Player's Agenda
When you carefully study a situation looking for more
Embrace the chaos and absurdity
Play your character like a real person
(trapped in a surreal world)
Remember you’re the hero of this story
BASIC MOVES
Sway
When you offer an NPC a convincing reason to do
something, roll +Cheek. On a 10+, they’ll do it for the
reason you gave them. On a 7 — 9, they’ll do it, but the GM
chooses one from the list below:
They want more than what you’re offering
They demand payment up front
They have a “better” idea for achieving your goal
They stall and dither for a while
On a miss, you might offend or scare them, tarnish your
reputation, or make a rival.
Advanced Move: On a 12+, they will go out of their way to
help you for the rest of the disturbance.
Hoodwink
When you lie, mislead, or trick someone to achieve your
ends, roll +Cheek. On a 10+, they are fooled, at least for
the time being. On a 7 — 9, your ploy works, but the GM
will introduce a complication or consequence. On a miss,
you might find yourself caught, trapped, or otherwise in
hot water.
Advanced Move: On a 12+, your deception is particularly
difficult to untangle and can never be traced back to you or
your allies.
Assess Reality
information, roll +Wits. On a 10+ hold two. On a 7 — 9, hold
one. You can spend a hold to ask one of the following
questions. If you act on the answers, take +1 ongoing as
long as the information is relevant.
What happened here?
What’s my best route?
Are there any dangers I haven’t noticed?
What here is useful or valuable to me?
What here is not what it appears to be?
Who or what is really in control here?
On a miss, you might reveal crucial information, or the GM
might have you ask two questions but give you some
information that is inaccurate.
Advanced Move: On a 12+, you can ask any question you
want, not just the listed ones.
Save Your Skin
When you take advantage of an opening to run, hide, or
otherwise evade danger, roll +Wits. On a 10+, you’re in the
clear, though it may take a few minutes before the danger
has passed. On a 7 — 9, you can choose to escape or not, but
there will be a price to pay if you do. On a miss, you might
find yourself in an even worse predicament.
Advanced Move: On a 12+, your escape puts you in the
perfect situation. Take +1 ongoing for the remainder of the
scene, or +1 forward if your escape concludes the scene.
Face Fear
When you attempt something risky in the face of fear or
danger, roll +Pluck. On a 10+, you accomplish what you set
out to do. On a 7 — 9, the GM will offer you a worse
outcome, a hard choice, or a price to pay. On a miss,
everything goes to hell.
Advanced Move: On a 12+, you succeed beyond your wildest
expectations. The GM will offer you an added benefit.
Fight For Your Life
When you directly engage a threat, roll +Pluck. On a 7 - 9,
you and your enemy inflict harm on each other as
established. On a 10+, you get to choose an extra effect:
Inflict +1 harm
Suffer less harm, -1 harm
Gain the advantage, take +1 forward or give +1
forward to another character
Take something from them
Force them where you want them
On a miss, you might get maimed, captured, or toyed with.
Advanced Move: On a 12+, choose three extra effects. You
may pick the same effect more than once.
Embrace Chaos
When you contend with a source of entropic power, roll
+Chaos. On a 10+, choose two from the list below.
On a 7 - 9, you choose one and the GM chooses one.
You gain a clear understanding of the power’s source,
effects, and motives (if any)
You quell the power’s effect or fan its flames
You briefly wield this power’s effect
You subvert this power to achieve your ends; take +1
forward
You inflict or heal 1 harm on a nearby target
You mark or erase 1 Essence
On a miss, literally anything could happen — but it almost
certainly won’t be good.
Advanced Move: On a 12+, your mastery of this power
influences reality itself. You may choose one of the follow
effects instead of two from the usual list:
Clear your Essence or harm track
Inflict 3 harm or 3 essence on a nearby target
Lash this power to your will; take +1 ongoing for the
rest of the scene
Banish this power from the scene
FACTION MOVES
Call for Aid
When you seek out specialized help or resources, choose an
asset from the list below and roll with that faction. On a
hit, they’ll provide what you need in exchange for a debt.
On a 7 - 9, they either demand payment up front or have
only a lesser version of what you need. On a miss, they
can’t or won’t provide the aid you seek.
Bureaucracy: Credentials and access, historical records,
specialized equipment, status and privilege
Community: Abundant supplies, secure shelter,
strength in numbers, means of communication
Underbelly: Unusual expertise, secrecy and hiding,
contraband, movement and transport
Entropy: Occult objects, forbidden knowledge,
uncontrollable power, fear
Rally
When you incite members of a faction to act, roll with that
faction. On a hit, they will follow the general spirit of your
request, and you owe them a debt. On a 10+, choose 3
options. On a 7 - 9, choose 2.
They will not back down in the face of resistance
They call upon additional resources from their faction
They will do exactly as you asked
You won’t owe them a debt in return
On a miss, you either tarnish your standing (-1 reputation
with that faction) or the group wildly (or willfully)
misinterprets what you wanted.
Gather Information
When you hit the streets looking for information, name a
contact and roll with their faction. On a 10+, the GM will tell
ESSENCE
You can mark your playbook Essence to push yourself or
you something interesting and useful. On a 7 - 9, you learn
help out another character (roll 3d6 and discard the lowest
something interesting, but it's up to you to make it useful.
dice), avoid all harm from a single attack, or to activate
On a miss, you glean the wrong information or accidentally
specific playbook moves.
reveal a secret of your own.
When you meet the condition of your playbook’s refresh,
erase all of your marked Essence boxes.
Goad
When you leverage your infamy with a faction to draw their If you mark your last Essence box, you immediately drop
attention, roll against your reputation (i.e. subtract your out of the scene. When you return, write a new fracture
rating, so a +1 becomes a -1, etc). On a hit, they make a down on your character sheet and assign it to one of your
move against you. On a 10+, choose 2 options. On a 7 - 9, basic moves.
choose 1.
HARM
They react irrationally
They commit significant resources
They overlook your allies
They overplay their hand
When you are injured, the GM will tell you how much harm
you suffer. Armor reduces harm by the number it is rated.
On a miss, your actions are considered appalling by the town
writ large. Take -1 ongoing to all faction rolls until the end of
When you mark your last harm box, you are on death’s
the current disturbance.
door; if someone cannot take immediate action to save
you, then your character dies. If you suffer harm in excess
of your last harm box, you are dead immediately.
Renege
When a faction calls in a debt you owe them and you refuse
If you have time during a disturbance to rest and get
to help, roll against your reputation. On a 10+, there are
treatment for your injuries, heal 1 harm. You can only do
some minor misgivings, but your debt is forgiven; take -1
this once per disturbance. At the end of each disturbance,
forward on your next faction move with this faction.
heal all harm.
On a 7 - 9, you escape responsibility for now, but you still
ADVANCEMENT
owe them a debt, and they’re unhappy with you; take -1
forward on your next faction move with them. On a miss,
you offend them (-1 reputation), and you still owe them a
debt.
Mark experience whenever you fulfill one of your agendas,
or when a playbook move tells you to.
Whenever you mark the fifth experience box, level up.
Erase all five marks and choose an improvement from your
list. After you have leveled up five times, you may choose
from the advanced improvement list as well.