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Planning & Engagement

Your party may spend time planning each quest, but you, the players, don't have to do the nitty-gritty planning. The characters take care of that, off-screen. All you have to do is choose what type of plan the characters have already made. There’s no need to sweat all the little details and try to cover every eventuality ahead of time, because the engagement roll (detailed below) ultimately determines how much trouble you’re in when the plan is put in motion. No plan is ever perfect. You can’t account for everything. This system assumes that there’s always some unknown factors and trouble—major or minor—in every operation; you just have to make the best of it.

There are six different plans, each with a missing detail you need to provide (see the list below). To “plan an operation,” simply choose the plan and supply the detail. Then the GM will cut to the action as the first moments of the operation unfold.

  • Assault — Do violence to a target. Detail: The point of attack.
  • Deception — Lure, trick, or manipulate. Detail: The method of deception.
  • Stealth — Trespass unseen. Detail: The point of infiltration.
  • Magic­ — Engage a magical power. Detail: The arcane method.
  • Social — Negotiate, bargain, or persuade. Detail: The social connection.
  • Transport — Carry cargo or people through danger. Detail: The route and means.

The Detail​

When you choose a plan, you provide a missing detail, like the point of attack, social connection, etc. If you don’t know the detail, you can gather information in some way to discover it.

Item Loadouts​

After the plan and detail are in place, each player chooses their character’s load. This indicates how much stuff they’re carrying on the operation. They don’t have to select individual items—just the maximum amount they’ll have access to during the action.

Engagement Roll​

Once the players choose a plan and provide its detail, the GM cuts to the action—describing the scene as the crew starts the operation and encounters their first obstacle. But how is this established? The way the GM describes the starting situation can have a huge impact on how simple or troublesome the operation turns out to be. Rather than expecting the GM to simply “get it right” each time, we use a dice roll instead. This is the engagement roll.

The engagement roll is a fortune roll, starting with 1d for sheer luck. Modify the dice pool for any major advantages or disadvantages that apply.

Major Advantages / Disadvantages​

  • Is this operation particularly bold or daring? Take +1d. Is this operation overly complex or contingent on many factors? Take -1d.
  • Does the plan’s detail expose a vulnerability of the target or hit them where they’re weakest? Take +1d. Is the target strongest against this approach, or do they have particular defenses or special preparations? Take -1d.
  • Can any of your friends or contacts provide aid or insight for this operation? Take +1d. Are any enemies or rivals interfering in the operation? Take -1d.
  • Are there any other elements that you want to consider? Maybe a lower-Tier target will give you +1d. Maybe a higher-Tier target will give you -1d. Maybe there’s a situation in the district that makes the operation more or less tricky.

The engagement roll assumes that the PCs are approaching the target as intelligently as they can, given the plan and detail they provided, so we don’t need to play out tentative probing maneuvers, special precautions, or other ponderous non-action. The engagement roll covers all of that. The PCs are already in action, facing the first obstacle—up on the rooftop, picking the lock on the window; kicking down the door of the bandit's stronghold; getting ready to perform at the masquerade party; etc.

Don’t make the engagement roll and then describe the PCs approaching the target. It’s the approach that the engagement roll resolves. Cut to the action that results because of that initial approach—to the first serious obstacle in their path.

Engagement Roll
  • 1d for sheer luck.
  • +1d for each Major Advantage.
  • -1d for each Major Disadvantage.

 

  • Critical: Exceptional result. You’ve already overcome the first obstacle and you’re in a controlled position for what’s next.
  • 6: Good result. You’re in a controlled position when the action starts.
  • 4/5: Mixed result. You’re in a risky position when the action starts.
  • 1-3: Bad result. You’re in a desperate position when the action starts.

If the players want to include a special preparation or clever setup, they can do so with flashbacks during the score. This takes some getting used to. Players may balk at first, worried that you’re skipping over important things that they want to do. But jumping straight into the action of the score is much more effective once you get used to it. When they see the situation they’re in, their “planning” in flashbacks will be focused and useful, rather than merely speculations on circumstances and events that might not even happen.

Outcomes​

The outcome of the engagement roll determines the position for the PCs’ initial actions when we cut to the score in progress. A 1-3 means a desperate position. A 4/5 is a risky position. A 6 yields a controlled position. And a critical carries the action beyond the initial obstacle, deeper into the action of the score.

No matter how low-Tier or outmatched you are, a desperate position is the worst thing that can result from the plan + detail + engagement process. It’s designed this way so the planning process matters, but it doesn’t call for lots of optimization or nitpicking. Even if you’re reckless and just dive in and take your chances, you can’t get too badly burned. Plus, you might even want those desperate rolls to generate more xp for the PCs, which helps to bootstrap starting characters into advancement.

How long does it last?​

The engagement roll determines the starting position for the PCs’ actions. How long does that hold? Does the situation stay desperate? No. Once the initial actions have been resolved, you follow the normal process for establishing position for the rest of the rolls during the score. The engagement roll is a quick short-hand to kick things off and get the action started—it doesn’t have any impact after that.

Linked Plans​

Sometimes an operation seems to call for a couple of plans linked together. A common scenario is a team that wants a two-pronged approach. “You create a diversion at the tavern, and when they send thugs over there, we’ll break into their lair.” There are two ways to handle this.

  1. The diversion is a setup maneuver that a team member performs as part of the plan. A successful setup maneuver can improve position for teammates (possibly offsetting a bad engagement roll) or give increased effect. An unsuccessful setup maneuver might cause trouble for the second part of the plan—an easy consequence is to give the engagement roll -1d. If it makes sense, the team member who performed the setup can drift back into the main operation and join the team later so they don’t have to sit out and wait.
  2. The diversion is its own plan, engagement, and operation, whose outcome creates the opportunity for a future plan. Use this option when the first part of the plan is required for the next part to happen at all. For example, you might execute a stealth plan to retrieve an artifact from some ancient ruins, then later use that artifact in a magic plan to consecrate a temple for a forgotten god. In this case, you go into downtime (and payoff, notoriety, etc.) after the first part of the plan, as normal.

Either approach is fine. It’s usually a question of interest. Is the linked plan idea interesting enough on its own to play out moment by moment? Is it required for the second plan to make sense? If so, make it a separate operation. If not, just use a setup maneuver.