Dice Rolls

Action Roll

Roll to pull off something risky. State how & why, clarifying your intent. The GM picks the stat that matches your intentions.

• Perfect: You do it, and avoid trouble.
• Messy: You do it, but there’s trouble. Prompts an impact move.
• Grim: You fail, and there’s trouble. Prompts an impact move.

The GM makes an impact move to introduce consequences. You don’t get a defense roll against impact moves prompted by your own action rolls - avoiding danger is already factored into the roll.

Defense Roll

Roll to avoid incoming trouble, but only when not caused by your own action. The GM calls for the roll and picks a stat to test.

• Perfect: You avoid the trouble.
• Messy: You avoid the brunt of the trouble. The GM lightens the consequences.
• Grim: You fail to avoid trouble. The GM follows through on the move.

The GM calls for defense rolls when they target you directly with an impact move. On a messy, there’s still some trouble, like taking lesser damage, losing the chance to act, or being in a worse position.

Defense is cinematic - a reaction, out of your hands. The GM picks the stat to fit the danger, your PC’s likely reaction, vulnerabilities, and what feels right for the moment. This keeps it varied - you can’t always use a strong stat.

Montage Roll

Roll to condense a sequence you don’t want to play out in detail, but still want to leave up to the dice. Roll 2d, resolving it all as a single action roll, then narrate a few beats. Keep things moving or zoom in on a grim.

If multiple PCs join, each rolls 2d and shares the risk. Collaborate on the results. 6s on separate rolls don’t count towards criticals.