Fatigue

Players must keep track of how fatigued their characters are. Characters with poor stamina will get tired quickly, which will impair their effectiveness in combat. Any roll based on a physical attribute has a Challenge requirements equal to the fatigue, on the result before adding potential. This means that the roll must be equal to or higher then the fatigue of your character. For example, if a character has a fatigue of 7 and rolls 6 (not counting potential) this means the action automatically fails, even if the challenge would have been 7 or higher when adding potential. If this is an attack, the opponent does not have to defend.

In addition to having a situational penalty, a character's fatigue increases when they are performing physical activities without the opportunity to take a breather. This happens for example while a character is running, fighting, climbing or swimming. Every dice challenge includes a roll with one D6. If the value of the D6 is lower then the fatigue of a character, the fatigue is increased by one. Fatigue can not be higher then twenty or lower then one. Because of this, players can keep track of fatigue using a D20 die.

Example: A character has a fatigue of four. With the D6 she rolls three, this means for the fatigue is increased to five.

Base fatigue

When characters get the opportunity to take a breather, their fatigue returns to it's standard level. This standard is called the base fatigue. Returning to base fatigue only takes a few seconds, up to half a minute or so maximum. The base value of fatigue is four minus the stamina attribute of a character. So:

• 4 -- stamina = base fatigue

A character with a stamina of three will have a base tiredness of one (4 -- 3 = 1) and a character with a stamina of -2 will have a base tiredness of six (4 - -2 = 6). Both fatigue and base fatigue can not be less then 1. So even if you have a stamina of 4, base fatigue is still 1, not 0.

When a character's fatigue is higher then six, they will gain one fatigue point every time they make a physical roll. This is because you can never throw seven or higher with a D6. For some characters, reaching this point will take many rolls. A character with a base fatigue of seven (stamina of -3) will have one extra fatigue every time they roll, because they can never throw seven with a D6. And because the fatigue is a challenge requirement, it will very quickly become impossible to make any successful actions.

Chasing

Chasing characters is done purely on the basis of fatigue. Based on the kind of terrain characters are chasing each other on, the GM decides what attribute or ability to roll. Characters take turns rolling this dice challenge. If a character rolls three or more points higher then her target, she moves one square closer. If the a character rolls three or more points lower then the target, the target moves one square further away. During the roll in which the chaser would surpass the chase target, he or she can take an action against the target instead of moving ahead of the target. The grid should be used to keep track of the distance.

When one of the characters fails to pass their fatigue check, they are unable to continue the chase. If this is the target, this means the chaser will reach the target. If this is the chaser, this means the target has escaped. You can not lower fatigue during a chase, only by standing still can fatigue be restored to it's base.

During the chase, the GM can present the chase target with terrain decisions, for instance the target might decided to climb a building or to jump in the river and continue the chase swimming. This way the chase target has the opportunity to choose a terrain favourable to their abilities. This makes determining an escape route important in choosing a location for battle.

Fatigue during combat

During combat you'll be making many different rolls. Most importantly for attacking and defending. All the physical dice challenges you make (any roll based on a physical attribute), can increase your fatigue. Your fatigue can only increase by one every turn. This includes any action you take during your turn, and any defensive roll you make until the start of your next turn.

Because of this, the more physical dice challenges you have to make, the greater the chance you're fatigue will increase. This opens the possibility for multiple attackers to wear down a much stronger opponent, until his fatigue is so high he will be unable to defend himself. By taking a breather (see List of combat actions) characters can lower their fatigue.

Moving from one square to another doesn't increase a character's fatigue, because it doesn't require any physical dice challenge. Only if there is a challenge requirement based on a physical attribute can fatigue increase while moving. When characters are chasing off the grid, their fatigue does increase. If you use a ranged attack against a target in a combat cluster, and have to make multiple dice challenge, only the first dice challenge can effect fatigue.