GOOD STRONG

HANDS

A Darkly Whimsical Game About

Saving Your Fantastical World

by Craig Campbell
 THE VOID GROWS
The world is a wheel. And a wheel that doesn’t spin takes you nowhere.

Brownie proverb

Many ages have passed in the land of Reverie. Kingdoms rose and fell. Folk
came to power and then lost that power. Populations swelled, moved,
changed, and settled into familiar realms.
Scholars have long believed Reverie is a world of cycles. These cycles
are seen in the rise and fall of kingdoms. In the migrations of animals. In the
change in seasons. In the growth of populations, and in their eventual
demise. And it is true. Reverie is a world of cycles. And an important cycle is
about to begin again.
Many important events mark Reverie’s history. But no event is more
important – more world-shaking – than the arrival of the Void. This faceless,
malevolent force is entropy and destruction incarnate. Once every few
centuries it rises, threatening to destroy Reverie.
The Void constantly creeps at the edge of Reverie. It is a slithering,
nasty Void and it reaches out, straining to touch every part of the world. Its
tendrils have once again started to eat away at the edges of Reverie. If the
Void wins, it will consume this world. It will turn trees to ash. It will render
mountains to swamps. It will snuff out all light and bring only itself – only
nothingness – to the whole of creation.
Reverie begins a new cycle. It is one where the Void will either consume
and destroy all of the world…or one where it will be stopped…by heroes
like you.

WHAT IS THIS GAME ABOUT?

ABOUT?
Good Strong Hands is a tabletop roleplaying game (RPG) about fighting back
against the darkness that threatens to destroy your world. It’s set in the
fictional world of Reverie. A reverie is a daydream, a happy place to lose
oneself. The world of Reverie has been just that for quite some time. But
that could change.
You and your friends will tell stories of fantastic folk who strive to keep
Reverie alive, to prevent the Void from consuming and destroying their
beloved home. The stories you tell will be those of friendship, teamwork,
self-empowerment, overcoming harmful forces, and dealing with a world in
crisis.

2
TELLING THE STORY
A roleplaying game is a conversation that tells a story. You and your friends
each have roles to play in that story.
Most of you will be players and you’ll each control one character in
these stories. You’ll decide what that character wants, fears, says, and does.
Sometimes, there’s a chance that your character could fail at what they’re
attempting. That’s where the rules come in, but more on that later.
One player will be the Game Master (GM). With a few exceptions, the
GM controls everything else, everything that is not one of the other players’
characters. They describe the world, portray the non-player characters
(NPCs), create challenges for the characters to overcome, and adjudicate the
rules.
At its core, an RPG is a collaborative, improvisational tale with some
rules. Every player (including the GM) is important in telling that story.

THE GAME MECHANICS

You’ll use six-sided dice to play Good Strong Hands. Each player will need
six of these dice, though you can share. Note that the GM won’t be rolling
dice. Their method of interacting with the story is different.
A character has four primary Traits – Body, Mind, Charm, and Heart.
Body describes everything physically active about the character, including
physical strength, nimbleness, and speed. Mind covers everything mental
and intellectual, including knowledge, reasoning, wisdom, and the
character’s senses. Charm describes the social side of the character,
including how they relate to others and the force of their personality. Heart
defines a character’s inner strength, courage, resilience, and resolve. It is
also used for manipulating magic. Each of these Traits is scored between 1
and 4.
When you want to attempt something that has consequences for failure,
you’ll make a Trait Check by rolling a number of six-sided dice equal to the
Trait’s score. The task you’re attempting will have a target number (TN)
associated with it and set by the GM, ranging between 4 and 6. To be
successful at the task, you need at least one of the dice you roll to equal or
exceed the TN. There’s more to it than that, but we’ll get to that later.

What You Need to Play

Each player will need a character playbook, two pages that define
everything about their character in game terms. You’ll need pencils to mark
some things on your character playbook and you’ll need six six-sided dice.
The GM will need a story to tell. There are fifteen story schemes
provided later in this book. The GM might also come up with their own
story beforehand or might even improvise a story in the moment. The

3
players will also contribute to the creation of this story through their
characters’ actions and also by helping to flesh out the world with the GM.
The group will need at least one copy of this rulebook to share. Some
people like to have their own copy.

SAFETY TOOLS
Good Strong Hands is a game of imagination. And imaginations
sometimes go to painful places. The game supposes that the Void, a being of
pure hatred and destruction, wants to end the world. It employs agents to
help it achieve its goals. While many groups will keep the game more light-
hearted, some might want to delve into themes of loss, violence, and the
trauma that might accompany such destruction.
It’s important that all players, including the GM, feel safe and are able to
address problematic content. Addressing these things can happen before
playing, but can also happen during and after the game.

Responsibility and Limits

Before playing, it’s worth setting some boundaries. Talk to the other players
and determine what topics are off-limits for your game and what topics
you’re okay with seeing presented, but don’t want to see in detail. These are
often referred to as lines and veils. Lines are things you don’t ever want to
have in the story. Veils are things that can be there, but only alluded to and
then you “fade to black” on them. You don’t have to explain why and the
other players don’t get to ask why.
You’re telling a story together, and you have a responsibility to both
yourself and your fellow players to ensure the story is one that everyone is
comfortable telling.

Taking Breaks
If you need it, ask for the group to take a short break. This can be
particularly useful after an intense scene that delved into difficult content.
Step away, get a drink, use the restroom, fiddle around on the internet, or
talk to the players about whatever it is you like to talk about.
Breathe.

Checking
hecking In
If you find yourself feeling uncomfortable or downright threatened by
anything that’s happening in the story you’re telling, take some time to talk
to the GM or other players as you see fit.
If you see another player or the GM is clearly uncomfortable or “pulling
away” from the story when in the midst of an intense scene, take some time
to talk to that person afterwards or maybe even pause the play to make

4
sure everything is okay. All of this goes for after and between game sessions
as well.

Humor
Humor
There is some humor baked into the game, allowing players to step away
from serious subjects for a time. Never use humor to make light of any
situation that has made someone uncomfortable or prompted them to take
a break or check in with the other players.

The Void’s Voice

During the game, a character may be tempted by the Void. The GM may
speak “in the Void’s voice” directly to a character, in essence, speaking
directly to that character’s player. The GM should take special care in how
they use this voice.
The Void is meant to tempt the character, to lead them down a path of
corruption. But it should never push a player to dwell on a topic the player
doesn’t like.

Methods
There are a variety of safety tools that have been published and are readily
available online.
Lines and Veils is described above. It was developed by Rod Edwards
and more in-depth information about the tool can be found online. The X-
Card, developed by John Stavropoulos, is handy and used by a lot of game
groups. Given the cinematic nature of Good Strong Hands, you might
consider using Script Change by Brie Beau Sheldon.
Alternatively, you and your group can develop your own, custom safety
tools that you all agree do the job you need them to do.

HELPING TO BUILD REVERIE

REVERIE
This book doesn’t provide a great deal of detail about Reverie. There’s no
chapter filled with world description and lore. The character playbooks
provide some basic information and the GM has access to story schemes
that suggest a variety of things, but the world itself is incomplete.
This is purposeful. Reverie is made from the stuff of dreams and
imagination. It is made by you. Additionally, many folk in Reverie have
lived relatively peaceful lives of contentment. They’ve likely not traveled
more than twenty or so miles from where they were born.
As the characters embark on quests to save their home from the Void,
they will discover places they’ve only heard of. Places they’ve imagined but
never visited. And you’ll help create them.
As the GM guides you through a story, they will ask you for help. You
might end up naming places or people you encounter. You might define

5
quirks that NPCs have. You might provide a description of a wondrous
locale. As you explore the world, as you save it from destruction, you – and
your character – will decide what makes it so special, why it deserves to be
saved.

FALLING TO CORRUPTION
Your character is a hero, but what is a hero with challenges to overcome?
Many of those challenges will be described by the GM as they guide you and
the other players through the story. However, one specific challenge is built
into each and every character.
Because your character is a hero, the Void wants to corrupt them. Each
character has the potential of falling to this corruption over time, and this
potential is built into the rules. It starts with gaining special abilities, gifts
from the Void, called Corruptions. These abilities will help your character
succeed at their goals, but they will also lead the character down a path
then ends in becoming a servant of the Void. Will your character avoid this
fate? You’ll have to play the game and tell your character’s story to find out.

6
 THE RULES
Learn the rules when you’re young so that you know why and when to break
them when you’re old.

Woodkin proverb

These rules are meant to help you play Good Strong Hands. They’re not
terribly complex and they don’t cover every possible thing that might come
up. When they don’t, the GM makes a ruling by using common sense,
building consensus, and making sure everyone is engaged. If everyone
agrees on the rule and it’s used consistently, you’re doing it right.

THE THREE TRACKS

Before we get into making dice rolls, there are three important tracks to
discuss. Each of these tracks has a series of checkboxes associated with
them. As you play Good Strong Hands, you’ll check and uncheck these
boxes for a variety of reasons. Here are the tracks and what they represent.

Tracks
 Skill Track: Represents your character’s raw potential for
improvement. When you fill up this track, you’ll spend all the points
marked to improve your character.
 Spirit Track: Represents your character’s inner reserves of effort
combined with a mystical energy that inhabits all sentient beings. You’ll
spend points from this track to gain bonuses to dice rolls, to use certain
Talents, and to resist the Void’s influence.
 Shadow Track: Represents how much the Void has noticed your
character and how much it has successfully tempted them. When you
fill up this track, you’ll spend all of the points marked to gain a
Corruption, as the Void slowly overtakes your character.

During the game, if a rule says to “mark 1” in a track, you fill in one
checkbox. If a rule says to “spend 1,” you’ll erase a check mark previously
made to gain some benefit. If a rule says to “spend all,” you’ll erase all of the
check marks, except for those which are permanently filled in.
If a rule says to “mark 1 permanent” checkbox, you’ll fill it in
permanently. You can use ink or fill the box in completely. You’ll never
uncheck that checkbox or spend it for an effect. That track is permanently
shortened by 1 checkbox.

7
The Intensity Dial
Each of the tracks has ten checkboxes in it. However, you don’t have to play
using all of those checkboxes. Your group may decide to use fewer
checkboxes for some or all of the tracks. Here’s a basic rundown of how
altering the tracks changes play. Modifying the number of checkboxes used
is sort of like turning a dial that determines what the intensity of the game
will be. You can set each track to its own intensity.

Track Intensity
 Skill Intensity: Fewer checkboxes means your character will progress
faster. This setting is best for short campaigns. Longer campaigns will
want more checkboxes so your character advances more slowly.
 Spirit Intensity: Fewer checkboxes means you can’t save up as much
Spirit for when you really need it. More checkboxes allows you to
stockpile more Spirit and gain significant advantages in one or two key
Scenes.
 Shadow Intensity: Fewer checkboxes means the Void will overtake
your character more quickly and is best for groups that want their
characters to be at risk more often. More checkboxes results in the Void
taking longer to corrupt characters and is ideal for groups who want to
downplay the corruption side of the game or for very long campaigns.

The default setting for each track is 8 checkboxes. Increase or decrease how
many you want to use based on how you want the game to play. Go as low
as 5 or as high as 10 for each track. All players use the same settings on the
intensity dial.

TRAIT CHECKS
Rolling dice to determine whether your character accomplishes something
is called making a Trait Check. You don’t make Trait Checks for every little
thing your character does. If there’s nothing to risk, if there are no true
consequences for failure, you don’t make a Trait Check. Simply describe
what your character does and the GM will help you move the story forward
with responses and reactions to those actions.
When something important is on the line, when there are consequences
for failure, you’ll make a Trait Check. First, a recap of your character’s
Traits.

8
Traits
 Body: Everything actively physical about your character, including
strength, nimbleness, and speed
 Mind: Everything mental and intellectual about your character,
including knowledge, reasoning, wisdom, and their senses
 Charm: Everything social about your character, including how they
relate to others and the force of their personality
 Heart: Your character’s inner strength, courage, resilience, and resolve,
as well as magical ability

Rolling the Dice

When you are going to make a Trait Check, describe what your character is
doing and what Trait seems appropriate to that action. The GM may help
you with this. Then, roll a number of six-sided dice equal to that Trait’s
score against a Target Number (TN) determined by the GM.

Target Numbers
 TN 4: Moderate task
 TN 5: Difficult task
 TN 6: Incredible task

In order to succeed, at least one of your dice must equal or exceed the TN.
Each die that equals or exceeds the TN is called a Hit. The number of Hits
you get determines what happens with the task and to your character.

No Hits – Failure and a Complication

If you get no Hits on your Trait Check, your character fails to do what they
were attempting. Furthermore, the GM may introduce a Complication that
makes the Scene more difficult in general or affects your character
personally.
Mark 1 Skill as you learn from failure.

One Hit – Success

If you get exactly one Hit on your Trait Check, your character succeeds at
what they were attempting and you describe that success. The GM may help
with this.
Mark 1 Spirit as you bolster yourself.

9
Two or More Hits – Success with a Boon
If your character gets two or more Hits on your Trait Check, your character
succeeds at what they were doing. Because you got multiple Hits, that
success gains a Boon. This means that your character does exceptionally
well at the task and you describe that success as such. The GM may help
with this.
Mark 1 Shadow as the Void tempts you for being adept and heroic. You
don’t mark Spirit for this kind of success.

Spending Spirit to Resist the Void

You can spend 1 Spirit to avoid marking 1 Shadow for success with a
Boon. You must do this at the moment you are called upon to mark Shadow.
Additionally, you can’t spend Spirit to avoid marking Shadow that comes
from using a Corruption. Using a Corruption always leads your character
closer to the Void.

Possible Boons
The GM will reward your character with a little something extra when you
get a Boon. You can also make suggestions for an appropriate Boon for the
situation. Example Boons follow.

 The character learns more information.

 The character discovers a secret or figures something out about the
story that was previously undetermined.
 The character gains insight into how a particular path of action might
go.
 The character performs the action with more flair, and friendly NPCs
notice.
 Remove 1 Condition from your character.
 Gain advantage on your next Trait Check.
 Turn the Boon into an additional Hit for challenges that require
multiple Hits to overcome.

Gaining Spirit through Roleplaying

At the end of each major Scene, if you played your character appropriately
to one of your Anchors, you gain 1 Spirit. The GM will help adjudicate this
for fairness.
You can only gain 1 Spirit per game session for each Anchor.

Spending Spirit to Use a Talent

Some Talents specifically require you to spend Spirit to use them. These
Talents are a bit more powerful than other Talents. Spending Spirit
represents putting a bit of your character’s essence into the effect.

10
Using Minor Magic
If your character has a Talent with “magic” in parentheses, the effect of that
Talent comes from magic your character wields. After the word “magic,” a
“realm” of magic is listed (such as “emotion” or “fire”). This indicates the
type of magic being employed. If you have a Talent with the magic keyword,
your character can also perform minor magic of the listed realm of magic.
Minor magic can do anything that a normal Trait Check can do, but it
does it through magic (and it must fit the realm of magic). Performing
minor magic requires a successful Heart Check.
You decide what the effect is, but it must hold to this limitation. For
example, your character could make a Charm Check to attempt to talk at
length and distract an NPC. A character with the thought realm of magic
could instead make a Heart Check at the same TN to attempt to distract the
NPC’s mind magically. A character with the light realm could create a
dancing light and make a Heart Check at the same TN to attempt to distract
the NPC with the light.
Effects more powerful than what is normally possible with Body, Mind,
or Charm Checks cannot be created. Such magic is the realm of specific
magic Talents.

11
 MINOR MAGIC EXAMPLES
Minor magic is malleable, allowing you to make a Heart Check to do
something with magic that you could normally do with Body, Mind, or
Charm. Following are some examples of each type of magic, with the Trait
that would normally be used for such a check listed in parentheses. In some
cases, the examples are more flamboyant than utilitarian.

 Air: Burst of wind to carry a light item to a nearby friend (Body); Divert
dust and debris from your eyes/an object so as to see it clearly (Mind)
 Animal: Give yourself rabbit legs to jump (Body); determine if poison is
present in a drink by sniffing it (Mind)
 Conjuration: Call forth a small tool instead of jury-rigging one (Mind);
get someone’s attention at a distance with some lights (Charm)
 Darkness: Temporarily blind someone (Body); dim lights to make a
moody setting to invoke fear in someone (Charm)
 Earth: Cause a small tremor to knock something over (Body);
determine a rock’s type by examining its properties (Mind)
 Emotion: Heighten your adrenaline to enhance your senses (Mind);
make a neutral target happy for a short time (Charm)
 Fire: Destroy something light and flammable (Body); start a small fire
(Mind)
 Flesh: Give yourself claws to help climb a tree (Body); temporarily
make yourself slightly better looking to make introductions (Charm)
 Light: Find your way in darkness with a dim light (Mind); create a flash
of light to distract someone (Charm)
 Movement: Determine how fast an animal is running (Mind); quickly
catch something dropped by another person to impress them (Charm)
 Plant: Make vines lift you up a tree instead of climbing (Body); Create a
whirlwind of flower petals to distract a target (Charm)
 Polymorph: Web your fingers to help with swimming (Body); give
yourself bark-like skin to endear yourself to a woodkin (Charm)
 Shielding: Knock a slow-moving object out of the air (Body); ignore the
din of sound in a loud tavern so you can concentrate (Mind)
 Telekinesis: Fix an object with tools by levitating them (Body);
impress someone with a trick (Charm)
 Thought: Teach someone a noble’s complete lineage (Mind); cloud a
target’s mind to confuse them (Charm)
 Transformation: Sharpen a dulled sword (Body); fix a minor scar or
injury (Mind)
 Trickery: Surreptitiously unbuckle someone’s sword belt (Body); Craft
a tricky riddle to confound a target (Mind)
 Water: Restore a dirty, must article of clothing to like new (Mind);
create water to lure a thirsty animal to you (Charm)

12
Group Trait Checks
If all the characters have to make the same Trait Check, such as for sneaking
into a building together, they can make a Group Trait Check. Each player
makes their Trait Check individually. Each player that scores a Boon
succeeds for themselves and turns a failed check by another player into a
success with one Hit. The player being helped this way marks 1 Skill as
normal, as their character learns from being helped.

Resisting Effects
Effects
Most of the time, your character is defined through action, things your
character actively does to engage with the story and propel the group to
victory. Sometimes, however, your character has to react to and resist
another force in the narrative.

Reaction
Reaction Checks
A Reaction Check is a type of Trait Check that you make as immediate
response to something happening TO your character. For example, the GM
might call for a Body Reaction Check as a rope bridge snaps to determine if
your character scurries to safety before falling into the river. The GM
determines the TN and Trait used for such simple Reaction Checks.

Resisting Talents and Corruptions

Sometimes an NPC will use a Talent or Corruption in an attempt to affect
your character directly. When you use such abilities, the effect simply
occurs, because your character is a hero. As a hero, you get a chance to
resist the effects of Talents and Corruptions used by others. Refer to the
following for guidelines on making these Reaction Checks.
You never mark Skill, Spirit, or Shadow when making Reaction Checks.

 Resisting a Talent: TN 4 Body, Mind, or Charm Check as determined by

the GM based on the Talent being used
 Resisting a Magic Talent: TN 4 Heart Check
 Resisting a Corruption: TN 5 Heart Check

Your Last Chance

If you fail a Reaction Check to resist a Corruption, you can spend Spirit to
mitigate the effect.

 Spend 1 Spirit to negate a Talent’s effect.

 Spend 2 Spirit to negate the effect of a Corruption that wouldn’t kill
your character. Then mark 1 Shadow (which you can’t prevent).
 Spend 3 Spirit to negate the effect of a Corruption that would kill your
character. Then, mark all your physical Conditions up to and including
Broken. Finally, mark 2 Shadow (which you can’t prevent).

13
MODIFYING TRAIT CHECKS
CHECKS
There are several ways Trait Checks might be modified. Following are ways
that might come into play for any player in the game.

Advantage and Disadvantage

Disadvantage
If your character is in an advantageous position, increase the number of
dice you roll for that Trait Check by one. The GM adjudicates when this
happens, but you can petition them for advantage when appropriate.

Advantage Examples
 Attacking a foe when your friends have all ganged up on that foe
 Trying to convince an NPC of something when they’ve previously come
to trust you and you’ve never betrayed or lied to them
 Using minor magics when in contact with a ley line or some other
source of magic
 The first Trait Check you make after successfully overcoming one of
your Fears during a Scene

If your character is in a disadvantageous position, reduce the number of

dice your roll for that Trait Check by one, to a minimum of one die. The GM
adjudicates when this happens.

Disadvantage Examples
 Facing one of your Fears during a Scene
 Attempting to escape multiple predators when they have your scent
 Trying to find something in the depths of night
 Calming down an NPC when one of your friends has just injured them
and they have no reason to believe you are peaceful

You can only ever have advantage from one source and disadvantage from
one source. If you have both advantage and disadvantage, they cancel each
other out and you make your Trait Check as normal.

Spending Spirit to Improve Trait Checks

You can spend 1 Spirit to roll an additional die for a Trait Check. You can
only spend 1 Spirit per die roll.
Additional dice gained from spending Spirit does not affect advantage
or disadvantage. It’s possible to gain a die from advantage and another die
from spending 1 Spirit.

Aiding Other Characters

If another character helps your character attempt something, that character
can spend 1 Spirt and you roll an additional die for your Trait Check.

14
Multiple characters can help in this way, but only one spends the Spirt and
you can only gain one additional die.
You can gain this extra die in addition to a die gained from having
advantage. But you can’t spend Spirit for an additional die if someone else is
doing it for you.

Rerolls
If you fail a Trait Check, you can generally make that check again later.
Sometimes, the GM will determine that failure now makes the task harder
later and increase the TN of subsequent attempts. For example, failing to
talk you way past an NPC may make them more wary of you later.
If a Talent allows you to reroll a check immediately, you make the Trait
Check as described in the Talent. You apply advantage, disadvantage, and
the extra die from spending Spirit on the roll when making this type of
reroll.

CONDITIONS
Your character can become physically injured or be affected emotionally
during play. If this happens, your character gains a Condition.
Each character has two Condition tracks, one emotional (Afraid,
Rattled, etc.) and one physical (Exhausted, Injured, etc.). The list of numbers
in between the two tracks refers to how many dice you lose when you
attempt a Trait Check while affected by one or more Conditions.
When you gain a Condition, mark a checkbox on one of these two
tracks, based on whatever it was that caused the Condition. If your
character becomes injured, mark a checkbox on the physical track. If your
character is affected emotionally, mark a Condition on the emotion track.
Start with the first open checkbox at the top of the track. As you gain more
Conditions, you’ll mark boxes further down that track. It’s possible to have
one or more checkmarks in both tracks.
When you make a Trait Check, reduce your dice by the number
indicated for the WORSE of the two tracks your character is suffering from,
to a minimum of one die.
When affected by a Condition, portray your character appropriately to
that Condition. For example, if you’ve marked 1 checkbox on the emotional
side, your character is afraid, but not overly so. If you’ve marked three
checkboxes on the emotion side, your character is terrified and should be
portrayed as such.

15
Healing
You can remove your worst Condition from one track (uncheck that box) by
spending 2 Skill and having your character patch up their wounds or calm
their fears. Alternatively, another character can help your character, in
which case the other character’s player spends the 2 Skill and you remove
the worst Condition from one track.
Regardless of who spends the 2 Skill, you can only do this once for the
emotion track and once for the physical track during a story. Heroes often
have to persevere and be heroes despite pain or fear.
Some Talents allow you to remove a Condition from your character or
help others remove their Conditions. You always remove the worst
Condition.
At the beginning of each new story (not each new game session for a
story that takes more than one session), clear all the checkboxes for all
Conditions.

THE BAD STUFF

Even the mightiest heroes often don’t accomplish their heroic deeds
without being negatively affected in some way. And some heroes even die in
pursuit of their quests.

Killing
When you defeat a creature or NPC in a fight, you decide whether the target
is knocked unconscious or killed.
If you kill a sapient creature or NPC, mark 1 Shadow. Willfully
killing always brings you closer to the Void.

Corruption
The Void is constantly seeking out heroes, hoping to lure them into
corruption, and its call is strong. Each time you get more than one Hit on a
Trait Check, your mark Shadow for your character. This represents the Void
noticing the character and planting a seed of corruption.
When you fill up your Shadow track, erase all the checkboxes (not
including those permanently marked) and select a Corruption for your
character.
If your character has gained all three Corruptions and fills up the
Shadow track again, they fall to the Void. When this happens, hand your
character playbook over to the GM. The character becomes an agent of the
Void and you no longer play them.
During long campaigns or when you’ve set the intensity dial to only
have 5 checkboxes on the Shadow track, it’s possible for characters to fall to
the Void fairly quickly, and fairly often.

16
Roleplaying Corruption
As a hero falls to the Void, this corruption becomes apparent. Each time a
character gains a Corruption, give your character a noticeable physical
characteristic that reflects their soul weakening. These changes are
cosmetic and don’t provide any penalties. Your character’s hair might
always be messy and dirty, their eyes might turn gray, they might keep their
arms pulled tight to their body, or their laugh might become a cackle. Avoid
assigning a physical, mental, or emotional disability or condition to
represent this.

Shedding Corruptions
Getting rid of a Corruption is difficult once you’ve gained it. If you want your
character to shed a Corruption, you need wait until their Skill track fills up.
Then, do the following.
 Spend all your Skill.
 Spend 3 Spirit.
 Permanently mark 2 Shadow.
 Uncheck the Corruption.

Having been touched by the Void makes it easier for the Void to grab hold of
the character again, so your Shadow track will be shorter.

Death or Loss of a Character

The death of a character or loss of a character to the Void should impact
their friends.
If a character dies or falls to the Void, the remaining characters mourn
the friend they’ve lost. Each tells a brief story of how their absent ally
helped the world or affected them personally. Alternatively, the character
might make an offering to whatever god or spirit they worship or otherwise
commemorate their fallen friend. In the process of this mourning, the lost
character’s friends find more strength to continue fighting, to ensure their
friend’s sacrifice wasn’t in vain.
Look at the lost character’s playbook. Split the Spirit they had
remaining as evenly as possible between all their friends. Any friend who
gets less Spirit than the others may remove a Condition instead. Finally
each of the lost character’s friends unchecks 2 Shadow, as the Void is
pushed out by their friendship. Any character that doesn’t have any or
enough Shadow checked to gain this benefit instead gains 1 Skill for each
Shadow that they couldn’t uncheck.

17
ACTION
ACTION SEQUENCES
Most of the time, play in Good Strong Hands is free flowing. Players describe
what their character does as they come up with things to do. The GM injects
other characters, creatures, and challenges to propel the narrative.
However, sometimes more structure is required so that timing of events is
clear to everyone. This happens most often when the characters fight. It can
also happen when the characters race against time to solve a problem.
When this happens, the characters are in an action sequence.

Turn Order
The players choose who among their number goes first. The first turn might
go to a different character in different action sequences. If there’s a dispute
over who goes first, each player in the dispute makes a Body Check against
TN 4. Whoever has the most Hits goes first. Ties go to whoever spends the
most Spirit at that moment.
After the first player takes their turn they decide which player goes
next. This continues until all players have had a turn that in that round of
play. The last person to go in the round chooses who goes first in the next
round, but they can’t choose themselves.

GM “Turns”
The GM doesn’t have a “turn” in the traditional sense. Rather, whenever a
player takes their turn, the GM can introduce a challenge for that character
(or by extension, the entire group). The GM might describe a foe bearing
down on the character, an environmental hazard they have to deal with, or
an attempt by an NPC to coerce the character into doing something.
The player takes this information into account when they decide what
their character does that turn.

Taking Your Turn

On your turn, your character can do a number of things. They can move as
part of their turn, up to any distance that seems reasonable to everyone.
They can speak and do simple things like open doors as part of their turn.
Finally, they can take an Action.
An Action is a specific attempt to do something to affect the situation
the character is in and typically requires a Trait Check. The character might
attack a foe with a Body Check. They might try to figure out a puzzle door
with a Mind Check. They might try to convince an NPC to help them with a
Charm Check. They might also use a Talent that produces a specific effect
(as opposed to a Talent that simply provides an ongoing benefit or bonus).
The GM adjudicates whatever the character does and describes what
happens with the overall narrative in response.

18
 Note that many Talents are simply qualities that make your character
special or provide them with a bonus on certain Actions. Talents that
specifically count as your Action for the turn have an “A” in parentheses
following the Talent’s name.
Some Talents provide a bonus to a particular type of Trait Check. If you
make that Trait Check with that bonus, the Trait Check is your Action. The
Talent and its bonus is not.

Challenge Difficulty
The GM decides how difficult a challenge is, both in terms of the TN for Trait
Checks to overcome it as well as the number of Hits needed. Some creatures
are tougher to defeat. Some puzzle doors are harder to open. Some NPCs
are more difficult to convince.
If you succeed on your Trait Check and get a Boon, the Boon also counts
as a Hit. So if the challenge required two Hits, you could overcome it with a
single successful Trait Check with a Boon. Most challenges require no more
than two Hits to overcome. Difficult challenges might require three or four
successes. Important, climactic challenges might require many Hits to
overcome. Multiple characters can work together to score the Hits needed
to overcome a more complex challenge.
Challenges like these don’t only come during action sequences. The GM
might impose challenges that require multiple Hits outside of action
sequences, too. For example climbing a dangerous cliff or negotiating a
peace treaty might require multiple Hits, even if you have a fair bit of time
to overcome the challenge.

19
 COMBAT CHALLENGE EXAMPLE
EXAMPLE
On your turn, the GM describes a giant bearing down on your character
(which he knows requires 4 Hits to defeat). You decide to fight, describing
how your character brandishes their trusty hammer. The GM calls for a TN
5 Body Check. You roll your Body of 3 and score two Hits. That’s success
with a Boon. Suspecting the giant is very tough, you elect to use the Boon to
score an additional Hit. You also mark 1 Shadow for the extra Hit beyond
the first. (If your character was already injured, you could have put the
Boon into removing a Condition instead.)
You describe how your character kneecaps the tall, stout brute. The GM
describes how the giant is badly injured and now limping and bellowing in
pain, but that they haven’t fallen. This giant is really tough. You’re going to
need another successful Trait Check or two to bring them down.
If you had failed your Trait Check, the GM might have had you mark 1
physical Condition as your character gets pummeled by the giant, had you
be disarmed of your hammer, or had the giant cut off your only escape
route. You also would also have marked 1 Skill for failing to get any Hits.

NON-
NON-COMBAT CHALLENGE EXAMPLE
EXAMPLE
On your turn, the GM describes the rocks falling from the cliff above as an
earthquake shakes the land. Your character stands at an ancient door set
into the side of a cliff face, an intricate puzzle lock protecting it. You decide
to try to solve the puzzle so you and your friends can get inside before
you’re crushed by boulders. The GM calls for a TN 6 Mind Check. You roll
your Mind of 3 and score 1 Hit. You also mark 1 Spirit for getting just one
Hit.
You describe how your character fiddles with the dials and levers. The
GM describes the clicks and clacks from within the door…and then it opens.
You usher you friends inside before a massive rock hits the ground right
where you were standing.
If you had failed your Trait Check, the GM might have had you mark 1
Condition, had one of your allies mark 1 Condition, or imposed
disadvantage on your character for your next Trait Check, citing how your
character has grown very frustrated. You also would also have marked 1
Skill for failing to get any Hits.

20
 HEROES
One light creates a shadow. Multiple lights banish the shadow. All lights
together defeat all shadows.

Pixie proverb

As the Void grows, shadow and nothingness eat away at Reverie. But in
order for there to be shadow, in order for night to exist, there must also be
light. There must be heroes.
Your character is a hero. They and their friends will fight to save
Reverie. Being a hero isn’t a job. It’s a calling. It is who your character is at
their core. As the Void rises, your character can’t resist the urge to meet it.

BUILDING THE FOLK

The information below and provided in the character playbooks doesn’t go
into a great deal of detail on each type of folk. This is purposeful. Reverie is
a world of dreams, one created from the imagination of those that live
within it and dream about it.
As you play Good Strong Hands, you’ll use the basic information
provided in this chapter and build on top of that, with the help of the GM
and other players. What exactly do stonekin look like? What religion do the
fauns follow? What is the governmental structure of the woodkin? That’s
for you to decide as you play.

SESSION “0”
If you’re playing a Good Strong Hands campaign, you might want to start
with a “session 0.” This is a game session where you prepare to play the
campaign. It can help get everyone on the same page regarding the type of
campaign you’re expecting and forge some connections between the
characters before the actual stories begin. During session 0, you’ll create
your character do any of the following.

 If you’re playing a human, determine how they arrived in Reverie.

 Decide on what safety tools you’ll be using and set your limits. How are
you handling portrayals of violence, abuse, sex, blood, gore, and other
potentially off-putting subjects?
 Discuss what type of campaign you want to have. Will it skew toward
humor and whimsy? Will it go a little grim?
 Set a tentative schedule for future games.
 Develop some of the aspects of your character described in “Details to
Develop,” further on in this chapter.

21
 Define any aspects of Reverie that are important to your character right
from the start.
 Define where the characters are from. Do they know each other before
being thrust into the first story? If so, how do they know each other?
 If the characters know each other, how does your character feel about
each of the others? Any shared experiences? Any favors owed? Any
rivalries? Any romances?
 Are there any secrets about your character that only certain other
characters or the GM know?
 What’s the “social style” of play? Is everyone expected to be fully on
point in the game all the time? Is it a more relaxed atmosphere where
play might pause for side discussions or jokes?

CHARACTER
CHARACTER CREATION
The first thing you have to do before beginning your travels in Reverie is
create your character. To do that, choose a character playbook. Each
playbook describes a different type of folk, including options that are
available for them. Then, follow the steps below. You can perform these
steps in any order you wish, but you must complete all of them.

 Describe your character’s appearance and give them a name.

 Define two Fears your character has, such as fear of the cold, heights,
magic, or wolves. A list of other possible Fears can be found in
Appendix 1.
 Define three Anchors for your character. An Anchor is simply an
adjective or short phrase that describes your character’s attitude and
demeanor. Possible Anchors include adventurous, courageous, honest,
loyal, and strong. A list of other possible Anchors can be found in
Appendix 1.
 Assign 9 points among your Traits. Each Trait must have at least a score
of 1. No Trait can have a score higher than 4.
 You character begins with 3 Spirit. Fill in three boxes in the Spirit track.
(You can ignore the Skill and Shadow tracks for now.)
 Your character starts with the first three Talents in their Talent list (the
ones with boxes already filled in). One of these base Talents requires
you to make a choice as described in the Talent. You can’t change this
choice later, so choose wisely. Select two additional Talents for your
character. (You can ignore Corruptions for now.)

More information about each of these steps is provided below.

22
A COMPLETE SPECTRUM OF CHARACTERS
Reverie is a land made from the imagination. As such, it is filled with all
manner of characters. Your character may be of any race, ethnicity, sexual
orientation, gender, or gender presentation. They may be old or young,
have a disability, and so forth. There are no game mechanic bonuses or
penalties for such choices. How much these things impact the game is up to
you and your friends as you play. Talk with them and make sure everyone is
on the same page.
All of this said, Good Strong Hands is not a place for tourism of these
qualities. Be respectful. Do not play a character different from yourself and
use it to criticize or mock others who have lived that experience.
You’re playing a hero and heroes don’t do that.

The Many Types of Folk

Many different types of folk call Reverie home. They are as varied as the
winds are wild, but each type possesses some qualities in common with
their fellows. You can play any of the following creatures in this game:

 Humans: Hailing from Earth, these humans travel to Reverie by a

variety of means, and are often viewed as curiosities.
 Pixies: These tiny, flying fey are inquisitive and quick, though they can
be vindictive when promises are broken.
 Wildkin: Half-fey, half-small mammal, they vary widely in ability, but
are all of a jocular nature.
 Woodkin: Tree spirits given sentience, these fey are among the oldest
and longest-lived folk.

Note that these descriptions and the basic information provided at the
beginning of each character playbook are generalizations, often held by
others but not entirely true of all members. There are as many variations of
each as you can imagine.

23
Assigning Trait Scores
Distribute 9 points as you see fit among your Traits.

Traits
 Body: Everything actively physical about your character, including
strength, nimbleness, and speed
 Mind: Everything mental and intellectual about your character,
including knowledge, reasoning, wisdom, and their senses
 Charm: Everything social about your character, including how they
relate to others and the force of their personality
 Heart: Your character’s inner strength, courage, resilience, and resolve,
as well as magical ability

Trait Scores
Scores
 Trait Score 1: Below average
 Trait Score 2: Average
 Trait Score 3: Above average
 Trait Score 4: Exceptional

It’s worth noting that higher Trait Scores increase your chances of success,
but they also have a downside. When your character is particularly
successful at a task, the Void recognizes them as a hero and works hard to
corrupt them.

Choosing Talents
Your three starting Talents are shared by all folk like your character. They
are defining features of your character. The two Talents you select will help
to define your character more specifically and set them apart from others
like them. Note that these Talents are part of being a hero. Not every
member of a particular folk has such Talents.
Each character playbook includes Talents that require you to spend
Spirit to use their effect. These abilities are typically more powerful or
versatile than other Talents.
Each folk has a Talent with “choice” in parentheses. For these Talents,
choose one of the options listed when you create your character. You can’t
change this choice later.
If you choose a Talent with “magic” in parentheses, the effect of that
Talent comes from magic your character wields. After the word “magic,” a
“realm” of magic is listed (such as “emotion” or “fire”). This indicates the
type of magic being employed. When you select a Talent with the magic
keyword, your character can also perform minor magic of the listed realm
of magic.

24
Choosing Corruptions
When it comes time for you to choose a Corruption for your character,
choose one that is appropriate to how you’ve played your character up until
that point. The Void most often manifests in characters by drawing upon
their strengths, by twisting the things that make them who they are.

Selecting Fears
The Void feeds on fear and not even heroes are without things that scare
them. Choose two very different Fears to help the GM develop a variety of
challenges for your character.
Sometimes, people overcome their Fears. If it makes sense for your
character to overcome one of their Fears, remove that one and select a new
one, perhaps based on things your character has encountered in the game.

Selecting Anchors
Anchors are defining personality characteristics. In game terms, they also
help you regain Spirit, which in turn allows your character to succeed at
tasks more easily and use certain Talents. It’s generally best to choose
Anchors that are very different from each other, to both reflect the
complexity of your character, but also to benefit you in game mechanics.
Just as characters grow and change, Anchors can change over time. Feel
free to change your character’s Anchors to reflect your character’s growth
through experience. But you can only change one Anchor in between two
game sessions.

Equipment and Other Notes

Good Strong Hands doesn’t concern itself with what items your character
carries with them. Assume you have all the items you need to engage in the
story you’re telling. If you’re travelling, you have a bedroll and lantern. If
you expect a fight, you have a weapon if you want one.
Make note of any special items you might be carrying in the Notes
section of the playbook.

25
KEEPING IT LIGHT: GOING
GOING CHILD-
CHILD-FRIENDLY
Even though Good Strong Hands touches on some dour themes like the Void
and Corruptions, it’s fairly easy to strip that down and make the game child-
friendly. Here are some options. Use them all, mix and match, or customize
as you see fit.

Rules Changes:
Eliminate the Shadow track and Corruptions from the game. They’re
not needed in a lighter game.
Remove Fears from the game if you’re concerned that will make the
game experience less enjoyable.
If a player scores multiple Hits on a Trait Check, they get their Boon like
normal, but then mark either 1 Skill or 1 Spirit instead of marking 1
Shadow. Additionally, if a player fills up all the boxes of their physical
Condition track, their character gets knocked unconscious rather than
killed.
This style of gameplay will result in faster character advancement and
the odds being skewed toward success (with additional Spirit available to
improve Trait Checks). This can help keep younger players more engaged.
Their characters will be big heroes that are constantly getting better.

GM Guidance:
Present the Void as an unseen force and never speak as the Void. It’s
enough for most kids that there are monsters to deal with. They don’t need
an evil voice from afar.
Focus the collaborative storytelling on friendship, working together,
and making the world of Reverie a better, safer place.
Let the foes be a little more comedic so they aren’t as scary to younger
players. Let child players defeat the monsters in humorous ways.

Advancing your Character

Whenever you fill up your character’s Skill track (between sessions or
during a game session), you may immediately spend all of that Skill to
increase one Trait by 1 (to a maximum of 4) or gain one Talent you don’t
already have.

Starting with Advanced Characters

Sometimes, your group will want to start playing with characters that are
more advanced, more competent, and maybe more corrupted than what is
described above.
If you all agree, the GM can assign a specific number of points to each
character. Every character gets the same number of points. Spend your

26
character’s points on a 1:1 basis to increase your Traits or gain additional
Talents. For example, if you have 3 points to spend, you could increase your
character’s Body and Heart by one point each and select one additional
Talent.
Characters that are more advanced have likely seen more of the world
and gone up against the Void a few times already. The GM might also have
each player select a Corruption to reflect this.

PLAYBOOKS
The following pages contain character playbooks. Each playbook provides
you with everything you need to play that character.
Some players like to develop more elaborate backgrounds to their
characters and keep track of more minutiae. Feel free to do so. It can help
you feel more invested in your character if you define more about them.
Ultimately, you’re playing a hero seeking to save their world and it’s good to
be invested in everything about that.

THE DETAILS
Everything beyond what’s presented in Chapter 1 and in the individual
character playbooks is up to you. You’re helping create the world of
Reverie. One of the best ways for you to do that is to define the little things
about your character’s people.
Following is a list of things you might want to help develop for your
character, their people, and the world. Work with the other players and GM
to flesh all these things out in bits and pieces as you play.

Details to Develop
 Government/leadership  What they eat and drink
 Family structure  What they’re best at
 Religion, if any  What they aren’t very good
 Philosophy and morality at most of the time
 Customs they have  Famous members and why
 What kinds of names they they’re famous
have  How they get along with
 What they look like other folk
 Clothing and jewelry  What they think of monsters
 What their tools and or know about them
weapons look like  What they already know
 Where they tend to live about the Void
 How old they live to be  What they care about

27
 HUMAN
Hailing from Earth, you come to Reverie by some magical means. You may
or may not be able to return. The folk of Reverie consider you alternately a
curiosity and something to be feared.

Character Name:
Appearance:

Fears (2)

Anchors (3):

Body __
Mind __
Charm __
Heart __
Skill (mark for failed check)
❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒
Spirit (mark for exactly one Hit)
❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒
Shadow (mark for two or more Hits)
❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒

Conditions
❒ Afraid 0 ❒ Exhausted
❒ Rattled -1 ❒ Injured
❒ Terrified -2 ❒ Broken
❒ Unconscious ❒ Dead

28
TALENTS
■ Favored Item (choice)
Choose one (book, tool, weapon) and define it. Gain advantage when using
that item during a Trait Check.

■ Tenacious
Spend 1 Spirit. Reroll a Trait Check you just failed.

■ Stranger in a Strange Land

Choose any creature. That creature focuses their attention on you alone.

❒ Make it Happen (A)

Succeed at a Body Check automatically. Mark 1 physical Condition. This
Condition can’t be prevented and requires a night’s sleep before removing.

❒ Power of Belief (A)

Spend 1 Spirit. Inspire an ally. They make their Trait Check with an
additional die. If your Heart is 3 or 4, they gain two additional dice.

❒ Resilient
When your Trait Check gets 3 or more Hits, remove 1 Condition from
yourself.

❒ Touch of Magic (magic)

Spend 1 Spirit. Use a friend’s magic Talent one time immediately. You
cannot select this Talent when you first create your character.

❒ Void-
Void-Defiant
You can spend 1 Skill or 1 Spirit to avoid marking Shadow when you get
two or more Hits on a Trait Check.

CORRUPTIONS
❒ Easily Tempted
Mark 1 permanent Shadow. Succumb to a temptation to mark 5 Spirit.

❒ Fell Tongue (A)

Mark 1 Shadow. Tell a bald-faced lie and get what you want.

❒ Foul Mirror (A)

Mark 1 Shadow. Your shadow detaches from your body and can perform
tasks using your Trait scores until the end of the Scene. The shadow can fly
and is invisible at night. You can see and hear through it.

29
 PIXIE
The smallest of the fey, you are just a foot tall. Your wings allow you to fly
quickly and your eyes allow you to see far. You can be vindictive when
angered or when promises are broken.

Character Name:
Appearance:

Fears (2)

Anchors (3):

Body __
Mind __
Charm __
Heart __
Skill (mark for failed check)
❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒
Spirit (mark for exactly one Hit)
❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒
Shadow (mark for two or more Hits)
❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒

Conditions
❒ Afraid 0 ❒ Exhausted
❒ Rattled -1 ❒ Injured
❒ Terrified -2 ❒ Broken
❒ Unconscious ❒ Dead

30
TALENTS
■ Boundless Heart
Gain advantage on Heart Checks to help someone through adversity and
perform minor magics.

■ Flight or Height (choice) (magic: flesh)

Choose one (size or wings). Spend 1 Spirit to make a friend the same size as
you or give them wings until the end of the Scene.

■ Flitterquick (magic)
You can teleport to any location you can see. If you spend 2 Spirit, you can
take one friend with you.

❒ Circle of Flowers (A)

Spend 1 Spirit. You create a circle of flowers. Everyone who sleeps at least 4
hours within the circle removes 1 Condition or gains 1 Skill.

❒ Fear Begone (A)

Tell a calming story to remove the effects of a character’s Fear until the end
of the Scene.

❒ Itty Bitty
If you have at least 2 Spirit, you don’t gain physical Conditions from being
attacked.

❒ Firefly Shape (magic: light)

You can transform into a firefly. You fly very fast, can fit into tiny spaces,
and can illuminate an area the size of a small house.

❒ Slumbersleep (A)
Spend 1 Spirit. Perform a dance to make one creature fall asleep.

CORRUPTIONS
❒ See My Soul (A)
Mark 1 Shadow. Make one creature grow fearful and run away from you.

❒ Wish (A)
Mark 2 permanent Shadow. Grant yourself or someone else one wish which
benefits only the wisher. The wish can’t change a character’s playbook.

❒ Unbridled Jealousy
Mark 1 Shadow. Gain a friend’s Talent until the end of the Scene.

31
 WILDKIN
Half fey and half small, woodland creature, you understand both worlds.
Your fey side makes you personable. Your animal side (choose badger, fox,
otter, or rabbit) makes you fearless and ferocious.

Character Name:
Appearance:

Fears (2)

Anchors (3):

Body __
Mind __
Charm __
Heart __
Skill (mark for failed check)
❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒
Spirit (mark for exactly one Hit)
❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒
Shadow (mark for two or more Hits)
❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒

Conditions
❒ Afraid 0 ❒ Exhausted
❒ Rattled -1 ❒ Injured
❒ Terrified -2 ❒ Broken
❒ Unconscious ❒ Dead

32
TALENTS
■ Animal Form (choice) (magic: animal)
You can transform into and speak to your animal type. You can burrow in
soil (badger), run fast (fox), swim fast (otter), or jump high (rabbit).

■ Muster Your Bluster

Gain advantage on Charm Checks to taunt or tell tall tales.

■ True Friend
Spend 1 Spirit. One friend of yours marks 1 Spirit. Alternatively, you mark 1
Shadow instead of a friend when they normally would.

❒ Dauntless
If you fail a Trait Check to overcome a Fear or help someone else overcome
a Fear, reroll it once with disadvantage.

❒ First Lucky (A)

Narrate your actions while doing something you’ve never done before to
automatically succeed with one Hit.

❒ Jest (magic: thought) (A)

(A)
Spend 1 Spirit. Play a harmless trick on another creature. That creature
befriends you and is willing to help you with a task.

❒ Skilled Sword
You have a special weapon crafted and balanced just for you. You gain
advantage when using it.

❒ Woodland Call (A)

Spend 1 Spirit. Summon forth an animal to function as a messenger, tracker,
scout, or mount until the end of the Scene.

CORRUPTIONS
❒ Destroy Bonds (A)
Mark 1 Shadow. Sunder the emotional bond between two other creatures.

❒ Rabid Ferocity
Mark 1 Shadow. Automatically succeed on one Body Check and one Heart
Check of your choice before the end of the Scene.

❒ Sickening Bite (A)

Mark 1 permanent Shadow. You bite another creature and they become
deathly ill. All Trait Checks made to affect the ill creature gain advantage.

33
 WOODKIN
Your skin is bark, sap coursing through your veins. You are among the
oldest fey, living many centuries. Your appearance and demeanor change
with the season, ever shifting.

Character Name:
Appearance:

Fears (2)

Anchors (3):

Body __
Mind __
Charm __
Heart __
Skill (mark for failed check)
❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒
Spirit (mark for exactly one Hit)
❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒
Shadow (mark for two or more Hits)
❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒

Conditions
❒ Afraid 0 ❒ Exhausted
❒ Rattled -1 ❒ Injured
❒ Terrified -2 ❒ Broken
❒ Unconscious ❒ Dead

34
TALENTS
■ Leaf and Needle (choose)
Gain advantage on Heart Checks based on the type of tree you resemble
(deciduous: bolstering/helping others, coniferous: personal resilience).
■ Long Limbs
You can grow your arms and legs to be up to 20’ long each.

■ Wood Step (magic)

Spend 1 Spirit. Step into a tree and emerge from another within sight or
hide inside of it and emerge at will. You can see and hear while inside.

❒ Deep Roots
While you sleep, you cannot be moved from where you are, always wake up
when in danger, and remove 1 Condition.

❒ Master Archer
If you fail a Body Check while using a ranged weapon, reroll it once with
disadvantage.

❒ Nature Sense (A)

Spend 1 Spirit. Determine what ails the land, plants, animals, and creatures.

❒ Vine Twine (magic: plant) (A)

Spend 1 Spirit. Animate a plant no larger than a small tree to do anything
you want that a plant that size could reasonably do until the end of the
Scene.

❒ Watershape
Watershape (magic: water) (A)
Cause water no larger than a small pond to move until the end of the Scene.
It can climb walls, freeze/thaw, and form itself into shapes.

CORRUPTIONS
❒ Ashen Regrowth
Mark 1 Shadow. Remove all Conditions from yourself or another creature. If
another creature, they become partially woodkin, but gray and ashen.
❒ Foul Rot (A)
Mark 2 permanent Shadow. Cause one creature’s body to begin withering
away and then die one minute later.

❒ Wooden Warrior
Mark 1 Shadow. Remove up to two Conditions from yourself. Gain
advantage on all Trait Checks to attack and defend until the end of the
Scene.

35
 STORIES
A tale can move you to tears. A tale shared can move the world.

Stonekin proverb

OVERVIEW
The following pages provide some 2-page story schemes. Each scheme is
intended to provide the basis of a story the characters will engage in.
Each scheme is basically an outline containing the overall plot, options
for resolving it, and bunch of inspiration, twists, locales, and NPCs. Let it
guide you, but you don’t have to stick to everything as written. The players
might take you down additional paths. You might improvise beyond what’s
presented. Characters, locations, items, and themes from previous stories
might crop up.

STORIES AND
AND SCENES
Each game session of Good Strong Hands tells a story. With a few
exceptions, your story is told in Scenes. Each Scene is a self-contained
portion of the story where the characters may interact with each other, the
world, other characters, and monsters. A Scene tells part of the story, but is
sort of a mini-story unto itself, with a beginning, middle, and end. It propels
the narrative of the story forward, develops character, or explores the
world. Sometimes it does all three.
Example Scenes involve one or more characters as they do one of the
following.

 Question an NPC
 Explore a building
 Climb a massive tree
 Fight some skeletons
 Trick a dragon
 Look for a clue
 Rally the townsfolk
 Solve a puzzle

It’s possible for Scenes to overlap.

Knowing when a Scene ends is important. It allows the story to move to
the next Scene and provides you with a break point to award Spirit for
characters roleplaying their Anchors.
Some events in a story don’t really qualify as Scenes and can be covered
more quickly, likely not requiring Trait Checks, just a bit of narration. For

36
example, the characters making a plan or travelling from one place to
another don’t really qualify as Scenes in the sense defined above.
As the GM, you’ll string Scenes together to tell a complete story. The
story ends when you and the players feel the main conflict has been
addressed, whether successfully or not. Some elements of the story may not
be addressed. And some of those might pop back up in future stories.

STORY ELEMENTS
This section covers the bulk of what’s in the story. It describes important
locations. It gives you some questions you can ask the players to prompt
them to help build the story and world (of course, you can ask more; these
are just examples). It provides a variety of interesting locales you might
have the characters visit. And it gives you some ideas for allies and foes the
characters might encounter.
It’s often best to present the problem in the story and then let the
characters start to investigate it. As the players make choices, you’ll see
how you can integrate these story elements into the game and move from
one Scene to the next.
If the players get stuck, use one of these story elements to get them
moving again. You might have an NPC provide some useful information. You
might describe the characters coming upon a unique location which could
hold more clues. You could introduce an attack by the Void’s minions to
jump start the characters (and players) into action. You might also ask the
players to have their characters talk out where they’re at in the story in
character. A recap can often spark ideas and get the players back on track.

CHALLENGES
Some Scenes involve exploring the world in general, talking to other
characters or NPCs, or recapping where the characters are at. These Scenes
have their own flow built around what the players want to get out of them.
Challenges, on the other hand, are specific events that set up a problem
and demand a solution. Often times, a challenge is the thing that gives the
Scene its “end.” When the challenge is overcome, the Scene is finished.
The story schemes list a variety of challenges as ideas you can use. You
don’t have to use all of them and you can introduce them in any order that
seems appropriate.

Minor
Minor and Major Challenges
Minor and major challenges get the characters to the climax of the story.
Often, they don’t have to be overcome in a specific order, though sometimes
that is necessary. Such challenges help flesh out the story, introduce or
explain a clue, or put an obstacle in the characters’ way.

37
Minor Challenges
A minor challenge typically only requires one Hit from a single Trait Check
to overcome. If a character needs to climb a tree to retrieve an important
item, a single Body Check might do the job. Alternatively, a single Charm
Check could allow the character to convince a bird to fly up and retrieve the
item for them.
Minor challenges are best when they’re overcome relatively quickly,
giving one or more characters a chance to shine doing something they’re
good at – or getting lucky at something they’re not good at.
Of course, if a couple characters attempt to overcome the challenge and
get Complications on their Trait Checks, the challenge might escalate.

Major Challenges
Major challenges require two to four Hits to overcome. They can be
designed to be more complex or they can result from getting Complications
on a simpler challenge.
Going back to the previous example, if the character doesn’t manage to
climb the tree and gets a Complication, you might decide that the wind
picks up, making the climb harder, requiring two Hits to climb. These two
Hits might require two successful Trait Checks. Or they might be gained
with a single successful Trait Check that gains a Boon.
This challenge could have been a major challenge from the start. Maybe
the tree is taller, requiring more Hits to climb. Maybe there’s a dire bat
hiding in its branches that must be fended off before the climb can continue.

Roleplaying and Puzzle Challenges

It is perfectly reasonable for you to build challenges out of roleplaying or
puzzle solving rather than simply making Trait Checks. Getting useful
information out of an NPC cursed to alternate lies with truth when they
speak would be a challenge the players could work out by simply talking to
the NPC and working out why the NPC’s responses seem contradictory. And
if the players get stuck, you can have them fall back on Trait Checks.

Ongoing Challenges
Some of the story schemes have ongoing challenges. These are challenges
which the characters deal with continually throughout the story or at least
for a longer period of time. Overcoming an ongoing challenge often gets you
to the end of the story.

Climactic
Climactic Challenges
Climactic challenges are provided as examples of how you might bring the
story to a crescendo, giving the characters the chance to put all their hard
work to use and overcome the core problem in the story.

38
 The climactic challenges provided are only examples. You might modify
them, meld them together, or come up with something else based on how
the story has progressed.
These challenges are fleshed out with a little more information,
providing you with ways that different types of Trait Checks might be
employed to help overcome them. Additionally, each includes a series of
checkboxes. These are called the Challenge Track.

The Challenge Track System

A Challenge Track is illustrated as a series of checkboxes. Each box
represents a Hit needed to overcome the challenge. Each time a player
succeeds at a Trait Check to overcome the challenge, fill in an empty
checkbox, starting on the left. If the player gets a Boon, fill in two. Once all
the checkboxes are filled in, the characters overcome the climactic
challenge.
For some challenge tracks, each box represents something other than a
Hit required to overcome the challenge. In this case, the challenge
description will tell you what the boxes represent and when to check them.
For example, a challenge that represents a ticking clock might call for you to
check a box after each significant encounter, denoting that time is passing.

Milestones
A checkbox with a gray background is a milestone. When such a checkbox is
filled in, escalate the challenge in some way. Examples follow.

 The monster flies into a rage. Raise the TN to attack the monster by 1.
 The foe starts distrusting the characters. Raise the TN for Charm
Checks used against them by 1.
 The lights go out. Raise the TN for all Trait Checks requiring sight by 1.
 Put an NPC in danger.
 Introduce one Fear a character has into the Scene.
 Force a character to make a difficult decision.

Complications
You can add additional checkboxes when a player suffers a Complication on
a Trait Check.

Customizing the Track

The tracks provided in the story schemes assume a four-character group.
You may wish to increase or decrease the number of checkboxes if you have
more or less players in your group.
You might also make the challenge a little easier or more difficult, based
on player expertise in the game, how long you want the Scene to last, or a
variety of other factors.

39
Non-
Non-Climactic Challenges with Milestones
You don’t have to reserve milestones for climatic challenges. Challenges
that only require three or four Hits can have a milestone effect inserted in
the middle of the challenge resolution.
For example, a character climbing a tall tree might need four Hits to get
to the top – a Major Challenge. You could have a milestone after two Hits,
indicating a sleeping bird awakens and starts pecking at the character.

EPILOGUE
The wrap-up to a story is a great time to let the players blow off steam from
the tension earlier on and revel in their victory. Or wallow in their defeat.
The epilogue serves as closure for the story just completed, but is also a
good spot for you to remind the players of story arcs, NPCs, and events
they’ve dealt with earlier in the campaign, especially if you plan to bring
any of those things back to the fore in future stories. It’s also a great spot to
foreshadow what’s yet to come. If you already know what your next story
will be, set it up at the end of the story you’ve just finished. A tease or
cliffhanger can help connect the over-arching story of the players as they
explore and work to save their home.

ENDING A CAMPAIGN
Any of these story schemes can be used as the final story in a campaign with
a little tweaking to make the stakes bigger. The final scheme, Terminus, is
specifically designed to mark the end of the campaign as the characters
overcome the Void once and for all. Or you can use elements of this scheme
to craft your own final game session.

40
 FROM THE ASHE
Every 100 years, Everflame Forest, so named for its eternally red and
orange foliage, dies. One of the folk living in the forest is tasked with taking
the final red leaf to fall in the forest and throwing it into the chasm at the
top of Ashe Mountain. From the chasm flies a phoenix that then settles into
the forest and renews it for another century.

PROLOGUE
An ash wraith divined which leaf was to be the last and stole it before it fell.
Skeletons drove the folk from the wood as the Void approached. Now the
forest is dead. Its borders are expanding, threatening to eat away at more of
Reverie.
In order to renew the forest, the characters must find the ash wraith
and steal back the leaf. Then they must take it to the chasm atop Ashe
Mountain and throw it in.

STORY ELEMENTS
Everflame Forest
Once a happy, joyous place filled with folk, it now stands empty. As the
characters approach, they come upon several folk fleeing.

Ask the Players

 What does the forest look like now that it’s dead?
 What prominent feature does it possess?
 What does it smell like?
 What threats lurk just beyond the edges of your line of sight?
 Who is fleeing the forest? How do you know them?

Points of Interest
 The Burrows, a badger wildkin village that surrounds a great black and
white tree
 Deeping Swamp, formerly known as Deeping Well, a now putrid bog
filled with skeletons and snakes
 The Embrace, a massive tree with a broad canopy, said to embrace and
warm all those who rest or sleep in its shade, now dying
 The Crossroads, an intersection (with a signpost) on a trail that
magically forces travelers back to the intersection, no matter which
direction they choose to travel

41
Friends & Enemies
 Bumble, a pixie trapped in the Deeping Swamp, his wings having been
torn off.
 Widdershins, a faun wandering the forest; every other sentence from
his mouth is a lie
 The Golden Herd, a group of harts that can’t find their way out of the
forest, led by a doe named Silverhoof
 Skeletons and snakes
 Halak the wraith, a Void scion (characters that fail Trait Checks against
Halak mark 1 Condition OR a part of their body turns into shadow,
making that body part unusable; roll a die; 1-2 left leg; 3-4 right leg; 5
left arm; 6 right arm)

CHALLENGES
Major Challenges
 Discover what’s going on.
 Help Bumble.
 Cure Widdershins of his curse.
 Help the Golden Herd.
 Find the wraith and steal the final leaf.
 Avoid getting lost in the forest.
 Take the leaf to the chasm and throw it in.

Climactic Challenge: Escape up the Mountain

❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒
Once the characters find the final leaf, they are pursued by Halak and its
minions as they flee up the mountain. This becomes a race. Build the
tension of the scene, asking players for decision on what their characters do
quickly. Mark a checkbox each time the characters make a quick decision
regarding how to circumvent the next obstacle in the race.
At each milestone, express greater urgency to the players. If they don’t
make choices fast enough, have a minion attack and the player marks a
Condition for their character.
Complications can include getting lost, marking Conditions, and being
fooled by folk helping the Void.

EPILOGUE
Life returns to the forest. The characters are rewarded each with a single
leaf from one of the trees. The leaf never decays and can’t be harmed.

42
 NIGHTMARES ABOUND
The town of Leylorn Crossroads has been plunged into eternal twilight.
Inhabitants and travelers alike constantly shift from waking to sleeping
suddenly and with no warning. While awake, they seem as if in a trance.
While asleep, they suffer horrible nightmares.

PROLOGUE
A week ago, a band of Void-allied brownies used the magic of the Void to tie
the leylines at Leylorn Crossroads into a massive, Gordian knot. The
disruption in magical energy has disrupted residents’ relationship with
sleep. In order to untie the knot, the characters must find a person or object
who can manipulate leylines. While attempting to do so, they experience
their own nightmares come to life.

STORY ELEMENTS
The Town of Leylorn Crossroads
A small town inhabited by a few dozen folk and a constant stopping point
for travelers on three intersecting roads.

Ask the Players

 What is the most notable feature of the town?
 Who, specifically, is stuck in a constant nightmare here?
 What is your character’s most regularly recurring nightmare?
 Who or what can untie the knotted leylines? Where is that
person/thing?

Points of Interest
 The Menagerie, a general store in town
 The Tower of Mangle-Ten the ettin, near the town
 The Mirror Wood, where mirrored tree bark reveals your nightmares
 The Dusk Cottage, in the midst of a nearby swamp

Friends & Enemies

 Talina the pixie, not yet caught in a nightmare and hiding
 Krek, the witch of Dusk Cottage, keeper of secrets
 4-10 brownies (most a 1-Hit minor challenge; one or two may be 3-4
Hit major challenges )

43
CHALLENGES
Major Challenges
 Discover what’s going on.
 Experience a personal nightmare.
 Enlist the help of the witch Krek.
 Convince an NPC they’re in a nightmare and not in danger.
 Defeat some brownies overseeing the chaos or convince them to
abandon following the Void.
 Figure out what is needed to untie the leyline knot.
 Convince the person/find the object needed to fix the leylines.

Climactic Challenge: The Person of Legend

❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒
If the characters need to find a person to untie the leylines, they need to
convince the NPC to help. The NPC may be reticent due to age, lost
capability, guilt over a past action, or apathy.
Milestones involve the NPC switching to talk to a different character.
Complications can include marking Conditions, being attacked by the
NPC, and having brownies show up to stop the person of legend.

Climactic
Climactic Challenge: The Holding Bramble-
Bramble-Thorn
❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒ ❒
If the characters need to find an object to untie the leylines, the object is
held in a tangled bramble of thorns and snakes. The bramble can be cut and
bashed, The bramble can be untied. The snakes can be killed, trapped, or
tricked.
Milestones might involve marking a character being grabbed by the
bramble or more thorns appearing.
Complications can include marking Conditions, being attacked by
snakes, being consumed by the bramble and slowly suffocated, and being
scarred by the bramble.

EPILOGUE
The townsfolk rejoice and make the characters honorary citizens of Leylorn
Crossroads. A feast is held in their honor.
If present, the person of legend becomes a trusted friend. If present, the
object needed to fix the leylines can be taken by the characters. The object
always knows the direction to Leylorn Crossroads and can sense the
presence of nearby magic, though it doesn’t reveal the specifics of the effect.

44
 APPENDIX 1
EXAMPLE EXAMPLE
FEARS ANCHORS
 Bright light  Adaptable
 Category of animals  Adventurous
 Children  Articulate
 Cold  Calm
 Crowds  Caring
 Darkness  Charming
 Death  Clever
 Embarrassment  Cooperative
 Fire  Courageous
 Getting Lost  Creative
 Graves  Curious
 Heights  Discreet
 Illness  Dramatic
 Injury  Empathetic
 Insects and spiders  Fun-loving
 Isolation  Generous
 Loud sounds  Honest
 Love  Honorable
 Magic  Logical
 Medicine/healing  Loyal
 Mirrors  Observant
 Monsters  Passionate
 Odors  Persuasive
 Public speaking  Practical
 Sleep  Protective
 Social interaction  Reliable
 Storms  Resourceful
 Water  Selfless
 Weapons  Spontaneous
 Steady
 Strong
 Subtle
 Sweet
 Tolerant
 Trusting
 Witty

45