Design Targets

This section describes the intended experience of play.

Design Targets are not rules. They guide interpretation, tuning, and expansion without overriding mechanics.

If an interpretation contradicts a Design Target, the rule still applies — but the table should question the outcome.

24.1 Intended Player Experience

The game is designed to feel: • harsh, but fair • dangerous, but learnable • grim, but not nihilistic • system-driven, not GM-driven

Survival precedes heroism. Understanding precedes control.

Dice do not answer: “Do you succeed?”

They answer: “What does this cost, disturb, attract, or change?”

The Fate Die answers if the intent is achieved (Section 2). Aspect Dice describe how the world reacts (Section 3).

Rolling more dice makes outcomes richer and harsher, not safer.

Legacy rewards persistence and attention to consequence (Section 21). Legacy is permission to shape the world, earned by surviving it.

Progression favors: • player understanding • strategic restraint • willingness to abandon gains (Section 22)

Characters do not become safe. Players become competent.

This section anchors playtest feedback and future expansion.