Basic Game Loop¶
What this is¶
The Basic Game Loop is the root cycle of play. Every specialized procedure (travel, encounters, combat, monthly turn) is essentially this same loop running at a different tempo, with different content.
Invoked by: the start of play.
Invokes: any specialized procedure as the fiction calls for it.
Returns to: itself.
The three beats¶
The loop has three repeating beats:
- Describe. The DM frames the situation: what the players see, hear, and face.
- Declare. The players state what their characters do.
- Adjudicate. The DM resolves the action — a roll, a ruling, or a description of the outcome — and the situation changes.
Then the loop starts again and the DM describes the new situation.
Create — the foundation¶
The loop runs on prepared material: the world, the map, the factions, the monsters, the lore. The Basic Game Loop requires created material to run.
C5e's procedural tools (faction templates, encounter procedures, travel procedure) are Create tools that feed the loop with content for play.
Tempos¶
The same three-beat loop runs at different paces depending on the scope of the action.
| Tempo | Each beat covers | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| Combat | seconds | combat rounds |
| Encounter | variable, usually seconds to minutes | a single encounter playing out |
| Dungeon turn | 10 minutes | dungeon exploration |
| Travel | 1 day | wilderness travel |
| Domain turn | one month | domain-scale activity |
Specialized procedures¶
These procedures are tempos of the Basic Game Loop, with their own content and pacing:
- Travel Procedure — moves an expedition across the map a day at a time.
- Wilderness Encounter Procedure — resolves what the expedition has run into when an encounter check fires.
- Lair Encounter Procedure — handles stumbling on a faction's lair in uncontrolled wilderness.
- Encounter Staging Procedure — stages a known encounter (distance, grounds, reaction, surprise).
More are planned: dungeon turn, monthly turn, and others.