Core Rules
By Ryan Dallaire - Nov 2025
Items could work like spells, you roll to see if they work or if you find enough parts. Bullets are currency. Roll 3D6 + stat vs a target number.
Stats
Stats start anywhere from -2 to +6. Your character type determines how you generate your stats. There are 2 categories of stats, physical and mental.
Physical Stats
Might - strength, endurance, bravery, intimidation
Deft - accuracy, coordination, agility, dexterity
Mental Stats
Clever - knowledge, perception, problem solving, creativity
Social - persuasion, culture, insight, deception
Health
Health starts at a value based on your character type. Average health for a new character is 15.
Skills
Skills are descriptions for a type of roll you get a +2 bonus to. Such as being good at athletics, it could apply to rolls you make with any stat. A skill can be improved later on, increasing the bonus from +2 to +4.
Skills shouldn’t be too broad or too narrow. “Combat” is too broad but “AK-47” is too narrow and the player might not be able to ever use it. “Firearms” is a good mid-point and won’t become an issue for the GM to create challenges where it can be used.
Difficulty Target Numbers
| Easy | Normal | Medium | Tough | | 11 | 13 | 15 | 17 |
Effort tests
For some situations, there is a certain amount of “effort” needed to succeed at a task. Each successful check lets you roll 1D6 and add it to the running total of “effort”. Depending on the difficulty of the test, you need a total effort to finish the task. These are great for tests where the length of time it takes is more important than whether you succeed or fail.
Abilities
Abilities have limited uses. Each ability has a limit to how often it can be used. There are At-will abilities that can be used once every turn. Encounter abilities that can be used once per encounter or scene. And Daily abilities that can be used once each (in-game) day. If an ability (like a chaos mutation) changes or is replaced, then its uses are reset as if it had not been used that day. There are also passive abilities that have a constant effect that is always active.
Using Items
Durability
Items have a durability score that represents how far they are from breaking down. After each scene where the item was used, the player has to roll a D6 to see if the item deteriorates. It deteriorates if the result was a 1 and its durability score decreases by 1. An item that deteriorates to zero durability is broken and must be repaired.
Currency
Currency is bullets, they are abstracted and work with any gun. Only things like rockets or grenades are tracked as separate ammo. Each bullet you fire keeps you further away from harm, but prevents you from buying more gear.
Armour
Armour decreases incoming damage by a little and can be used to prevent more by letting the armor take the damage. The damage is dealt to the armour’s durability score. A shield also decreases damage in melee by 1 but you can also destroy your shield to block all damage from a single melee attack. Roll a durability check for your armour and shield if you were hit by an attack during the combat.
Weapons And Attacks
Weapons deal different amounts of damage. There is a quick reference table for categorizing things that are being used as weapons. Also melee weapons can be destroyed in order to reroll an attack. Giving you another chance to hit, but you lose the weapon.
To attack, you roll a test and try to beat the target’s TN. If you succeed, you deal the weapon’s damage plus the amount you beat the TN. After the battle you will have to roll for weapon durability.
Damage
Light (1d6 or 3) - One handed weapon, poison
Medium (1d6+2 or 5) - minions
Heavy (2d6 or 7) - two handed weapon, monster
Extreme (2d6+2 or 9) - grenades, boss
Chaos Mutations
Random mutations from chaos zones can affect everyone and change regularly. They can apply to every type of character except robots.
Stunting
If you roll doubles when you succeed an attack or skill check, you get a bonus based on the value of the third die. There are multiple ways to use the stunt bonus.
Critical Failure
If you roll three 1s when making a skill check or attack, you get a critical failure. Usually this means you get the worst possible outcome. It is up to the GM what that is, but often that means hitting an ally with your attack or breaking your equipment.
Critical Success
If you roll three 6s when making a skill check or attack, you get a critical success. Usually this means you get the best possible outcome. It is up to the GM what that is, but often it instantly kills a creature you were attacking.
Actions
You get 2 actions per turn. Can perform the same action twice.
Move - Move up to 6 meters, or half that through difficult terrain.
Grapple - Make a Might roll to grab a target or an item.
Climb - Move your character but a Deft/Might roll every 4 meters you move.
Attack - Make an attack roll against a target in range.
Aim - Add +2 to the next attack you make this turn.
Dodge - Add +2 to the next dodge test you make before your next turn.
Hide - Roll to try and hide from anyone who can’t currently see you.
Interact - Pull a lever, grab something from your bag, etc…
Ability - Do whatever the ability says.
Range
Touch (1 meter) - right up next to you
Close (2 meters) - a step away
Near (6 m) - across the room
Far (12 m) - across the street
Very Far (24+ m) - even further