Page 86 - Chronicles of Darkness

character may be able to maneuver through labyrinthine turn. You can lose one combined success from your total,
machinery with Dexterity + Crafts, for example. or your character suffers a specific narrative effect such as a
If the context of the scene changes significantly, redeter- Tilt, two bashing, or one lethal damage.
mine who has the Edge. Success: Your character overcomes the immediate chal-
Turn-By-Turn lenge in the chase, and makes headway. Calculate successes,
and add them to your running total.
Exceptional Success: In addition to a massive accumula-
Chase turns reflect between 30 seconds and a minute tion of successes, your character manages to set back the
of game time; if you’re running an extended chase that lasts opponent. You can subject him to the effects of a failed roll,
hours, instead break it up into a series of incidents during regardless of his roll’s outcome.
the chase, each represented by its own individual chase.
At the beginning of every turn, the side with the Edge Seizing the Edge
determines the terms of that turn. At Storyteller discretion,
the side with the Edge determines the dice pool for the chase To add a slightly deeper engagement, offer players the choice
that turn, and makes the first roll. This dice pool has to make to “Seize the Edge” during each turn of the chase. After the
sense within the current context of the chase, but the player side with the Edge determines the rolls for that turn, both sides
should have at least some say in what changes in that turn. As predict their rolled successes that turn, and jot them down. Put
Storyteller, only veto these choices if they absolutely do not these numbers face down on the table. As the dice are rolled,
make sense in the moment. The roll doesn’t have to reflect uncover those numbers. If a player successfully guesses their
direct pursuit or evasion actions, but is identical for both rolled successes, that player gets the Edge during the next turn,
sides. The roll should have a narrative element, one which despite dice and circumstance. This rule heavily favors underdogs
implies potential stakes for failure. because it’s easier to guess successes with fewer dice; it’s a good
Example: The player with the Edge determines that this turn, option to mix up play if the players are trying to evade something
the dice pool is Wits + Animal Ken. The reasoning behind this is that would otherwise outclass them.
that the chase has moved into a junkyard full of feral dogs. The roll
reflects the characters’ ability to maneuver around the dogs without
being slowed or worse, attacked.
If the other side wishes to use other dice pools, they lose
the 10-again quality on his roll, and suffer a cumulative -1
penalty. This penalty increases every time he uses a dice
pool aside from the one dictated. He does not suffer it on
turns where he has the Edge or otherwise uses the dictated
dice pool, but it continues to amass if he decides not to on
a future turn.
Note that the side with the Edge rolls first; this means if
they hit the required successes, they get their desired outcome
for the chase before the other side makes their roll.

Pursuit and Evasion

This is the basic action for pursuit and
evasion in a chase scene.
Dice Pool: Special, deter-
mined by the side with the
Edge. The Storyteller should
determine relevant bonuses
and penalties based on the
environment.
Action: Instant
Dramatic Failure: Your
character suffers the terms
for failure that turn. This
can include the effects
of failure, as well as a
Condition.
Failure: Your
character suffers the
terms for failure that
85
Chases