in love cost me?

53
 calypso

ARCHETYPES: The Hapless Flake, The Untamed Warrior, The Arrogant

Prince, The Chosen One, The In Over Their Head, The Smolder

CUTE MEET
1 Someone gives the wrong impression or makes a bad impression.
2 Someone tries to kill my infuriating new companion.
3 I make a fool out of myself, but they’re impatient, not embarrassed.
4 I’m mistaken for someone more important, powerful, or dangerous.
5 My new companion is the one attacked, but they seem to recognize me.
6 We’re attacked and my new companion uses weird powers. They blame me.

1-3 MOTIFS OF THE MOON

1 A mistaken identity, a dangerous conspiracy, a desperate gambit.
2 A vampire, who steals their victims' memories, and longs for a name.
3 A lonely detective cursed with visions at a touch, searching for a killer.
4 A lost soul, given a second chance and new gifts, struggling to deal with both.
5 An heir, robbed of love, bound by duty, descended from a bloody demon.
6 An artist, frightened and gifted, with eyes that can see ghosts.

4-6 MOTIFS OF LOVE

1 A selfless act of courage, mixing a shy introvert up with a bewitching thief.
2 A double agent, dangerously in thrall to the target.
3 A young healer must overcome fears about love, and an eccentric family.
4 A knight, bound by duty and oaths, assigned to shepherd an unruly charge to
a fate neither wishes on the other.
5 A reformed thief, turning back to crime for what seem like noble reasons.
6 An eccentric expert who always plays it safe but longs for adventure.

54
 scenarios
TRAITS
Modern Human
Use Gadget, Healthy, Assured,
Trivia, Savvy, Dabbler, Educated,
Civilized, Attractive, Fashion,
Genre Savvy
Artist
Creative, Paint, Sketch, Inspire,
Communicate, See Beauty, Famous,
Sculpt, Fresh Eyes, Craft
Athletic (Modern)
Parkour, Run, Climb, Jump,
Dodge, Sneak, Acrobatics, Endure,
Reflexes, Swim, Focus, [Sport],
Competition, Show-off
Faerie
Nature, Magic, Charm, Beguile,
Steal Memories, Terrify, Inspire,
Enervate, Glamour, Beauty, Water,
Truth, Bargain
Good
Friendly, Kind, Do the Right
Thing, Honest, Brave,
Trustworthy, Determined, Defy
Evil, Spirited
Monster
Strong, Tough, Fast, Blood,
Undead, Bestial, Mesmerize,
Transform Self, Dangerously
Attractive, At Night, Fangs, Claws,
Night Vision, Moonlight,
Regenerate, Unnatural, Wealthy,
Drain, Hunt, Berserk, Seduce,
Know Prey, Blast, Alluring, Terrify
55
Professional
[Profession], Bureaucracy, Protocol,
Etiquette, Fashion, Multi-Task,
Plan, Network
Warrior
Martial Arts, Sword, Guns, Defy,
Challenge, Hunt, Survive, Know
Prey, Iron Will, Strong, Fast,
Tough, Stoic, Get Back Up
Witch
Hex, Bind, Magic, Herbs, Ward,
Lure, Sanctify, Transform, Heal,
Knowing, Erotic, Sacrifice, Ritual
Witch-breaker
Defy Magic, Defy Evil, Iron Will,
Hunt, Ambush, Occult Lore,
Know the Signs, Sense Evil,
Danger Sense, Minor Ward
KEYS
The Key of the Conflicted Lover
Hit this key when you send mixed
or confusing romantic signals to
someone who cares. Change: clearly
state your emotional position to
them.
The Key of the Dependent
Hit this key when you rely on
someone else completely for your
continued security or happiness.
Change: solve a problem yourself.
The Key of the Do-Gooder
Hit this key when you go out of
 calypso

EXCITING PLACES
1 A dusty highway through a primeval forest, ending in a quaint little town.
2 A castle on the moors, dra� and haunted.
3 A steamy indoor pool, tile crumbling, where beautiful monsters meet.
4 The warren of restoration rooms beneath the gray brick art museum.
5 A nightclub, neon and glow-in-the-dark, the blood gleaming.
6 A masked charity ball in the main hall of the natural history museum.

your way to do the right thing. Simply Irresistible

Change: go out of your way to do
something wrong.
The Key of the Hot Mess
Hit this key when you embarrass
yourself. Change: pull it together
when it counts.
The Key of the Stubbornly
Mundane
Hit this key when you pursue
normality or deny the supernatural
despite danger. Change: accept
your new reality.
The Key of the Untamed
Hit this key when you refuse to
submit. Change: bend a knee.
EDGES
Hidden Power
When you fail a roll, you may roll
up to three light dice representing
this power. If you succeed, gain a
Condition like noticed, drained, or
overestimated ranked equal to the
number of dice you added.
Something about you is irresistibly
attractive to certain people, even
when it seems really unlikely. You
have a recharging light die
representing this. If you keep it on
a roll, roll a spare d6; on a 6, gain a
rank-2 Condition like soulmate,
stalked, or jealous lover.
Supernaturally Gifted
Your gifts are not safe or easy to
bear. When using a supernatural
Trait, you may choose to ignore
the modifier cap. If you do, and
either of the kept dice shows a 6,
gain a rank-3 Condition like
drained, craving, or out of control.
Wildcard Power
If your powers could affect a roll,
roll an extra light die representing
them. If that is the highest die,
drop the lowest, but if it’s the
lowest die, drop the highest
instead. Otherwise, or if you mark
a rank-2 Condition like giving up,
overwhelmed, or weary, disregard it
entirely.

56
S
T
A
R
F "Say again, base," I return, but
there's only silence. Nix is on the
ship, connected to this spinning
hunk of junk by an umbilical,

A and monitoring our progress.

"Remind me again why we're
doing an Interdict, Walker,"
Breaker rumbles at me.

R "Because fuel isn't free and

neither is food, and you take up
more than your fair share of
both," I say, looking to see if any

E
Wraiths are lurking nearby.
There's a couple, Hawks, maybe.
Shouldn't be able to see us in our
Echo suits, but we'd better be out
of here quick while the batteries

R
hold. I wave the team forward.
 scenarios

explore the universe in search of

adventure ᛃ refuge ᛃ mystery ᛃ revenge ᛃ power ᛃ wealth

NEW AGENDA: Say something about the human condition by

contrasting and comparing the alien.
NEW PRINCIPLE: Use broad strokes; represent the incomprehensibly
large with larger-than-life places, people, and events.

THE PROTAGONIST
One of my Traits is Future Human. Choose three more, then split 10
Tags between the four. Choose two Keys that show my principles, two
Edges that keep me alive, and a rank-1 trauma that keeps me on the
move. Establish the initial frame by rolling two motifs, trouble
brewing in an exciting place, and two rank-1 conditions.

TRAUMA CONDITIONS
1 war hero 1 in debt to a bad person (indebted) 1 cryosleep sick
2 secretly unique 2 unjustly reviled (reviled) 2 kidnapped
3 orphan 3 a wanted criminal (bounty) 3 betrayed
4 runaway heir 4 renowned for a risky act (reputation) 4 mind-wiped
5 sole survivor 5 left for dead (wounded) 5 owed
6 chosen one 6 on the trail of a quarry (hungry) 6 cold

Answer Early: Why do I still cling to my ideals? What has it cost me,
in the past? What does it cost me, right now? Who is this stranger who
needs my help? Roll motifs, elemental or here, for inspiration.
Clock. On a match, roll a motif and narrate a moral dilemma or danger
inspired by it, playing a soft Dramatic Move in the process. On 0, show
how old, bad history puts you in a bad position.
Premise Beats. Someone demands payment | starts shooting | reveals a
plan | tries to bribe me | dismisses me | abuses their authority.
Play to Find Out: What will protecting my code of honor cost me?

59
 calypso

ARCHETYPES: The Disgraced Lawman, The Smuggler, The Champion of

a Lost Cause, The Stranger with No Name, The Outlaw, The Secret Hero

TROUBLE BREWS
1 I wake up way off course. why?
2 I hit the bar. Who am I looking for?
3 That was a hard landing, but any one you can walk away from, I guess.
4 There’s something moving out there.
5 This is the rendezvous. Where is everyone?
6 The wreckage is everywhere; what could possibly kill someone like that?

1-3 MOTIFS OF THE MESSENGER

1 A scientist, scapegoat for over a god-alien’s death, sentenced to exile.
2 A jaded celebrity, selling recorded memories, who has done almost everything.
3 A captain, disgraced, leading an archaeological dig into dangerous ruins.
4 A clone, believing itself the original, usurping the latter’s position of power.
5 The heir to a corporate fortune, keeping a low profile on a cargo ship.
6 A human, altered, alien, disdained, with gifts beyond understanding.

4-6 MOTIFS OF THE LAW

1 An elite unit, sent in to liberate a base held hostage by an android.
2 A former secret agent, with a dirty past, sending his former allies to die.
3 A smuggled psychic weapon and a betrayal that leaves someone thought dead.
4 A debt called due to an old friend, dying but not yet dead, and one last trip.
5 A traveler, cryosleep sick and amnesiac, and a solicitous crewmate.
6 A pilot, running, whose mentor was killed by mysterious assassins.

60
 scenarios
TRAITS
Future Human
Use Gadget, Healthy, Assured,
Trivia, Savvy, Dabbler, Educated,
Civilized, Attractive, Fashion,
Technophile
Alien
Strong, Tough, Fast, Alluring,
Healer, Regenerate, Sense, Aquatic,
Plant, Telekinesis, Empathy,
Telepathy, Teleport, Clairvoyance,
Precognition, Retro-cognition,
Force Action, Force Thought, Force
Emotion, Painful, Wild, Blast,
Pheromones, Tank
Athletic (Future)
Parkour, Dodge, Sneak, Acrobatics,
Endure, Quick, Swim, Focus,
[Sport], Zero-Gee, Competition,
Show-off
Criminal
Fast-talk, Sneak, Security, Hold-
out, Reflexes, Read Situation, Know
Score, Contacts, Gear, Escape,
Evade, Steal
Cyborg
Head-jack, Prosthetic Limb, Fast,
Tough, Strong, Numb, Painful,
Prosthetic Organ, Blast, Skill Chip
(Type)
Explorer
Cultures, Communicate, Spot,
Danger Sense, Curiosity, Improvise, refuse it.
Lucky, Leap, Seen It Before
61
Heir
Culture, Wealth, Connected, Upper
Class, Diplomacy, Polite Society,
Privileged Skills, Educated
Off-Worlder
Zero-Gee, High Gravity, Tough,
Pioneer, Guns, Barter, Loyal, Hard,
Mine, Scavenge, Farm
Pilot
Reflexes, If It Has Wings, Navigate,
Go Fast, Evasive, Cocky, Fighter, Aim
You can also choose the [Vehicle] trait
(pg. 49).
SHIP PERKS
1 fast 1 enigma
2 tough 2 secret stash
3 long-range 3 inhabited
4 stocked 4 startling speed
5 agile 5 classified cloak
6 spacious 6 sentient
KEYS
The Key of the Daredevil
Hit this key when you take a risk
that you don’t have to. Change: play
it safe.
The Key of the Goal
You have a specific, long term goal.
Hit this key when you try for it.
Change: achieve, give up on, or
 calypso

ALIEN PLACES
1 A mining colony, the asteroid airless, the ruins classified.
2 A station, on an airless asteroid, where a renowned smuggler has set up shop.
3 A starship, of sleek alien construction, floating silent in space.
4 A rustic colony, belonging to a gangster, contested by the colonists’ leader.
5 A masked ball in a glittering city, the jewel of a Heart world.
6 The private quarters of the Flying Vixen’s captain.

The Key of the Good Deed
Hit this key when you do the right
thing and it costs you. Change: do
something wrong for gain.
The Key of the Impulsive
Hit this key when you act on
instinct or impulse. Change: make a You always have an edge. If you
careful plan and follow it.
The Key of the Most Wanted
Someone wants you dead or
dissected or to do something you
don’t want to. Hit this key when
you evade or otherwise thumb your Boost
nose at them. Change: beat them,
join them, or just give them what
they want.
The Key of the Unfettered
Hit this key when you avoid
commitment or chains. Change:
commit or kneel.
to reflect this; when using it, you
may choose to ignore the modifier
cap in exchange for a rank-2
Condition like altered, craving, or
visibly inhuman.
An Ace Up My Sleeve
need a small item on your person, a
useful friend nearby, or a trick
prepared yesterday, you have it, but
roll an extra d6; on a 4+ the ace
betrays you later.
You’ve mastered using one ability to
boost another. Pick two Traits.
When you use one, add up to two
Tags from the other that apply,
ignoring the cap.
Hidden Reserves
When you fail a roll, you may
choose to declare a Condition that

EDGES represents drawing on your reserves,

like strained, exhausted, or tapped.
Alien Heritage Add this Condition’s rank, up to
You are either partly or entirely +3, to your modifier (ignore the
other than human. Choose a Trait cap) and recalculate the result.

62
 "That's the witch you brought in
yesterday," I say, confused. Garrett
smiles, the gold lion on his shoulder
gleaming under the magelight that
illuminates the Order's hall.
"It is," he confirms, closing the doors
behind us. "She's about to escape."
I frown, walking over to inspect the
cuffs. "I doubt it," I say, "unless she's
more powerful than she looks."
"She isn't," Garrett answers. "But I
am." The forcebolt's fast, a flicker of
light between his hands and then,
with a snap of his wrist, flying
towards me.

The Sword
&The Rose
 fated warriors roam the realm in search of
treasure ᛃ duty ᛃ romance ᛃ tests ᛃ glory ᛃ honor
NEW AGENDA: Fill the protagonist’s life with chances for chivalry
and opportunities for romance.
NEW PRINCIPLE: The truth is all-powerful; oaths and bargains have
their own magic.

THE PROTAGONIST
One of my Traits is Knight, though I might not be recognized for it.
Choose three more Traits and split 10 Tags between the four. Choose
two Keys that show my ideals, and two Edges. Choose a rank-1
trauma that keeps me from a state of grace. Establish the initial frame
by rolling two motifs, a romantic place, and two rank-1 conditions.
TRAUMA CONDITION
1 ignoble birth 1 stripped of my title (disgraced) 1 hunting
2 secret lover 2 in durance vile (trapped) 2 hunted
3 oath to a fae 3 wandering without purpose (lost) 3 in exile
4 cursed 4 far from home (weary) 4 grieving
5 long durance 5 in desperate love (star-crossed) 5 at loose ends
6 birthright usurped 6 an unacknowledged heir (unnamed) 6 afraid

Answer: What unshakable belief do I hold? What doubt do I harbor?

How does this person in need remind me of my own aspirations or
failings? Roll motifs, elemental or on the facing page, for inspiration.
Clock. On a match, roll a motif and narrate a moral dilemma or danger
inspired by it, playing a soft Dramatic Move in the process. On 0, show
how a failure, now, recently, or historically, puts you in a bad position.
Premise Beats. Someone dismisses me | reveals a weakness or flaw in
one of my peers | insults my honor | challenges me to a duel | reveals a
misdeed or attempt at one | reveals a flaw in my belief.
Play to Find Out: What will keeping my belief– or losing it –cost me?

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 calypso

ARCHETYPES: The Unbeatable Warrior, The Silvertongue, The Faerie

Knight, The Societal Misfit, The Star-Crossed Lover, The Nameless Orphan

1-3 MOTIFS OF THE SWORD

1 A warrior without a name or a king, searching for a lost heir.
2 An heir, longing and dutiful, returning having retrieved the first crown.
3 A lost love, a new love, a legendary sword, and a final chance at redemption.
4 An ill-prepared novice, scarred in their first fight, grimly pursuing vengeance.
5 A broken warrior, forsaking honor for pay and sneering at duty.
6 A goddess, betrayed by a king she championed, awaiting the return of the
sword that will free her.

4-6 MOTIFS OF THE ROSE

1 The Queen of the Fairies lies dying, her last wish for her heir’s return.
2 A cruel enchantment, robbing a warrior of her skills, forcing adaptation.
3 A faerie muse, inspiring their lovers, even as they intoxicate and drain them.
4 A knight, caught between love and duty, honor and their future.
5 A fragile betrothal, unconsummated until a transformation is reversed.
6 The lonely queen of a warlord, tempted to play dangerous games.

ROMANTIC PLACES
1 A black castle, pennants snapping in the wind, captured by a green knight.
2 The hall of a former bandit king, now respectable if a bit rough.
3 A winding road through quiet farmland to a sacred grove that will show you
where your heart’s desire lies.
4 A dark, treacherous forest, where whispers lead the unwary astray with
tearful cries.
5 A witch’s hut, on the edge of a swamp, the request for ingredients inevitable.
6 A busy human market, a rebellious heir, a captured prize for the Faerie
Market below.

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 scenarios

TRAITS
Athletic (Past)
Fencing, Acrobatics, Tough, Run,
Climb, Stealth, Brawn, Contorting,
Hearty, Dodge, Reflexes, Swim,
Brawl, Spar, [Weapon]
Bard
Escape, Sleight of Hand, Perform,
Influence, Music, Lore, Healer, In
Tune, Pitch Perfect, Friends, Satire Purity
Bardic Magic
Terrify, Charm, Debilitate, Curse,
Heal, Transform Area, Inspire,
Shout, Shield, Transform Self,
Illusion, [Any Other Trait’s Tag],
Reverse Spell
Lord
Fief, Serfs, Heraldry, Management,
Farming, Trade, Negotiate, Lead,
Mete Justice, Oath-holder
Low Magic
Spirit Bargain, Ritual, Spark Fire,
Sway Mind, Sway Heart, Symbolic
Sacrifice, Speak Truth, Demand
Truth, See Truth, Bar Path, Call
Innocence, Naïveté, Idealism,
[Ideal], Endurance, Luck
[Weapon]
[Plus], [Boon], [Quality], Blunt,
Heavy, Great, Quick, Maiming,
Bruising, Nonlethal, Vicious

Charm BOON QUALITY

Command, Beauty, Nobility,
1 unerring 1 nondescript
Servants, [Social Peer Group], Fast
Talk, Deceive, Seduce, Sweet Talk, 2 demands truth 2 legendary
Awe, Persuade 3 guides 3 strange metal
Fae-blood 4 strengthens 4 enchanted
Seeming, Illusion, Speak Truth, 5 heartens 5 heirloom
See Truth, Bargain, Wild,
6 danger glow 6 sentient
Youthful, Faerie
Giantkin PLUS
Love’s Elation
Strong, Tough, Large, Booming 1 legendary
Voice, Hit Hard, Brawl, Giant Gain a light die
2 razor-sharp representing your love
Speech, Giant Lore, Kin to Giants
3 extra hard when you take time to
Knight dwell on it, or when
[Virtue], Prowess, Riding, Chivalry,
4 never dull
fighting for your love’s
Honor, Joust, Armor, Horses, 5 never lost honor or safety.
Tactics, Religion 6 hungry

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 calypso

KEYS EDGES
The Key of Courtly Love Dedication
You have a pure and unsullied love Choose a Key as an ideal; when it is
for someone you cannot have. Hit struck, gain a light die for your
this key when you uphold the dedication to it that persists until
tenets of courtly love. Change: you use it, you sleep, or you hit a
disavow your relationship or Key, whichever comes first. If you
consummate it. buy off that Key, choose a new one
for the purposes of this Edge.
The Key of the Long-Lost Love
You loved, you lost. Hit this key Fae Upbringing
when your long-lost love is used Gain a rank-2 Trauma like truthful,
against you, when you do chaste, or cruel; as long as you have
something to try and reunite, or it, you may use fairy magic to create
when you sacrifice for them. minor illusions or perform small
Change: let them go. tricks. If you use this magic for
greater effect while striving, roll a
The Key of Other Heritage light d6 for it; if you keep this die,
You belong to two worlds. Hit this gain a rank-2 Condition like
key whenever your heritage causes enervated, weary, or iron-sick.
you trouble or affects a scene’s
course. Change: accept the Purity
destruction of either half of your You are pure of heart, unsullied by
nature. worldly concerns. Gain a light die
when this is an asset or when facing
The Key of the Protector obvious evil or temptation.
You won’t stand by and let anyone
else suffer, even if it costs you. Hit
Wyrd
this key whenever you step up or You were born with a gift, like
stand up for someone else. Change: great strength, the ability to speak
let someone be bullied in silence. with animals, or an immunity to
fire. Gain a rank-1 Trauma, Wyrd.
The Key of Virtue You may add light dice up to this
Choose one of the seven virtues or Trauma’s value to your reserve
invent your own. Hit this Key when when you narrate how it causes
you uphold your virtue. Change: trouble. When you increase this
indulge an opposing vice. Trauma’s rank, declare a new aspect
of your Wyrd.

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 Tucker trails after me as I head
back to the jeep. I flip open the
lockbox in the trunk and start
digging. I find the burner cellphone
I thought I left in the bar, and
under it my bugout bag, but no
crowbar. Don’t have time to be
annoyed as a grenade rattles past
me and into the jeep. I grab for my
bag and dive into Tucker, sending
us both flying behind the low stacked
rock wall in front of the clinic just as
the explosion turns my jeep into
flaming scrap metal.

THOSE
THREE
DAYS
 the prize is in the wind and the race is on for
answers ᛃ treasure ᛃ freedom ᛃ revenge ᛃ power ᛃ the future

NEW AGENDA: Demonstrate character through dangerous situations,

fast-paced peril, and ruthless enemies.
NEW PRINCIPLES: Everyone has a defining characteristic; play to it,
and occasionally contravene it.

THE PROTAGONIST
One of my Traits shows how I take care of myself; choose it from any
Scenario. If this doesn’t show what’s got me into this mess, one of my
other Traits does. Choose Traits until you have four, then split 10 Tags
between them. Choose two Keys, a rank-1 trauma that keeps me
alone, and two Edges that keep me alive. Establish the initial frame by
rolling two motifs, a dangerous place, and two rank-1 conditions.

TRAUMA CONDITIONS
1 self-loathing 1 running from past (hunted) 1 apathetic
2 haunted 2 old favor called in (duty) 2 tempted
3 unlucky 3 put down roots (anchored) 3 lost
4 guilty 4 left for dead (scarred) 4 lonely
5 cast out 5 code of honor (integrity) 5 broke
6 crackpot 6 disillusioned (cynical) 6 hurt (how?)

Answer Early: It might not be much, but it’s mine. What is it? How
does the call of adventure threaten it? How does it separate me from
what’s mine? Roll motifs, elemental or here, for inspiration.
Clock. On a match, roll a motif and narrate a peril inspired by it,
playing a soft Dramatic Move in the process. On 0, show how the peril
costs you something you care about.
Premise Beats. Someone has a lead on our next stop | reveals a flaw or a
weakness | strikes at us | tries to seduce someone | reveals a strength |
beats us to the current goal.
Play to Find Out: What will this adventure cost me?

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 calypso

ARCHETYPES: The Biologist, The Wrangler, The Suit, The Diver, The
Soldier, The Lawman, The Doctor, The Local, The Criminal

1-3 MOTIFS OF THE CALL

1 A wrong turn in the desert, a ranch under siege, a desperate victim.
2 A newly-discovered artifact points to a legendary find, if the map and key
can be retrieved.
3 A scientist, married to logic, suffering visions of a mystical tomb.
4 A survivor, scarred, unwittingly bearing the map to the lost treasure.
5 A desperate mercenary, chasing the one person who can provide a cure.
6 A ruthless gangster, dying, pursuing a rumor of immortality.

4-6 MOTIFS OF CHANCE

1 A clever pawn, assuming the identity of a criminal to expose a traitor.
2 An assassin, grieving spouse and normal life, dragged back into the game.
3 A jaded agent, investigating a possible resurrection everyone wants to exploit.
4 A shipwreck on an island time forgot, science without ethics, an invitation.
5 A killer with a deadline, ruthlessly settling old scores.
6 A deadly prize, with unfathomable costs, in the hands of a vengeful scientist.

DANGEROUS PLACES
1 A grocery store, in a twisted, lawless cityscape, and you need a phone.
2 A privately-run penitentiary, belonging to the guards, but ruled by a brutal
killer who has everything but the keys.
3 A battered church on the edge of a drowned village, the bell tolling the hour.
4 A secluded resort on a remote island, menaced by shadowy figures.
5 A silent ship, appearing out of the fog, to rescue those in distress.
6 A run-down bar; you’re not expecting it when the vision from your past
walks in.

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 scenarios
TRAITS
Ex-Military
Martial Arts, Sword, Guns, Defy,
Explosives, Hunt, Survive, Know
Prey, Rules, Strong, Fast, Tough
Librarian
Read, Well-Read, Organization,
Trivia, Letters, Navigate, Obscure
Knowledge, I Know This
Ne’er-do-Well
Friends in Low Places, Borrow,
Old Friend, Outlast, Make Do,
Iron Stomach, Half-Ass It
Daredevil
Take a Risk, Conditioning, Good
Genes, Parkour, Climbing, Trained
For This, [Extreme Sport]
Finder
Know Who To Talk To, Trade a
Favor, Know What To Offer, Know
Where To Look, Collect a Debt
Fixer
Repair, Jury-Rig, Scrounge Parts,
Know the Value, Talk Shop, Dazzle
With BS
KEYS
The Key of the Dismissed
Hit this key when you chase your
pet theory despite evidence to the
contrary. Change: prove it or admit
you were wrong.
73
The Key of the Reputation
Hit this key when you invoke or
rely on your well-known reputation
in a field or skill. Change:
contravene your reputation or
dismiss it as unimportant.
The Key of the Guarded
Hit this key when you refuse to
open up or to share information
when it would be helpful to you.
Change: open up or leave yourself
vulnerable.
The Key of the Libertine
Hit this key when you chase your
baser appetites or use pleasure (or
the promise of it) to distract
yourself or someone else. Change:
face an unpleasant task forthrightly
when you could chase your
appetites instead.
EDGES
Deus Ex Machina
Declare how something, like an
unexpected power, forgotten gift,
or a coincidence, ensures a success,
even after the roll, then fill up all
your Condition slots.
Hardened
When you convert a Condition a
Trauma, halve the Condition’s rank
(minimum 1).
calypso

74
The 3-Act Frame
Beats Frame
Point-Based Frame
Cyclic Frame

frameworks
 THE 3-ACT FRAME
This frame is like a board game; you begin at the beginning and work
your way through each named scene to the epilogue, playing out scenes
as directed, and collecting Score dice along the way. Choose this when
you want an experience with a strong narrative flow.
First, roll up an enemy, then move to the status quo, in Act 1. Each
Act has a list of Act-specific Moves; use these in addition to the core
Dramatic Moves while playing that Act. You may choose or roll as
usual; if you roll, roll a d6 first, and on a 1-2, use Dramatic Moves A,
2-4, Dramatic Moves B, and 5-6, the Act Moves.
For each scene, roll the scene type, focus, and frame, along with a
motif from a table of your choosing, interpreted as usual. Look for the
people, places, and conflicts implied in the chosen motif. If you can’t see
how to make the result fit with what’s been established, roll again.
Each scene has questions to answer and a central event, rolled on an
event table. Once per scene, choose a roll related to this central event as
the scene’s core challenge. Declare it before you roll and add “take a
Score die” to the bonuses you can choose from on a 10+ or bargain for
on 7-9 for this roll. On a 6-, instead roll up a new formidable
condition for the Enemy. End the scene at any time after the Core
Challenge has occurred.
You may find you need more scenes than just the named ones, or that it
feels right to elide one or more scenes into one. Generate any extra
scenes as usual.

SCENE FRAMING
TYPE FOCUS FRAME
1 montage 1 atmosphere 1 revelation
2 flashback 2 introduction 2 escape / pursuit
3 interlude 3 exposition 3 negotiation
4 as expected 4 preparation 4 explore the premise
5 interrupt 5 transition 5 investigation
6 pay-off or choice 6 aftermath 6 recognition

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The type is how the scene is presented. Atmosphere: What does this aspect of
the world or events look like? What
A montage is series of events, each
naturally follows because of this?
handled briefly, over a period of time.
Make one or two Strive or Oracle rolls Introduction: Who is this person or
to represent any difficulties or triumphs. thing? What do they want? What
purpose do they serve?
A flashback is set sometime before the
game started; roll again for the original Exposition: Who is doing (or saying)
scene type. Events during a flashback what? Why? What is revealed by it?
cannot substantially change the current
Preparation: What are we preparing for?
fiction, but anything not already
How do we feel about it? Can we afford
established is fair game.
everything we need?
An interlude is a chance to regroup, a
Transition: Where are we going? What
break. Narrate events, making any Strive
do we discuss along the way?
rolls required, to resolve whatever
Conditions are plausible to resolve Aftermath: How do we deal with what
during that scene. has happened? How do we reach a place
of where we can continue forward?
A scene that is “as expected” is simply
that, as expected. The scene’s frame is the concrete nature
of the scene.
An interrupt starts as another type but
is either interrupted (odd on a d6) by a A revelation may be welcome or
worsening of stakes with a Dramatic unwelcome. What is revealed? Who is
Move, or inverted (even). If inverted, re- most hurt? Who has the most to lose?
roll the focus and frame after the scene’s
Escape and pursuit. Who is the target,
first strive roll and add a new motif. .
and what are they risking?
A pay-off scene is one with high stakes,
Premise scenes ask story and genre
a scene that feels right and just in the
specific questions, like who gets hurt?
context of the fiction, like a return to
And what are you willing to do to get
the scene of the crime or a confrontation
what you want? Each Scenario has more
with a long-time foe.
Premise questions.
You can save a type for later, if you have
Who or what is being investigated, and
no scene of that type already banked.
why? What points to their guilt or
Spend banked scenes when it feels
innocence?
appropriate to you.
An opportunity or person is recognized.
The scene’s focus tells you what types of
What advantage can be gained? What
questions will be explored. One that is
must be risked to seize it?
always asked is, “what will it cost?”

78
 frameworks

ACT 1
Begin with one or more scenes showing
the current status quo established in your
ACT 1 MOVES
Scenario. Use dramatic moves to create 1-2 something breaks
the central events for this segment. 3-5 someone takes notice
Show us: What’s the status quo? How do 6 someone feels something
you suffer under it? How do you struggle
against it, if you do, or cope with it, if you don’t? Who else suffers with
you? Who suffers if you rebel?
Frame and play a catalyst scene that jolts you out of the status quo.
In the next scene, declare the lock-in goal, then make a dramatic
move framed as an immediate problem as the central event. Your goal,
at least in the short-term, is clear.
Answer in play: what is it?

CATALYST (EVENT) LOCK-IN GOAL

1 someone gets into a fight
2 a direct threat erupts
3 something vital is missing
4 a map to the prize is found
5 a dead body turns up
6 a stranger arrives, in need of help
1 clear their name
2 save themselves from a threat
3 find a cure or remedy
4 get something lost back
5 help a friend in peril
6 find out why this is all happening

The Enemy is always a step ahead of you STRENGTHS

and makes it took easy. They have one 1 well-connected
strength Condition and one simple (or
diy) formidable condition at rank 1 2 wealthy
each. They are certain of their cause. They 3 endless minions
will not stop until what they want is theirs. 4 well-stocked armory
Let “what they want” flow from what they
do, and from what happens as you play. 5 hidden allies
6 a secret gift or power

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ACT 2
Play at least two non-interlude scenes, including an obstacle in each.
Increase the danger each time. Introduce the Enemy if you haven’t yet.
Play to your strengths; show
what skills and resources you ACT 2 MOVES
rely on the most.
1 enemy gains a formidable condition
Show us: why can’t you win 2-3 suffer physical or emotional harm
right now? What is the
biggest threat? 4-6 an unfortunate weakness is revealed

Frame a scene that contains the midpoint. Whether it’s a triumph or

not, you have a new problem in the next scene; bring in a subplot.
Compare and contrast this subplot with existing motifs.
End the next scene in the main climax. Show how your usual methods
have made things worse or led to a dead end.

OBSTACLES [EVENT] MIDPOINT [EVENT]

1 emotions run perilously high
2 a natural hazard or location threat
3 a lead or target is found
4 someone wants something
5 someone seduces or tempts
6 the enemy moves as could be
expected
1 an npc argues, revolts, or delays
2 an npc falters, dies, or betrays
3 a threat worsens irrevocably
4 strong emotions lead to action
5 someone is seduced or compromised
6 the Enemy uses an expected but
valuable asset to secure a goal

SUBPLOT [EVENT] MAIN CLIMAX [EVENT]

1 a vital resource has been used up 1 someone dies or is lost

2 a danger to a place of safety presents 2 someone is captured or shifts sides

3 someone is sick or wounded 3 someone is badly wounded

4 a festering secret must be dealt with 4 the enemy seizes the initiative or high
ground
5 an unexpected emotion flares
5 the enemy’s surprise or out of character
6 someone is gone or about to be gambit succeeds
6 something you care about is lost to you

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 frameworks

ACT 3
Play one or more scenes, narrating the following in any order: the
twist; the sunshine; how we reach the final location; the final
climax (usually last).
Answer in play: what do you ACT 3 MOVES
want now? What new 1-3 lose an ally or asset
approach must you use to
get it? Can you still win? At 5-6 an enemy gains a formidable
condition
what cost?

THE TWIST THE SUNSHINE

1 an ally has been bluffing/faking
2 it was a lie or illusion
3 someone is the Chosen One
4 the Enemy, while flawed, is also right
5 it requires surrender to defeat it
6 the cure demands a high price to use
1 someone thought lost returns
2 a weakness or blind spot is revealed
3 a special gift or insight is discovered
4 an ally reveals knowledge or skills
5 the Enemy displays a better nature
6 a bigger prize right under your nose

FINAL CLIMAX [EVENT]

WHAT
1 a pitched battle
2 a lonely confrontation
3 a race to the prize
4 a race to avert disaster
5 a duel while disaster unfolds
6 a negotiation
WHERE
in a strange place
high above a danger
a place referred to earlier
the least likely place imaginable
the most likely place
a metaphysical or holy place

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EPILOGUE
Count up your Score dice. For every Condition the Enemy still
has that is an asset for them, spend one Score die and mark an
option false, beginning with the last and working your way up.
The initial statement is now untrue, but the cost must still be
paid; ask the Oracle.
Spend any remaining Score dice, one for one, to answer a
question of your choice about a character, if it is as yet
unanswered for them. Options may be selected more than
once, choosing a new character each time. Note that
“someone” includes the enemy, but “enemy” is only the Enemy.
Any questions left unanswered are, at best, unknown. Look to
the fiction and the Oracle to answer those you care to.
Someone who was imperiled survives. What does it cost?
Someone is enriched or suffers little lasting damage. What is lost to
them?
Someone wins their goal or achieves a dream. Does it make them
happy?
The enemy is defeated or their plans are thwarted, for now. What
does it cost you?
The enemy is killed or utterly neutralized. Who else dies?
The enemy has no path forward; win or lose, their plan ends here.
What grave consequence of this comes to pass?

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 frameworks

CUSTOM CONDITIONS
You can always generate a Condition for a foe, if you wish to
disclaim responsibility or make a custom monster, by rolling a
simple condition on the facing page or making your own. If
you want to assign a rank randomly, roll a d6. Divide the result
by 2 for a random result, or weight it as 1-3 is rank-1, 4-5,
rank 2, and 6, rank 3.
To create custom Conditions, first roll a d6 on sphere, style,
and expression to determine the base power or effect, then
roll an adjustment. If you get a result twice, consider it an
intensifier of the original result. If it won’t gel, roll a Motif to
tie it together.
I roll 6, 4, 5; mind, overt/flashy, and psychic. My immediate
thought is telekinesis. Adjustment is a 3, so another Expression; a
6, craft/production. This actor has telekinesis and can use it very
skillfully. Condition: Telekinetic Artist.
1, 2, 2; power, active, social. This actor can inspire with an act of
will; a musician or rock star or public “face”. A 1 gives me an
additional sphere; another 1 doubles the “power” of the earlier roll.
I take “inspire” up to eleven. Condition: Dominating Charm.
2, 2, 4; finesse, reactive/passive, utility. 3, versatile, second
expression (1) martial. This character has unbelievable reflexes,
and can turn those powers to be unnaturally graceful in combat.
Condition: Ridiculous Reflexes.

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FORMIDABLE CONDITIONS (SIMPLE)

1-2 3-4 5-6
1 charming 1 immortal 1 greedy
2 strong back 2 subtle 2 louche
3 hardy 3 prepared 3 honorable
4 perceptive 4 friend or ally 4 wary
5 graceful 5 well-trained 5 bitter
6 genius 6 psychic 6 practical

FORMIDABLE CONDITIONS (DIY)

SPHERE STYLE EXPRESSION
1 power 1 active 1 martial
2 finesse 2 reactive/passive 2 social
3 luck 3 subtle 3 exploratory
4 circumstances 4 overt/flashy 4 utility
5 emotion 5 focused 5 psychic
6 mind 6 uncontrolled 6 craft/ production

ADJUSTMENT
1 powerful; roll an additional sphere
2 broad; roll an additional style for this power
3 versatile; roll an additional Expression for this power
4 weakness; it requires fuel, time or energy to use
5 no adjustment; this power is done
6 talented; this power is done-- roll another, new formidable condition

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 frameworks

THE BEATS FRAME

A variant of the 3-Act structure with looser nodes, based around exploring a
central assumption, or “premise”, in this case, light action. During a Phase (one
or more grouped Scenes), you’ll lose or gain the listed resources; watch the
narrative for places to work these changes in.

THE LESSON Each Phase has one or more mandatory

events, rolled randomly, and a core challenge.
1 work smarter, not harder Pick the most crucial action to your goal or
2 violence isn’t the answer to your survival; go with your instincts. If
you succeed, add one to your Coin. If not,
3 use my mind, not my body
add one to your Debt.
4 good must act or evil wins
The Phase ends after the core challenge and
5 luck won’t always carry me
the required loss or gain. If you need some
6 redemption is always possible space to narrate healing, you can buy an
Interlude scene by spending one Coin.
CATALYST
SETUP
1 find a body
Show: Opening Image – Define Hero – Establish
2 an attack Premise.
3 a cry for help
The usual status quo, and then person tells me the
4 caught in the act lesson, but I don’t get it. It ends in the catalyst,
5 meet the client where a choice is required to continue.
6 lose an ally BREATHER
Show: Subplot – Gain a Dark Die or Ally.
BEATS PERSON Take a break for free or show what “good
1 shot at 1 mentor enough” looks like. Someone tells me the
2 hit 2 professional lesson again but I still don’t get it.
3 seduced 3 friend EXPLORE THE PREMISE
4 chased 4 rival Show: Genre Beats – Add an Ally – Add
One or More Light Dice for the Premise.
5 questioned 5 peer
6 threats 6 lover Explore the premise as established with
several scenes, each framed around one or
more beats. End in the midpoint, with a high (you have what you think you
want) or a low.

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COLLAPSE
Show: An Attack – Lose All Light Dice – Lose an Ally – Gain a
Condition.
The bad guys ruin everything as I discover an unwanted truth.
Failure (make it hurt) ends in loss.
DESPAIR
TRUTH
Show: Mourning – Lose a Trait. 1 isn’t what I really wanted

Utter failure leads to introspection and the 2 lost to us now

choice to try again. 3 I’m the only one
FINALE 4 isn’t what I thought it was
Show: Climax – Gain a Trait. 5 stolen at great cost
Unfold a cruel twist, then use the lesson 6 untenable strings
(the main plot) and context (the subplot) as
a major twist unfolds.
LOSS SPUR
EPILOGUE
Pay your Debt off now, if you can. 1 prize 1 inspiration
Whatever you have left after you 2 illusions 2 love
can use to purchase outcomes. 3 part of self 3 lesson
Each outcome costs one Coin; you
may purchase an outcome multiple 4 social standing 4 emotion
times if you wish. If you can’t 5 mentor 5 duty
afford an answer, look to the 6 lover 6 the greater good
fiction first, then ask the oracle.
Show: Final Image. How have things CRUEL TWIST
changed?
1 someone was using you
OUTCOMES 2 knows the secret truth about you
justice is served 3 set you up to take the fall
someone comes out better off 4 is in it for themselves
someone is defeated 5 is a monster
an at-risk resource or ally is spared 6 was secretly working against you

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 frameworks

A POINT-BASED FRAME
Choose this when you want a more freeform but still guided experience.
Begin by creating an Enemy and then play out benchmark scene 0,
framing it using motifs and the type, focus, and purpose charts from
the 3-Act Frame, and incorporating your Scenario content and
questions. Whenever you gain a dark die, roll all your dark dice at once
(they aren’t spent) and add the total value to your Peril score. When
Peril reaches a Benchmark, follow the instructions for that entry.
Don’t skip any benchmarks; play them in order. If you rolled more
successes than failures in a benchmark scene, add 1 to your Score. If you
didn’t, add a formidable condition to the Enemy instead. End a
given Benchmark scene after you resolve the entry’s posed questions,
then frame one or more new scenes.
After you resolve 100 Peril, spend your Score on Epilogue choices from
the 3-Act Frame.

GENRE EVENT
ACTION HORROR
1 attacked 1 possessed
2 ambushed 2 attacked
3 interrogated 3 haunted
4 chased 4 pushed
5 threatened 5 disturbed
6 seduced 6 tempted

MINOR TWIST MAJOR TWIST

1 they were using you
2 they were secretly working against you
3 they know the truth about you
4 they are in it for themselves
5 they set you up to take the fall
6 they are a monster
1 there’s a bigger prize
2 they have a hostage
3 an unintended consequence
4 they want you to do it
5 it was a setup from the start
6 it’s a triple cross

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BENCHMARK SCENES
0 Show your status quo, or you doing what you expect to be doing;
play a Dramatic Move with low stakes to show why it’s barely tolerable.
Why do you put up with this?

10 A random event puts me in danger and introduces a real problem.

A new person (use a motif to define them) who favors approach
arrives, with an overt goal. What danger do they bring?

20 A random event occurs, during which a person reveals a secret

goal. How does this change your opinion of them?

30 to 60 A genre appropriate event happens, usually to you but

sometimes to someone else. Discover a keyword secret. What big
threat is looming?

70 You need a new approach to deal with a random event and a

newly gained rank-2 Condition or Trauma (add one). What loss drives
this lesson home?

80 A random event leads to a Dramatic Move and to a deeper loss.

How do you cope?

90 A random event reveals a minor twist about someone. Can you

turn this to your advantage?

100 You must use your new approach or your old one to deal with a
random event. Narrate a Dramatic Move as a major twist unfolds.
Do you triumph?

OVERT GOAL APPROACH

1 to solve a secret 1 emotional
2 to keep a secret hidden 2 empathetic
3 to prevent secret 3 impulsive
4 to secure a goal (2x) 4 avoidance
5 to goal (a) goal 5 confrontation
6 to goal (a) secret 6 distraction

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SECRETS
1-2 3-4 5-6
1 murder 1 fight 1 journey
2 torture 2 insanity 2 sacrifice
3 retaliation 3 execution 3 ambush
4 sex 4 rivalry 4 slaughter
5 blackmail 5 exile 5 kidnap
6 change 6 ritual 6 theft

GOALS (AND KEYWORDS)

1 2 3
1 capture 1 revenge 1 secret
2 ice 2 hatred 2 jealousy
3 rage 3 malice 3 fear
4 attack 4 defense 4 gift
5 flaw 5 honor 5 duty
6 debt 6 vice 6 future

4 5 6
1 need 1 despair 1 self-interest
2 love 2 hope 2 redemption
3 time 3 history 3 dominance
4 virtue 4 pain 4 sacrifice
5 betrayal 5 mistake 5 obsession
6 power 6 desire 6 machinery

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 frameworks

A CYCLIC FRAME
Choose this frame when you want a narrow game with a constrained set
of scenes. Create three rank-1 setting Conditions, or Needs, for things
that your character needs for their continued well-being.
Narrate where your character is, and what has brought them to this
desperate pass. Choose if you wait it out or go exploring and then
roll on the appropriate table, playing a scene out to answer any questions
posed by the entry.
When an entry says to add or reduce a Need, justify doing so, regardless
of how the scene plays out. If a threat is deferred and hanging over your
head, take -1 to wait it out. When you have information about a
resource, add +1 to explore. Note that while you might find food while
exploring, for example, you still only reduce your Need for Food if you
formally reduce it as part of a node’s adjustments.
After each scene, you may choose to add 1 to a Need to have the next
scene be a respite showing why that need increased and how you spent
that time recuperating. Adjust your Conditions as usual.
If you end a scene by answering its question when all three Needs are
rank-3, describe how your character fails to escape the desperate
situation they’re in, and the consequences. This adventure is over.
When you roll a 6 on the scene charts, mark it down; on the third
mark, narrate how your character has the opportunity to escape this
misery. Show us: do they seize it? Do they succeed? If they fail, erase
one of the marks and continue.

DESPERATE PASS SUGGESTED NEEDS

1 a (possible local) apocalypse
2 an accident in the wilderness
3 the show must go on
4 vampires, ski resort
5 a high-rise taken over
6 underwater lab; overrun
Food, Water, Security
Food, Water, Shelter
Props, Thespians, Applause
Allies, Weapons, Repellants
Allies, Weapons, Outside Contact
Info, Weapons, Outside Contact

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WAIT IT OUT
1 Something threatens your location right now; add 1-Need. What is
it? How do you deal with it? If you fail, relocate.
2 Someone is threatened right now; add 1-Need if you try to help, or
cross them off if you don’t.
3 Something threatens your location, long-term; what is it? Do you try
to deal with it, adding 1-Need, or defer it?
4 An indirect, temporary threat presents; add 1-Need. If you wait it
out or seek respite the next scene, it passes.
5 Someone is in need of help that will cost 1-Need to provide. Do you?
How? If so, they have a line on resources.
6 Someone is carrying resources to meet 2-Need. Can you secure those
resources? What are you willing to give, or do, to do so?

GO EXPLORING
1 Someone takes off with resources; add 2-Need. Do you go after
them? What threat is deferred if you do?
2 A resource is in peril; gain 1-Need if you don’t save it.
3-4 You find a minor resource; what guards it? What do you have to
trade for it? Reduce 1-Need and gain 1-Need.
5 You find a minor resource; what is it? Reduce 1-Need.
6 You find a resource; what is it? Reduce 2-Need.

RESPITE
1 An opportunity to reduce a Need by 1 presents, with peril. Lose a
Trait, Edge, or Key (gaining dice for loss as usual). Why is this
aspect lost to you? Are you able to secure the Need?
2-3 Someone offers to reduce one of your Needs by 1. Do you do it?
What does it cost you?
4-5 Gain information on a resource or choose a deferred threat to
remove.
6 Reduce two Needs by 1 or one Need by 2.

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More Tables
More Motifs
Group Play
Troupe Play
Character Sheets

appendices
 SOME ALTERNATIVES
These charts serve as replacements for and alternatives to
the standard charts, and give more options when rolling
motifs and impressions.
As always, adjust any aspect you please to your context and
wishes. Consider what feelings and associations the words
and phrases inspire in you, and use those to guide your
portrayals of actors and events.
Use the dark motifs and minor motifs when you want a
short, abstract motif and don’t have enough context
established to just declare one. The former is grimmer, the
latter more open (and often offers a choice). Use headers as
a secondary roll for target; you don’t need to interpret the
entries in light of them unless you want to.
Mix in the intent and personality tables if you want to
know how an actor engages with the world or incorporates
the motifs.
I know from the fiction this NPC is a smuggler. I roll two sets,
for “I feel” (2, 4), “unselfishness” (3, 5), and “I will” (1, 5) and
“to learn” (2, 6), with a motif of “what dreams may come” (3,
5). She operates from generosity, perhaps smuggling in supplies,
and has a strong plan to learn about the afterlife.

INTENT
1-3 4-6
1 I am I balance
2 I have I desire
3 I think I understand
4 I feel I use
5 I will I know
6 I analyze I believe

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DARK MOTIFS
1 BODY 2 MIND 3 SOUL
1 drowning in armor 1 secretly unregretted 1 if I cannot, no one will
2 naked before eyes 2 obsession 2 creation sans restraint
3 the tin man 3 sacrifice 3 blind instinct
4 ignoring suffering 4 arrogant in skill 4 a reckless demand
5 addiction 5 revenge 5 what dreams may come
6 to seize boldly 6 cherished illusions 6 the unicorn’s judgement

4 SELF 5 OTHER 6 UNITY

1 perilously alone 1 broken wing 1 safety for freedom
2 cursed to suffer 2 in pieces 2 what might have been
3 lashing out in pain 3 foolish trust 3 seven gold coins for a kiss
4 losing myself 4 wrath-forged chains 4 cut off at the knees
5 atonement 5 parasite 5 an eye for secrets
6 challenge accepted 6 loving not wisely 6 a heavy gilded mask

PERSONALITY
1-2 3-4 5-6
1 devotion 1 truthfulness 1 unchastity, lust
2 compassion 2 independence 2 pride
3 obedience 3 skepticism 3 greed, gluttony
4 energy 4 contentment, idleness 4 cruelty, wrath
5 devotion to great work 5 unselfishness 5 dishonesty, envy
6 noscere, to learn 6 velle, to will 6 tacere, to be silent

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RANDOM EVENTS
Use these to add some variety to your random events or (by choosing an
interesting result) to flavor Dramatic Moves. When interpreting the
results, if no suitable target is in play or on screen, introduce a new one.

1 PLOT
1 A new or randomly chosen actor becomes important or arrives on screen.
2 A random plot thread becomes important or is called back into play.
3 Introduce a new actor.
4 Introduce a new plot thread or motif.
5 Show how a new or random actor and a random plot thread are linked.
6 Something happens to an ally (random or logical); roll again for what.

2 ACTION
1 A bomb drops, literally or figuratively.
2 An unexpected enemy attacks from ambush.
3 Someone’s looking for a fight.
4 Someone is being mugged or murdered or something else noisy nearby.
5 Badly wounded person is discovered, being chased or stalked.
6 An unexpected ally appears or reveals themselves.

3 WEIRD
1 A chaos bomb drops, literally or figuratively.
2 Magical effect occurs, to the hero or an ally's detriment.
3 Magical effect occurs, to everyone's detriment.
4 Someone is compelled to act out of character or to feel a certain way.
5 Wild coincidence aids the hero -- at a cost.
6 Something changes in an utterly improbable way.

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4 ENVIRONMENT
1 Natural disaster.
2 Fire or established natural hazard erupts.
3 An actor's long term plans begin to bear fruit.
4 An actor's long term plans go awry.
5 A hidden enemy is revealed.
6 Someone dies or is very badly injured off-screen.

5 SOCIAL
1 A bomb drops, figuratively.
2 A powerful, dangerous, or humiliating secret or weakness is revealed.
3 An embarrassing, revealing or damaging secret or weakness is revealed.
4 An unexpected ally makes a move.
5 Someone unexpectedly discovers or develops emotions for someone else.
6 Someone isn't who they seem or switches motivations, ambitions, or
goals suddenly.

6 GENERAL
1 a bomb drops, literally or figuratively
2 someone acts out of character
3 a hidden enemy is revealed
4 a new threat emerges from the seeds of earlier events
5 something of value is lost or imperiled
6 an actor makes a risky move in a bid to gain a formidable
condition

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A LITTLE MAGIC
Many of the charts on the next four pages (and the Personality table) are inspired
by Crowley’s 777 Revised. Note: you can roll a d4 on a d6 by re-rolling any number
over 4. You can roll an extra d6 to reverse an element’s meaning on an odd result.

2 ⟐ EARTH, COIN 1 ♧ FIRE, SWORDS

1 ruler of harmonious change 1 ruler of dominion
2 earthly power 2 established strength (virtue)
3 material trouble (worry) 3 perfected work (completion)
4 success unfulfilled (failure) 4 swiftness
5 material gain 5 oppression
6 ruin 6 great strength

3 ♡ WATER, 4 ♤ AIR, PURPOSE

ILLUSION 1 ruler of peace restored
1 ruler of love 2 rest from strife (truce)
2 abundance or luxury 3 earned success (science)
3 loss in pleasure (disappointment) 4 unstable effort (futility)
4 illusionary success (debauch) 5 shortened force (interference)
5 abandoned success (indolence) 6 vicious effort (cruelty)
6 material happiness (happiness)
1-2 THOSE WHO GUIDE
1 The Twin Ravens. Memory and Thought, inextricably linked,
shaping reality around them.
2 The Speaker of the Open Eye. The figure of a hanged or
crucified seeker.
3 The Oracle of the Silver Star. A crowned oracle before a
crevice, speaking of blood and hearts.
4 The Prophet of the Eternal. Cowled, with lamp and staff, ageless.
5 The Child of Truth. With scales and balance, and with eyes
and heart open.
6 The Exaltation of the Mind. Smirking Mercury, unkind
missive in hand, or Odin tying the rope around his own ankles.

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3-4 THOSE WHO ACT

1 The Magus of Power. A flashy youth with winged helmet and heels,
displaying the mystical arts.
2 The Flaming Sword. A smiling woman holds the jaws of a fierce and
powerful lion open.
3 The Ruler of the Hosts of Air. A holy and energetic ruler under a starry sky,
bearing a wicked shield.
4 The Reconciler, Bringer-Forth of Life. Crowned with stars, a winged
goddess stands upon the moon.
5 The Son of the Morning. A flame-clad god wielding light with certainty.
6 The Exaltation of the Physical. Uncouth Pan, innocent and playful, or
eager, curious Priapus.

5-6 THOSE WHO ARE

1 The Twilight Crux. A child of two worlds, fated to serve just one.
2 The Dweller in the Waters. A woman-octopus, singing idly as she waits.
3 That Which Was and Will Be Again. The dead rising, hungry and
yearning, at the fool’s command.
4 The Life-Tree. Adorned with eyes; the bitterest wisdom imparted is that
some prices are too high to pay.
5 The Lord of the Gates of Death. The transformer of all that lives, bearing
scythe and with an open hand.
6 The Exaltation of the Soul. Grey-eyed Athena, wielder of the aegis, or gentle
Venus, hand-in-hand with her child Eros.

SCARY PLACES
1 the town center, ground zero, after the blast
2 the city, abandoned, mostly intact, decaying
3 boats piled high in the desert; a distant brackish lake
4 abandoned vehicles, stripped even though they're dangerous from the fallout
5 a vast pit set afire by humans where spiders swarm in the millions
6 a bone cemetery sprawling beneath a cosmopolitan city; rats

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1-3 MINOR MOTIFS

1 2
1 Heaven, sky 1 seeking help; motivated to improve
2 Earth, worldly 2 attached to
3 danger and obscurity 3 small restraint; minor bond
4 youth and ignorance 4 age and experience
5 waiting, sincere desire, caution 5 spring, coursing blood, passion
6 strength in adversity 6 obedience, shutting up

3 4
1 union of humans, comfort 1 troublesome services
2 strength through what is seized 2 approach of authority, security
3 humility, contemplation 3 manipulation, intelligence
4 harmony and satisfaction 4 union by eating, legal constraint
5 following after, logical result 5 in contention
6 hard work, arrest of decay 6 couch in veiled terms

5 6
1 returning, visit from friends 1 inherent in, attached to
2 simplicity, sincerity, earnestness 2 influencing to action, all, jointly
3 great accumulation, block, dam 3 perseverance, keeping to the path
4 nourishment; hunger 4 returning, avoiding, retirement
5 great carefulness, weak spot 5 violence, strife, overthrow
6 defile, peril, pit 6 diplomacy, tact, truce

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4-6 MINOR MOTIFS

1 2
1 advance the purposes of good 1 diminution, reduction
2 unnatural divide, wounded 2 addition, increase
3 household, spousal duty 3 strutting, strength, thunder
4 disunion, family discord 4 unexpected event, a bold gesture
5 lameness, immobility, difficulty 5 collected, docility, complacency
6 unravelling a knot, puzzling 6 distressed; in need of assistance

3 4
1 advance and ascent 1 ease of movement, quick ear and eye
2 straightened, growth restricted 2 development, force (movement)
3 self-cultivation, a well 3 peace, a mountain
4 change, foolish impulse 4 fortunate marriage (timely)
5 cauldron, rebirth 5 unfortunate marriage (untimely)
6 temporary, convenient pleasure 6 gradual advance

5 6
1 large, abundant, progress 1 regular or natural division points
2 strangers, excitement 2 free will, authenticity
3 flexibility, vacillation, wind 3 non-essential, success of trifles
4 pleasure, momentary diversion 4 a wounded bird, small divergences
5 help from friends, still water 5 help attained, complete success
6 dissipation, turning to evil 6 incomplete success, failure

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GROUP PLAY
To play with a GM, divide the authority in a traditional way.
The GM is responsible for describing events that occur, and
for describing the world and the actors in it, as part of the
conversation and as directed by Strive and Oracle rolls, in
accordance with the Principles and Agenda.
They choose the complications, qualifiers, and intensifiers
on Strive and Oracle rolls. They declare if an enemy or
obstacle has a Condition. They also have the power to end a
scene and frame a new one at any time.
Players control their characters, narrating their character’s
actions, and making all rolls. Anyone may add motifs to the
motif chart, or call a motif back into play.

CO-OP OR GMLESS MODE

To play Calypso without a GM in a group requires mutual
respect, open communication, and a willingness to go with
the flow. Consider using safety tools here, like the X-Card
and Lines and Veils.
All players are responsible for enforcing the Agenda and
Principles, honoring the fiction as established, and for
adding, using, and interpreting Motifs.
Make characters as usual, choosing a Scenario together and
interpreting all motifs in light of it and each others’ choices.
Choose a bond with at least one other character, in the form
of a Relationship Trait, a Bond key, or a Bond edge.
One player (the “active player”) begins by setting a scene
they feel will be interesting or dramatic, rolling Scenario
motifs and interpreting them in context of the group fiction.
They narrate what happens next until they either choose to
tag another player in or until they make a Strive roll.

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Characters belong to their creator, but are also shared as

NPCs. Any player can veto what is being narrated, if they
feel their character would act in a different way, or if they
feel it isn’t consistent with the existing fiction. Remember
to be polite; the active player may have a plan, or may just
need a reminder. If the veto stands, the active player must
choose to either rework what’s been vetoed or to tag in
another player to do so.
Any player can interrupt at any time with a Dramatic Move
if they see an opportunity for drama consistent with the
Agenda and Principles, whether led by their character or by
the world. On an interrupt, the active player chooses if they
incorporate the interrupt, if they tag in another player to do
so, or, if it is the first time they’ve been interrupted this
turn as active player, to disregard the interrupt.
It is every player’s responsibility to say if they are vetoing
(requiring a change), or interrupting (suggesting one).
To tag another player in, ask them a question about the
fiction (which doesn’t have to involve their character
directly), like “now that we’re good and lost, is Jessie saying
I told you so?” or “he’s pointing the gun at me, but who is
he really aiming at?” They are now the active player and take
over the narration until they tag someone else in or strive.
When the active player strives, they must tag in another
player by asking them to bring any dangers to bear and
“what happens next?”. The tagged player describes how the
world reacts to the roll, then continues as the active player.
If a situation calls for rolls from multiple people at once,
instead of asking the tag-in question of a specific person,
ask it of any affected players. Everyone rolls and chooses
whether to ask someone else to briefly narrate the outcome,
to do so themselves, or to defer until after a new active
player is chosen. The current active player chooses the new
active player, favoring the person whose character is now in
the worst or most interesting spot, and play continues.

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COMPATIBILITY
Moves from other pbta systems can generally be used “as is”
as long as they expect a modifier of -1 to +3. If they
interface with specialty systems, consider how you can map
that system onto light and dark dice, Edges, or Conditions.
Light and dark dice are very similar to the common
Apocalypse World mechanic “Hold”. If a Move tells you to
“hold 1 Defend” or “hold 3 Spirit”, take that many light dice
named appropriately. Each additional light or dark die is
worth +1.5 in modifier terms, over time.
To incorporate attributes in a more traditional way, create a
Trait for each attribute with 6 to 8 Tags. Try to make the
Tags as broad as possible; use the examples in To Catch the
Wind as a guide.
If your base game has three to six attributes, assign one
Attribute Trait a -1, one a +1, and the rest a 0 rank. When
you use that Trait, the modifier starts at that rank. Buying a
rank up by 1 costs four dark dice, up to a max of +2.
Use this method when you want to test any aspect of your
character at any time, in the traditional fashion. This is
handy if you’re playing with characters you don’t plan to
become attached to, or when you want to run multiple
characters at once, for Troupe Play.

Bond [Key]
I feel [strong emotion] towards [person] because of [reason].
Hit this key when you show it in a subtle or indirect way.
Change: discard the emotion or fully express it to them.
Bond [Edge]
I want [personally meaningful goal] but can’t achieve it as
long as [person] is [strong personality trait, gift, status, or
position]. Take a light die when you’re denied the specified
goal because of this obstacle.

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SIMPLE TRAITS
To simplify character creation and building modifiers, replace
Traits and Tags with ranked statements of fact about a character.
These simple Traits are ranked between 0 and 3, and may be as
specific or broad as you wish. Use an applicable Trait’s rank as
your modifier when striving. If no Trait applies, strive at 0.
Choose Traits as directed by your Scenario, creating one simple
trait per selection, then divide the number of granted Tags in half
to get the total ranks (usually 5) to allocate between those Traits,
up to 2 in any given Trait. Note that simple Traits can contain
negatives; like all character aspects, they are markers of the fiction
and should be honored as you narrate.
To buy a rank in a simple Trait, or to add a new one (or add a
clause to an existing Trait) costs 3 dark dice. If a system asks you
to adjust Tags, adjust the Trait’s rank by that much instead.

SAMPLE SIMPLE TRAITS

I am gifted with a [skill or talent], but I am terrible at [skill].
I am [background], taught [thing] but fascinated by [other thing].
My [talent] is surpassed only by my [narrow subset of that talent].
I am [thing] and [thing], and thus [logical consequence of both].
My [gift] and [talent] bolster my [skill] as long as I [requirement].
I am [heritage], but I am [way I am different from the others].

A FEW SIMPLE TRAITS

1 I am prodigiously strong, though not always careful.
2 I am of high rank, taught to behave, but fascinated by misbehavior.
3 I am born of wild places, kin to a beast, and I walk my own path.
4 I am bluff and hearty, and have never been sick a day in my life.
5 I am heir to a strange power, but it does not command me.
6 I am a demon’s child, but I am noble and good despite it.

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TROUPE PLAY
If you want to run multiple characters, first determine how many
you want in your roster when the game begins. Consider using
simple Traits instead of full Traits and Tags; otherwise, make
characters as usual and when in doubt, use the basic rules.
Give each character in your roster a free relationship Trait (taking
the Condition as usual), Bond key, Bond edge, or similar
character aspect connecting them to at least one other character.
Note if any characters have aligned goals, even if only loosely;
such characters belong to the same (possibly informal) faction.
Use two d6 lists as your core Motif chart, and make a d6 motif
chart for each troupe character and for each faction. Add personal
goals, imagery, and plot threads to these charts. When you roll a
motif, assemble one or more full d66 tables from your collection
of d6 lists, favoring characters on scene, then roll as usual.
Play any characters active in a scene, using the oracle and motifs
if you’re unsure how they’d act. If you are using a framework that
expects a single character, when a choice is necessary, choose the
character with the most to lose.
Add new characters to the troupe whenever an actor distinguishes
themselves or you find them interesting. You may choose to
retire characters from the troupe if they become too injured, or
are lost in play, or when their personal motifs are fully resolved.

1-3 MOTIFS OF THE FIST

1 A palace, belonging to a preoccupied king, fought over by princes.
2 A prince, bereft of patience but not morals, born of an unsuitable lineage.
3 An heir, dispossessed, greedy, and indolent, listening to the wrong whispers.
4 A trusted lawman who upholds the law but desperately needs money.
5 A soldier, right-hand to the king, who owes old allegiance to a dark master.
6 Two allied queens, balanced but envious of each other, each looking for an
edge against the other.

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NEW PRINCIPLE: Treat all characters as disposable; use them up.

THE BEGINNING
Choose a Scenario; this is your basic setting and your characters were
raised in this context. Use it for character generation. Roll motifs,
elemental or on these two pages, for inspiration.
Answer now: What prize do we all seek? What must be proven to win
it? Who is the judge? What is the cost of failure?
Answer for each in play: What will I pay to capture the prize? What
will I give to be able to hold it? What will I sacrifice to ambition?
Clock. On a match, roll a motif, then narrate how a troupe character’s
current goals are at immediate risk of failure, or how they suffer a
personal loss or setback, playing a soft Dramatic Move in the process.
On 0, show how a troupe character suffers a devastating defeat:
• with their death or disappearance
• with the loss of the ability they held dearest to their sense of self
• with the loss of the position or gift that allowed them to pursue
their (now former) goal
Premise Beats. Someone reveals blackmail or leverage for it | betrays a
secret relationship or shame | reveals an ace, bluff, or feint | demands a
bribe, oath, or sign of loyalty | suffers a grievous setback to their goals |
is captured by an enemy. What will winning cost me?

4-6 MOTIFS OF THE SERPENT

1 A funeral, for a despised patron, who offers up his throne to the worthy.
2 The greedy scion of a dying religion, seeking the favor of her god.
3 A lord, grieving, whose only heir was taken by bandits.
4 A sword, the work of a chained master smith, destined to crown a ruler.
5 The ambitious courtier, child of an exiled House, newly arrived and hungry.
6 The celebration feast of a much-anticipated wedding, uniting two families
long at odds.

108
 appendices

109
 calypso

1 NPC 2 PC
1 1
2 2
3 3
4 4
5 5
6 6

3 EVENT 4 GENERAL
1 1
2 2
3 3
4 4
5 5
6 6

5 GENERAL 6 GENERAL
1 1
2 2
3 3
4 4
5 5
6 6

Category headers are optional. Fill in each line with an image, theme,
question, or similar motif. Roll on this chart first when you need inspiration.
 GENERAL
1 1
2 2
3 3
4 4
5 5
6 6

1 1
2 2
3 3
4 4
5 5
6 6

1 1
2 2
3 3
4 4
5 5
6 6

1 1
2 2
3 3
4 4
5 5
6 6
Print twice, or label a second list “General”. Label each of the
other lists with the name of a troupe actor or faction
THE MOTIFS
ELEMENTAL MOTIFS … 29
The Motifs of the Crossroads … 20
The Motifs of the Fool … 24
The Motifs of Shadows … 36
The Motifs of Veils … 36
The Motifs of the Hero … 42
The Motifs of the Wolf … 42
The Motifs of the Fox … 48
The Motifs of the Palace … 48
The Motifs of the Moon … 54
The Motifs of Love … 54
The Motifs of the Messenger … 60
THE END
The Motifs of the Law … 60
The Motifs of the Sword … 66
The Motifs of the Rose … 66
The Motifs of the Call … 72
The Motifs of Chance … 72
Dark Motifs … 96
People Motifs … 99
Minor Motifs … 101
The Motifs of the Fist … 107
The Motifs of the Serpent … 108