Complexity 0–1
Fast
Act in the opening.
An immediate response with little preparation. A nearby strike, a move behind cover, a hand reaching for a falling ally.
Resolves first.The combat rhythm
Steel moves.
The world answers.
Everyone is in the scene.
Declare your intent together. Let complexity shape when it arrives. React when the moment changes. A fight is a shared situation, unfolding through a shared round.
01 / One round, four movements
Declare. Commit.
See what changes.
The baseline is one Main Intent and one Reaction Slot per round. Movement belongs to the intent. Specific purchased rules can change that baseline.
- 01
Council
The whole party makes one shared plan: declare your intentions, coordinate movement and dependencies, and hear the DM describe the enemies’ round and what your characters can perceive.
- 02
Read the scene
The GM considers scale, impact, and complexity. Agree timing, strain, cost, and stakes before committing.
- 03
Resolve
Fast, then Measured, then Heavy. Resolve collisions and triggered reactions as the situation changes.
- 04
Carry it forward
Resolve ongoing effects, consequences, and required upkeep. Begin the next Council Phase with the new situation.
02 / When an intent arrives
Three tracks.
One changing battlefield.
Complexity measures what must happen before the action can manifest. The GM assigns the track from the actual intent and its circumstances.
Complexity 2–3
Measured
Make the pieces connect.
A deliberate or layered intent. Reposition through danger, divide enemies with a barrier, or bring someone through an escape route.
Resolves after Fast.Complexity 4+
Heavy
Give the scene a new shape.
An intent requiring substantial construction or concentration. A complex transformation needs time to become real, and the scene may change first.
Resolves last; the intent must still be possible.03 / Hear it at the table
The bridge is breaking.
What do you do?
An example of the conversation. The GM assigns the final track and costs after checking the characters’ access and the scene.
GM / The situation
“The guard reaches for the alarm. Below him, the bridge begins to give way.”
Player / Main Intent
“I rush him and pin his arm before he rings it.”
Player / A connected plan
“I make an escape route beside the scout so we can get her off the bridge.”
GM / Stakes before commitment
“The guard’s movement directly conflicts with yours. We’ll resolve who reaches their goal first. The escape route has more pieces to set up; let’s agree its scope, cost and upkeep. If it needs to remain open while everyone crosses, maintaining a smaller path may be easier upfront than creating a huge permanent bridge.”
Player / Reaction
“If the scout falls before the route is ready, I reach out to catch her.”
04 / Where intentions meet
Sometimes it is timing.
Sometimes it is a struggle.
Working together
Allies within the same track choose an order that supports their plan. The GM orders allied opposition as the fiction calls for. A speed contest is unnecessary unless there is a real conflict.
Reaction Clash
When opposing intents directly collide within the same track and acting first matters, resolve the timing. Both sides roll d20 + relevant attribute + Proficiency Bonus if trained. A later action is not automatically lost; reassess what remains possible.
Active Contest
When the question is whose effort overcomes the other, resolve the struggle using the relevant checks. Pulling against a captor and racing to a door are different problems.
05 / The moment between
Keep a reaction
for what matters.
A reaction answers a clear event: an ally falls, a trap opens, an attack arrives. It is independent of the Main Intent and can happen before or after that intent resolves.
Pause the triggering action, confirm the response is possible, agree any cost, resolve it, then continue from the changed situation. Reacting does not automatically cancel the trigger.
Stay within the moment.
The baseline reaction is immediate and limited: self, touch, or a single target, with Complexity 0–1. An ambitious response needs an explicit ruling and appropriate consequences.
Longer, channelled work stays exposed to the scene. If the circumstances change before it completes, revisit the intent with the GM.
Every ruling should leave the table understanding what happened, what it cost, and what can happen next.