Story Beat (SB) Menus
Universal SB Spend Menu
1 SB — Shave time/position: add +1 segment to the current timer or drop Position one step or impose a small fee/toll.
2 SB — Escalate pressure: upgrade the active ♣ or force a choice of Diamonds or tick a Front by 1.
3 SB — Lock a gate/taboo: close a route until a named ♢ is spent or invoke a regional taboo.
4+ SB — Reshape the leg: rewrite the route, start a new complication timer, demand immediate payment on a Debt.
Regional SB Options (Expanded)
When a Story Beat is generated in a specific region, the GM may choose a complication that fits that region’s flavor. Below are options for all major regions, including those from the expansions.
| Region | SB Options (1–3 SB) |
|---|---|
| Kahfagia | Lantern code changes (1 SB); mirror-keeper demands a toll (2 SB); privateer flotilla appears (3 SB) |
| Ecktoria | Statue turns its head (1 SB); Everflame burns blue (2 SB); Censor’s seal cracks (3 SB) |
| Acasia | Peat-fog rolls in (1 SB); a bridge leads back to where you started (2 SB); the Curse stirs (3 SB) |
| Vhasia | Seal breaks mid-signing (1 SB); legal papers rewrite themselves (2 SB); chevauchée burns a village (3 SB) |
| Viterra | Hedge shifts overnight (1 SB); charter contradicts itself (2 SB); duel challenge declared (3 SB) |
| Thepyrgos | Bell rings false (1 SB); The Unfinished Stair appears (2 SB); Chain-Lanterns conduct a sweep (3 SB) |
| Aeler (under-vaults) | Breath-time check fails (1 SB); engineer demands requisition (2 SB); cave-in detour (3 SB) |
| Mistlands | Fog hides landmarks (1 SB); a wraith asks for a name (2 SB); the ninth bell rings (3 SB) |
| Ykrul | White squall (1 SB); horse sickness spreads (2 SB); feud spark escalates (3 SB) |
| Vilikari | Annona late (1 SB); law tangle (2 SB); Foedus Stone crack widens (3 SB) |
| Black Banners | Payday delayed (1 SB); false orders (2 SB); condotta flip (3 SB) |
| Linns | Black squall drops (1 SB); fogfall (2 SB); thing injunction (3 SB) |
| Sihai | Ancestor demands accounting (2 SB); Censorate audit triggered (3 SB); canal lock sabotaged (1 SB) |
| Nihori | Ninth wave warning (2 SB); oni cult initiation (3 SB); duel challenge issued (1 SB) |
| Ayokha | Monsoon bell rings false (1 SB); witness cord cut (2 SB); nat demands a story (2 SB) |
| Dhahara (Satrapies) | Breath shortage (1 SB); toll dispute escalates (2 SB); Ninth Seal whispers (3 SB) |
| Dhahara (Brass Coast) | Tariff hike (1 SB); green lantern lit (2 SB); smuggler’s betrayal (2 SB) |
| Fhara | Dry well discovered (1 SB); coffee ritual interrupted (2 SB); well-spirit offended (2 SB) |
| Sidhi | Lighthouse out of phase (1 SB); freedman’s seal forged (2 SB); Ashaani raid sighted (3 SB) |
| Pereshi | Flame gutters (1 SB); forged scroll (2 SB); bridge recitation fails (2 SB) |
| Kuvani | Horse sickness curse (2 SB); wind-singer falls silent (2 SB); ghost herd charges (3 SB) |
| Tulkani | Vow-cord recognized (1 SB); lord demands rent (2 SB); ninth night triggered (3 SB) |
| Oshiira | Desert dust coats grain (1 SB); locust swarm (2 SB); Widow’s health fails (3 SB) |
| Ashaan | Spirit-dust storm (1 SB); Brass Gate closed (2 SB); bound spirit breaks free (3 SB) |
| Ngomebe | Keystone cracks (1 SB); Root-binder sabotage (2 SB); earth tremor (3 SB) |
| Taharka | Landslide blocks pass (1 SB); horse sickness (2 SB); king assassinated (3 SB) |
| Sekogo | Thorn-spirit blocks path (1 SB); Ukwe demands a name (2 SB); Leopard Society hunt (3 SB) |
| Lethai-ar (Crimson Valley) | Snapped strand (1 SB); web-law challenge (2 SB); bridge collapses (3 SB) |
| Theona | Ground-mist (1 SB); spoken geas (2 SB); Green Host rides (3 SB) |
| Zakov | Tide shift (1 SB); warehouse fire (2 SB); cursed cargo (3 SB) |
| Aelinnel | Glamour fog (1 SB); iron offense (2 SB); green gate yawns (3 SB) |
| Aelaerem | Unseasonal fog (1 SB); scarecrow turns (2 SB); Hollow opens (3 SB) |
| Valewood | Sweet wind (1 SB); path reversal (2 SB); empire wakes (3 SB) |
| Ways Between (Obishaal) | Funeral loop (1 SB); reality thins (2 SB); convergence (3 SB) |
| Dungeons (living infrastructure) | Breath-bond snaps (1 SB); demon whispers (2 SB); keystone cracks (3 SB) |
Caravan Intent Dial
When traveling the overland routes of the eastern and southern realms, choose one intent per leg:
- Speed
Press mounts and crew; risk lameness or exhaustion. Gain +1 Speed, but mark 1 Fatigue on a Miss.
- Stealth
Avoid bandits and inspectors. Gain +1 die to Stealth rolls, but lose 1 segment of progress.
- Show
Fly banners and announce your presence. Gain +1 Position on social rolls at the destination, but attract a rival’s attention (GM gains 1 SB).
- Tribute
Travel as a bonded caravan of a patron. Gain protection (first hazard is ignored), but pay 1 Measure or a String to the patron’s factor.
Regional Currencies Cheat Sheet
Use this table to quickly determine what ”payment“ looks like in each region – replacing generic coin with flavourful resources that reinforce local themes.
| Region | Primary Currency | Secondary Currency | Toll / Gift Form |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oshiira | Grain ledger receipts | Vermilion Corps stamps | Shared meal, water right |
| Sihai | Salt licenses, examination rank | Ancestral name (favor) | Calligraphy, incense offering |
| Black Banners | Payday (silver), condotta contracts | Story of a victory | Duel honor, banner token |
| Zakov | Syndicate weight (favor), stolen goods | Salt-crusted coin | Named cargo, a whispered secret |
| Ashaan | Spirit-lamp (bound name), Veil-clip | Erased name (leverage) | Silence, a confession, a drop of blood |
| Tulkani | Memory-cord (knot), story | Dream-cord (Ikasha’s favor) | A true story, a childhood memory |
| Pereshi | Name (erased or offered), coal fragment | Fire-temple token | A rose, a verse of the epic |
| Fhara | Water-share tablet, coffee cup (seal) | Date from a sacred grove | A story about water, a pinch of salt |
| Sekogo | Honey-jar, Ukwe leaf (witness) | Nkisi shard (spirit favor) | A broken promise confessed, a memory |
| Crimson Valley (Lethai-ar) | Truth-cord (witness token) | Warden’s mask (passage) | A promise, a witnessed handshake |
| Kahfagia | Lantern code, convoy letter | Mirror-keeper’s seal | A name to the deep, a bell rung |
| Ecktoria | Coin-house credit, golden edict | Procession permit | Indulgence, a dropped name |
| Vhasia | Sunburst warrant, safe-conduct | Chivalric geste (honor) | A memory of Lence, an unbuckled gorget |
| Viterra | Hedge-law writ, ferry priority | Duel sanction (legal favor) | An oath sworn in salt, a boundary stone |
| Mistlands | Ward-salt, bell-key | Pall indulgence (spirit ward) | A breath held, a name not spoken |
| Aeler | Breath-bond, underway pass | Keystone charter (dwelling right) | A counted exhalation, a sealed promise |
| Ykrul | Remount chit, salt allotment | Hostage string (favor) | A horse’s name, a story of the steppe |
| Kuvani | Grazing compact, sky-road song | Remount chain mark (horse tooth) | A story the wind hasn”t heard |
| Ngomebe | Keystone shard, sledge-wax | Mason-Kin hammer (craft favor) | A stone-song, a day’s labor |
| Taharka | Pass-stone, horse-bond | Coffee measure (royal seal) | A cup of tea (third cup), a mountain herb |
| Theona | Well-blessing, moot token (eight-knotted cord) | Hawthorn pass (taboo immunity) | A ribbon tied in eights, a forgotten name |
| Valewood | Way-cord (knot), dew-mirror | Truce-bough (safe passage) | A promise spoken to a tree, a memory of sunlight |
| Ways Between | Dream-catcher, truth-compass | Ikasha’s fragment (vial) | A memory paid as toll, a true name |
| Sidhi (Galanina) | Freedman’s seal, lighthouse charter | Green flame (witness) | A drowned ancestor’s name, a knotted thread |
| Brass Coast (Dhahara) | Lighthouse charter, freedman’s seal | Spice warehouse letter of credit | A story of the Long Trail, a pinch of salt |