When Sky & Sea Were Not Named
First EditionBest For
Groups settling in for a multi-session campaign who want combat built on resource trade-offs, spellcasters that each play differently, and a Guide comfortable improvising rulings. The island-hopping rescue-and-rebuild structure rewards tables that enjoy both tactical fights and settlement-scale stakes.
Core Mechanic
Each hero has four action dice, one for each action type (Attack, Brace, Compel, Maneuver), with the die size set from d4 to d12 by the relevant attributes. To act, roll the matching die and read it against two thresholds. Against an obstacle, the Guide sets a failure threshold and a struggle threshold. Against a foe, the target's attribute is the failure threshold and its defense is the struggle threshold. Beating the higher number is a Success, beating only the lower is a Struggle that costs something, and beating neither is a Failure. Attacks deal damage equal to the roll minus the target's Guard and Armor, so one roll settles both the hit and its severity.
The core loop is quick to learn: roll one action die and compare it against two thresholds for a clean success, a success at a cost, or a failure. The weight is in the breadth: four defenses that both block hits and double as the resources you spend to act, terrain that dictates which actions are even available, and dozens of lore trees that deepen as characters advance. Spellcasters carry the heaviest learning curve, each managing a magical resource loop on top of all of that. A Guide has to hold these interlocking systems at once, even though a new player can start with a single non-magical hero.
- Free to tryFull core rulesLegally free as an SRD, PDF, or official web rules
- Get it nowAvailable nowFree to download or read online
- –IndexNo back-of-book index or page-keyed reference tables
- –GM guidanceNo how-to-run chapter
- ✓Examples of playRules shown in action at the table
- ✓Quick referenceCheat sheet or summary tables
- ✓Cross-referencesRules point to each other by page
3 of 5 book tools found in the core book
Highlights
Each of the four defenses both resists incoming actions and doubles as the resource a hero spends to power abilities, so every turn weighs guarding against acting. A hero rolls a different die size for each of the four action types, so strengths and weaknesses live in which die they pick up rather than in numeric modifiers. Invoking an Ideal after a roll spends Spirit for an advantage die the Guide sizes to how dramatic the moment is, linking vivid roleplay to a mechanical boost.
Considerations
The three spellcasting callings each run a separate resource economy, creating a real skill gap between players who take a magical calling and those who do not. The Shinarian origin locks Agility at 0, which bars the Wanderer calling and leaves those heroes unable to evade, outflank, or hide effectively. Sizing invoked Ideal dice, setting challenge thresholds, and reading the Dreamshape table all rest on Guide judgment rather than fixed numbers, which favors improvisational Guides over those who want firm procedures.
Rules license All Rights Reserved
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