POTHAM CHRONICLES · 2038
2038 Quick Reference
Four AI-Bot roles, two actions, and one city full of working systems behaving badly. Use Core combat and turn rules unless a 2038 rule explicitly changes them.
Four phases
| Phase | 2038 timing |
|---|---|
| 1 · Action | Characters act. During movement, each NPC entering the moving Character's Control Zone adds +1 Marked, including re-entry. NPCs do not activate from this trigger. Resolve Noise or Alarm as it occurs. |
| 2 · Event & NPC Movement | NPC movement actions occur here. The player chooses NPC activation order. Draw one Event under Core timing; apply it when drawn unless stated otherwise. |
| 3 · Melee & Ranged Combat | Resolve melee and eligible NPC Shoot actions. An AI-Bot in base contact prioritizes melee; an AI-Bot not in contact can Shoot a target in Line of Sight. Resolve eligible fallback actions with phase requirements respected. |
| 4 · End | Check Primary Directive position requirements; a failed check gives one immediate Glitch. Resolve condition cleanup and Core end-of-turn checks. Remove all Marked stacks at the end of the phase. |
NPC actions
Each AI-Bot has two normal actions. Action 1 follows its Primary Directive; Action 2 uses a different Action Family unless a rule explicitly permits repetition.
Maneuver: Walk, Run, Stand Up.
Scan: +1 Marked to a Character in both Line of Sight and the NPC Control Zone.
Interact: Open/Close, activate an object, Search, Reload.
Attack: Melee, Shoot, Smash, Start Fire.
If no legal or logical action in an unused family remains, a second Maneuver at 50% Walk speed is allowed. Free actions spend no normal action and do not use up a family.
AI-Bot roles
Hunter: seek the closest Character within its Control Zone; otherwise closest visible Character. Then move randomly when neither qualifies.
Sentry: guard its assigned subject; remain within one Walk distance at the Phase 4 check unless explicitly exempted.
Worker: move toward and Interact with its assigned object. Maneuver then Interact are different families, even within one turn.
Patrol: follow assigned waypoints as a Route or Circuit; keep some point of its current segment within its Control Zone at Phase 4.
Marked and Distracted
Marked: stacks from Character movement, each NPC's initial activation, Noise, Alarm, Scan, and explicit effects. Remove all at the end of Phase 4. Marked itself grants no universal attack bonus.
Marked Target: adds +1 attack total per target stack for an NPC that has that Special Rule.
Distracted: in base contact, spend two actions for one otherwise legal action that excludes the NPCs in contact. Gain one stack per contacted NPC when invoked and another for each new contact while active. Each incoming attack adds one White die per stack. Clear at the end of the next turn with no new stacks, never the invocation turn.
Noise, Alarm, and Glitches
Noise: if any NPC Control Zone contains the Character, add one Marked total and +1 Danger.
Alarm: add one Marked per containing NPC zone and +1 Danger.
These effects do not themselves direct NPC movement.
Each Glitch trigger resolves separately when it occurs. An impossible result has no effect and is not rerolled. Free Glitch actions can duplicate a normal action.
Reboot: stops even free actions.
Overcharged: adds current Health without raising the normal maximum.
Full Throttle: forces complete Run movement for its stated duration.
Danger
Reaching 24 ends the game after the current turn. An effect that would raise Danger above 24 causes immediate failure under Core rules.
Control Zones
AI-Bots: 3 inches from the base edge by default. An AI-Bot Special Rule may change this distance.
Characters: use the Core 2-inch Control Zone from the base edge.
Check the zone named by each rule: Character movement can bring an NPC into a Character's zone; an activating AI-Bot checks which Characters are inside its own zone.
Mission-defined hacking
There is no generic hacking action. A Mission or Event supplies the Character stat, opposing NPC or target stat, and outcome. DIAGNOSTICS can help against an NPC stat; TECH SUPPORT can help on other specified hacking attempts. OUT OF WARRANTY on the subject negates both equipment effects without canceling the attempt. A Character with no dice in the required stat can attempt the Core Luck Roll once per turn.
See the combat flowchart for the complete Character and AI-Bot attack sequence.