What Changes

How this universe departs from the core rules.

Replaces

Swapped out entirely

The core rule is gone. Use this instead.

Cover & Legends

Three Legend depths (Thin=3, Standard=6, Deep=9 boxes). Burn Track per Legend. Deliberate burns cost Compromise or asset Trust. Cooling periods by depth and era.

Defined in
Chapter 8

Tradecraft Pool

Built during Intel Phase. Boon and Ability dice contributed by successful Intel Phase checks. Spent during Execution. Soured Intel reduces pool quality. Full Intel Phase = 5 scenes; compressed = 3 scenes.

Defined in
Chapter 8

Assets & Networks

Asset profile: Era, Role, Capability (1–5), Access (0–5), Trust (0–5), Exposure (0–5 / burned at 5), Pressure, Handler. Trust and Exposure drift after each operation.

Defined in
Chapter 8

Compromise & Attribution

Compromise Track per operative. Attribution Signatures: Technical, Linguistic, Financial, Temporal, Kinetic, Relationship, Cultural. Soft Signals vs. Contextual signatures. Public Heat.

Defined in
Chapter 8

Era Framing

Shadow War, Long Dark, Nightscreen — each has era modifiers, Passive Compromise rates, available skills and technology.

Defined in
Chapter 8

Shot Advantage

Temporary pool for one declared sniper shot. Starts at 0, caps at Sniping rating, clears after shot/abort/relocation/scene end. Untrained cap = 1 minimum. Does not stack with core Aim bonus.

Defined in
Chapter 4

Archetype Creation (Character Creation Override)

Replaces Core Rules species/background/career/110 XP procedure. Nine-step process. Post-creation advancement uses normal XP rules.

Defined in
Chapter 3

Disposition Mechanics

In-Disposition: +1 Boon. Against-Disposition: Trial dice → Crisis dice. Change: rare, requires table agreement.

Defined in
Chapter 3
Modifies

Changed from core

The core rule still applies, with these differences.

Adversary Tiers

Minion, Elite, Nemesis — inherits Core framework. D5 modifications: Elites have Compromise Track (reversed — tracks how close they are to exposure rather than harm). Elites may have Strain Points. Nemeses have Peril Uses. Era tags: SW, LD, NS, Any.

Defined in
Chapter 9
Adds

New to this universe

Rules with no core equivalent.

Operation Structure

Four acts: Tasking, Intel Phase, Execution, Exfiltration. Each act has defined pacing, player actions, deliverables, and common pitfalls.

Defined in
Chapter 10

Alert Clock

0–4 track. 0=Clean, 1=Suspicion, 2=Investigation, 3=Containment, 4=Exposure. Advance by 1 (failed high-risk check, Bane on noisy action) or 2 (Calamity, public violence, blown signal, captured teammate). Reduce by 1 for credible counteraction or Tradecraft Pool spend.

Defined in
Chapter 10

Outcome Grades

Clean Success, Messy Success, Partial Success, Useful Failure, Hard Failure. Used in Operation Debrief as shorthand for consequence type.

Defined in
Chapter 10

Passive Compromise

Shadow War: +1 per 7 days in occupied/policed territory. Long Dark: +1 per 30 days under routine hostile-service exposure. Nightscreen: +1 per 72 hours in dense digital surveillance.

Defined in
Chapter 12

Enhanced Information Spend

Spend 1 Fortune Point after relevant check; on success treat as +2 Boons for information quality only. On failed check with 1+ net Boon, GM may give useful lead or contradiction.

Defined in
Chapter 12

Assisted Check (D5 calibration)

Concrete assist: +1 Boon. If assistant has more ranks than actor: +1 Ability die instead. Second assistant: +1 Boon only. Maximum two assisting dice. Maximum one Ability die from assistance. Bane on main roll can affect assistant.

Defined in
Chapter 10