Steps of a Check

The six steps in the following section provide a more technical breakdown that the GM can reference if they need to know when effects occur or how specific abilities interact. The GM performs all steps for non-player characters.

Step 1: Declare Intention

When a player declares that their character is attempting a task with dramatic stakes where failure is a possibility, the GM may call upon that player to make a check. The player should make their intention behind the check clear, describing what they want their character to achieve if they succeed at the check.

Step 2: Determine Details

A check is resolved through rolling a number of Ring dice ( ) and Skill dice ( ) in a dice pool, and then selecting results (the sets of symbols contained on the upright faces of the dice) from the pool. Use the following process to determine which skill and ring the character will use:

1. Determine Skill Group: First, the GM and player decide which skill group (see page 142) would best allow the character to accomplish the intended task.

2. Determine Skill: Next, the GM and player determine the body of knowledge that applies to the specific activity—this provides the specific skill (see page 142) to use. The GM can call for a particular skill based on circumstances, or the GM can ask the player to propose a skill and offer a rationale for its relevance.

3. Determine Approach: Next, the player provides a brief description of the methods their character employs to reach their goal. The GM selects the elemental approach (see page 142) that corresponds to reaching the original goal by the specific methods, or asks the player to pick a method. If multiple approaches are viable, the player should offer a rationale for the one they choose. Each ring corresponds with a set of methods that relate to the following concepts and are explored in more detail in Chapter 3: Skills (see page 140):

– Air: Grace, cunning, precision, subtlety

– Earth: Resilience, patience, memory, calm

– Fire: Passion, invention, candor, ferocity

– Water: Flexibility, awareness, efficiency, charm

– Void: Mysticism, intuition, instinct, wisdom

4. Determine Target Number of Successes: Finally, the GM selects a target number of successes (commonly referred to as a TN). It is the number of successes the character must achieve to succeed at the check. Except in special circumstances, the GM should announce the TN of the check to the player at this point (see When to Reveal or Conceal the TN, on page 297).

Step 3: Assemble and Roll Dice Pool

The player assembles the dice pool. The player picks up a number of Skill dice ( ) equal to the character’s ranks in the selected skill and a number of Ring dice ( ) equal to the value of the character’s ring that is associated with the selected approach. Then, the player rolls all of these dice. After they are rolled, the dice are called rolled dice.

Declare Intention

When a character tries to accomplish something in the story, the GM may ask for a check. That character’s player clearly explains what they want their character to accomplish.

Determine Details

Based on the description, the GM decides which skill and ring the player will roll, along with the target number of successes (TN) needed.

Assemble and Roll Dice Pool

First, the player picks up a number of Ring dice ( ) equal to their character’s ring the GM chose. This can be found on the character sheet under Rings.

Next, the player picks up a number of Skill dice ( ) equal to their character’s ranks in the skill the GM chose.

Then, the player rolls all of the dice together.

Modify Rolled Dice

The GM and player apply any effects that modify the dice, such as advantages and disadvantages that cause rerolls.

Choose Kept Dice

The player selects a number of dice up to their ring to keep.

Resolve Symbols on Kept Dice

The player resolves symbols from results of kept dice in the following order to determine the check's outcome:

Explosive Success (): For each , the player may roll 1 extra die of the type on which it appears and choose to keep or drop it.

Strife (): The character receives 1 strife per .

Opportunity (): Spend to add story details.

Total Successes ( / ): If total and equal or exceed the TN, the character succeeds.

Summary of a Check

Kat wants to have her character Sakura leap from one rooftop to another while pursuing a suspicious figure fleeing the scene of a crime. She describes her character’s reckless approach to the task—catching up is the most important thing right now!

The GM decides that since she’s trying to overwhelm a foe with a burst of speed, the check will use Sakura’s Fire Ring and Fitness skill. The TN of the check would be 2 normally, but in this case there is fresh snow on the rooftop. The GM raises the TN to 3 to account for this circumstance.

Kat’s character has a Fire Ring of 3, so she picks up 3 Ring dice ( ).

Kat’s character has 1 rank of the Fitness skill, so she picks up 1 Skill die ( ).

Kat picks up and rolls these dice:

After rolling, Kat has the following results:

Her character’s Keen Balance advantage allows her to reroll two dice. She chooses the showing a blank result and the showing an result.

Her new results are:

Kat needs 3 success or explosive success symbols ( / ) to succeed. She only has 2 so far, but if she chooses the , she can roll an extra die to possibly generate the extra she needs. She chooses to keep the highlighted dice and drops the others.

First, Kat rolls the extra die from her explosive success () symbol. The result is , so she opts to add this die to her roll.

Kat generated 1 strife (), so she records that on Sakura's character sheet next to her composure attribute.

Kat has 1 opportunity (). She uses it to add a detail: the chase unnerves the target, which will help in questioning them later.

Kat has a total of 3 and/or , each of which provides a success, so she reaches the target number to succeed at the check. Sakura vaults across the gap and tackles her target!

Step 4: Modify Rolled Dice

During this step, any effects that modify rolled dice are applied. The most common way that rolled dice are modified is through advantages and disadvantages (see page 35), helpful and hindering quirks innate to a character.

After the player rolls the dice, the player and GM have a chance to decide which (if any) of the character’s advantages and disadvantages apply to the check. Each advantage and disadvantage can be applied only once per check by any character.

1. Apply Advantages and Disadvantages: The description for each advantage or disadvantage specifies circumstances when it applies—as long as the GM also agrees. Advantages are applied before disadvantages.

2. Consolidate Advantages and Disadvantages: After applying advantages and disadvantages, the player consolidates them. An applied distinction advantage cancels (and is canceled by) an applied adversity disadvantage; passions and anxieties cancel each other out in the same manner. Canceled advantages and disadvantages have no effect on the resolution of the check.

3. Resolving Advantages and Disadvantages: The player resolves each advantage or disadvantage (the effects are described in this page’s margin notes and in Chapter 2). Only one advantage or disadvantage of a given category (distinction, adversity, etc.) can be resolved.

Step 5: Choose Kept Dice

After applying advantages and disadvantages, the player looks at the results and decides which of the rolled dice will become kept dice (those used in the resolution of the check) and which will become dropped dice (those that will be discarded with their results unused).

The player must choose at least one die to keep, and can choose to keep a maximum up to the value of the ring the character used for the check. The player then removes all dropped dice.

Then, any effects that modify kept dice are resolved.

Step 6: Resolve Symbols

on Kept Dice

After the dice pool has been reduced to only kept dice, the player resolves all symbols contained in the results of those dice. Symbols are resolved in the following order:

1. : For each symbol, the player rolls one additional die of the same type as the one containing the symbol. After rolling a die this way, the player chooses whether it will be kept (on top of their current results) or dropped. If the die is kept, the player resolves its result in addition to the results on the rest of the kept dice in the dice pool (including further symbols).

2. : For each symbol, the character receives 1 strife. The character’s player should record any strife their character receives on their

character sheet. Strife has no immediate effect, but can have effects as it accumulates (see Using Strife on page 29).

3. : The player may spend 1 or more symbols to resolve opportunities. Opportunities are meant to prompt the player and the GM to invent and add extra effects, additional details, and narrative flourishes that occur independently of a check’s success or failure (see Using Opportunity on page 28).

4. : If the sum total of and symbols equals or exceeds the target number of successes of the check, the character succeeds at the objective declared in Step 1: Declare Intention. If this total is less than the TN of the check, the character fails at the proposed feat instead. Additionally, count up any and beyond the ones needed to reach the TN: these are bonus successes, which are important for some checks that account for a character’s margin of success.