Mechanics
THE SIGNAL uses a modified Powered by the Apocalypse system. The mechanics are designed to resolve ambiguity and generate play, never to hinder your ability to play your character or advance the story. A failed roll may complicate the situation or take the story in an unexpected direction, but it will never lock you out of the plot. Sometimes, a ‘failure’ might even be more exciting than a success.
How it works
01 / 08Roleplay is the driving force in the story.
You will only be asked to roll when your character attempts something where the outcome is uncertain and failure could be interesting. Rolls are made with 2d6, plus relevant modifiers.
You do it, cleanly.
You do it, but with a cost, a complication, or a hard choice.
It goes wrong. The situation changes, maybe for the better, probably for the worse.
Modifiers
Tags
For each of your tags that fits the action, up to +2. Say how the tag applies in the same post as your roll.
Trust pool
After the roll, if the team spends a token.
Harm
When a condition affects the action.
How to post a roll
- Describe what your character does and which move it triggers.
- Name the tags you're using and how they apply.
- Roll in the dice channel.
- The GM narrates the outcome.
A clever enough plan may not need a roll at all, and you will never miss an essential clue because of bad dice. Rolls decide how much extra you learn and what it costs you.
Tags, resources & your character
02 / 08Character creation is designed to be lightweight and flexible.
Each character in THE SIGNAL begins with two tags, which encapsulate who they are and what they're good at. In addition, each character begins with the following resources, each explained further down this file:
Optionally, you may also choose a Secret Loyalty when building your character. This opens up additional ways to interact with the story, which may benefit or burden your character as events unfold. In order to keep things balanced, only a limited number of characters with a Secret Loyalty will be accepted into the cast.
Writing good tags
A good tag is specific enough to say something about your character, while being broad enough to be applicable in various situations. Tags don't have to be strictly positive, even if they add a +1 to your rolls.
| Too narrow | Good | Too broad |
|---|---|---|
| Can repair a Telefunken receiver | Former radio operator | Good with technology |
| Knows the Kreuzberg bus routes | Grew up in Berlin's back streets | Streetwise |
| Always carries spare valves for the field radio | Always prepared for the worst | Paranoid |
Languages don't require a roll and don't need a tag. If you speak a language, you understand what is said and can communicate in that language up to the stated level.
Moves
03 / 08Moves are certain actions which trigger a corresponding dice roll to determine the outcome. You don't necessarily need to have a specific move in mind to act—simply describe what your character is doing and the GM will tell you whether it triggers a move.
Below are the most common moves which may result in a roll, along with example outcomes.
M-01InvestigateExamine a scene, a document, or a piece of evidence.
When you examine a scene, a document, or a piece of evidence. Roll 2d6 + tags.
- 10+Ask the GM 3 simple questions.
- 7–9Ask 1.
- 6−Ask 1, but your inquiries cost you something or attract someone's attention.
- What happened here?
- Who has been here before us?
- What is being hidden, and by whom?
- What here has been touched by the Signal?
- What is the most dangerous thing here?
- What does someone want this to look like?
M-02Read a PersonStudy someone during an interaction.
When you study someone during an interaction. Roll 2d6 + tags.
- 10+Ask 3 questions.
- 7–9Ask 1.
- 6−Ask 1, but they read you too, and learn something about you.
- Are they lying to me?
- What are they afraid of?
- What do they want from me?
- Who do they really answer to?
- How could I get them to help me?
M-03Work the SignalAnalyse a recording, a transmission, or an anomaly.
When you analyse a recording, a transmission, or an anomaly. Roll 2d6 + tags.
- 10+Choose 2.
- 7–9Choose 1.
- 6−Choose 1, but the Signal notices you too. Mark 1 Exposure.
- Learn what it's doing to people or things nearby.
- Trace where it's coming from.
- Learn who else has been listening.
- Record or contain it safely.
M-04TradecraftSneak, lie, tail someone, pick a lock, or plant something.
When you sneak, lie, tail someone, pick a lock, or plant something. Roll 2d6 + tags.
- 10+It works, and nobody is the wiser.
- 7–9It works, but you leave a trace, it takes longer than it should, or someone grows suspicious.
- 6−You're caught, compromised, or something goes badly wrong.
M-05Get RoughUse force or violence.
When you use force or violence. Roll 2d6 + tags.
- 10+Choose 2 bonuses.
- 7–9Choose 1 bonus.
- 6−You take harm, and things escalate.
- You don't get hurt.
- It stays quiet.
- You take what you came for.
- They won't get up for a while.
M-06Act Under PressureDo something risky while everything is going wrong.
When you do something risky while everything is going wrong. Roll 2d6 + tags.
- 10+You do it.
- 7–9You hesitate. The GM offers you a worse outcome, a hard bargain, or an ugly choice.
- 6−It goes wrong.
M-07Hold SteadyFace something that shouldn't exist.
When you face something that shouldn't exist. Roll 2d6 + tags.
- 10+You keep it together.
- 7–9Choose 1: mark 1 Exposure, mark Shaken, or freeze and lose your next chance to act.
- 6−Mark 1 Exposure, and choose 1 from the above list.
M-08AssistHelp another character's roll.
When you help another character's roll, describe how. They take +1, and you share any consequences of the result.
M-09ListenOpen yourself to the Signal before any roll.
Before any roll, you can open yourself to the Signal. Roll 3d6 and keep the best two, then mark 1 Exposure.
M-10Pull StringsCall on the Commission, your faction, or a contact for help. No roll.
When you call on the Commission, your faction, or a contact for help, tell the GM privately what you want and who you're asking.
Spend Standing or Favours depending on the size of the request. It requires no roll, and you get what you asked for…within reason.
| Request | Cost | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Minor | 1 | A pass, a lab analysis, the release of a document, a rumour planted |
| Significant | 2 | A car, a safehouse, a colleague bailed out of a tricky situation, a conveniently misplaced file |
| Major | 3 | A diplomatic shakeup, a story killed, a problematic NPC removed |
Standing
Pays for official help from the Commission. Commission requests go through official channels and are always on record: your character's involvement will be part of how the outcome plays out.
Favours
Pay for unofficial help from your faction or contacts. A contact can only help within their reach: for example, a clerk at the Geneva post office can intercept mail, but can't recall an ambassador. Major requests can only come from the Commission or a faction.
Unofficial help is unattributed by default. Whatever you arrange happens in the world, and nobody announces who arranged it. If you would rather have the event be openly attributed to your character, just let the GM know when you make the request. Either way, your character can always claim credit in roleplay, truthfully or not.
Harm
04 / 08Rather than using a hit point system, every character has a harm track, which collectively represents their physical and mental state. When you take harm, move one step down the track. Severe harm may move you two.
Shaken
−1 on rolls where fear or nerves matter.
Hurt
−1 on rolls where your injury or state matters.
Broken
You're unable to take further actions in the scene, though your character can participate passively. Optionally, their state is severe enough to be out of the scene entirely.
Recovering
A scene of rest and care clears Shaken. Hurt and Broken need downtime (see Downtime).
Death
Your character dies only if you agree to it, but it's always an option if you fill your harm track.
Signal Exposure
05 / 08Exposure tracks how much of the Signal has gotten into your character, from 0 to 6.
Every character starts at 0. Generally speaking, Exposure does not decrease.
You mark Exposure when you
- Choose to Listen before a roll
- Fail to Hold Steady, or choose Exposure on a 7–9
- Roll 6− on Work the Signal
- At the GM's discretion when you play a tape, touch an anomaly, or stay too long near a source
What rising Exposure does to your character is not yet public knowledge. Further details will be released as the story unfolds.
Standing, Favours & the Trust pool
06 / 08THE SIGNAL is a game of institutions, and you have three resources which let you call upon them in times of need. Standing comes from the Commission, Favours from whoever you secretly serve, and Trust from your team.
- The Trust pool starts at 2. Anyone can propose spending a token. Whoever earned it doesn't need to be the one who spends it.
- When a character acts on a Secret Loyalty against the team, the pool loses a token, whether or not anyone else knows why.
- Changes in the Trust pool are public knowledge, even when the reasons behind them aren't.
Contacts
Contacts are people you've cultivated: a translator, a desk officer, an old professor, a journalist who owes you. You can call on any of them with Pull Strings. Each contact has limited reach. Initially, most are able to handle Minor requests, and can be deepened to Significant through Cultivate. Your contacts are known only to you and the GM.
Secret Loyalties
07 / 08Every character serves the Commission—some also serve someone else.
A Secret Loyalty is optional, but it opens up more opportunities to engage with the story. Be aware, a Secret Loyalty is a double-edged sword which will often make things harder for your character, not easier.
A Secret Loyalty doesn't mean your character must be a trained, professional spy. They could just as easily be a regular citizen of any nation, wittingly or unwittingly employed by an intelligence agency. They may be motivated by money, blackmail, love, or simply believe they're doing harmless—but odd—favours for a friend.
Choosing one
Secret Loyalties function on an opt-in system. When you apply, choose one of the following:
- No secret loyalty
- American intelligence
- Soviet intelligence
- GM's discretion (this may include any, none, or something stranger)
Only a few characters in the cast will have a Secret Loyalty, so the GM may not grant every request. You are encouraged to incorporate your character's allegiance into their backstory, and characters whose loyalties are a well thought out part of their characterisation will be prioritised. If there are too many applicants with Secret Loyalties, you may be given the option to revise your character to join without one if you wish.
How it works in play
- You will receive secret orders to complete each story chapter.
- Orders may ask you to recover an object, manipulate a report, observe a colleague, or make sure someone or something ends up in the right hands.
- Completing orders earns Favours. Ignoring them may have consequences.
- Keep your secret even out of character. Your fellow players shouldn't know your character's Secret Loyalty, or whether they even have one to begin with.
Noticing something off
When a character with a Secret Loyalty acts on orders where others could notice, those characters can roll Investigate or Read a Person. On a success, they may learn that something happened, though not necessarily what.
Who pulled the strings?
When something happens in the world that someone clearly arranged, you can try to work out who. Use Dig in downtime to receive one clue about a public outcome. Clues can point to what kind of connections were needed, when or where it was set in motion, a physical trace, or who benefits.
Clues are always true, unless someone paid to plant a false one. Whoever arranged an outcome can raise the request by one size to make one clue point somewhere else. Framing another player's character is permitted if the player in question has agreed to it. This will be mediated by the GM without revealing the would-be framer.
Communication and consent
Exposing another player's character, turning on them, or any serious conflict between characters needs both players' agreement out of character. Both players should be in agreement, and you're encouraged to involve the GM in planning major plot moments. Framing is the exception—communication will be handled by the GM so that nobody's secrets are given away in the process. Paranoia is part of the game, but we want to make sure the way it manifests is fun for everyone and all conflict remains strictly IC.
Downtime & Development
08 / 08You will have time to freely roleplay between story chapters. This is your time to explore relationships, suspicions, and the fallout of the previous chapter. Maybe your character will even find time to relax and steal a moment of levity with a colleague or friend.
You will not be asked to roll during downtime, but may freely opt to take one Downtime Action. Post it in the mechanics channel as what your character publicly appears to be doing. Send the details to the GM privately: who it really benefits, who you cultivated, and so on.
| Action | Effect |
|---|---|
| Recover | Clear 1 stage of your Harm track. |
| Dig | Ask the GM one question about anything from the last case, or receive one clue about who arranged a public outcome. |
| Cultivate | Gain a new contact, or deepen an existing one so they can handle Significant requests. |
| File a report | Gain 1 ISC Standing. |
| Make yourself useful | Do something valuable for someone with influence. Gain 1 Favour. |
You can post your Downtime Action any time before the start of the next chapter.
Development
After the conclusion of each chapter, you may:
The goal isn't necessarily to become more powerful, but to portray how your character is changed by the events they experience, for better or for worse.