Yarn cards

This page has been updated you can read the original to compare.

Yarn cards are big plot events, thrown around by Plot Dæmons and Solos. They control the flow of the plot and govern the events that are occurring, although they do not control the outcome at all. A Solo may create a huge Ordeal for another Character, but they don’t get to decide if the Character succeeds or not.

Playing Yarn Cards

Solos can play Wyrd Tarot cards as Yarn cards on themselves or others, for no additional costs.

Yarn cards are often played contextually, so the Scene and Act can effect how they behave, but a Solo can decide to access the Random Events table first (although this will burn through their cards very quickly as you always need more than one card). It is worth noting that if you are in a Zenith Scene of a Loom Story of a Frame Arc (or similar) of a Volume Story then you could automatically opt to play a Yarn Card as any of the Card types.

For Referees wanting to run an open world/sandbox game style you can give each NPC in a town an event each day and see what kind of plot the players turn that into. It can make for a fun session without having to prepare a whole plot demon.

Suits

The Suits of the cards are often important to the effect of the card. On the Random Event Table the suits effect the following aspects.

• Hearts ♥ Love, Relationships, Affections, Family, Sympathy, Peace.
• Clubs ♣ Power, Fame, Politics, Ability, Money.
• Diamonds ♦ Travel, Money, Business, Contracts, Deals, Voyages.
• Spades ♠ Misfortune, Suffering, Loss, Mourning, Treachery, Betrayal, War, Lawsuit.

So if your Referee is running a deeply involved political game, and you want to throw in a few spanners as a Solo you probably want some Clubs or Spades in your hand before you start.

During each Scene within an Act you can play as:

• Frame:
  • Hook
  • Revelation
• Loom:
  • Warp (all Black cards are Warps if playing Randomly)
  • Ordeal (most Warps are)
  • Weft (all Red cards are Wefts if playing Randomly)
• Zenith:
  • Finale (Ordeal)
  • Completion
  • Gain

Conflict Embodiment

When a Conflict from a Story Demon is involved in an event it will embody BOTH sides of the Conflict in every Scene. Usually the Referee will do this automatically as they build the plot, but if Solos are trying to push a certain plot into existence then they too can force Conflicts to Embody in a Story or Scene. Each Embodiment will take a Yarn Tarot Card.

Completely Random Event Table

If the Ref isn’t running a Plot (or you don’t want to play the sort of cards normally allowed in the Scene) then this table governs where you go next.

Hooks

Hooks are used in Frame Act Dæmons to to draw a character into the Plot (and explain the setting).
They target an aspect of the Character to try and draw them in, or offer something the character wants, often the aspect of the Character may be to do with the Conflict (being one of the Facets) (or may go on to inform you what the Conflict may be). Often a Hook will reveal to a Ref what sort of Character the Antagonist should be (to create a suitable hook for that aspect of the Character).

Gains

A gain means that the Character gains something. Gains usually pay out any stored Sway (as they are usually scenes) as Proficiencies, Annexes, Descendants or removing Handicaps.

Warps

Warps work the Conflict, negatively affecting the Character.
Warps are divided into three parts

1. The Ends: Each Character has an End that they seek, their goal for the Scene. Usually Players worry about their Character’s Ends, but the Warp Dæmon will note suitable NPC Ends. Ends are usually phrased as Quests, but Plots can be more subtle than that if you want. If assigning randomly then use the card’s suit to decide the Facet of the Quest (as well as some narrative sense).
2. The Fray: That which works the Conflict, the Fray is what keeps the Characters from their Ends, it can be one of the following:
   1. A Test — the simplest of Tests might be a single roll on a Facet or Annex. It might be used to spot a clue, open a door, buy a meal, or lift a box. Tests are a simple pass/fail and so should be used sparingly.
   2. An Ordeal — a more complex Test, where multiple things are tried. It might be used to Craft an item, Raise cash, Pick a lock or Hack a computer. Most Frays are an Ordeal of some sort.
      1. A Motional Ordeal — A journey or trip, you might get lost, or be late, or fall to your death, depending on the stakes. And are you going alone, chasing someone else or fleeing for your life?
      2. A Fight — If you are involved in a fight it is usually against the opposite embodiment. They might capture you, or flee the fight, but the chances are at least one of you will be injured a bit. Fights don’t have to be deadly combat though, debates, arguments and even many games are simply lower stakes Fights.
   3. A Quest — At its simplest, the Fray is always a Quest, usually the one they have selected as their End. The Quest is the combination of a number of Ordeals, or Tests, that often will include a motional Ordeal or a Fight. Quests can be entire stories, or just a quick search of a room.

   Card	Fray Result
   2	Facet Test
   3-4	Simple (One Stage Solitary) Ordeal
   5-7	Complex (Multi-stage / Opposed) Ordeal
   8-9	Motional Ordeal
   10-J	Fight (Combat Ordeal)
   Q-A	Quest (Series of Tests / Ordeals )

3. The Snag: The complication that follows the Fray. If the Fray was won then some new situation complicates matters, if the Fray was lost then there is usually an already obvious Snag. The point of the Snag is always to stop the Depressed side from achieving their Ends, or making that End worthless once it has been achieved.

Weft

The Wefts allow some working of the Conflict by balancing the Warps. Wefts are also broken into 3 parts.

1. Recoiling: Whatever has just happened, the Characters need to adjust to it. The Plot should note the Recoils of the NPCs, noting that all Characters should have an emotional reaction, then an instinctive reaction, before they finally get to a rational reaction. Refs should allow Players to handle and have time to express their reactions, but can plan the NPCs Recoils. Recoils can best be thought of as an example of a Psychology Test. It should be obvious whether the recoil should be positive or negative and whether it should be 1,2, or 3 card Tests.
2. Sweeping:  Helps balance the terrible effects of the last (or next) Warp by granting some aid to the Depressed side of the conflict (usually the Player Characters). A Diamond will grant a Gain, a Spade grants a Revelation, Hearts and Clubs should consult the table.
   

   Card	Sweeping Result
   A	Rest: The Character finds somewhere safe to rest and heal up.
   2	Helped: The Character is helped by a potential Ally (a Hearts Gain).
   3	Reward: Character gets a Gain (see Table)
   4	Truth will out: A lie is revealed, as the truth comes out.
   5	Dream: Character has a strange dream or nightmare, while resting. There is a slim chance (5% or so) it may be a Revelation
   6	Character gets a Revelation (see Table)
   7	Opposite Warp: something bad happens to the Character’s enemy.
   8	Comic Relief: Lose some tension
   9	Hide: the Character hides and works in secret.
   10	Travel: The Character travels to another Location (Motional Ordeal).
   J	Opportunity: The Character has a chance to strike back at the enemy (Ordeal/Fight)
   Q	Discovery: a Gain and a Revelation together.
   K	Montage: Rest, Heal up, and make a Gain, while the Enemy has a Warp

3. Picking: Now the Weft must present the Characters with a choice or dilemma. It is normal to make both choices equally terrible (or perhaps good), but sometimes there may be an obvious better choice. Picking between choices is an important part of the experience for players, and the choices should be important. Examples of Picks that the Weft may have can include:
   • An ethical dilemma.
   • A catch-22 where no matter what they do the same result occurs.
   • Enemy make a gain or a revelation
   • Choose between two things that must be sacrificed
   • Two Allies will not work together, choose which one is lost.
   • Behind the first door is Fiery Death, behind the second Certain Doom.
   • Choose which of two Warps comes next.
   • Or mix and match…

Revelation

Whenever the Character’s find something out it is a Revelation. In some ways the Revelation is related to the Wyrd Tarot Clue card (Red 5). Although the Clue is only a hint and the Revelation is a powerful part of the Story.
First off a revelation event usually reveals an important fact along with some minor facts.

Revelations are tricky things to just drop into the plot, but here are some suggestions.
First use at least two cards to decide what information is being shared if you don’t know already. A Full revelation scene (such as the last scene of the Frame) will usually reveal more than one fact (as many as you want really but three (6 cards) is usually enough, smaller revelations that occur within other scenes tend to be more focused.

Information about…

Specifically information about…

And a card (or the first if PCs or Refs already know what info was being shared) decides how the information is revealed.

Of course you can get clever and have Odd cards signify false information, and Evens Truths, or even draw twice for a very complicated clue (e.g. A bullet hole in a book, or a coincidentally overheard conversation) or provide different facts on different information vectors.

Finale

Finales are a specific Ordeal at the start of a Zenith. They are the big battle or Denouement.
The finale determines the Completion Event that is available.

Completion

Completion Events follow the Finale and are when you work out the Conflict Resolution that has Occurred.

You cannot decide the Completion event with card play, because it depends on the Conflict, and how it has resolved.

Ordeals

You can find details on the Ordeals in the Card Ordeals page.

Stakes

Ordeals have stakes, the table can create low,medium,high and blended stake Ordeals. Blended Ordeals might include: a running gun battle (High), across town in cars (medium), while trying to remember a phone number(low)… For example.

*Refs these are suggestions only

Motional

Motional Ordeals are special types of Opposed Ordeals that you might want to use. You can use a single card to show what sort of Motional Ordeal you are dealing with. While they are described as Races, Dashes and so on, you can use them to model a variety of types of Ordeal, from Scientists working on problems at separate Laboratories, to a Novelist taking part in NanoWriMo…

*Increase Stake a level if necessary, add a card (or more if very dangerous) to act as a Wound for mistakes and failures.

Obstacles

Obstacles are usually dealt with during Ordeal Stunts(although any stage may have them), they come in many types and flavours, as you can see. If you are using this table you will have to add an extra Ordeal card in the Ordeal, and follow the rules for Obstacles there. Obstacles are easily created by Solos during Ordeals.

Again these are more for flavour and inspiration. Refs can and should choose Obstacles to make sense in their world instead.

Fight

A fight is a special type of Opposed Ordeal, where… Well you can probably work this one out.
Low stakes fights are Training or sparring sessions, or perhaps debates where there is little chance of anyone being hurt, Medium stakes fights are duels or competitions, few people die but it is possible, High stakes fights are generally to the death. These tables are mainly for defining the foes in the fight if they aren’t obvious. Fights can take place in single locations, or during a Motional Ordeal.

In most genres you should feel free to try and kill at least one member of the party every Story (although your Plot Dæmons will probably want to take them alive in the end [changing that Dead Handicap to a Captured one perhaps], unless they are actually unimportant to the larger Plot [if losing them from the plot wouldn’t alter the amount of Yarn that it would have and they are not pivotal to the Conflict]). Most Stories raise the Stakes as the story goes on. Early in the story Ordeals tend to low Stakes, by the Zenith of a Story High stakes should be the norm.

Remember that Referees can use plot demons and Wyrd tarot cards to throw an event in if they want to. Solos and Plot Demons will throw events at the PCs to try and keep things on track (and Solo PCs will throw them at your NPCs all the time too!)