The previously listed information includes the ground rules for the system with basic engines for Adventure and Tension Point accumulation and expenditures. However, that's not the end of it. Perhaps you'd like to drop the number of Attributes to three or expand with an additional ten skills, or maybe you'd like to experiment with different criteria for Adventure Point generation entirely. Feel free to do so! The sky is the limit.

Here are a few options to experiment with, many of which are used in Party First.

Advancement And Experience

While the Tension Engine is geared toward single-session and one-shot adventures, some players may wish to advance their characters from adventure to adventure through a longer campaign. In that case, these rules may be used.

All players receive the same amount of Experience at the end of each session based on the accomplishments of the group as a whole. The following triggers earn Experience:

● Gain 1 Experience for each character who survived the adventure.

● Gain 1 Experience if the group encountered a new type of Adversary.

● Gain 1 Experience if the group learned a new piece of relevant information about an Adversary (such as a weakness or a secret).

● Gain 1 Experience for each unique type of Adversary defeated.

Experience may be spent for the following advancements:

● To raise a Trait spend Experience equal to the new level times 5.

● To raise a Skill spend Experience equal to the new level times 3.

● To gain a new Advantage spend 3 Experience.

● To raise your Health or Willpower spend Experience equal to 2 times the new level.

Bonus Points

A GM can reward players for excellent role-playing with an additional Adventure Point. These should be used sparingly in one-shot adventures, to encourage players to invest in their characters.

Keep For Points

Using the Keep for Points rules replace the default rules for generating Adventure Points and Tension Points as listed in Conflict Resolution.

This modification allows players greater agency in generating points for the resource pools by making all generation an active choice on their part. If a player keeps a die from their dice pool that rolled a 1, they generate one Adventure Point for themselves. If the player keeps a 6 from their character's dice pool, they generate one Tension Point for the GM.

Morale

Morale is a group resource. It starts with a point for each player and can be spent to use class abilities, Advantages, or to gain extra dice in a conflict just like an Adventure Point. One point is subtracted whenever a character is eliminated from Health or Willpower reaching 0. All characters are eliminated when Morale reaches 0.

The Party Skill

Using the Party Skill rules replace the default rules for generating Adventure Points and Tension Points as listed in Conflict Resolution as well as slightly modifying how character dice pools are built.

The Party Skills list is determined by the lowest value of each Skill among all players. For example, with a group of player characters that have Aim Ranks of 4, 3, 3, 1, the Party Skill value for Aim would be 1. This is the value all Players use for unmodified rolls in Conflict, and rewards are given for using this Skill value.

When rolling in a Conflict, players can use the Party Skill or their Personal Skill. Using the Party Skill gives 1 Adventure Point and for each 1 rolled on their dice,

the GM may buy that as a Tension Point by paying the player an Adventure Point. Using their Personal Skill costs 1 Adventure Point; each 6 rolled adds one point to Morale, and each 1 rolled adds one point to Tension.

When using the Party Skill, a Player can spend a Party Point to keep extra dice from their roll and add them to their total (at a 1:1 ratio). Using their Personal Skill instead, they can keep any extra dice by generating Tension Points for the GM (also at a 1:1 ratio).

Status Effects

Status effects are tags attached to your character that denote an ongoing condition. They may force penalties, benefits, or open up new options when exposed to a corresponding action. Nearly any adjective can be used as a status, and GMs are encouraged to mix and match some of these examples as well as create their own.

Example Use: By triggering a trap the characters are sprayed with oil and gain the FLAMMABLE status effect. If the characters take time to find a pool, lake, shower, or the like they can remove the status. Later in the adventure all characters that have the FLAMMABLE tag automatically take 2 Health damage if they are exposed to open flame.

Status Examples: Afraid, Blind, Incapacitated, Poisoned, Raging

Consequence Examples: act last, -1 to Conflicts using a specific Attribute, +1 to conflicts as an attacker, cannot attack, cannot spend Adventure Points

Time Tables

Time Tables are used to track the progress of certain events. They are not necessary for all tasks, but the GM should keep an eye out for events where time matters. They do not replace Tension Tables, but should be used in concert. The Tension Table is there to provide a sense of uncertainty and the stress of unknown circumstances and consequences. Time Tables, on the other hand, track specific progression to known events or consequences.

Tension Tables should be used in every game right from the start, but Time Tables should come and go as appropriate for the present action or scene within the adventure. Time Tables may have a varying number of entries such as three for short travel or ten for carefully discovering secretive information.

The Progression of Time

Time Tables progress through each step of their entries through the generation of Tension Points during play. Each time a Tension Point is generated, advance the Table Tracker once per point of Tension. It is recommended to utilize a Table Tracker to mark this progression using things like tally marks, shading segments of a clock, or collecting tokens.

Some Time Tables are slow burns while others are a burst of adrenaline. Time will only go as fast as the number of Tension Points rolled. To induce a furious pace to the tension table the GM must require the players to roll conflicts and lots of them. For a long-term building dread, allow the players a more sandbox approach and let them explore areas, only requiring conflicts if certain situations arise.

Danger Time Tables

The most basic use of Time Tables in the Tension Engine is to track progress toward a dangerous occurrence or goal of some kind. In this instance, the Table Tracker ticks upward until the dangerous thing happens or the players clearly avert that danger. These Time Tables will list a particular number of successful conflicts of some type that the party must fulfill in order to avert the danger or achieve the goal. The classic example would be the search for the bomb referenced above. The clock steadily fills until the bomb explodes or the players find and defuse the bomb.

Note that in some situations, players may fail a roll while acting under a Danger Time Table but elect to take the action again. In the bomb defusal example, a player may fail their first attempt while the 3 segment Table Tracker is at 1 and only generate 1 additional Tension. In this case, they may try again while the Tracker is at 2. In this case, if they fail again and generate the Tension necessary to advance to 3, the bomb explodes at last.