Faction Turns¶
What this is¶
A faction turn is the monthly heartbeat for a DM-controlled faction. Each takes one broad action per in-game month, producing a beat the players will notice next session. Player-controlled factions are exempt; their players drive their own activity.
Invoked by: the Basic Game Loop at the end of each in-game month.
Invokes: nothing.
Returns to: the Basic Game Loop.
Before the first turn¶
Each DM-controlled faction should have a one-line current Goal: what the faction is trying to accomplish right now.
Examples:
- Cult of the Pale Door: "Open the lower seal beneath the cathedral by midwinter."
- Orc warband: "Drive the dwarves from the iron pass."
- Baron Aldrick (domain): "Marry off Lyssa to the earl and double the taxes."
- Red Dragon: "Crush the upstart silver who claimed my old peak."
Goals are strongly recommended. Factions without one still take a turn but skip the "Pursue" interpretation in Step 2.
The monthly turn¶
For each DM-controlled faction, work through the four steps below. Target time per faction: about one minute without a resolution roll, two to three minutes with one.
Step 1: Roll the action¶
Roll 1d8 on the Faction Action table.
| d8 | Action | What it looks like in play |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Strike | An attack on a rival or likely target. An NPC dies, a road becomes unsafe, a village is razed. |
| 2 | Build | The faction adds a visible thing to the world: expands the lair, extracts a resource, raises a new shrine or watchtower. |
| 3 | Recruit | A formation grows; a new lieutenant joins; a defector arrives. The faction is bigger or more capable. |
| 4 | Scheme | Plot, suborn, propaganda, blackmail. A political event or edict is heard about, possibly with a named NPC at the center. |
| 5 | Parley | The faction reaches out: alliance, tribute, trade. A new connection (or rupture) with another faction. |
| 6 | Pursue | Direct progress on the faction's current goal. |
| 7 | Discover | the faction finds a secret, relic, resource, or something else of value. |
| 8 | Disaster | the faction takes an unforced setback. Surprise attack, weather, lost shipment, exposed secret. |
Step 2: Interpret through the faction's Goal and theme¶
The same action looks different for different factions. A Red Dragon's "Strike" is not a City Guard's "Strike." The DM frames the action through:
- The faction's theme (Beast Master kobolds raid differently from Lava kobolds).
- The faction's Goal (every action can be tilted toward the current goal).
- The faction's lair location (a strike from a mountain lair targets different things than a strike from a city lair).
The roll gives the broad action; the faction's existing details fill in the specifics.
Step 3: Resolve, if needed¶
Most actions do not need a roll. The action happened; the question is what the players notice.
Roll only when the action involves opposition or significant risk and the outcome is not obvious. Strike and Scheme usually warrant a roll. Build, Recruit, Parley, and Pursue usually do not.
When a roll is needed:
- Unopposed action. 1d20 + FR vs DC. DC 15 by default, 10 for easy, 20 for hard, etc.
- Direct contest with another faction. Roll 1d20 + FR for each side. Higher wins; tie is a stalemate.
- Success. The action achieves its aim cleanly.
- Failure. The action still happens but with a complication, a cost, or setback.
Step 4: Note the outcome¶
Update the faction's notes. Examples:
- Cult of the Pale Door, Strike (success): "Sacked the reliquary at the lectorum. Three priests dead. The seal advances."
- Orc warband, Recruit: "Three goblin tribes swore fealty. FR raised from 3 to 4."
- Baron Aldrick, Treat with: "Sent emissaries to the Cult of the Pale Door. Players will hear rumors."
- Red Dragon, Pursue: "Burned the silver dragon's lair to slag. The high crags are contested."
Make the event visible to the players through rumors, news post, etc.