Bond strength 14

Drawing on bonds 15
How to play Ryne 6 Ways to play 23 The role of the Fates 46
Gaining or replacing bonds 15
Moves 7 Session zero 23 Agendas 47
Emotions 8 Wear 16 Principles 47
Creating characters 24
Types of emotions 8 Wear conditions 16 Fates moves 48
Levels of wear 16 Choosing rolebooks 24
Using fabric 8 Forms, humanities and tells 24 Non-player characters 49
Connected emotions 8 Wear effects 17
Protective items 18 Creating a ghost 25 Remnants 50
Rolling 9 Meeting death 18 Choosing emotions 26 Creating a Remnant 51
Advantage / disadvantage 9 Healing wear 18 Rolebook moves 26 Creating a territory 51
Result levels 9 Introductions 26 Resonance moves 52
Humanities 19 Questions 26
Matches 10 Envoys 53
Using humanities 19 Bond triggers 26
Stitching 10 Bonds 26 Example envoy types 53
Tells 19
Patches 10 Humanities list 27 Threats 54
Boons and banes 19
Strain 11 Companions 20 THE GUIDE 30 Threat patches 54
Straining a named emotion 11 Gear 20 Playing the Guide 31
Effects on Named emotions 11
Resources 20 THE HEART 34
Strain conditions 12
Straining fabric 13 Moods 21 Playing the Heart 35
Straining a territory emotion 13 Boundaries 22 THE TETHERED 38
Bonds 13 Advancement 22 Playing the Tethered 39
Bond emotions 14 Setting milestones 22 THE WEAVER 42
Bond statements 14 Advancing characters 22
Playing the Weaver 43
ABOUT RYNE
WELCOME TO RYNE
Ryne is a wild fantasy roleplaying game about people living in a
world shaped by the clashing tides of spirit, emotion and
concept.
The stories told in Ryne are broad and varied, but they are joined
by one common thread: you play to explore the relationship
between humans and the titans.
You might be a guide leading people across a shifting glass
desert, a priest learning new dances to offer as tribute to their
titanic god or a curious ghost rediscovering their place in the
world.

Ryne is a Powered by the Apocalypse game, designed to tell slow,

thoughtful, human stories of strange and shifting fantasy. It
focuses on emotion: both of your characters, and of the moods
tied up in the landscape.
It’s a highly collaborative game. While one player is designated as
the Fates, a sort of GM role, the table shares authority over the
world. Anyone can add details to the game, as you create your
own version of Ryne together.

TOUCHSTONES
Earthsea, Studio Ghibli, Saga, The Broken Earth Trilogy, The
Living Mountain, The Raven Tower, Mushishi, Banner Saga,
Shadow of the Colossus, Seasons of Hieron, The Buried Giant,
King of Dragon Pass

3

» Two to five players
» Six-sided dice. At least three per
player is ideal, but you could share
» Character sheets, one per player
» A territory sheet
» Paper, pencils (or digital versions)
We recommend that at least one of the
players has a flick through this playkit
before your first session. The most
important part is The Loom, which gives
an overview of the game’s rules.
You should also make sure that
everyone is on board with the premise
of the game—the next page introduces
the world and what the game is about.
We personally recommend using Miro.
You can lay out all the sheets as you like,
draw maps and collect notes.
THREE WAYS TO PLAY
If you want a quick introduction to
Ryne, Vacant Tribute is a quickstart
scenario designed for 1-4 sessions.
The scenario contains a framework
and prompts for your game, to help
you get playing fast. If you’re new to
roleplaying or PbtA games, or want
to get a feel for the game, this is the
place to start.
If you want to make the story your
own, The Change is one of Ryne’s
story seeds, prompts for starting
play. It’s suited to a longer game,
where you want to spend a bit of
time creating a Remnant and its
landscape together. It’s suited for
three or more sessions.
If you want to play a full, custom
campaign, the Ryne playtest can be
found on our website, and contains
everything you need to play a full
game. It includes:
» Additional rolebooks including the
Binder, Fledgling and Guardian
» Story seeds including The Settled,
The Secret-keepers and The Uprooted
» Extended rules for communities,
journeys and projects
» Additional setting information and
example places, factions, Remnants
and territories
4
Ryne is now on ! Back our
crowdfunder to get the full game as a
hardback book or digital pdf.
The book of Ryne will come with new
rolebooks, extended rules, and a whole
chapter of territories, Remnants and
factions pre-made for use in your
games. There will also be additional
guidance on how to play the game, and
a wealth of beautiful artwork.
You can get updates on development of
the game via our .
Join our to find people to
play with or just chat about the game.
Amazing! We always want to hear what
people think of our game. Fill in our
. You can find this,
and links to all of the above, at our
website
Ryne was originally create for These
Flimsy Rituals. If you’d like a feel for the
game before playing, the first season
uses an early version of the rules.

THE WORLD
This world is much bigger than us.
The Remnants shape it, forming
landscapes in their image - the
broken anchors of our world.
Ryne is a world shaped by strange
colossi called Remnants. Titans as tall
as mountains and as long as valleys, a
Remnant might take the form of a vast
carpet of moss, a stag built from
driftwood, fog coating a mountainside,
or a ghostly snake among the dunes.
They are a part of our landscape and our
lives. Unknowable, ancient, powerful,
and most often indifferent to us. A
common belief is that the Remnants
were once whole; split in two millennia
ago, they became the physical Vacants
and the spirit Echos which now roam
their territories, husks of the gods we
once knew. They are fading, and our
world follows them.
Each Remnant has its own domain.
Hope, preservation, delight, bounty,
migration, treachery, perfection,
wanderlust. A Remnant’s domain shapes
the landscape around them in its image.
A Vacant of preservation might create
tar pits and salt flats; an Echo of
perfection might fill a meadow with
infinite variations on a single flower.
The important thing is that landscapes
in Ryne are shifting, fickle things. They
are alive, and ruled by emotion.
We live in the shadows of Remnants.
Though often beholden to the whims of
MAKING THE WORLD YOURS
the Remnants, their envoys and the
landscape, humanity is stubborn and
adaptable. We’ve found ways to build
homes regardless of territory. A village
of rickety wagons always one step ahead
of the forever-fire, a town built from
rapidly growing bramble, a city built on
the back of a Remnant itself.
Ryne homes countless communities
and cultures; its humanity is broad and
complex. Like the landscapes, its people
are shaped by the Remnants. They
might be furred, have gills, or sport
multiple pairs of arms. They might have
photosynthesising skin, or the ability to
go into stasis in times of drought. They
are, all of them alike, human.
Spirit tangles around everything, like a
web of threads. Remnants are its
anchors, spools of emotion and concept.
It is from this web that binders, weavers
and snarls work their magic. They pull,
tie, sever and knot this tangle of
emotion and concept to shape the world
a little differently than before.
Humans have a spirit. Unlike the
Remnants they (mostly) have both a
physical and spiritual form. Not always;
some people’s spirits linger, some are
born without body.
What all of this means, how this ties into
your game, is your choice to make. Ryne
is your world, from here you get to
shape it.
5
Ryne is patchwork, a quilt of endless
territories with no concern for any
geological consistency. Deserts sit
next to glaciers, a territory of joy
next to one of lament. It is always
shifting, growing, changing; maps
are wrong from the moment they’re
completed.
The stability we’ve found here may
be short-lived, as Remnants move,
sicken, or change. A landscape of
harvest might become one of ruin. A
misty bog might suddenly face the
full heat of a desert sun.
This is all to say that Ryne is yours.
While you play, you’ll make your own
version of the world by asking and
answering questions. We provide
some helpful questions here, but if
there’s something you want to know
more about, ask each other. You are
all the authority on how things work.
You don’t have to rush to define
things though. If you’re really
curious about something, leave it to
be answered through your play. Your
characters’ moves will also shape the
world; they contain assumptions
about how things work, and using
them will define parts of your world.
You might notice gaps as you play.
These are deliberate, invitations for
you to create our own vision of Ryne.
THE LOOM
The Loom explains the practicalities of how you’ll play Ryne:
making moves, rolling to see how things go, using bonds and
advancing characters as your story evolves. It’s a reference
guide, so it’s worth keeping The Loom to hand as you play.
Some of the things referenced in the Loom refer to rolebooks
(pages 30 - 45) and the basic moves (pages 53 - 57). Don’t
worry if you’re reading through for the first time, and come
across something unfamiliar; you might just need to take a
look at the characters and rules for it to make more sense.
There’s also another section later in this playkit, The Fates,
which has more advice and guidance for the player taking the
Fates role.
Ryne is designed to tell slow, thoughtful stories of strange and
shifting fantasy. As you play you’ll watch your characters
grow as they face new challenges. Their emotions will shift,
they’ll gain new skills and shed old ones, their moves will
change.
It's a highly collaborative game. While one of you will play the
Fates, a sort of GM role, everyone at the table shares
authority over the world. When you need to describe a
person, community, custom or Remnant, anyone can provide
details. You create your own version of Ryne together.
6
Most of the time, when you’re playing Ryne, you’ll be having a
conversation. You’ll go back and forth between everyone
who’s playing, working together to describe things in the
world, react to the story, and ask questions about what’s
happening.
As players, you guide the conversation according to your role
in the game. Most of you will do this through the lens of your
characters, describing what they see, think, say, do and feel.
One of you will play the Fates, you’ll guide the conversation
through the lens of the world. You react to what the
characters are doing—telling them where they are, what the
world is like, and speaking through the mouths of everyone
that isn’t a player character.
This establishes a basic rhythm of play. You move between
characters describing their words and actions, and the Fates
saying how the world responds. We talk back and forth,
sharing the spotlight between us.
These roles are designed to be guidelines rather than
restrictions. They’re rough ideas of who does what. When
you play Ryne, anyone might make suggestions about what a
town is like, how an NPC looks, or what happens as the result
of a roll.
The game works best when you work to make it collaborative,
taking joy in each others contributions; try to keep your play
an open conversation.

As you play, your conversation will trigger moves. Moves are
bundles of rules that draw focus to important moments of
your story and add texture to play. For example, you might
trigger a move when you confront someone, attempt to
weave spirit, or embark on a long journey.
Some moves are triggered when things are uncertain, having
us roll to see what happens:
“When you attempt to convince someone, say what you
want from them, then roll.”
Other moves give us special permissions, they often
represent unique skills or aspects of your characters:
“When you enter a new territory, name two things you’ve
heard about the Remnant.”
Players will have access to a set of basic moves, as well as the
unique rolebook rules you have chosen for you character.
All moves have a trigger, usually worded as “When you...”.
When you act in a certain way, something happens. When you
trigger a move, follow it through and fold it back into your
story. If you notice that someone’s actions might have
triggered a move, call attention to it.
Once you’ve triggered a move, read its opening aloud and
follow the instructions. It might ask you to say or describe
something, to clarify what you’re doing. Then it may ask you
to roll or pay a cost. Depending on what you roll and the costs
you pay, you’ll trigger different effects and outcomes.
7
Not everything you do is going to trigger a move. If something
is easy for your character to achieve, has a fairly certain
outcome or you’re not particularly interested in how it goes,
just describe it in the fiction.
First Frost sneaks through the camp towards Summer
Rain’s tent. We’re more interested in what happens when
they get there, so we don’t need to roll for it.
There’s also an art to when you decide to trigger a move and
roll. Sometimes it’s useful to trigger a move at the start of a
situation, to guide how it goes; other times you might play the
scene out, then trigger the move as a finale. There’s no right
answer. You might develop a preference, you might vary it.
Hale attempts to convince Vo to let her join his caravan.
We want to get a sense of the conversation, so we let it
play out for a while before we trigger the move.
STORY FIRST
When you play, keep your focus on what your characters
are doing and the story you’re creating. Don’t worry about
planning your moves; they should come up naturally.
That said, you might sometimes look to your moves first
to get an idea of what your character can do or how they’d
react. That’s okay! When you decide your actions by
checking your moves first, just make sure to describe the
fiction. Tell us what you character does, not what the move
does.

When you create your character, you’ll name several
emotions that are important to them, and assign values to
them—sad, faithful, defiant, brave, playful, vulnerable,
stubborn, etc.
Choosing emotions doesn’t limit what your character can
feel, it only indicates which emotions are currently important
to who they are, and how they act (see Using Fabric).
The value of an emotion ranges between +3 and -3, and
modifies the rolls that you make. It is not a measure of how
skilled you are at feeling something, but how well your
character handles that emotion. Your emotion’s modifier
shows how controlled or lucky you are when you act while
feeling a certain way.
Ysilla is a shy, but capable guide.
They have +2 in competent. They don’t always feel
confident while around other people, but when they’re
alone in the forests relying on themselves, things usually
go well.
They also have a -1 in excited. They actually get excited a
lot, but they tend to make poor choices when they’re
feeling over-eager.
EMOTIONS AND CHANGE
As you play, your named emotions will shift and change
alongside your character. Some will fade into the
background while others take their place, some will
strengthen or weaken, and some will alter as they become
more or less specific.
8
Named emotions: any emotion written on your character
sheet. They represent important emotions for your character.
Fabric: represents any other emotions, used in place of any
emotion that isn’t a named emotion.
Territory emotion: an emotion based on the territory you’re
currently in, shaped by its Remnant.
Fabric represents any emotions your character experiences
that haven’t been named on their character sheet.
When you choose to roll with an emotion that isn’t a named,
you roll plus Fabric instead. Fabric always starts at +0.
If a move ever asks you to do something with a named
emotion that you don’t have, use fabric instead.
Brrr is told to stitch happy, but doesn’t have it as a named
emotion. Brrr stitches fabric in its place.
Sometimes your character will feel something that is close to
one of your named emotions. If everyone agrees that it’s
close enough, roll with the named emotion.
If the two emotions are related, but have some distance
between them, you have a choice: you can roll with the
emotion, but gain disadvantage; or you can roll with fabric.
“I’d love to roll with Clew’s impulsive because it’s +3, but
I’m not sure. That comment about him not being able to do
it has annoyed them. So this is a bit impetuous, maybe?”
“Well, it’s still something he hasn’t over-thought, right?
Plus, they’re not going just because they’re angry.”
“Okay, yeah, so I’ll roll with impulsive then.”

When you trigger a move and the outcome is uncertain, you’ll
likely be told to roll to find out how it goes. The base roll in
Ryne uses two six-sided dice (2d6).
Roll the dice and add them together. You’ll usually add a stat
representing the emotion you character is currently feeling.
Deciding an emotion is a chance to focus on the character’s
mindset. Be truthful about their mood, and use the fiction to
inform what you roll.
When a move tells a player to roll, and doesn’t say
otherwise, they roll plus an emotion of their choice—
reflecting how their character is feeling in that moment.
There are three possible result levels for a roll:
10+ is a strong success. The character succeeds at what they
were trying to do, and it goes how you described.
7-9 is a mixed success. The character succeeds in their
action but there’s a consequence. You might have to make a
choice, have less effect or have to compromise on what you
wanted.
6 or lower is a miss. Things don’t go as planned or the action
has unforeseen side effects. You might get some of what you
want, but control goes to the Fates, who will make a move of
their own.

Your move will tell you what the result level means. It will say
what happens on a strong success, mixed success or a miss. It
Moves can give a character
will give you hints and choices about how it impacts your
advantage or disadvantage.
story. Use the result of the move to say what has happened in
When you roll with either,
the fiction.
you roll 3d6 instead of 2d6.
+2 = 8 On any success, the player who rolled makes the choices.
If you have advantage, They get to say what they think those choices mean, though
your result is the total of the Fates can offer suggestions and provide consequences.
the two highest dice
When you roll a miss, the Fates will be handed the power to
rolled, plus your stat.
make decisions. Those choices are outlined by the move
If you have disadvantage, rolled, often they’ll get to make a Fate move of their own.
your result is the total of
the two lowest dice rolled,
+2 = 10
plus your stat. CHOOSING EMOTIONS
It’s always up to you which emotion you roll with. Ask
Advantage or disadvantage yourself, “how is my character feeling?”. You can name any
do not stack; even if you are emotion, not just one written on your sheet. Be truthful to
told to take one multiple your character.
times, you only apply them
once. If you have both, they +2 = 6 If your emotion matches a named emotion on your sheet,
cancel each other out. you roll plus that emotion. If it doesn’t match one of your
named emotions, you roll plus fabric.

9

When you roll, you will also be watching for matches. If any
of the dice rolled are the same, you’ve rolled a match.
Matches apply regardless of whether you’re rolling 2 or 3 dice.
Unsure in new terrain, Ysilla decides to spend some time
paying attention to work out their best route forwards.
They roll with competent and get a strong success and a
match. Ysilla’s player stitches one of the empty markers
around competent, then follows through with the move’s
instructions for a strong success.

Later, Ysilla sets up camp, in the cold and dark, despite the
sounds beyond their vision. They’re feeling afraid, which
+2 they don’t have named, so they roll with fabric. They roll
= 10, match another match, so fill in an empty fabric stitch.

Several moves will instruct you to stitch something—a bond,

emotion, move, wear or something else. This is a shorthand
way of saying “fill a stitch box”.
Stitch boxes are often represented by small, open
+2 stitch shapes. When you stitch, you fill in one of
= 6, match the boxes.
Often filling in a stitch will trigger additional effects. For
example, stitching wear brings a long-term condition for you
to deal with.

We call a collection of stitches used to track a particular thing

+2
= 5, match
If you match when rolling with an emotion, stitch it
by filling one of its surrounding segments on your
character sheet.
If you match when rolling with fabric, stitch fabric.
a patch. A patch might track your progress towards a goal, the
strength of a bond, the actions of a threat, or how much wear
you’ve taken.
Depending on the patch, effects might trigger whenever you
stitch it, or when the last stitch is filled.

10

When you fill up an emotion’s stitches, that emotion will
strain. Straining an emotion means those feelings are at the
fore right now, in a way your character can’t ignore.
Straining works differently depending on whether you strain
the territory’s emotion, fabric, or a named emotion.
Whichever it is, when an emotion strains, your character will
have to deal with it somehow. Do they lash out, or attempt to
ignore it? Does it linger, or become less important?
When you strain a named emotion, if the emotion doesn’t
already have a strain condition, choose one. If the emotion
already has a strain condition, follow its effects. Unless the
condition says otherwise, clear all stitches in the emotion.
Strain conditions represent different ways that the
character can try to deal with the emotion. Do they swear
something to themselves? Make an ambitious promise to
someone? Start believing something new?
Each strain condition has rules for resolving it, with different
possible outcomes. When you resolve a strain condition you’ll
usually see your character’s relationship to that emotion
change in some way. They might become more comfortable
feeling that emotion, it might change in some way, or it might
not be important to them any more.
RESOLVING STRAIN
It doesn’t matter too much in which order you resolve
strain and the move you made. Most of the time it’ll make
sense to finish the move and then work out any strain
effects, other times you might want to interweave the
two. Straining can give good fictional reasons for why a
move does or doesn’t pay off. Go for what feels right for
the situation.
11
When you take or resolve a strain condition, your emotion
will be altered in some way. The strain conditions on the next
page will tell you how, referring to the following effects.
Advance: you grow more comfortable in the emotion, raise
its modifier by one (to a maximum of +3). If it was a -1, it
becomes a +1.
Discard: erase the emotion from your sheet, it’s no longer a
named emotion. Perhaps it’ll be replaced in the future.
Focus: whenever you roll with an emotion that isn’t this one,
gain disadvantage.
Lock: don’t clear stitches in this emotion when it strains.
Loosen: you grow comfortable in a wider set of emotions.
Rename the emotion to something related, but broader, to
reflect this.
Narrow: you become focused on a specific facet of the
emotion. Rename it to something related, but more specific,
to reflect this.
Protect: don’t place stitches into this emotion when you roll
a match, though it can still stitch in other ways.
Shatter: your faith in the emotion completely erodes, its
modifier drops to a -2. If it was already at -2, it weakens.
Steady: when you roll with this emotion, you can stitch it to
increase the result level of your roll (from a miss to a mixed
success, from a mixed success to a strong success).
Weaken: you become less comfortable in the emotion.
Reduce it by 1 (to a minimum of -3). If it was a +1, it becomes
a -1.
When you take a strain condition for a named emotion, unless otherwise stated, clear all stitches in the strained emotion.

BELIEF LINGERING OATH

A new belief takes hold, rooted in the
emotion.
Write the belief down. While your
belief holds, this emotion is steady.
When you next strain, choose:
narrow and advance the emotion, or
loosen it.
If you ever abandon your belief,
discard the emotion.
PROMISE
You make a lifelong or ongoing
promise to someone.
Rewrite a bond statement to reflect
your promise, change its emotion to
this one. Protect this emotion.
If you break your promise, or this
emotion strains again, the emotion
shatters.
The emotion lingers, saturating
everything.
Focus this emotion.
When you strain again, clear this
condition. Then narrow, loosen or
discard this emotion.
RUIN
You lash out in the emotion, with
disastrous effect.
Lock this emotion. You can clear a
stitch by:
» Taking a reckless, selfish action
RESTRAINT
based on the emotion, the Fates make
a hard move in response.
» Using the emotion during a move.
Do not roll, instead treat it as a miss.
When you clear all stitches, choose:
discard the emotion or steady it.
Clear this condition.
You swear an oath to achieve
something. Start a project or journey
to represent it, with a patch of (5 +
emotion’s modifier) stitches.
If you complete the oath before you
strain again, advance it.
If you strain again before completing
it, your oath is broken:
» If at least half of your oath is filled,
weaken or discard the emotion.
» If less than half of your oath is filled,
the emotion shatters.
You make an inflexible vow, you
declare a line you will not cross.
Write your vow down. Protect this
emotion.
If you break your vow, or the emotion
strains again, the emotion shatters.

12
When you strain fabric, a new emotion becomes important to
your character. Clear all stitches in fabric and create a new
named emotion. Its modifier depends on the result level of
your last roll:
» A strong success: +2
» A mixed success: +1
» A miss: -1
You can choose any emotion you like; however, if it isn’t the
same emotion you used when you strained fabric, its modifier
starts a result level lower.
If you strain fabric and it’s not the result of a roll, create the
new emotion as if you’d rolled a mixed success.
When you strain a territory emotion, you trigger the
territory’s resonance move. This is a special move tied to the
landscape and its Remnant; there are suggestions for creating
these in the Fates section.
Resonance moves vary wildly, but the Fates will create one for
each territory as you play. You might be infused with the
Remnant’s emotion for a short while, be compelled to act a
certain way, or trigger a response from the landscape.
FEELING IT
Remember to think about how straining an emotion
shapes how your character acts in the fiction. Do they lash
out? Make a foolish decision? Shy away from the
situation?
Straining is designed to give you some leeway to think
about your character and their relationship to the things
they feel.
13
Bonds are connections between your character and others.
You might have bonds with another player character, an NPC,
a group or a community. Having a bond with someone signals
that your relationship is important to the story.
You establish up to three bonds when you create your
character, and develop more as you play. Each bond has four
parts:
The name of the person or faction it is with
An emotion describing how you currently feel about them
A statement that shows the cause of those feelings
A number of stitches, representing its strength
Each rolebook also has their own collection of bond triggers
which strengthen bonds as you play.
Bonds are always two-way. If you want a bond with another
player character, they must have a bond with you. If you
have a bond with an NPC, they’ll be able to use that bond too.
Bonds are a shared resource that both sides of it can use.
WHO CAN I HAVE BONDS WITH?
While most of your bonds will be with other people, you
can also have bonds with supernatural beings like
Remnants and envoys, with pets, factions, communities,
groups, families or even concepts (see The Heart).
The main thing to consider is that bonds are always two
directional. They represent something that has some kind
of hold over you, too. It should be with something you can
make demands of and that can make demands of you.
Each bond is defined by its emotions. Each side of the bond
will write down an emotion that represents how they feel
about their bond with the other.
This can be any emotion, it doesn’t have to be a named
emotion on your character sheet. Both sides of the bond can
choose a different emotion, they don’t have to match.
Levary creates a bond with sair Remnant, Oroloc. Sai
decide that sair emotion towards Oroloc is “reverence”.
The Fates also note Oroloc’s emotion towards Levary,
deciding that “disinterested” sums up their feelings at the
start of play.
Remember that these emotions will change as you play, they
aren’t set in stone. Pick whatever makes the most sense
right now, and you can alter things as you find out more
about your character and their relationships.
A bond statement is a short sentence that gives a little more
context about your bond. While the emotion sums up your
feelings towards the target of your bond, the statement gives
details about why you feel that way.
Like the emotion, the statement will shift as you play.
Good statements often work to give both a reason for your
bond, as well as some action to guide your roleplaying.
When you’re creating your bond, think about what your
character wants from the one they share it with. Do they
want to impress them? Teach them? Protect them?
Preserve their relationship?
Levary writes the statement “Oroloc is sacred and worthy
of my devotion. I will become their servant.”
14
Each bond has a strength. This represents how
tight the bond currently is; how connected the
two sides of the bond are. Bond strength is
represented by these stitches on the left.
The more stitches that are filled, the stronger the
bond. Bond strength often effects the the
outcomes of different moves—you might be able
to help someone better with a close bond than a fraying or
normal one.
Three stitches is a close bond.
Two stitches is a normal bond.
One stitch is a fraying bond.
A bond severs once it loses its last stitch.
The strength of a bond is shared by both sides of that bond.
Bond strength doesn’t necessarily represent any kind of
tenderness of feeling; it’s about how tied up you are in each
others lives.
Grouse feels angry towards his brother Pheasant, but their
bond is still close. They’re still tied up in each others lives.
If a bond severs, either the distance between you has grown
too vast, or there are tensions in your relationship that have
gone unresolved. You trigger sever which will offer both of
you choices about whether you try to repair your bond.
Bonds will shift regularly as you play, usually as the outcome
of a move. You might find a new closeness, or you might push
the edges of your relationship, risking something fraying or
changing.
Through play, you’ll use bonds to trigger bond moves, such as
when you demand action from your bond, or help, hinder or
reassure them.
Bond moves will often instruct you to roll plus your bond’s
emotion. Whenever you’re working closely with the target of
your bond, those are the feelings that are coming up, whether
your character notices them or not.
Instead of choosing which emotion to roll with, you roll with
the emotion you have assigned to the bond (if this is not one
of your named emotions, use fabric in its place).
You can gain new bonds or replace old ones as you play. If you
strengthen a bond with someone you don’t already have a
bond with, you can create a bond with them.
When you gain a new bond with someone, it always starts at
strength normal. You can have as many bonds as you have
available bond slots.
If you have filled your bond slots, you can gain new slots
through advancement, or by clearing out filled bonds to make
room for new ones.
If you want to clear and replace a bond, the bond target gets
to choose what happens.
If they agree that the old bond is no longer important: erase
the bond and they’ll take an obligation on you.
If they want to keep the bond, you have a choice: keep the
bond as it is or trigger the bond move sever.
15
You might be told to change a bond’s emotion or statement
during play. This represents a change in how you think about
your bond. It might be a big change or a small one.
Your relationship with the target of your bond is changing—
do you feel something different when you think of them? Do
you want something different from them?
Erase the old emotion and/or statement and record a new
one instead. Let everyone at the table know how your bond
has changed.
Obligations mark one-sided debts, and connections that
aren’t important enough to be bonds.
Obligations can be used in the place of a bond when
triggering a bond move. They are spent when you use them.
If you have multiple obligations on someone, you can spend
them together to make a bond move as if you had a stronger
bond—two obligations to equal a normal bond, three
obligations equal a strong bond.
Broh, an NPC, has been helping out Erit, a Tender, with his
farm, enough to have earned two obligations. When Broh
realises that she needs a cart to travel to a nearby village,
she decides to call those obligations in.
She uses them in place of a bond to make a demand. She
decides to use both bonds, getting to select two options
from the move. If Erit doesn’t repay Broh, others will know
of his refusal and she’ll gain advantage if she acts against
him—say, when she decides to just take the cart anyway.
 There are three stitches in each wear condition, which
Wear is a way of tracking long term consequences and represent the levels of the wear. Those levels are light,
complications—it represents exhaustion, stress, physical and moderate and severe.
spiritual harm, magical weirdness, things breaking, and so on.
Your character can take wear from a variety of sources: Light wear represents minor conditions.
moves can inflict wear as a consequence or a cost, weapons This might be sprained ankle, a couple of nights without
inflict wear during a confrontation, the Fates can choose to sleep, a grazed spirit. It’s a problem, but easily dealt with.
inflict wear as a hard move. When you take wear, the Fates
will tell you how much. Moderate wear represents more serious conditions.
This might be an open wound, exhaustion, a spirit leaking
and mingling. It’s difficult to deal with, and might need
Wear is assigned to wear conditions. Each character has skilled attention.
several spaces for these conditions on their character sheet, Severe wear is as bad as it gets.
like the one below:
You might have had a brush with death, its effects will
probably permanent—a badly broken limb, a loss of faith,
another spirit tangled up in yours.
Choose an emotion:
roll with disadvantage stitch it when rolled STITCH REMINDERS
shatter the emotion
You’ll find stitch markers like this one next to
anything on your character sheet that can be
When you take wear, you’ll be told a number by the Fates. This
effected by a wear condition (such as moves and
is the number of stitches you’ll assign between wear
emotions). You can use them to remind you what
conditions. You can split the stitches up however you like,
level of consequence your wear has.
putting it all into one condition or spreading it across
multiple ones.
When you place the first stitch in an empty condition,
decide what that wear represents—it might be a physical
injury, a fraying of spirit, a damaged ego or exhaustion, etc.
Name the wear to remind you of what it means.
If you place more stitches in the same condition later, you can
update the description to match any changes.

16
Emotions:
The emotion is rolled at disadvantage while this wear lasts.
You cannot clear stitches from this emotion, except by
straining, while this wear lasts.
The emotion shatters (see effects on named emotions).
You cannot discard or advance it while this wear lasts.
Rolebook moves:
The move is rolled at disadvantage while this wear lasts.
The move is crossed out. You cannot use it while this wear
lasts.
The move is erased. You cannot use it while this wear lasts.
Basic moves:
You gain disadvantage when rolling with this move
category while this wear lasts.
Cross out a move from this category. You cannot use it
while this wear lasts.
The crossed out move is erased. You cannot use it while
this wear lasts.
Companions:
Their emotion flares. The Fates make a move based on it.
They are out of action—injured, occupied or something
else. You cannot call on them while this wear lasts.
They leave your service. You might suffer other
consequences while this wear lasts—perhaps you cannot
replace them, perhaps they become your sworn rival.
Character:
You hesitate or flinch. The Fates get to make a move.
You stumble and fall. You are out of action for a while.
You are done. This is likely the end, meet death or retire.
17
Lychia weaves a spell to ward off a strange envoy, taking
1 wear as a consequence. He stitches one of his wear
conditions, deciding it has made him ‘disconnected’ from
his ability to weave patchwork charms:
disconnected - patchwork charms
Choose a rolebook move:
roll with disadvantage cross it out
cross becomes permanent
This gives Lychia disadvantage when he rolls the move in
the future. Lychia also stitches the wear next to the move,
just as a reminder for when he rolls it in the future:
PATCHWORK CHARMS
Later, Lychia weaves again, now with disadvantage, and
rolls a miss. He ends up taking another 2 wear.
He assigns 1 wear to his disconnected wear condition,
making it moderate. The description is changed to ‘leaking
spirit’:
Leaking spirit - patchwork charms
Choose a rolebook move:
roll with disadvantage cross it out
cross becomes permanent
This means that patchwork charms is now crossed out. He
can’t use it until he finds healing:
PATCHWORK CHARMS
Lastly, the other wear gets assigned to a new condition,
“shaken”, which effects his confident emotion.
Some gear has the protective tag. If you have a protective
item, matching the type of wear taken, you can stitch it to
ignore that wear.
Chapel takes 2 spirit wear, but has a protective amulet
that works for spirit. They mark it to ignore it.
Most armour can only be stitched once; you can choose to
stitch it a second time, but it will break if you do.
If your character ever stitches severe harm on the character
wear condition, their place in your story might have come to
an end somehow.
If you decide to meet death, trigger the move and follow it
through to its conclusion. It might be that this the final end
for the character, or they might become a spirit or grounded,
a new and different version of themself.
If they retire, they move to the background of your story.
Perhaps they leave altogether, setting off in a different
direction and with a different purpose; they move toward the
edges of the tale you are telling.
PLAYING WITH WEAR
Wear is meant to be flexible. It lets you choose and
describe your own ongoing conditions, and there’s a lot of
space to adapt it to fit the style and tone of your game.
While Ryne is a world with a lot of inbuilt consequence,
there are a lot of ways that this can play out. If you’d
prefer game with less outright harm, you can focus wear
on representing other conditions instead—weakening
hope, faith and confidence in abilities, damage to
resources, etc.
Wear can be healed in a few different ways.
» Spending hold during a moment of peace
» As the result of some rolebook moves
» Spending time under a healer’s care in the fiction
» Completing a relevant project
Different levels of wear require different types of healing.
Light wear can be healed through any of the options above.
It doesn’t usually require any specialist care.
Moderate wear can also be healed through any of the above,
but might require attention from a healer of some kind.
Severe wear is usually permanent and lasting. It can only be
healed in rare circumstances, such as the result of a lengthy
project or the intervention of the supernatural.
When you heal wear, you’ll be instructed how much wear to
heal. You remove that many stitches from the wear
conditions of your choice. You should also clear any reminder
stitches that are linked to it.
Any effects from the wear change to the new level. If you
move from moderate to light wear, for example, you now only
suffer the effects of the light wear.
Alter your wear descriptions where that makes sense. Erase
them if you clear your stitches completely. If you stitch a
cleared condition in the future, you chose a new name and
description for that wear condition.

18
When you create your character in Ryne, you’ll be asked to
define their humanity. A character’s humanity describes one
way that they are bodily adapted to this world, and to the
landscape around them. It might not be the only way they’re
adapted, but it’s the one that is the most significant to them.
Humanity is a broad concept in Ryne—people are wildly
varied, adapted to the Remnants’ strangeness. They might
have photosynthesising skin, wings, luminescent manes,
carapaces, or the ability to regrow limbs. You decide, as a
group, what the limits of your world might be.
Your humanity gives you special permissions in the game,
allowing you to do something others can’t, or giving you tools
for certain situations.
Humanities are meant to be explored. They give you fictional
positioning to try out all kinds of new things, often allowing
you to use gear or tempt the fates to try interesting things.
Bardel has a humanity that means that he has little
pockets in his body, suitable for growing plants inside. In
the description of his humanity, it allows him to have a
range of simple herbs always available.
If he wanted to use his humanity to grow something other
than that—perhaps something strange and unusual—he
might have to use gear, tempt the fates or even start a
project in order to see how that goes.
There are several humanities listed in the Starting Play
section, but you can always create your own. Decide with the
Fates and the rest of the table on what feels interesting and
appropriate for your game.
19
When you play as a ghost in Ryne, you’ll be asked to define
their tell. Your tell is the nature that your spirit form takes;
unanchored from the physical, a ghost’s spirit will begin to
alter as their personality manifests visibly in the world.
A tell has three descriptors, the adjectives that describe how
your ghostly presence takes shape. Your tell doesn’t have to
be obvious all of the time, but it may become apparent when
you take wear, or become more extreme. For each level of
wear you have stitched, one of your tell descriptors is made
visible or more noticeable.
Skreeka’s tell has the descriptors fraying, smokey, echoing.
When they take light wear, they begin to echo, parts of
their form lingering behind them when they move.
When they take moderate wear, their fraying descriptor
activates. Those echoing forms dissipate weirdly into the
air.
Ghosts also start with a boon and a bane. Boons are unique
ways you can use your ghostly form. Banes are a way that
your form is limited, something you struggle with. There are
several boons and banes listed in the Starting Play section.
GHOSTS AND HUMANITIES
Ghosts will, for the most part, reflect the appearance of
any physical body they did have or could have had. They’ll
still show a humanity, but it’s not as important as it is to
those with physical bodies. They get no special abilities or
permissions from it, it’s often purely cosmetic—though
you can always try to tempt the fates to do something
interesting with it.
Companions are a special kind of NPC representing pets,
travelling companions, allies, and groups that you lead. A
companion might be the moth-like dog that travels with you,
someone that works alongside you to study Remnants, or
your group of religious followers.
When you gain a companion, add them to your character
sheet, recording:
» A defining emotion that represents their core nature
» Two skills—particular abilities you can always rely on
them for
Companions largely act like any other NPC. The Fates usually
act as them in scenes, and might make decisions about what
they do. However, they should do so in consultation with the
player responsible for the companion, asking questions to
figure out what the companion is like and how they’d act.
Players can also use the move direct a companion to instruct
their companions to do something specific, such as helping
them with a task, or to acting on their behalf.
Some moves will tell you that a companion’s emotion flares.
This means that they immediately take decisive—and possibly
reckless—action, based on their defining emotion. The Fates
will make a move to represent this action.
Companions can be stitched by your wear conditions. If a
condition effects them, they might act out according to their
emotion, be harmed, or even part ways with you.
20
Gear represents useful, significant or treasured items that
your characters have. Each character starts with three pieces
of gear, and might gain or lose some through play.
Gear represents any narratively important items that your
character has access to. There’s no need to track everything
that your character has with them; you can always introduce
relevant items that your character would reasonably have
with them, as long as your table agrees.
During play, your gear might influence the story, grant
fictional positioning or be used to trigger the use gear move.
Gear can sometimes be lost or stitched, usually due to a Fate
move. If a piece of gear is stitched, it means it is damaged,
running low, or some equivalent. It can be used one last time,
but it will then be permanently lost or broken.
Resources represent a range of general assets, equipment,
stores and concepts that are important to your narrative.
While you don’t need to track the minutia of what characters
and communities have, sometimes you might keep track of
specific important resources, such as food, herbs, feathers,
morale, wealth, faith, loyalty, light, etc.
Resources are usually gained and spent as a result of moves.
You might need a resource to add work to a project or to offer
tribute to another community or Remnant. Some story seeds
and rolebooks available in the full rules of Ryne make greater
use of resources during play.

Scenes, locations and situations can all have a mood attached.
This might be shaped by where the scene takes place, a
strong emotion shared between participants, the Remnant’s
domain or the landscape around you.
When you roll with an emotion that matches the mood or
take an action that furthers that mood, you gain advantage.
When you roll with an emotion that’s opposite to the mood
or take an action that’s opposed to it, you gain disadvantage.
A scene’s mood can be set in a few different ways:
» If a Remnant or envoy is in a scene, the mood usually
matches its domain or emotion
» Features often have their own moods, built up in a place
over time
» Locations core to the territory might take on their Remnant’s
domain or emotion
» Someone shifts the mood
» A mood becomes obvious to the table as you play
You’ll often find that the geography, supernatural forces,
resonance, or events present in a scene will make a particular
mood apparent.
If you have an idea on what the mood of a scene should be,
offer it to the group and see if people agree. You can also ask
for the mood of a scene at any time—perhaps you want to
know how a place feels, to get a sense of how you might react
to something happening.
21
NEUTRAL MOODS
Not every scene needs a mood. A mood is always left as
neutral unless another mood becomes apparent.
Note that a mood doesn’t represent what everyone and
everything in a place is feeling, but rather the collective
emotion of a scene.
A rainstorm arrives, which has the mood ‘miserable’. For
Grello though, whose newt-like skin has been drying out
all day, the rain brings a sense of relief.
Characters can attempt to change the mood of a scene in a
few different ways. The most direct is to shift the mood,
though it can also be altered as the result of rolebook and
Fate moves. The mood can also be changed simply through
the fiction, when the story demands it.
When the mood shifts, the person shifting it says how. The
mood might shift between two unrelated moods, deepen into
something more specific, or perhaps begin to fade.
A mood can’t normally shift to its opposite. You might have to
start a project or do something highly unusual to achieve this.
When a mood is inherent to a place, it is entrenched. You can
only shift an entrenched mood by starting and completing a
project.
When you play Ryne, you shape your own version of its world
by establishing your boundaries. Boundaries are the limits of
your world, the things that can’t be changed. When you start
play, consider questions you have about your world and
answer them, as loosely as you like, as a group.
“Can anyone weave spirit?”, “Can people leave death’s realm?”,
“Can you change the emotion of a territory?”
As you play and as you answer more questions about how
your world works, you’ll set more boundaries. When you are
told to establish a boundary, write it down.
One of the most common ways that boundaries are set is
through the move tempt the fates. The move is all about
testing the world and your abilities.
Often, this will lead you to create personal boundaries for
your character, setting limitations on your abilities or how
you can use your moves. Make sure to record them.
Boundaries can be established in a few different ways:
» As the result of tempting the fates
» As a Fate move, the Fates can establish a boundary
» When a boundary becomes obvious, anyone can declare it
and establish it
Boundaries are the limitations to your world, they cannot
normally be broken. However, this is not a never. Changing
and breaking boundaries can be a good focus for narrative
arcs or even whole campaigns of play, perhaps linked to one
or more projects.
22
Over time your characters will grow and change. They might
develop skills, learn new moves or change old ones.
Characters advance by meeting milestones. Milestones are
triggers which are tied to your rolebook, achieved by doing
certain things in play. You might have a milestone to meet a
Remnant, have a spell go awry, or enter a new landscape.
Each rolebook has its own list of milestones, which you’ll find
with the character sheets. Milestones are split into two types.
Minor milestones are usually easy to accomplish, you’ll
probably achieve it in a session or two. Major milestones take
longer; they’re significant moments in your character’s story
that might take several sessions to work towards.
At the start of each session, choose two of the milestones
that you’re currently working towards, and write them
down. When you choose your milestones, you can choose
between minor and major as you wish. Our recommendation
is that you start with one of each, giving you an immediate
goal and a long-term one.
At the end of each session, check if you’ve met any of your
milestones. For each milestone that you’ve met, you advance.
If you’ve met a minor milestone, you can choose any
regular advancement or unlocked special advancement.
If you’ve met a major milestone, you first unlock a new
special advancement. You then advance, taking any
regular or unlocked special advancement.
Advancements marked with a can be taken once for each
available box. Advancements marked with p can be taken
any number of times.
STARTING PLAY
Starting Play walks you through preparing for a game of Ryne,
including creating your characters, choosing a story seed,
and building shared world. You’ll find the four available
rolebooks at the end of this section; these are The Guide, The
Heart, The Tethered and The Weaver.
There are currently three ways you can get started with Ryne,
depending on the length of game you want to play.
Vacant Tribute (additional download with the playkit) is
designed to be simple to run, giving you 1-4 sessions of
play. If you want to get started quickly, to get a feel for
the game, this is the place to start. The scenario is loose,
mostly a set of prompts and guides to guide your world-
building. You can start reading the scenario, then come
back here when it is time to create characters.
The Change (additional download with the playkit) is
one of Ryne’s story seeds, which are tools to help groups
create their version of Ryne. It’s suited to a longer game,
where you want to spend a bit of time imagining a
territory and its Remnant before you start playing.
The Playtest features a range of different story seeds
and rolebooks. If you’d like to explore the full range of
the larger game, you can .
23
If you’re looking to play for a few sessions or more, we
recommend beginning with a session zero. This is a session
where you discuss everyone’s expectations and hopes for the
game, as well as talk about any safety tools you want to
implement.
During the session zero, you’ll begin to create your world and
characters. Our suggested order to do this is as follows:
» Select the story seed that you want to play
» Answer the shared prompts and questions
» Select your rolebooks and create characters
» Answer your character questions and create bonds
» Select a starting situation or make one up
» Play
SPEEDING THINGS UP
If you want to start playing a little quicker, there are a few
things you can do to speed up the initial world and
character creation steps:
» Discuss your story seed before the session, or save some
of the questions to be answered during play.
» Save character questions until after your first scene.
» Create bonds as you play the game—when you think you
should have a bond with someone, fill one in.
» Select moves, gear and similar as you go.

Characters are defined by their rolebooks. Rolebooks are a
rough archetype to play with—for example, a Guide is
knowledgeable about one or more areas of the landscape.
What makes each rolebook distinct are their moves, their
unique rolebook ability, their perspective on the world, and
how they advance and grow.
When you select a rolebook, it helps to get a feel for the kind
of story it will help you tell. Look at its moves, bond triggers,
and the milestones you’ll need to fulfil to advance. For
example, a lot of Guide’s moves and advancements are about
dealing with changes in nature, giving guidance to other
people, and exploring new landscapes.
While each rolebook has a story to it, these stories are
flexible. There’s a lot of space for you to make it your own. A
Heart might be a priest struggling with their faith or a street
performer leading a revolution.
Caeser decides that she wants to play some kind of
storyteller, and takes a look through the rolebooks to see
which one best fits her idea.
The Heart is an obvious choice, they’re all about
expressing themselves, but Caeser isn’t that into their
character representing an ideal.
Caeser ends up choosing the Guide. She loves the idea of
giving advice to others, maybe through parables. She
keeps a note of some Heart moves, though, so she can take
some later.
24
CHARACTER CREATION STEPS
1. Choose a rolebook
2. Decide on a name, pronouns, look, fashion and gear
3. Choose a form, and a humanity or tell as appropriate
4. Pick your named emotions, assign values to them
5. Pick a bond trigger
6. Note down your rolebook’s core moves
7. Pick two rolebook moves
8. Introduce your character to the table
9. Answer your rolebook questions
10. Create and detail any bonds
When you choose your character’s form, you decide what
your character has—a body, a spirit or both. For most
rolebooks, you can choose between any form.
If you want to be a ghost: instead of selecting a humanity
from your rolebook, follow the instructions for creating a
ghost.
If you want to be grounded: there are rules in the full
version of Ryne for selecting an anchor alongside your
humanity, or, for now, you can create a character who will
ignore most supernatural effects as you play.
The Tethered rolebook (and the Grounded in the full Ryne
rules) both focus on characters who have one particular form,
spirit or body only; for those rolebooks, that form has a
profound effect on their connection to the world, and their
play is shaped around it.
Ghosts in Ryne are still living people—
they still have their own wants, desires
and agency—they just don’t have a
physical form. Being a ghost means only
having a spirit, free from many concerns
that bodies bring.
To create a ghost, pick your tells, a boon
and a bane.
You are not bound by the limits of a
body (you might tempt the fates when
you test exactly what this means). You
cannot be harmed by physical means.
You can push your ghostly form to do
something unusual. Pick one and note it
down on your character sheet:
» FLUID: Given a moment or two, you
can alter your appearance. What
feature always stays the same?
» MOORED: You can appear next to
one of your bonds at will. Who are
you tied to?
» ETERNAL: If your spirit is destroyed,
you reappear a few days later. What
lingering effects are there?
» SPLITTING: You can split your spirit
into two. How does this weaken you?
» UMBRAL: You can pass through
material objects at will. What risk do
you invite when you do so?
Your ghostly form also causes you
problems. Pick one and note it down on
your character sheet:
» BOUND: You are bound to an object,
place or person. Gain disadvantage
while you’re away from it. What are
you bound to? How far can you stray?
» ERODING: You struggle to maintain
your presence. Whenever you roll a
match, pick 1: you can’t be seen, you
can’t be heard, you can’t interact with
the physical. It lasts for the scene.
» ATTACHED: Your spirit is bound to
the physical. You can be harmed by
mundane means and can be affected
by things like weather, temperature,
poisons and sickness.
» UNSPOOLING: One of your tells is
always apparent. How do you stop it
growing worse?
» STATIC: You always have the same
territory’s emotion, and trigger that
Remnant’s resonance, regardless of
where you actually are. Is it this
place’s emotion?
25
You have tells, that reveal your true
ghostly nature.
Pick or create three:
desaturated, scented, painted, melodious,
unspooling, glitching, glowing, fraying,
overlapping, noisy, chilling, golden, feral,
borderless, dripping, stuttering, golden,
fogged, shifting, howling, swarming,
leaking, duplicating, detaching, smoking,
frosted, rooted, inconsistent
When you take wear, your tells will
become apparent. For each level of wear
you have stitched (light, moderate and
severe) choose one of your tell
descriptors. It is obvious and noticeable.
HUMANITIES
Ghosts still have a humanity, though
it’s not as important anymore.
Pick one from the humanities list
and answer its questions. You don’t
get the ability associated with it.
The emotions you pick for your character are called named
emotions. These are emotions that are important for your
character at this point in their story. As you play, they will
shift and develop, new ones might appear to take their place.
Choose emotions feel right to you, but don’t worry about it
too much. If, after playing a session or two, you realise that
scared should be nervous, or an emotion doesn’t quite fit, just
change it. Each rolebook has its own list of suggested
emotions but you can also create your own.
If you’re unsure, you can start play with your emotions
unfilled. When you choose an emotion to roll with, decide
then whether you want to roll with fabric or set it as one of
your named emotions.
Each rolebook comes with a set of moves.
Core moves are built in features of the rolebook, you get
them automatically. They guide how the rolebook plays.
Each character chooses two moves from their rolebook
moves. These are skills, abilities and approaches your
character can call on.
Each rolebook also has a list of advanced moves. These are
unlocked as you advance. You can’t choose them during
character creation.
Once everyone is ready, go around the table introducing your
characters. Share your name and pronouns, describe your
humanity and look, and give an overview of any notable
moves or gear.
26
After everyone has introduced their characters, go around
the table again, taking it in turns to answer one of your
character’s initial questions. Repeat this until everyone has
answered all of their questions.
These questions ask you question about the world and your
character’s place in it. Who are you? What connections do
you have here? What is your place in this landscape?
Pick one of the listed answers for each question, adding
additional detail, or invent one of your own.
The answers you pick might instruct you to create bonds,
grant you additional gear, assign your territory’s emotion,
etc. If you created your own answer, see which provided
answer fits best for any benefits.
Bond triggers describe ways that your character develops
bonds with others. Pick one from your rolebook when you
create your character. You’ll gain more when you advance.
The last step is to select your bonds. You might have some
already set from your initial questions. Any empty bonds you
can assign to another character. To create a bond with a
player character, you both need to use a slot for that bond.
For each bond, set its starting strength to normal, filling in
two stitches. Then, choose an emotion you feel towards the
other person and write a statement to explain it.
You can leave some or all of your bonds blank, if you want to.
Fill them out as you play, when you realise that a relationship
is important to your character.

Pick from below or create your own
when creating your character.
BIO-LUMINESCENCE
Your body faintly glows.
You can create faint light, and give
simple signals to others within sight.
What colour and pattern are the
lights? Where does the luminescence
come from?
FURRED
CARAPACE
You have a tough exoskeleton like an
insect or crustacean.
You gain armour (protective, bulky,
mundane).
What is the carapace made out of?
Where does it cover?
CLAY SKIN
HORNS
An outer layer of soft clay forms on
your body.
You can vary the thickness and the
consistency to reshape it. You might
use it to extend your reach, or to
shape small items.
What colour is the clay? Have you ever
known it to dry out?
EXTRA ARMS
You have an additional pair of arms,
that function much the same as your
other pair.
You might use them to carry extra
things, to give you stability when
navigating sheer surfaces, or to give
really good hugs.
Where are the extra pair of arms? Are
they as strong as your first pair?
MYCELIAL NETWORK
You are covered in a dense fur.
When you’re in an environment your
fur is suited to, you gain advantage
when you attempt to hide yourself,
as well as when dealing with negative
effects from temperature.
What colour and pattern is the fur?
What environment is it suited to?
TENDRILS
You have a pair or more of horns,
curled around your head.
You gain advantage to convince
when you use your horns to show
status.
What do the horns look like? How
have you decorated them?
27
MANY LEGGED
You have additional legs, aiding your
stability and speed.
When you attempt to outpace
someone, you gain advantage. Take 1
wear if the chase is sustained, or the
terrain is difficult and uneven.
How is your body changed to fit your
extra legs? Can you carry others too?
Part of your body is mushroom or
fungus-like in nature.
When you pay attention you may ask
“What knowledge can the mycelial
network share about ?”
What noticeable fungus-like feature
do you have? How can you tap into the
subterranean mycelial network?
You have tendrils or tentacles,
perfect for gripping things.
When you have something firmly
held, only drastic or supernatural
means can remove it from your
grasp. You cannot be disarmed.
What are the tendrils shaped like?
How many do you have?
PLUMAGE
You have bright, beautiful feathers.
You gain advantage when you hold
someone’s attention or lead through
danger if bedazzling or distracting is
your aim. In either case, you will put
yourself at the centre of attention.
What colours and patterns are the
plumage? How do you show off their
dazzling vibrance?
LONG SNOUT
You have a fine long snout, with a
delicate nose perched at the end.
You gain advantage to pay attention
when using your sense of smell,
though you may gain disadvantage
ongoing when in a space with
overwhelming smells.
What kinds of smells are you tuned in
to? What smells can’t you abide?
WINGS
You have a large set of functioning
wings, allowing you to glide or fly.
You gain advantage when flight is a
benefit, such as riding hard by
soaring through the sky.
What kind of wings do you have?
Where are they on your body?
SUBTERRANEAN
You are adapted to living below
ground. Perhaps you have strong,
short forelimbs for shovelling dirt.
You can live below the earth
comfortably, and being familiar with
using or creating tunnels offers new
paths and escape routes for you.
How are you adapted to living below
ground? What discomfort does the
surface bring?
HIVE
You have a structure—perhaps an
exoskeleton, shelf mushrooms or
woody vine growths—that provide a
home to a hive of ants, bees or
similar insects.
Your hive is a companion, with the
nature swarming and the ability
foraging, plus one other of your
choice.
What is your hive made from? What
has taken residence there? How do
you communicate with them?
PRICKLY
You have sharp bristles, perhaps like a
porcupine, cactus or nettle.
When someone inflicts mundane
wear on you, you inflict 1 wear back.
What kind of bristles do you have? How
prominent are they?
28
SOIL POCKETS
You have small pockets of fresh dirt,
naturally occurring on your body.
You can use them to grow plants—
herbs for tea and meals, poisons and
medicines, experiments with new
strange seeds.
How is the soil kept nutritious? What
unwanted pests do the plants attract?
PLANT COVERED
You are covered in plants that grow as
part of your body—a head of oxalis
leaves, a mossy beard, broad leaves
like a cape across your back.
You can photosynthesise, meaning as
long as you have water and daylight
you don’t need other food.
What plants cover you? Do you have to
tend to them.
You have a pair gills or equivalent.
You can breathe freely in another
environment, such as below water.
What environment can you breathe
in? Are there other ways you’re
adapted to the environment?
STONEFOLK Hunter’s Bow — 2 wear, mundane — far
Gathered: Curlew, Grouse, Starling, 1 Tired — piercing 1
Wren, Marmot, Weasel, Cricket, Gecko, 2 Peaceful
Salamander, Burr Worn Staff — 2 wear, mundane — hand,
3 Focused
1 near
Collective: Gos, Wrach, Vorn, Stou, Los, 4 Reflective
Avou, Sen, Noru, Brich, Gren 5 Jubilant
Spirit Rifle — 3 wear, spirit — far —
6 Restless
conspicuous, reload
ILLUXUS MALLIS 1 Indifferent
Envoy served: Fate’s, Arbor’s, Brackens’, 2 Pleased Bismuth Bracer — spirit & mundane
Tide’s, Yoke’s, Fir’s, Stream’s, Tor’s, 3 Competitive protective
2
Storm’s, Season’s 4 Resentful
5 Wistful Storied Sword — 2 wear, mundane —
Service: Boundary, Precedent, Favoured, 6 Anxious hand — reputation
Beloved, Watching, Stillness, Certainty, 1 Reckless
Tumult, Growth, Doubt, Forsaken 2 Powerful Useful Knife — 2 wear, mundane — hand
3 Friendly — tool
CONCLAVE 3
4 Jovial
Given: Maccot, Xender, Terrella, Amsil, 5 Loving Heavy Axe — 3 wear, mundane — hand &
Bilat, Gallon, Sylla, Cerrin, Doravish, 6 Wary close — cumbersome, trusty
Fycala 1 Protective
2 Ardent Blood Halberd — 2 wear, spirit &
Family: Tilasis, Awl, Bross, Gliss,
3 Surprised mundane — close — piercing 1, tiring
Toladen, Carela, Lor, Borillos, Tarn, Palis 4
4 Stubborn
5 Stressed Light Armour — mundane — protective
AUSTR
6 Helpful
Chosen: Flint, Buzak, Ido, Sheq, Vo, Cata, Blessed Amulet — spirit — protective,
1 Sad
Blik, Rayl, Zurak, Sham reinforced
2 Eager
Omen: Erul, Ven, Vrek, Lee, Ozk, Pris, Tal, 3 Dejected
Zyl, Dzi 5 Heavy Plate — mundane — protective,
4 Uneasy
plentiful 2, tiring
Lineage: Qu, Tun, Se, Ris, Xar, Pol, Erut, 5 Scared
Sten, Gila, Arzuk 6 Arrogant
1 Distant
BRACKISH 2 Secretive
Used: Lanii, Terna, Issin, Boja, Janun, 3 Faithful
6
Niyish, Ensi, Howrii, Zoile, Bo, Proyis 4 Angry
5 Curious
6 Meddlesome
29
You’re as comfortable in the strange landscapes of this world as others
are in its towns and villages. You can navigate boiling rivers and glass
deserts, find food in dead forests and shelter amongst dunes of ash. You
can look after yourself, but can you also guide others?

Pick a name and pronouns.

Pick one:
Pick one: » Teach someone a trick of the
» I have a body and a spirit. Pick a landscape
humanity. » Create a hand-drawn map for
» I only have a spirit. Pick a tell, someone
boon and bane. » Pay someone a visit after a
» I only have a body. Pick a while away from home
humanity and an anchor.
Pick a few: sharp eyes, wide-eyed,
Pick or create three emotions: horizon-locked eyes, weathered
hands, frost-bitten hands, vibrant,
» careful » daring plant-hued, stout, slight, wild
» peaceful » restless haired, calloused
» cheery » stern Pick a few: bandoleers of dried
» wise » curious herbs and fresh flowers, heavy
» resolved » lost backpack, layered furs, elaborate
» Lead others through Ryne’s Themes: the natural world, travel,
harness, light linens, dull-hued
strange terrain environmental change, flora and
Assign +2, +1 and -1 to them. wraps, earth-tones, bare feet, heavy
» Know (and invent) details of fauna, giving advice, mentorship,
boots, wide-brimmed hat, moss-
You also start with Fabric +0. familiar landscapes trade, teaching.
stains, singed leathers, practical
cape, distinctive patterned scarf, » Explore how places change Touchstones: The Fremen (Dune),
bright jewellery, rope belt » Be looked to as a source of Wolf (Kipo), The Woodsman (Over
advice and knowledge the Garden Wall), San (Princess
» Always have a trick up your Mononoke), Snufkin (Moomins),
sleeve Ginko (Mushi-shi)
30

Pick three pieces of gear: one
you always pack first, one that
causes you trouble, one that
reminds you of home
» a half-tame animal, nestled at
your collarbone (companion)
» a sturdy bag, organised in a
way only you understand
» bottles of ink and rolls of
paper
» a unique device suited to a
particular environment
» a trinket bought at distant
markets
» a wagon with a stubborn
animal (companion) to pull it
» a smooth handled walking
stick
» a book that you can’t read
» a practical tool that doubles as
a weapon
When you pay attention, ask:
» What here is useful to me?
» What here is changing?
» What leaf, stone or stream is
out of place?
» What’s the best path
forward?
» What danger haven’t we
noticed?
INTRODUCTIONS
After everyone’s introduced their characters, go round answering these
questions.
At its heart, it dominates this
place. Start with the territory’s
emotion at +1.
At its edges, perhaps new
growth or something in
decline. Start with the
territory’s emotion at -1.
On the Remnant, its body is an
ecosystem of its own. Start
with the territory’s emotion at
+2. Stitch it.
The Furrow, who see only
conquest and harvest. Gain a
bond with a member of the
Furrow or someone devoted to
stopping them.
A trespassing Remnant. You’ve
seen signs of its influence.
Gain a bond with a servant of
this territory’s Remnant.
A plant or animal—nameless,
and strangely adapted to this
place. Gain a bond with a
community worried by it.
31
A mountain range, or
something like it. A wall,
difficult to pass.
A vast expanse—an ocean,
forest, desert—that stretches
for miles.
Another Remnant, its territory
unfurling beneath it. The
strange zone where the two
Remnant’s influences meet.
Mark it on your map.
You start with three bonds. For
each, choose an emotion and a
statement. They start at normal.
_____ longs to join me on my
travels, maybe they’re ready.
_____ sees this land as a tool.
It will lead to ruin.
_____ asks me about my
travels, I bring them back gifts.
_____ gives me a place to rest
my head.
Playing the Guide
The Guide is focused on the
landscape; you play as a bridge
between the terrain around you
and other people. The Guide
ability and Home Terrain give
you space to imagine what the
landscape is like, as well as your
competence within it.
If you want to focus on moving
around, Canny and Forager help
you travel quickly, inventing new
and useful details as you go.
Always Prepared helps if you’re
planning longer journeys, while
Odds and Ends is about always
having the right thing with you.
Guidance puts the focus on
other people—whether you’re
telling them how to get
somewhere or giving them
advice. Advanced moves such as
High Road and Familiar Paths
let you build on this.
Easy, There! is useful for a Guide
working with animals, letting
you calm creatures around you.
The Guide isn’t necessarily a
ranger archetype. You can play
them as an explorer, but they’re
equally suited to knowing one
place well—perhaps someone
living closely within a specific
area, or a trader cycling through
villages.
CORE ABILITIES
Start with Guide and two Home
Terrains.
Start with two from below.
While you’re within your home
terrain, you:
□ know the common name of
every plant or animal
□ know the folk name of every
supernatural creature
□ can always ask “What is this
animal’s instinct?”
□ can always ask “What are the
properties of this plant?”
□ know the provenance of
species of flora or fauna
□ will never go hungry
□ will never become lost
□ know when the weather is
about to change
□ say how much everyone holds
during a moment of peace
You truly know the terrain around
you. Pick or create two for your
home terrain: frozen dunes,
amber mountains, floating earth,
salt-crusted tundra, vibrant wilds,
ribbon forest, shadowed coast,
rolling meadows, perfumed desert,
endless ocean, untamed streets,
splintered spires.
GUIDE MOVES
Start with two Guide moves:
When someone comes to you for
guidance on the direction they
should take and you give it, they
hold equal to stitches in your
bond (minimum 1). While they
follow your advice, they may
spend their hold, 1-for-1, to gain:
advantage on a roll, or any of your
chosen effects from guide.
Each time they act counter to
your advice, they return 1 hold
and you pick 1: weaken your bond
with them or stitch your bond’s
emotion or have the Fates make a
move against them.
When you use trick, trail and
geography to move quickly through
the landscape, roll. On a 10+, pick
3. On a 7-9, pick 2.
» Your tracks are hidden
» You appear elsewhere
» You escape a pursuer
» You alter the environment to
your benefit
On a miss, the environment shifts
beneath you. The Fates say what
obstacle or danger you missed in
your hurry.
32
When you spend a moment of At the start of each session, you
peace consulting maps or may bring an object found,
preparing your pack, you may save foraged or cultivated from the
your hold, 1-for-1, for the journey natural world, adding it to your
ahead. pack.
While you’re following your route, When you introduce an object
spend 1 hold to say how you from your pack, tell everyone
prepared for a complication, what it is and how it might be
obstacle or change of weather. useful. You may use it as gear
You, or a person travelling with when you use gear. The item is
you, gain advantage while dealing used up in addition to any other
with it. costs.
When you declare that a feature or
resource exists in the nearby
wilderness, roll. On a 10+, it’s there
as you described it. On a 7-9, it’s
there but different, changed or
dangerous to get to.
On a miss, it’s irrevocably altered,
or getting there exposes you to
great danger, the Fates say which.
When you calm an over-excited,
panicking or out of control animal,
roll. On a success, you calm it
down or fend it off. On a 7-9,
doing so is stressful, fraught or
scary; stitch an emotion.
On a miss, pick 1: you grab the
reigns or fend off the animal, but
you take wear in the process or
the animal runs amok.
ADVANCED MOVES
These moves require specific
advancements.
Requires Guidance.
When you begin to gather your
knowledge about a home terrain
together, say how you record it
and start a project clock.
When you spend time studying
and writing about a feature, quirk,
or the flora or fauna of the
landscape, add 1 work.
When the project is completed,
anyone who uses the record gains
the benefits of your guide move
while within that terrain.
When you spend time identifying
and removing encroaching
growth, roll. On a success, you
find it. On a 10+, pick 2. On a 7-9,
pick 1.
» You find its roots
» You slow its growth
» You know what’s causing it
On a miss, it’s much worse than
you thought, the growth resists
your attempts to remove it, or it
has already spread. The Fates
make a move, as hard as they like.
When you enter an unfamiliar
landscape, say how you scout the
terrain, then roll. On a 10+, ask 3.
On a 7-9, ask 1.
» How far does this land extend?
» Where can we shelter here?
» How can I best prepare for this
landscape?
» Who amongst us is at risk from
this place’s influence?
» Who amongst us is least suited
to this environment?
» What guises are the Remnant’s
envoys likely to wear?
On a miss ask 1, then the Fates
choose: you run into trouble
while scouting or a peril from the
landscape makes itself felt.
Requires Forager.
When you spend a moment of
peace in your home terrain, spend
your hold to move between
locations or secure a resource
available within the terrain.
When you forge a new path
between two places, say how you
mark it. Whenever you or
someone you give guidance to
follows that path, gain advantage.
33
Requires a bond with a home When you arrive in a familiar
terrain or its Remnant settlement, say where people here
gather, then roll. On a 10+, pick 3.
When you call on the land to give
On a 7-9, pick 2.
you aid, spend stitches from your
bond, 1-for-1, to: » Someone offers you a place to
rest
» Provide a cornucopia of food
that rots after a day » You find useful information
about the trail ahead
» Summon an envoy to your side
in return for a heavy debt » You may trade a resource for
two of any other
» Dry a riverbed, it will return
with a later flood » You run into an old friend
» Bring forth a flurry of animals, » No-one has been waiting far too
under control for only a scene long for your return
» Have plants grow wild and On a miss, pick 1: the mood has
fierce, forever shifting the changed here or you meet
balance of this ecosystem someone unexpected or there’s
» Glimpse earthen knowledge and some kind of a commotion. The
bear truth heavy as stone Fates will tell you why this isn’t a
» Bring sudden, unseasonable good thing.
weather, and its consequences
When someone follows a reckless,
dangerous or ruinous path, and
you attempt to sway them from it,
roll. On a 10+ you dissuade them,
they tell you what it costs. On a 7-
9, either follow the path in their
place or start a 4-step project to
change their mind.
On a miss, they will not listen to
you. The Fates will tell you what
disaster this brings down, and
when it will happen.

» Be a representative for an
important concept
» Struggle with what that
concept represents and others
expectations of it
» Be a performer, with a
powerful form of expression
» Inspire, influence, rally and
rouse others
Themes: performance, belief
systems, hierarchies, faith in a
concept, values, revolution
Touchstones: Hadrian (Seasons of
Hieron), Martin (Redwall), Tenar
(Earthsea), G’Kar (Babylon 5),
Steven (Steven Universe),
34
You are storyteller, priest, shepherd or firebrand; you are the keeper of
our values. When things get tough, when the distance between us
becomes abyss, we turn to you to remind us what we stand for. How
sacred are those values you hold? Are you prepared to fight for them?
Pick a name and pronouns.
Pick one:
Pick one: » Be entrusted with someone’s
» I have a body and a spirit. Pick a secret
humanity. » Let someone break one of your
» I only have a spirit. Pick a tell, community’s rules
boon and bane from the Tethered » Stand up for someone’s cause,
rolebook. despite the harm it causes you
» I only have a body. Pick a
humanity and anchor from the
Pick a few: glassy eyes, enchanting
Grounded rolebook.
eyes, fervent eyes, painted hands,
practised hands, clenched fists,
You start with an emotion towering, relaxed, unassuming,
representing your concept (see straight-backed, on-edge, languid
Keeper of Knots). Pick or create Pick a few: woven wrap, plain
two other emotions: rings, soft hood, tied-back sleeves,
flamboyance of scarves, tangle of
» defiant » trusting
necklaces, festooned with bells,
» respected » ignored outrageous, simple, complicated
loving insular
» » hairstyle, meaningful tattoos, loud-
joyous desperate
» » soled shoes, worker’s garb, dour
» playful » fervent linens, banners and ribbons, rough
and scratchy, ceremonial masks
Assign +1 and -1 to them.
You also start with Fabric +0.

Pick three pieces of gear: one
ceremonial, one entrusted to you,
one truly yours
» an instrument, new and not
yet comfortable
» the battered hand-me-downs
of your renowned mentor
» a tool that you made yourself
» one ludicrously heavy book
» a collection of found and
useless trinkets
» a small token of faith
» a well-meaning bodyguard
(companion)
» a symbol of your organisation
» an extremely fragile relic
that’s definitely not fake
» an ornate weapon
When you pay attention, ask:
» Who is in control here?
» What old tales can guide me
here?
» What stories exist about
_____?
» What concept holds sway?
» What feels out of place?
INTRODUCTIONS Playing the Heart
After everyone’s introduced their characters, go round answering these The Heart is all about being the
questions. representative of a concept, for
better or for worse. There are a
lot of ways you can spin this
Yes, like a tree my roots tether depending on your concept and
An organisation: a faith, an me here. Start with the expression. Choosing freedom
order, an institution, a territory’s emotion at +2. Stitch and oratory might mean a
revolution. Start with a bond it. passionate radical; myth and
with that organisation. spirit-skimming might mean a
Yes, despite the objections of
This territory and the Remnant Remnant’s acolyte.
others. Start with the
or envoys that rule it. Start territory’s emotion at +1. The Heart thrives when around
with a bond with a others. Hold True is about
No, this place will never be my
supernatural being. hearing people and listening to
home. Start with the territory’s
A community: though not their problems, in order to help
emotion at -1.
everyone shares the same faith them. Act the Fool is about
in it, my concept is sacred getting someone to think they
here. Start with a bond with the had your idea first, or just to
You start with two bonds. For
community. leave you alone for a bit.
each, choose an emotion and a
Performer lets you hold anyone’s
statement. They start at normal.
attention with your expression.
Agitator and Foundations let
A group opposed to my ideal, _____ is a true believer, I trust you deal with groups, whether a
who preach rival tenets. them implicitly. crowd or an organisation,
allowing you to draw on others
Someone in authority, fearing _____ is a true believer, that
to fulfil your goals.
the damage I will cause them. doesn’t mean I have to like
them. Believer and some of the
One of the Remnant’s envoys,
advanced moves point towards
who fears my concept’s sway _____ has important things to the stranger side of the Heart’s
here. say. I will help them find their abilities. As they learn their
The Fates create a threat voice. place in the world and
related to your answer. _____ listens intently to my relationship to their concept,
performances. I will nurture Hearts can often draw on
that curiosity. powerful new abilities.
35
CORE ABILITIES
Start with Keeper of Knots and
Expression.
You are the keeper of a concept,
belief or value.
Pick one or create your own:
faith, change, chaos, memory,
community, revolution, sadness,
tradition, myth, pacifism, the
Remnant’s domain
You start with a bond with your
concept, and it becomes one of
your named emotions.
When your concept guides your
actions, you can roll with it. Its
value matches the number of
stitches currently in your bond. If
you had a normal bond (2 stitches)
you would add +2.
You have a means of expression,
something that you use to soothe,
stir or sway others.
Pick or create one: oratory,
physicality, poetry, music, singing,
storytelling, writing, comradery,
scribing, sermon, dance, spirit-
skimming, presence, cooking
When you spend a moment of
peace creating a performance or
work expressing your concept,
strengthen your bond with it.
HEART MOVES
Start with two Heart moves:
When you draw on your concept to
strengthen your resolve, say how it
reassures you. Weaken your bond
to increase the result level of a
roll.
When you give space for someone
to air their burdens and help to
tend them, roll. On a 10+, pick 3.
On a 7-9, pick 1. Each may be
chosen multiple times.
» Remove a stitch from light or
moderate wear
» Remove a stitch from an
emotion
» Ask the Fates, “Is there a way to
heal or ease _____?”
On a miss, pick 1 from the above.
They may ask you a question from
Read a Person, as you overshare,
give unwanted advice or reveal
your own vulnerabilities.
When you hold someone’s
attention using your expression,
you may pick an additional effect,
even on a miss.
36
When you use the weight of your
organisation to make a demand,
roll. On a success, you get what
you ask for. On a 7-9, pick 1.
» You owe your organisation
something in return
» The person you made your
demand of loses faith in the
organisation
» The person you made your
demand of loses faith in you
On a miss, they refuse to do as
you ask. You may press them, but
their faith in the organisation will
be irrevocably damaged.
When you act the fool before
someone, say what you want them
to do: think you harmless,
overshare, or come to a
conclusion of their own accord.
Roll. On any success, you get what
you want. On a 7-9, pick 1.
» They genuinely think you are a
fool
» They’ll come to resent your act
later
On a miss, they see right through
you. The Fates make a move as
hard as they like.
When you stir up a crowd’s
emotions, steering them towards a
purpose or goal, roll. On a success,
a group forms to fulfil your
purpose—create them as a
temporary companion. On a 10+,
pick 3. On a 7-9, pick 1.
» You gain a bond or obligation
with them
» You recruit a good amount of
people
» Your purpose isn’t muddled
» No-one is informed of your
rabble-rousing
On a miss, choose: the group is
formed but it’s completely out of
your control (the Fates will tell
you the damage they cause) or
your pleas go unheeded but not
unheard, everyone now knows
your intent and someone will act
against you.
ADVANCED MOVES
These moves require specific
advancements.
When you use your will to defy the
Fates and rewrite the story, roll.
On a success, you alter the
threads of fate to change the
narrative, say how. On a 10+, pick
2. On a 7-9, pick 1.
» You don’t tear the fabric of
reality
» Your enemies aren’t made more
powerful
» Your friends aren’t made
collateral
On a miss, the Fates laugh.
Everything is changed, they’ll tell
you how.
While you play, you may create a
work related to your expression:
art, embroidery, a playlist, poetry,
choreography, a map, a story,
music.
When you share a finished work,
you may gain advantage on any
move that uses your expression.
When you Read a Person you have
a bond with, you gain advantage.
When you complete a project to
hold a festival, celebration or
event, say what it observes and
what customs are followed. For
every two stitches in the project
patch, pick 1:
» The event is remembered
fondly, you say what for
» You begin to change an opinion,
belief or custom
» You impress someone specific
» You get a chance for peace or
compromise between two rival
factions
» Everyone present can clear an
emotion of all stitches and
conditions
» It shifts or entrenches this
place’s mood
» You gather favour and renown
for your role in it
Requires Agitator.
When you stand before your
comrades to convince them of the
virtue of your cause, you may
strain your concept to treat any
agitator roll as a 10+.
37
Replaces Foundations. When you use your expression to
share your feelings, roll. On a 10+,
When you make demands using
pick 3. On a 7-9, pick 2.
the weight of old connections, roll.
On a success, you get what you » People understand what you’re
ask for. On a 7-9, pick 1. trying to convey
» Your old organisation finds out » You soothe people, they remove
a stitch in the emotion rolled
» The person you made demands
» You rile up people’s emotions,
of loses faith in the organisation
they stitch the emotion rolled
» The person you made demands
» You have someone’s undivided
of loses faith in you
attention and interest
On a miss, they refuse you. You
On a miss, pick 1 from above.
may press them, but their faith in
you will be broken forever. Then the Fate’s choose: the
performance is interrupted,
draws unwanted attention, or
Replaces Foundations. someone strains in the emotion,
When you use the weight of your making a scene.
organisation to make a claim on
what should be yours, say what
resources you use, then roll. On a When you tempt the fates to test
success, you get what you want. the limits of your expression, you
On a 7-9, pick 1. can choose not to roll, instead
saying how things go as if you
» Your organisation is stretched,
rolled a success. Then, you pick 3
take disadvantage
from the 7-9 options.
» Another group resents you for
it, create a threat
» Someone in your organisation
objects
On a miss, someone stands
against you. You may press them,
but their loyalty will be broken.
You are a ghost, woven from threads of spirit, tangled up in the world.
You exist, now, without physical form. This is not a hindrance, this is
how you were always meant to be.

Pick a name and pronouns.

Pick one:
You are a ghost, and only have a » Reveal a secret about death or
spirit. You might have had a body the afterlife to someone
once; this might have be the only » Unearth the past to fix
form you’ve ever known. You start someone’s current problem
with a tell, boon and bane. » Let someone figure things out
for themselves, despite
knowing better
» joyful » peaceful
» unsure » unruly
» wistful » spiteful Pick a few: baleful eyes, spirited
eyes, kind gaze, tenuous hands,
» attached » adrift
blurred hands, clenched fists, solid,
» abandoned » capable wispy, earthy, flowing hair, braided
hair, clean cut
Pick or create three emotions:
Pick a few: a faded parasol, flowing
Assign +2, +1 and -1 to them. robes, intensely-patterned skirts,
» Be a ghost Themes: strange powers and
You also start with Fabric +0. fabric masks, long gloves, geometric
» Push the edges of your form in connections, finding community,
motifs, tasselled cape, fur-lining,
unexpected directions the spirit world, death, memory,
clunky jewellery, tattoos in a lost
» Decide what it means to be a fading existence, time passing.
language, old-fashioned, ancient,
tailored, raggedy, shapeless coats, spirit in Ryne Touchstones: Izabel (Saga), Cole
thick-rimmed glasses » Explore your frayed or fading (Dragon Age), Lovey (Wayfarers),
connection to the world Adrian Ţepeş (Castlevania), Death
(Discworld)

38

Pick three pieces of gear: one
that reminds you of someone, one
new, one you’d never part with
» a collection of adder stones
» an ominous but friendly pet
(companion)
» burnished pins and a crooked
needle
» an instrument no one can bear
to hear
» a spectral weapon
» a gathered bundle of emotion
» an old codex you might have
written
» a bottle saved for a special
occasion, turned sour
» two clay figurines, smoothed
with age
When you pay attention, ask:
» What spirits are here?
» How has this place been
changed?
» What old stories exist about
_____?
» What supernatural forces
are shaping this place?
» How has, or will, death touch
this place?
INTRODUCTIONS
After everyone’s introduced their characters, go round answering these
questions.
There are few of us, scattered.
The landscape is hostile to us.
Start with the territory’s
emotion at -1.
There are many of us,
something about this place
draws us in. Start with the
territory’s emotion at +1.
There are more of us than the
living, we can sustain ourselves
here. Start with the territory’s
emotion at +2. Stitch it.
There’s no difference between
us, we’re family and friend.
Create a bond with a
community or person from it.
People here respect spirits,
though that can put distance
between us. Create a bond with
The Hallowed.
They say we’re more prone to
the Remnant’s influence, true
or not that influences how
others see us. Create a bond
with a person who helps or
hunts you.
39
I died recently, I’m still getting
used to this new form
I died a long time ago, I’ve
begun to fray at the edges
I’ve always been a spirit
You start with three bonds. For
each, choose an emotion and a
statement. They start at
normal.
_____ reminds me of what I’ve
lost.
_____‘s stories are wrong, but
delightful.
If I don’t help _____they’ll ruin
_____.
I’m not sure I can forgive
_____ for _____.
Playing the Tethered
While most rolebooks can be
played as a ghost, the Tethered
is about being a ghost. It focuses
on the nature, abilities and place
of ghosts in Ryne.
Playing the Tethered involves
having a say over what ghosts
are like in this world, and how
people connect with them. The
rolebook moves give ideas for
what might be possible.
Wisp and Emotional Resonance
let you do interesting things
with your ghostly form. Tangled
Roots, Digging Up Bones and
Familiar Haunts point to your
place as part of a the history of
your community, whether that’s
living people or ghosts. Cutting
Ties allows you to draw on your
connection to spirit and the
Fates to protect those who are
closest to you.
The Tethered is defined most by
their Connection and Figments.
Together, they let you do new
and interesting things, such as
ignoring your bane, using boons
that aren’t inherently yours, and
unlocking powerful extensions
of your abilities.
CORE ABILITIES
Start with Connection and
Figments.
When you spend meaningful time
with a bond or complete an
important task on their behalf,
hold connection equal to the
number of stitches in that bond.
When you are called to spend
connection, and you don’t have
any, you may weaken any of your
bonds in its place.
Start with two from below.
When you push the limits of your
ghostly form, you may spend
connection, 1-for-1, to:
□ use any boon you didn’t
choose as your own
□ ignore your bane for a scene
□ use Fluid to alter your form
□ use Moored to appear next to
anyone you share a bond with
□ use Eternal with no
consequences
□ use Splitting to split your
form into many
□ use Umbral to slip into the
other
TETHERED MOVES
Start with two Tethered moves:
When you shape fragments of
spirit to cause wonder, distraction
or amusement, you may spend
1 connection to hold someone’s
attention. You may also spend
extra connection, 1-for-1, to pick
additional effects.
When you tell someone what old
obligations you consider them
responsible for, roll. On a success,
they agree and owe you an
obligation. On a 7-9, pick 1.
» They’re not ready to make good
on it yet
» You end up owing them an
obligation in return
» This won’t work on them again
On a miss, you reopen old
wounds, faded resentments and
forgotten grudges.
When someone you have a bond
with faces danger or harm, you
may weaken your bond with
them to have them suffer a lesser
wear or consequence.
40
When you project the emotion When you revel freely in a crowd,
you’re feeling onto the people say what common ground you
around you, spend 1 connection find and what you’re up to.
and roll. On a success, everyone
Name 2 people:
around you picks 2. On a 7-9, you
» One you flirt, joke or plot with.
also pick 1.
Gain advantage on them
» Act instinctively, according to
» One you find kinship with. Gain
the emotion rolled
or strengthen a bond with them
» Stitch the emotion rolled (can be
» One you get into trouble
taken multiple times)
alongside. Say what gear you
» Suffer 1 wear (can be taken
come away with
multiple times)
» One you heed. Ask the Fates a
On a miss, you are overcome by question about them, or this
the emotion, pick 3 from the list. place.
The Fates will say how everyone » One you compete with. Say who
else is effected, making a move as wins. You earn their respect or
hard as they like.
friendship
» One you confide in. Clear a
stitch from an emotion
When you spend time amongst a
Then, name 1 person:
community you know well, say
how you trace people’s social
» One you argue with. Stitch 2
connections and entanglements, emotions.
then roll. On a 10+, hold 3. On a 7-
» One who feels you owe them
9, hold 1. Spend hold, 1-for-1, to
something. Owe them an
ask:
obligation.
» What connection exists » One who objects to your
between _____ and _____? presence. They resent you,
» What new situation has perhaps name you a rival.
_____ gotten themselves into?
» What connection is fraying and
might need tending to?
ADVANCED MOVES
These moves require specific
advancements.
Requires Familiar Haunts.
When you enter a new place, you
may say what ghosts exist here
and where you can find them.
Requires Cutting Ties.
When someone you have a bond
with would die, you may sever
your bond with them to prevent
their fate. Pick 1 for each stitch
that was in your bond with them:
» They remember who you are
» You will be able to form a new
bond with them
» Nothing dies in their place
» The Keepers of Death’s Realm
don’t gain a bond with you
Requires Emotional Resonance.
When you change the mood of a
place, you may spend connection,
1-for-1, to shift the result level.
When you work on a project to
change an entrenched mood, you
may spend connection, 1-for-1, to
add work to that project.
When you beseech wild spirits for
aid, say what you want from
them—their wisdom, their healing,
their words, their protection or
their fury.
They will say what they want in
return—a voice, a future, a
promise, a binding, a sacrifice, a
pact, a body. You must meet their
price or refuse them, though they
might not look kindly on the
latter.
Your tells flare when you roll a
match.
Whenever one of your ghostly tells
flares, place a rip, cut or stitch
alongside one edge of your
character sheet. When one of
your edges has 12 marks, one of
your tells becomes permanent
and you gain a new figment.
When all four sides of your sheet
are filled, pick one:
» You knot completely into the
fabric of this place. Join or
replace the Fates
» You tie yourself to a Remnant
becoming its envoy
» You move beyond this form.
Create a new character with
this ghost as a strange and
powerful companion
41
When you confront someone, you When you oversee someone’s death
may spend 1 connection if your and attempt to guide them to
opponent avoids your reposition, whatever comes next, say what
cut close or reckless attack to do it rites and rituals are observed. You
anyway. meet death alongside them and
are able to guide, act or interfere
in Death’s realm.
When you use the strange
pathways of the other—the realm
of spirit—start a four-step clock. When you knot yourself into the
Stitch it to: fabric of a place, say how you tie
yourself, and roll. On a 10+, hold 3.
» Appear anywhere within this
On a 7-9, hold 1. Spend hold, 1-for-
territory
1, to:
» Travel to an adjacent territory
» Appear in a specific location » Gain perfect vision over the
within the other place
» Carry others with you » Prevent an attempt to remove
you from it
When you attempt to leave the
» Cause someone to become lost,
other, roll plus segments stitched.
distracted or separated
On a 6-, you leave unmolested.
» Inflict wear on someone here
On a 7-9, pick 1.
On a miss, pick one: you hold 1 but
» Your time there drains you, take
strain an emotion matching the
1 wear for each filled segment
place’s mood or you’re driven
» Something lies in wait, for the
from this place and will have to
next time you enter
recover.
» You lose your way, the Fates say
where you exit
On a miss, something has found
you. The Fates will tell you
whether it prevents your escape
or follows you out.

» Cast small, practical spells
» Mess around with the threads
of spirit that entangle Ryne
» Meddle in others affairs
» Get things done
Themes: the relationship between
the spirit and the mundane,
magic, prophecy, community,
obligations.
Touchstones: The Lancre Coven
(Discworld), Lem King (Seasons of
Hieron), Kiki (Kiki’s Delivery
Service),
42
Everything in this world is tied together, as if by a tangle of thread. You
have the knack for manipulating those threads—of weaving spirit,
emotion and fate. You can mend wounds, read destinies, and glimpse
the truths which lie within someone’s heart.
Pick a name and pronouns.
Pick one:
Pick one: » Telling someone a difficult
» I have a body and a spirit. Pick a truth they need to hear
humanity. » Providing a night’s rest beneath
» I only have a spirit. Pick a tell, your roof
boon and bane from the Tethered » Helping someone with a chore
rolebook. they don’t want to do
» I only have a body. Pick a
humanity and anchor from the Pick a few: friendly eyes, stern
Grounded rolebook. eyes, hetero-chromatic eyes, fading
hands, precise hands, willow-
Pick or create three emotions: fingered, short, lanky, smooth
cheeked, wind-wizened
» curious » difficult Pick a few: ceremonial robes, rough
» joyful » petty fabric, hand-made woollens, too-
» studious » nervous thick coat, embroidered patches,
» mischievous » dutiful mud-caked boots, satchel splitting
» wronged » contented at the seams, huge collars, heavy
bracelet, simple linens, hitched-up
Assign +2, +1 and -1 to them. dress, pressed flowers, intricate
hair-pins, thick gloves, the smell of
You also start with Fabric +0. herbs, baggy trousers, sandals, a
trail of charms, wicker headpiece

Pick three pieces of gear: one
you’re never without, one you’re
always losing, one someone
claims you stole
» several half-finished crafts
» a chipped tea-set
» a deck of mismatched cards
» a book spilling pressed herbs
and flowers
» a small piece of a Remnant
» a little flock of grazing animals
(companion)
» a glass orb, something slithers
inside it
» clacking gloves, sensitive to
spirit
» a weapon, though it looks like
anything but
When you pay attention, ask:
» What threads of spirit are
noticeable here?
» What forces are shaping this
place’s spirit?
» Which of the threads here
draws me onwards?
» What superstitions exist
about _____?
» What needs doing most right
now?
INTRODUCTIONS
After everyone’s introduced their characters, go round answering these
questions.
Among a community. You are
theirs and they yours. Create a
bond with that community.
Amongst others like yourself,
outsiders one and all. Create a
bond with another outsider.
Amongst the birds, the rocks
and the stars. Create a
companion animal or spirit.
It will never be comfortable,
You start with three bonds. For
but I know it and it knows me.
each, choose an emotion and a
Start with the territory’s
statement. They start at normal.
emotion at +1.
Its fabric is a part of me, woven
into my body, my heart, my
spirit. Start with the territory’s
emotion at +2. Stitch it.
It resists me and I weave my
patterns against its grain. Start
with the territory’s emotion at
-1. Gain an additional pattern.
43
It started in the air, then the
roots and the earth. It’s as if
the seasons have shifted.
There was a trembling of spirit.
The animals felt it too.
I heard it through the words of
others. There’s a shift in how
we think and act.
The Fates create a threat based
on your answer.
_____ may be a fool, but at
least they’re a kindhearted
one.
_____ seeks my aid, but I’m
not minded to give it yet.
I can’t let _____carry out their
thoughtless plans.
_____ needs a watchful eye
and a kind word, I can provide
both.
Playing the Weaver
The Weaver is a connection
between the world of spirit and
the mundane. They’re often the
one people come to when facing
issues with the strange or
supernatural.
Darning, Of A Sort and Spirit
Sight let you use your affinity
for spirit to connect you to the
people around you. Future’s
Weight lets you divine what’s
coming, to protect and prepare
your friends.
You’re not just limited to the
patterns in the rolebook,
Patchwork Charms lets you
weave experimental spells, for
better or worse. Studious lets
you learn from your mistakes, to
gather new patterns. Break the
World lets you push past the
limits of your power, usually at a
great cost.
The Weaver can also be a
meddler of people, not just
magic. Obligations lets you use
other people’s obligations on
their behalf (though who knows
how they’ll feel about that).
Advanced moves like Put Them
In Their Place and Open Hearth
are both useful for establishing
those obligations.
CORE ABILITIES
Start with Weave and two
Patterns.
When you weave spirit into a
known pattern, roll. On a success,
cast your pattern. On a 7-9, pick 1:
» You stitch 1 wear
» You stitch the territory’s
emotion
» Your weaving is noticed
On a miss, pick one: you cast your
pattern, the Fates may pick as
many as they like from above, or a
rogue thread taints your pattern,
the Fates say how it is altered.
□ Web: Sense someone’s spirit
regardless of distance.
□ Braid: Protect a place, anyone
hostile to it gains disadvantage
□ Tear: Use your own hands as
weapons (2 wear, hand, spirit) for
a confrontation
□ Tangle: Hold a thing or person
in place for a heartbeat.
□ Gather: Trace someone’s
obligations, ask “Who or what
directs them?”.
□ Sew: Shape a small tool or
object from spirit.
□ Cut: Sever someone’s ties to all
spirit for a heartbeat.
WEAVER MOVES
Start with two Weaver moves:
When you roll up your sleeves to
tackle a mundane problem, roll.
On a success, you do it. On a 7-9,
pick 1:
» You do it clumsily
» It takes much longer than it
should
» No one will thank you for it
On a miss, you’re out of your
depth. The Fates tell you the
precise moment you realise this,
making a move as hard as they
like.
When you divine the path of spirit
and test the future’s weight, roll.
On a 10+, provide two from below
and ask the Fates for the other.
On a 7-9, the Fates give you two,
the other is shrouded.
» The focus: a person, Remnant,
community, etc.
» The situation: a place, event,
time, etc.
» The outcome: what will come to
be
On a miss, the Fates choose one
to show you: a false or terrible
future, or your own fears.
44
When you remind someone of the
obligations they owe, pick 1:
» Choose an additional option
when you demand action
» Spend someone else’s
obligation to demand action.
They might not look kindly on
this.
When you study someone’s spirit,
roll. On a 10+, ask 3. On a 7-9, ask
1. They must answer truthfully.
» What is your defining emotion?
» What emotion are least
comfortable in?
» What emotion rules your
actions?
» What secret, pain or burden are
you hiding?
» What are your spirit’s tells?
» What wear does your spirit
carry?
» How can I make you feel _____?
On a miss, ask 1 and they ask 1
back. You must answer truthfully.
When you weave a small spell
without a pattern, say how you
hope it will work and roll. On a
10+, pick 1. On a 7-9, pick 2.
» The pattern shifts, it works
differently than intended
» Your weaving is clumsy and it’s
noticeable to others
» You, or somebody nearby, is
caught in the pattern’s web
» It brings an influx of new spirit,
shift the mood of this place
On a miss, the pattern is anarchic
and wild, choose one: quash it
down and strain in the emotion
rolled, or let it free, the Fates
make a move as hard as they like.
When you repair the frayed edges
and tangled knots of someone’s
spirit, they may remove up to 3
stitches from light or moderate
wear. Then, roll.
On a 7-9, your work reveals a part
of yourself to them—they may ask
you any question, answer it
truthfully.
On a miss, healing them will cost
you. You stitch wear, 1-for-1, for
each stitch they removed.
ADVANCED MOVES
These moves require specific
advancements.
Pick one each time you take
Complex Patterns. You must have
the base pattern take the complex
version.
□ Web: You may communicate
with that person or trigger a
move on them
□ Braid: Name a person, they
cannot come to harm while
they’re within that place
□ Tear: Give your hands an
additional tag: mundane, piercing
2, emotive, or close
□ Tangle: Your hold lasts for as
long as you yourself stay in place
□ Gather: You may stitch fabric
to answer “Who or what directs
them?” instead of the Fates
□ Sew: You may shape complex
objects or spirit beings
□ Cut: Sever their connection
for seven heartbeats
When you tempt the fates, instead
of rolling you may ask the Fates
“What will this cost me, for it to go
exactly as I want?”. If you meet
their price, count it as if you
rolled a success, picking 0.
When you undertake a ritual to
permanently alter the way things
work—a river’s flow, a Remnant’s
domain, a social hierarchy, death
itself—say what change you want
to bring about and start a project.
When you fill the project clock,
describe the ritual’s climax, then
roll. On a 10+, pick 3. On a 7-9,
pick 2. On a miss, pick 1.
» You get to say how things are
altered. You may erase or
change one of the world’s
boundaries
» You glimpse the inner secrets of
this territory. What new
understanding do you gain?
» The Fates don’t create a
cataclysmic threat, aiming to
undo your change
» Your form isn’t pulled apart,
permanently interwoven with
the web of spirit
When you meet with someone in
authority, you may declare what
old favour you did for them, their
community, or their family. They
owe you an obligation, though
they might not be happy about it.
45
Requires Spirit Sight. When you are working on a
project to complete a ritual, at the
When you read a person or use
start of each session you may
spirit sight to study them, you
introduce an object brought from
always know whether they’re a
the real world, describing its role
ghost, grounded or supernatural.
in the ritual:
You can never be misled by
someone’s disguise. » An ingredient: add 1 work to the
ritual
» An anchor: gain advantage
Requires Patchwork Charms. when you complete the project
When you successfully weave a » A dangerous catalyst: add 2
work and gain disadvantage
patchwork charm, you may study
it, creating a 4 stitch patch. when you complete the ritual, it
Whenever you attempt to weave cannot be negated
it again, stitch the patch. Stitch » A ward: choose someone to be
again if you rolled a 10+. When the protected from any of the
patch fills, add the charm to your ritual’s consequences
known patterns.
When you reassure someone, you
pick 2. If you would strain when
When someone spends the night
under your roof, pick 1: you reassure someone, you may
stitch a different emotion instead.
» You put them to work: they do
a difficult chore you’ve been
putting off. You may add 1 work
to a project
» You share your best food and
drink: they reveal a secret
» You play the perfect host: they
owe you an obligation
THE FATES
When you play as the Fates, your role is to take the threads
created by the player’s actions, the events of the world, and
the results of moves, then weave them all together.
You might describe what a new landscape is like, play as
NPCs, and introduce new situations and obstacles for the
characters to face. You, more than anyone, will guide the flow
and pacing of the game.
All that said, Ryne is a highly collaborative game. While you
have the most control over the world through your moves
and your agendas, you also share it with the other players.
You should ask questions about things you’re not sure about
and let the players tell you what the world is like to live in.
Their answers and the details they introduce will guide your
game.
This section is designed to help you get to grips with playing
as the Fates. The first few pages introduce your agendas,
principles and moves—they guide you through some best
practices for running the game, as well as give you ways to
respond to the player’s actions.
The rest of this section covers some specific tools that are
designed to help you to run the game and give life to your
world.
46
Depending on the kind of game your running
If you’re running the Vacant Tribute scenario, it contains
a lot of guidance for running your first session. You might
also want to skim through this section before play, in
particular the agendas, principles and moves.
If you’re running a longer game, you’ll want to skim
through this section before session 0. The sections on
Remnants, territories and threats will be useful for
setting up your game. When you begin play, the agendas,
principles and moves will be the most important to keep
in mind.
Regardless, here’s our advice: don’t worry too much about
fully understanding or using all of the tools right away.
You’ll learn them as you play and things will build slowly.
Keep the sheets to hand during your sessions, don’t be
afraid to refer to them when you’re unsure what to do or
say next.
The Fates have a series of agendas to lean on. These are
guidelines for how to approach the game, that will help you to
create your story. They’re here to guide you—if you’re not
sure where to take the story, turn to your agendas.
Weave human stories, lived under great shadows.
Ryne tells the stories of humans living in a world much
bigger than them. Remnants are largely ignorant to people’s
lives, and their envoys are not much better. Remember that
while the world is often big, weird and conceptual, it is best
filtered through human senses.
Portray shifting, emotional landscapes.
The terrain of Ryne is shaped by the conceptual. It is never
static, always becoming something new. As you play, ask
questions about how the player’s relate to the world around
them. Always have an eye on what the landscape is like, how
it feels to be in it, and the ways that it’s currently changing.
Follow the story as it pools and flows.
Stories in Ryne meander. When your story dwells in one
place, linger. When it needs to move swiftly, let it. Alter your
pacing to create these contrasts. You might find that your
story moves slower than in some other games you’ve played.
That’s okay, that’s by design. We encourage you to spend
time on the small details of your world.
47
While agendas provide you with big, overarching goals, your
principles are how you achieve them through play. By
following your principles, you’ll bring the world of Ryne to
life, helping the system to work for you and your players.
These principles relate to the game and the shared story
that you’re creating:
» Let the world grow wild and weird
» Revel in change, but provide anchors as well
» Show the world’s fraying edges
» Sow seeds in the dark places too
» Contrast the human and the colossal
» Represent conceptual ideas through literal things
» Let things die, but remember death isn’t the end
These are about how you should act and play the game:
» Be a fan of the characters
» Address yourself to the characters, not the players
» Make your move, sometimes speak its name
» Ask provocative questions, build on the answers
» Travel without a set destination, let the players find it
» Disclaim decision making, dismantle your authority

Like the rest of the players you have moves, but yours work a
little differently. Fate moves don’t have specific triggers, and
you don’t roll for them. Instead, you can trigger any of your
moves when:
There’s a lull in the action
A Fate move fits perfectly with the fiction of the game
A player’s move fails
Sometimes it will be obvious what move to make, and you’ll
have a reaction ready to go. Other times it won’t be. Pause for
a second to think, then choose from the list below:
» Trigger the move of a Remnant, envoy or threat
» Have an NPC use a bond or obligation to make a demand
» Have a threat or NPC act on their wants
» Have someone’s emotions flare up
» Inflict wear
» Establish a boundary
» Stitch a threat’s patch, showing an omen or a consequence
» Tell them the possible consequences and ask what they do
» Turn their move back on them
» Take away or stitch their gear
» Separate them or bring them together
» Give them what they want, but with a twist
» Bring forth a change in the landscape
» Show them how the landscape feels
» Question what they hold to be true
» Ask them “How do you feel?”
Most of the time, your moves will blend into the conversation.
The players might not even know you’re making them. You
never have to name your move, you just do it, describing
what’s happening.
48
Calo, a Guide, and Ofbright, a Tethered, have spent days
tracking down this landscape’s Remnant, Yllas. As they
approach it, the Fates describe their midday arrival. In
front of them is a forest, the Remnant’s back appears as a
bone-white hill in the middle.
Knowing that the forest is one of Calo’s Home Terrains, the
Fates leave the description vague. They ask her to describe
it, learning that it’s a rainforest where leaves are great
sheets of red and blue. She describes insects everywhere,
which make chiming noises instead of buzzing.
The Fates grasp onto that idea and, after the pair decide to
press on, the Fates make a move: “Stitch a threat’s patch,
showing an omen or a consequence”. They stitch the patch
“The pewter machines spread discord.” They then describe
a place in the rainforest where the chiming gets louder, all
off-keys layered atop each other.
When Calo and Ofbright investigate, they find a cloud of
the insects surrounding a pewter machine that hums
discordantly. Ofbright’s boon allows them to pass through
material objects at will, so they decide that they’re going
to stick their ghostly head into the machine—both to figure
out what it might be, as well as try to shut it off.
This feels like it’s some kind of roll. Ofbright doesn’t have
any useful rolebook moves, so they look at the basic moves.
It could be pay attention, but they decide on tempt the
fates instead. They’re unsure if this is something Ofbright
can do, or how the machines will react.
Ofbright rolls a 6, a miss, which allows the Fates to make
a move as hard as they like. Looking at the list again they
settle on “Show them how the landscape feels”, as well as
“Inflict wear”. Ofbright’s meddling starts a deafening
hum. They take 1 wear for being in the middle of it.
Then, adding to the noise, there is a rumbling. The bone-
white hill begins to rise.
NON-PLAYER CHARACTERS
You’ll be responsible for playing a range of NPCs as you play
Ryne. In a session you might play as a shepherd looking for
their lost flock, the town’s sceptical blacksmith, the Weaver’s
owl companion and a strange and unknowable Remnant.
As the Fates, its usually up to you to take on their roles and
decide how they act. It can seem like a lot sometimes, but we
have some tools to make things easier.
By writing a few notes about NPCs that are important to your
game, you can more easily bring them to life once they appear
in your story. For some NPCs, like companions, the other
players get to decide these details; for the rest, it’s usually
down to you. You can always ask questions and get your
players help. Here are some details that might be useful:
Name: What is the NPC called?
Defining emotion: What emotion do they exude? This is the
emotion they’re most comfortable in.
Troublesome emotion: What emotion most causes the NPC
trouble in some way?
Humanity/Tell: What is their humanity or tell?
Obligations: What bonds and obligations do they have?
Other notes: What do they look like? What do they wear?
What do they want most right now? Are they part of any
groups? Answer any you find useful.
49
When you play as an NPC, for a moment or for a scene, you
usually have full control over how they act and what they do.
Sometimes, the results of character or Fates moves might
shape what happens to those NPCs, how they think and how
they act. NPCs are often more malleable than the player’s
characters, they shift to meet the demands of your game.
NPCs rarely trigger moves of their own—they don’t need to
roll to convince someone or to lead through danger. Often,
you just say how it goes.
When they do make their own moves, it’s usually paired with
a Fate move. Some of the Fate moves explicitly talk about
NPCs, like “Have an NPC act on their wants”. Others, such as
“Inflict wear”, might happen as the result of an NPCs action.
The exception to the above is bond moves. NPCs can hold
bonds and obligations. They can use them to trigger bond
moves, such as making a demand or hindering someone.
For any bond move that requires a roll, they get +2 if it’s their
defining emotion, -1 for a troublesome emotion, and +0
otherwise.
SHARING RESPONSIBILITIES
In truth, the responsibility for creating and playing as
NPCs is shared between players. You should leave space
for players to decide details about NPCs, especially that
are close to their characters. If you don’t know something
about an NPC, ask the players.
Equally, if your players want to, they can also play as NPCs.
They might help you out while they’re not in a scene, or
play as one of their companions where it makes sense to.
REMNANTS
Titans stride across the landscape, seemingly indifferent to
everything around them. A mountain carried on four colossal
legs, its rocky face riddled with caves where the birds which
swarm it nest. A sweeping carpet of mushroom and moss that
winds across dew-laden plains. A fog that crawls down the
side of a valley, coalescing into face and voice as ghost-light
flickers within. A clay mantis, still for centuries; people in the
valley below wait for its sickle legs to pierce the clouds again.
People call these beings Remnants, after what came before.
They are gods, or something close. Each community and faith
has their own belief, but nearly all call them divine.
While they are each colossal, there is no commonality to their
forms. The one thing that unites Remnants is that each of
them is linked to a domain. Harvest, grief, triumph, drizzle,
destiny, rebirth, need—they are an anchor for a concept in
the world.
THE CLEAVE
While most other beings in Ryne have a physical and
spiritual form, Remnants have only one or the other.
The Vacant have physical form. They are formed of
material things: clay, rock, metal, plants, salt. They have no
spirit as humans know it, but still serve as anchors for the
web of spirit that threads Ryne.
The Echoes have spiritual form. They might be a cloud of
scent, a great fog, a rumbling blizzard, a sprawling ghost
or a constellation of lights. They might have physical
presence in the world, but their form itself is made from
spirit.
A common belief is that Remnants were once whole, but
in the distant past an event called the Cleave tore them in
two. As such, there are some who believe the Remnants
can be made whole again, one way or another.
50
At times you’ll be called on to play the part of a Remnant, to
describe their actions in your story. Here’s our advice: make
them weird, then make them weirder. Remnants are largely
indifferent to the world around them, especially humans.
They think, act and exist in ways beyond comprehension.
Though the people who live near a Remnant will have their
own beliefs and interpretations for its actions, these are only
ever a best guess.
When you play a Remnant on screen, look to their domain,
wants and expressions. Their domain and wants will tell you
what they care about; their expression tells you how they
might communicate.
You should interpret what a Remnant is however best fits
your game and your world; make them yours. Here are some
examples, to draw upon.
MORUS, Vacant of solace. Vaugley humanoid titan that
once sat to hear its follower’s stories. It stayed patiently
listening for millennia, as mountains formed around it.
KADOS, Echo of motion. A titanic eel formed of muck,
pebble and sediment. The river flows in the direction the
Remnant swims.
YOHN, Vacant of hunger. An outcrop of rock descending
from the clouds above, crenellated with teeth and jaws.
It communicates through cravings.
VELARASKA, Echo of absence. It strides on two
columnar legs through a discordant ecosystem. Its body
lacks any kind of colour or feature, it’s just a gap, a void.
SKEIN, Vacant of growth. Formed of a great carpet of
moss that crawls its way across the landscape following
the Weftward sun. Some say that it means to engulf it.
You’ll create your first Remnant together in your session zero.
Whether you’re using the Change story seed or playing
Vacant Tribute, you’ll be given prompts to co-create your
starting territory’s Remnant with your players.
You might be left with some unanswered gaps on your
territory sheet after that session. You can fill them in before
you play next or as you play.
If you introduce a new Remnant during your game, you can
create it in advance or piece-by-piece as you play.
What domain does the Remnant represent? Pick or create
one: harvest, preservation, tenderness, mourning, faith,
nesting, prophecy, fire, connection, migration, scavenging.
What tribute does the Remnant ask for? Pick or create
some: feathers, memories, stories, song, treasure, dance, blood,
service, ritual, scent, emotion, voice, food, crafts, marbles.
How does the Remnant communicate? Pick or create some:
dreams, song, images from its past, tales from its future,
whispers in the wind, a rhythm in the earth, flow of water,
patterns of moss, ink blossoming on paper, constellations, too
loud words.
Pick or create a few: abstract, animal, celestial, geological,
ghostly, humanoid, insectoid, wet, weather-like, structured,
skeletal, amorphous, fractured, segmented, mossy, illuminated,
barnacled, static, buried, incorporeal, whispering, singing,
creeping, stomping, inhabited, roaming, swirling, ribboned,
decorated, painted, frosted, metallic, shimmering, flowing,
rocky, engraved, towering, scattered, amphibious, soaring.
51
A territory refers to a Remnant’s area of influence, mapped
onto the physical land where the Remnant dwells.
A Remnant’s domain effects the world around it, shaping
geography, weather, climate, seasons, plants, animals and
people. These affects can be physical—like a Remnant of
privacy sheltered by mile high mountains—as well as spiritual
and emotional. Within its territory, a Remnant’s domain can
alter moods and influence emotions.
You’ll create your territory together, using the questions
from your story seed, combined with what you know about
your Remnant.
“I want a place that feels inhospitable to us. Maybe it’s like
moors, bleak and windswept, but the flora is dangerous?”
“Our Remnant is about tranquillity, right? What if its
territory was a lake and we live in barges floating on it?”
Every territory has an emotion associated with it, called the
territory emotion. This represents the overwhelming mood
of the landscape, borne from the Remnant’s domain.
Each character will fill one of their emotion slots with the
territory emotion. It also influence the mood of places in the
territory, as well as in scenes with the Remnant.
THE TERRITORY SHEET
You’ll find a territory sheet in the playkit downloads. You
can use that sheet to record details about the territory
that you’re playing in—what its terrain is like, its Remnant,
its features, the threats active within it.
Each territory has a resonance move. These are moves
triggered when a character strains in the territory emotion.
Resonance moves are used to give unique flavour to each
territory, reinforcing what it’s like to live within a Remnant’s
domain.
Our advice is not to worry about them in your first session.
However, when someone approaches straining, or you want
to reinforce the territory’s tone and mood, consider creating
one. A good, simple formula for a resonance move is:
When you strain in [territory emotion], you are overcome
with [specific feeling]. Clear all stitches and do [action].
When you strain in grief, clay hands push up from the earth to
grasp at you. Either let them pull you beneath—the Fates say
where they take you—or attempt to escape them. Either way,
clear all stitches.
When you strain in powerful, the absolute certainty of the
waves takes hold. Clear all stitches, then hold 1. You may spend
your hold to take a reckless, foolhardy action, gaining
advantage. If you miss, it will bring disaster.
When you strain in fearful, say what thing scares you most
right now, then clear all stitches. When you strain for a second
time, you will find yourself face-to-face with it.
When you strain in joyful, you are overcome with the Yillah’s
rhythm. Clear all stitches and pick 1: let it overcome you and
lose yourself to dance until dawn; or you resist, until you dance
freely or leave this you’ll have disadvantage.
52
Features are any important places, landmarks or terrain
features within a territory. They’re places that people living
there might know about, which are likely locations to visit as
you play the game.
A feature might represent a bustling market town, the place
where the Remnant rests, a barrow at the edge of a village, or
an amber-studded mountain.
When you answer your story seed’s questions, you’ll be
invited to create some features together. Each player should
draw their contributions on a map of the territory.
You should give each feature a name and an evocative
description. You can also give it a mood, if you have a sense of
what it would feel like to be there.
As you play, you might create new features, slowly populating
the territory with interesting places.
Vinereach: A miles-wide knot of vines that stretches above the
pink tinged clouds. A reclusive community resides amongst the
tangled stems.
Mood: reclusive
Breal’s Rest: Centuries ago a Remnant fell here. Now its
umbral body exists as a vast shadow, rolling in the winds
through the bottom of the valley.
Mood: mournful
The Aniseed Camp: It was meant to be temporary—a meeting
place of merchants before they went their own ways. Over time,
though, permanent structures have risen and the place has
developed its own—loud and riotous—identity.
Mood: rowdy
ENVOYS
Envoys are bridges between Remnants and the world around
them. They are pieces of the titan’s bodies, broken off to find
their own purpose and favoured attendants transformed over
long years of service. Sometimes, these Envoys are appointed
to connect the Remnant and the humans that live in its
territory; more often they’re strange and fantastic, made for
things outside of human care or understanding.
Envoys echo the strange creatures of folklore; the hungry
river horses and the mischievous fae, the things that seek to
mislead us and the creatures which test our values. They
come in infinite forms, representing some smaller facet of the
Remnant’s domain. They are, in many ways, a distillation of
their Remnant.
When creating an envoy, there are a few elements you want
to work out. These are:
Name: What does it call itself? When they tell their stories,
what do the people here call it?
Look: What does it look like? You might have a fixed idea in
mind or grab at some loose imagery.
Represents: What facet of the Remnant’s domain does the
envoy reflect?
Type: What is the general purpose of the envoy?
Moves: Custom moves for the envoy, describing how it acts
and what it can do.
53
The Seed: The Remnant sends a part of its core into the world.
The potential is within it to grow, to become Remnant anew.
Moves:
» Plant itself and grow. A new Remnant is forming, start a
very lengthy patch.
» Heal someone at its own expense.
» Bring forth a sanctuary, reflecting its concept.
The Herald: The Remnant’s voice contained within. It speaks
clear and loud to deliver its demands to the territory’s people.
Moves:
» Make a demand on behalf of the Remnant, tell them what
terrible thing will happen if they don’t meet it.
» Instruct on rite and worship, decorum and tribute.
» Make a demonstration of the Remnant’s power.
The Eye: The envoy reflects back on its Remnant. An explorer,
an interpreter. Its function is to prod and watch and be curious.
Moves:
» Ask a strange question about something taken for granted.
» Make something ignored, unignorable.
» Gather a mystifying collection of things.
A statue bearing a thousand faces walks amongst the
markets of Calidir, listening and trying to find the right
expression. A great deer, legs the trunks of ash trees,
pruning the canopy top. A star-shine spirit knits patterns
amidst the stars, jumbled maps that philosopher-sailors
travel to interpret. A knot-weed hyena, stalking the
outskirts of Chyra, demanding offerings for the Remnant
within. The moth whose fluttering is human voice; a
swarm of curious pebbles, clattering as they move; a
driftwood effigy travelling home bearing new shape.
THREATS
To create a threat, you’ll need to decide:
Threats are forces who want to change things in some way,
and that are prepared to take action to make that change
Name: How do people refer to it?
happen. A group of villagers wanting to farm the land in a way
counter to old traditions, a gang of ruthless fighters hunting Type: What type of threat is it? People? An envoy? Weather?
the area’s envoys, a sickening remnant, a coming storm. Doom: What change will the threat bring about if it isn’t
Threats allow you to track major forces in the world, that will prevented?
impact the lives of your characters. They have goals, plans
Omens: What signs will warn the players about the threat?
and agency. You play to find out whether they achieve them
What themes can you use to signal the threat’s presence?
and what happens when they do.
Description: What is the threat like? What capabilities and
assets does it have?
Each threat you create will have a threat patch, which tracks
its goal and its progress to completing it. It might have
anywhere up to 12 stitches. As the threat takes actions and The Blazen Pilgrimmage: An ever moving Remnant, with a
comes closer to achieving its goal, you’ll stitch the patch. city of people following it. The capital of an empire that claims
When it fills, they bring about their aims. all land where the Remnant treads.
When you create a threat and decide on what their patch Type: Remnant
represents, you can assign some events to it, however vague.
Doom: This territory’s Remnant destroyed, everything else
Patches should usually escalate. The first half of the stitches
subsumed.
likely present omens and warning signs, the latter half
represents the threat nearing its fulfilment. Omens: The Heralds of the Blaze. This Remnant’s concept
wavering. Strange scouts and traders. Warnings from others.
The Gathered has an 8 step patch. The Fates decide that at
The Rust: We thought it was a moss at first, slowly spreading
steps 6 and 7, they’ll start mining the Remnant’s body.
through the fields, but the rust now coats everything. It has
when the clock fills, they’ll bring down its wrath.
choked our crops, next it will choke us.
A threats course is never certain. The patch tells you what Type: Weird
might happen, if the players don’t interfere. Often, the players
Doom: A reconfiguration of the territory, welcoming a new,
will stop the threat and its goals will change; other times they
not-human type of life.
might ignore the omens, and the threat will come to pass.
Omens: The sky turning orange. Rust creeping on the crops
and trees. The water tasting like iron. Livestock’s fur matted.
Strange shapes in the fields.

54
When you attempt to convince
someone, say what you want from
them, then roll. On a success, they’ll
hear you out. On a 10+, pick 1. On a
7-9, pick 2.
» You need to trade them
something
» You need to reassure them or earn
their trust
» They make a demand, you have to
do something for them first
» You’ll owe them an obligation:
what do you promise them?
» You reveal a part of yourself, their
opinion of you shifts
On a miss, the Fates choose: their
demands are outlandish, they
decide to act against you, or they
take up your cause with damaging
enthusiasm.
When you offer worthy tribute in
exchange for a promise, blessing or
something of value, state what you
want and roll. On a 10+, you get
what you asked for. On a 7-9, it
comes altered, or with additional
conditions and demands.
On a miss, the Fates choose: the
tribute is deemed lacking and those
you offered it to take offence, or
your tribute is more valuable than
you realised, it’ll haunt you later.
When you try to deliberately hold
someone’s attention, say how you
keep it, and roll. On a 10+, you pick
2. On a 7-9, you pick 1 and the other
person picks 1.
» You keep them distracted
» They reveal their feelings about
_____
» They share something useful:
some gossip or news, a story, a
secret, a connection, a hope
» Their opinion of you shifts, you
suggest how
On a miss, pick 1 then the Fates
choose: they charm you, mislead
you or keep you occupied for far
longer than you’d like.
When you attempt to change the
mood of a person or place, say what
feeling you want to change it to and
how you’re doing it, then roll. On
any success, the mood shifts. On a
7-9, pick 1:
» The mood only shifts slightly, the
Fates say what to
» Changing it is strenuous, stitch
wear
» Something here resents you
On a miss, pick 1: the mood shifts
but something in this place resists
you and the Fates make a move or
the original mood becomes
entrenched.
55
When you help someone you have a
bond with, say what aid you lend
and roll. On a success, pick 1 for
each stitch in your bond. On a 7-9,
they also choose 1: your bond is
weakened or one of you changes
your bond’s emotion or statement.
» They gain advantage
» They may roll with their bond
emotion
» You stitch emotions in their place
On a miss, you weaken your bond.
You may still pick 1 from above, but
if you do, you tie yourself to any
consequences they face.
When you demand action from
someone you have a bond with, say
what you want them to do. Then,
for each stitch in your bond, pick 1
thing they’ll risk if they refuse:
» Their reputation. Others will
know of their refusal
» Your faith and trust. They’ll have
to weaken their bond with you
» Your retribution. You’ll gain
advantage forward against them
» A further debt. They’ll owe you an
obligation
They can do what you ask—
strengthening their bond with you
or gaining an obligation—or pay the
price of refusal.
When you hinder someone you have
a bond with, pick as many as you like
as they make their move,
weakening your bond for each:
» They gain disadvantage
» They stitch their emotion, even if
they don’t match
» They’ll face greater consequences
on a miss
Regardless, they may choose to
sever their bond with you. If they
don’t, they may choose to change
their bond’s emotion or statement.
When you reassure someone you
have a bond with, stitch an emotion,
then pick 1:
» You address how they’re feeling:
they remove a stitch from any of
their emotions
» You make them a promise: they
can strengthen their bond
» You give them encouragement:
they heal 1 light wear
When your bond with someone is
severed, they say how that bond has
fractured or faded. If they wish,
they may tell you how you can make
amends.
Commit to repairing the bond,
holding it open until amends are
made, or erase it giving them
advantage ongoing against you.
When you spend a moment to pay
attention to the world around you,
roll. On a 10+, ask 3 from your
character sheet. On a 7-9, ask 1.
When you act on an answer, gain
advantage.
On a miss, ask 1, then the Fates
choose: the information is false or
dangerous (take disadvantage when
you act on the answer), or you are
interrupted (the Fates answer, then
make a move as hard as they like).
When you share a story, tale or piece
of folklore about an area, person or
event, roll. On a success, there is
truth in your tale, gain advantage
when you use that truth. On a 7-9,
pick 1.
» The story has become embellished
as people passed it on
» There is an hidden force, not
named in the story
» Something has been missed,
misunderstood or misinterpreted
On a miss, your story is false in
some way. The Fates will make a
move as hard as they like.
When you read a person’s mood,
intent or reactions, say how you’re
paying attention and roll. On a 10+,
hold 3. On a 7-9, hold 1. Spend hold
1-for-1 to ask:
» What emotion rules them right
now?
» How can I get them to feel _____?
» What do they want from me?
» What are their intentions?
» Are they telling the truth?
» What can I offer them to get them
to _____?
On a miss, you ask 1 from the above.
The Fates will ask 1 back, you must
answer truthfully.
56
When you find a moment of peace, When you use your humanity, gear
comfort and safety, say how long you or resources for something, say the
think it will last. The Fates will effect you’d like:
instruct everyone present to hold 1 » Make a move you wouldn’t
to 3, depending. Take it in turns otherwise be able to
spending hold, 1-for-1, to:
» Gain advantage
» Have a scene with someone » Gain an extra effect or hold
nearby, optionally strengthening » Increase a result level
a bond with them
» Lend the thing out in return for an
» Let off steam, removing a stitch
obligation
from an emotion
» Another novel effect, depending
» Ask the Fates a question about the
on the thing
area or situation
Tell the Fates what you intend.
» Tend to your pains, clearing light
or moderate wear They’ll either let you do it or tell you
what it’ll cost:
» Pick up your tools, adding work to
» The thing is spent or damaged: if
a project
» Get into an entanglement, ending it’s humanity, take wear; if it’s a
the moment of peace for everyone resource, spend it; if it’s gear:
(only after everyone else has spent stitch it (if you use it again, it
at least 1 hold) breaks)
» You’ll have to tempt the fates first
The Fates spend their hold at the
end of each cycle, 1-for-1 to: » You draw attention to yourself or
the thing
» Advance the interests of a threat,
» You put yourself at disadvantage
ticking their clock and sharing an afterwards
omen
» Share a detail about the people,
place or landscape around you
» Have someone make a demand,
possibly someone you owe an
obligation to
When you lead people through
danger, whether just yourself or
others, roll. On a success, you get
past whatever obstacle is in your
way. On a 7-9, pick 2.
» You don’t suffer wear
» Nothing is left behind
» You don’t end up in another
dangerous situation
On a miss, the Fates choose: you fail
to overcome the danger and they
make a move as hard as they like; or
escaping it is costly, they choose as
many as they like from the 7-9 list.
When you tempt the Fate’s curiosity
by testing the edges of your
character’s potential or the world’s
rules, say how you want things to
go, then roll. On a success, it goes
as you said. On a 10+, pick 1. On a
7-9, pick 2.
» It costs you
» There’s a complication
» You draw attention to yourself
» It’s the only time it’ll work like this,
establish a boundary
On a miss, the Fates are in control.
They make a move as hard as they
like.
When you direct a companion, say
what you want them to do, then
roll. On a success, they do what you
asked. On a 10+, pick 1. On a 7-9,
pick 2.
» They come back tired, bitter or
injured: they take wear
» You owe them: you owe them an
obligation
» There were complications: it
takes longer, they’ve made
enemies or you get something
different what you asked for
» They act out: they cause trouble
according to their nature
On a miss, pick one: they refuse or
fail you, and you’ll have to do it
yourself, or they bring you what you
want but with a heavy price
attached—the Fates make a move as
hard as they like.
57
When you confront someone on
equal footing and they refuse to back
down, say which emotion rules you.
Your opponent does the same. Take
it in turns to act; on your turn, pick
1 and say what you do in the fiction:
» I strike at you. You take wear
» I cut close. Choose a new emotion
to rule you
» I disarm you. You lose a weapon,
argument or something you relied
on
» I expose you. You can’t avoid my
next attack
» I attack recklessly. Pick an action
we both suffer and cannot avoid
» I drive you back, cut you off, or
force you onto unsteady footing
» I reposition myself, changing the
distance between us
» I withdraw or surrender
Your opponent chooses: take the
hit and suffer its effects, or avoid
it—they stitch their emotion and
describe how they avoid your move.
Continue back and forth until one
of you strains, withdraws or is left
unable to continue.
When you confront someone and
your control of the situation is
without doubt, you say how it goes.
Who goes first?: if you have
advantage, you go first; if you have
disadvantage, you go last. If you
have neither, the Fates decide.
Multiple people: choose someone
to lead each side. Take turns to
choose actions. If you are not the
leader, to avoid a consequence drop
out of the confrontation (instead of
stitching an emotion).
Straining: if you strain during a
confrontation, you lash out. Say
what foolish, desperate or reckless
action you take. The confrontation
ends with your opponent in control.
When you fight something huge,
dangerous, or beyond your ken, roll.
On a 10+, pick 3. On a 7-9, pick 1.
» You reveal an opportunity or
weakness
» No-one else comes to harm
» You don’t suffer devastating wear
» You aren’t lost
On a miss, choose: place your life in
the Fate’s hands or have what you
fight bring devastation down all
around you.
When you undertake a lengthy
project, say what you want to
achieve. The Fates will tell you how
much work it will take, 3 to 12.
When you act to advance the
project or solve a problem related
to it, add work to it. The Fates will
tell you how much. When it’s
unclear what needs to be done
next, ask the Fates. They’ll tell you
one:
» Supplies are running low: you’ll
need to find a particular resource
» Something goes wrong: you’ll
need new expertise to fix it
» Progress stalls: you’ll need to get
someone enthused
» It’s dividing your community:
you’ll need to placate someone
» It’s being undermined: you’ll have
to work out how and why
» Someone powerful objects: sway
them or continue in secret
» Things shift in unexpectedly: let it
change or pull it back on track
» Something demands attention: do
you ignore the distraction,
despite what it’ll cost?
» You just need more time: to think,
to work, to figure things out
When you push to finish a project
early, regardless of the work left to
do, trigger complete a project with
the following penalties:
» 1 work remaining: stitch the
emotion rolled
» 2 work remaining: stitch the
emotion rolled and gain
disadvantage
» 3+ work remaining: the roll is a
miss, stitch the emotion you
would roll
When you complete a project,
remind everyone what you wanted
to achieve, then roll. On a success,
you get what you want. On a 7-9,
pick 1.
» It cost more than you expected.
What additional toll does the
project extract?
» Others envy what you’re done,
they move to steal it or tear it
down. The Fates create a new
threat.
» It’s flimsy, rickety or bodged, and
requires constant maintenance.
How is it unreliable?
» It goes differently to how you
expected. What unforeseen
consequences are there?
On a miss, the Fates say how it goes.
They pick as many as they like from
above, making the consequences
immediate and sharp.
58
When you undertake a long,
challenging or perilous journey,
name your destination. The Fates
will tell you how many waypoints
you’ll have to pass to reach it.
When you travel towards your next
waypoint, ask the Fates what you
might find there. Tell them a path
you might take, and they’ll tell you
another. Choose which you follow
and roll. On a success, you arrive at
the next waypoint. On a 10+, pick 1.
On a 7-9, pick 2.
» An obstacle or situation is
preventing further travel
» Someone in your group needs
rest
» Supplies are running low or you
need to make repairs
» Someone or something demands
tribute from you
» A threat has made its mark on
this place
You’ll have to deal with any
problems before you continue.
On a miss, an obstacle halts your
progress—the terrain, the weather,
a threat, a companion—you’ll have
to overcome it before you can reach
your waypoint.
When you ride hard towards your
destination, disregarding distance,
weather or your own health, roll
+waypoints remaining. On a 9 or
lower, you reach your destination.
On a 6-, pick 1. On a 7-9, pick 2.
» You suffer wear
» Someone amongst you strains
» You trespass, cause damage or
fail to offer tribute as you pass.
Someone will demand payment
» You arrive with little time and no
margin for error
On a 10+, you don’t arrive in time.
The Fates make their move.
When you enter a new territory,
each player answers one:
» What is the name of this place?
» What is the domain of this place?
» What features define this place?
» What Remnant’s territory is this?
» Can you see the Remnant?
» What is the Remnant’s form?
» What envoys have you heard of?
» What people live here?
Collectively decide which emotion
rules here. Each player replaces
their existing territory emotion
with it, depending on their comfort:
» At home: +2. Stitch it.
» Comfortable: +1
» Uneasy: -1. Answer an additional
question from above.

When you take mortal wounds and
are instructed to meet death, the
Fates will tell you what form death
takes: a scentless smoke, a water
without pressure, a mirror showing
the purest truth, a withered
reflection, something loved and lost,
an uncaring titan, a hungering
nothing, a glorious cruelty, a humble
companion
If you plead, barter or refuse death’s
claim over you, roll. On a success,
you hold onto whatever life you
have left, becoming spirit or
grounded. On a 7-9, you hold on, but
there are conditions—a duration, a
limitation, a desire, a change—the
Fates will tell you what.
On a miss, death claims you, there
and then.
WEAPON TAGS
Weapons and armour belong to a
type. Some gear might be both.
MUNDANE: The item effects the
physical world. It causes or protects
from physical wear.
SPIRIT: The item effects the
spiritual world. It causes or protects
from spirit wear.
WEAR: How much wear the item
inflicts when used as a weapon.
Weapons also have ranges:
HAND: Hand-to-hand fights - a
sword, a dagger, a fist.
CLOSE: Close range, not quite hand
to hand - a spear, a throwing knife.
FAR: Long range - a gun, a bow.
59
OTHER GEAR TAGS
BULKY: Disadvantage in tight
quarters or attempting precise
tasks while using this gear.
CONCEALABLE: This item can be
easily concealed on your person.
CONSPICUOUS: It’s noticeable in
some way—it’s loud, gaudy, ornate,
flashes, smells weird, etc
CUMBERSOME: You always go last
in a confrontation
EMOTIVE: The first time you cut
close, it can’t be resisted
ENTANGLING: When you confront
someone, you may choose “I
ensnare you, holding a part of you in
place.”
FLIMSY: If this gear is stitched, it is
destroyed.
LIVING: This gear is alive in some
way, perhaps sapient.
OVERWHELMING: Wear inflicted
by this must be taken in one
condition, before moving onto
another.
PLENTIFUL X: The item can be
stitched multiple times—there’s a
lot of it or its sturdy—it has X
additional stitches before it is used.
PIERCING: Stitch this to ignore the
protective tag.
PROTECTIVE: Stitch this to ignore
matching wear.
REINFORCED: The first time you
stitch this item, erase this tag
instead.
SHARP: The next time you inflict
wear with this item, inflict +1 wear
and erase this tag.
RELOAD: When you confront with
this item, you cannot attack with it
twice in a row.
REPUTATION: The item has a story
or reputation attached to it. People
may recognise it.
RITUAL: This item has significance
for rituals and ceremonies.
TOOL: When you use this weapon
as a tool, it wont stitch as easily.
TIRING: After a scene where you’ve
used this gear, you take 1 wear.
TRUSTY: This item can never break.
It can always be repaired, even if it’s
stitched twice.
WICKED: Wear dealt by this
weapon can’t easily be healed—
requires a healer for light wear,
supernatural aid for moderate wear.
WOVEN: A piece of spirit is bound
into the gear.
VALUABLE: This item is particularly
valuable. It might be useful when
you convince or offer tribute.