Storm Hollow: A Storyboard Game Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Play a Hero
  • Arriving in Storm Hollow
  • Artifacts
  • Powers
  • Magic
  • Taking Turns
  • Sometimes Things Go Badly
  • But With Heroes, Often Things Go Well!
• Play a Storyteller
  • Getting Ready
  • The Invitation
  • The Journey
  • The Big Finish
  • Resolution
• Creating Your Own Adventure
  • 1. Overview
  • The Invitation
  • 2. Journey
  • 3. The Big Finish
• Creating Your Own Adventure: Scenes to Go

Play a Hero

Go on an adventure! Help save the day! Check the Storyteller's Guide for full rules!

Arriving in Storm Hollow

Choose your Hero Type, Talent, and Adventuring Kit. Use your Artifacts, Powers and Magic.

Hero Type: Choose your Hero Type and take the associated Hero Board. Your Hero Type defines your Skills and starting Powers. A detailed description of each Hero Type can be found in The Poppin's Guide to Storm Hollow.

Talent: Choose your Talent that defines your Hero and take that Talent Card and the associated Talent Die. You get to add your talent die anytime you do an action listed on your talent card or when using the element for a magic roll. (p18)

Adventuring Kit: Choose an Adventuring Kit. It tells you what items you have to use throughout the adventure. If the Storyteller thinks your item helps your action, you get to add 1 die to your skill roll. (p26)

Every kit also has 2 pockets! Twice per adventure, during the Planning step, you can make a grab roll to pull out any item you want that would fit into a pocket.

Roll 2 dice:

• HIT = You get the item you chose.
• MISS = Storyteller chooses what you get.

Artifacts

Each Artifact can only be used by a specific Hero Type. You receive a Starting Artifact based on your Hero Type and Talent (Preludes p4). Other artifacts may be gained through adventures. (p27 & p39)

Artifacts are created in two ways:

• STORMSTRUCK: Struck by magical lightning.
• STORY ECHO: Being part of a powerful story.

Artifacts are either Flip or Unlimited:

• FLIP: Flips over after use and can only be used once each scene.
• UNLIMITED: Can be used an unlimited number of times each scene!

Artifacts can be activated in different ways:

• Constant: always active and available.
• Action: as the hero's action for the turn.
• Special: as described on the card.
• Weapon: as an attack adding +1 die. Every two hits adds additional magical effects.
• Planning: during Planning step, not considered an action.
• Reaction: in response to something else.

Powers

You start with two Powers based on your hero type. You can gain up to two additional powers by encountering Power Orbs during an adventure. (p26 & p39)

There are two types of powers:

• CONSTANT POWERS: Can be used as much as you want.
• BOOST POWERS: Cost a Boost Gem to use the power.

Magic

Heroes can make a magic roll to do almost anything, with greater feats requiring multiple hits, following these restrictions (p22):

1. You cannot make something from nothing, but can enhance what is already there.
2. Magic does not last. It stops at the end of the scene, unless something extends it.
3. You cannot move mountains, but can affect smaller things.

Taking Turns

Each turn has 3 steps: Planning, Action, and Results.

1. Planning Step (p16): Make a plan with your fellow heroes.

During this step, you choose your actions. You can also activate your powers, use some artifacts, or get an item out of your adventuring kits.

As you are planning, keep an eye on the Doom Level. The Doom Level determines how much the Threat Tracker increases each turn during the Big Finish and sets the difficulty for earning Progress in some challenges. (p16)

The Doom Level starts out equal to the number of heroes, but can be changed by actions, items, events and enemies.

Once you've made a plan, it's time to roll some dice and take action!

2. Action Step (p17): Tell the Storyteller what you want to do.

The Storyteller tells you which skill to use. Your hero board shows how many dice to roll. If your action suits your talent, you also roll your Talent Die. Some game effects boost specific skills, adding a Boost Gem to the skill, which grants +1 die for each gem! (p18)

Results of the dice:

• If you roll no hits, it's a MISS, and the action does not work as expected.
• If you roll at least one HIT, your action succeeded!
• If the Talent Die rolls a Boost, it's a hit AND you gain a Boost Gem! (p18)

Example dialogue from the quickstart:

• "I want to make the campfire flare up green to signal my friends!" (Player)
• "Make a Magic roll and add in your Flashy Talent Die!" (Storyteller)
• "That's a MISS. The fire flashes bright red, sputters, and goes out!"
• "That's a HIT! The fire turns emerald green and burns high as a house!"
• "I spend a boost!" (Player spends a Boost Gem)
• "The fire sputters again, and re-ignites with green flame."

What about the STORM DIE? You start each scene with at least one Boost Gem and can save up to three Boost Gems, not including boosted skills. You can spend saved Boost Gems to turn a blank die into a hit! (p18)

The Storm Die may also be rolled during the action step. However, it is only used in certain situations to determine a random element. If a darkness symbol is rolled, there is no effect and the hero gains a Dark Curse. (p11)

3. Results Step (p20): After heroes roll, the Storyteller applies the results and sums up what happened during the turn.

Sometimes Things Go Badly

• Setbacks: Bad results bring setbacks like gaining a curse or losing oomph!
• Elemental Curse: An elemental Curse causes you to take 1 more hit when struck by that element. (p24)
• Dark Curse: If you receive a Dark Curse, you replace one die on every skill roll with a dark die. Rolling a darkness symbol does not count as a hit and causes +1 Threat. (p24)
• Oomph: Oomph is your health, your bravery, and your connection to the world all in one. If your oomph drops to 0, you are exhausted and can only roll 1 die on any skill roll. (p21)

But With Heroes, Often Things Go Well!

Powers, artifacts and other effects may grant you an elemental charm. Charms protect you from any hit or bad effect from that element. (p23)

Successful actions can be used to:

• avoid harm,
• reveal new information,
• move the Progress Tracker or the Threat Tracker in the Big Finish! (p20)

Run the adventure! Bring the story to life! Check the Storyteller's Guide for full rules!

Play a Storyteller

Run the adventure! Bring the story to life! Check the Storyteller's Guide for full rules!

Getting Ready

A little preparation goes a long way (p28).

• Pick an Adventure.
• Trackers & Storyboard: Set the trackers and Storyboard out on the table for everyone to see.
• Rift, Ally & Enemy Cards: The lore cards for the Adventure. Place them on Storyboard as the location and characters are introduced.
• Scene Cards: The art cards for the Invitation, Journey, and Big Finish of the Adventure. Place them on the Storyboard as each scene begins.

The Invitation

The heroes learn about the problem and how they can help (p30).

• Read to Heroes: Read the text in this box out loud to the heroes to set the scene.
• Make This an Opening Scene: This paragraph tells you how to introduce new heroes and help them select hero type, talent, and kits.
• Question Boxes: When the heroes learn the details in a box, move the Progress marker up +1 space. When the heroes reach 4 Progress, they have enough information to begin The Journey.
• Progress 1-4

The Journey

The heroes encounter and solve challenges (p33).

• Tasks (p32): In The Journey, the Heroes earn Progress by completing tasks. A task can be anything from a clue for the heroes to find to a series of skill checks. Each task shows what the heroes need to do, and the Progress earned for completing the task.
• Reveals (p36): A Reveal is something that can be discovered during a task when a hit is rolled on the skill shown.
• Magic Bursts (p24): A Magic Burst is triggered when 3 hits on a Magic check of the element shown is rolled!
• Progress 5-10: When the heroes reach 10 Progress, they are ready to begin The Big Finish.

The Big Finish

The heroes take on a final enemy to win (p30).

Heroes' Actions: At the beginning of the Big Finish, Progress resets to 0, as the heroes face an enemy. The enemy has one goal, and the heroes have another. It's a race to see who reaches their goal first. Every turn, the heroes make a plan, then each take an action by making a skill roll.

Earning Progress or Lowering Threat: After each successful action, you have a simple decision to make. Should that action earn Progress toward the goal or lower Threat?

• Progress shows how close the heroes are to accomplishing their goal. An action that helps advance the heroes toward their goal earns them Progress. (p33)
• Threat determines how strong the enemy's actions will be. An action that helps protects the heroes or hinders the Enemy lowers Threat. (p33)

Enemy's Actions & Disaster: After the heroes apply hits, the enemy takes its action! Check the color zone of the Threat Tracker, describe the enemy's action of that color and apply its effects. Enemy actions always increase Disaster.

• Disaster shows how close the enemy is to accomplishing its goal. (p34)
• After the enemy's action, Threat increases by the Doom level, which is usually the number of heroes.

It all happens again until Progress or Disaster reaches 10!

Resolution

How it all turns out in the end (p35).

As soon as Progress or Disaster reaches 10, the adventure is over.

Tell the heroes what happened as a result of the Big Finish and give the adventure its grand ending! Describe the resolution to the heroes and give them any rewards they have earned. These rewards will be available to the heroes on their next adventure.

• If the heroes reach their goal: If the heroes earn 10 Progress, they accomplish their goal, save the day, and get the best possible ending!
• If the enemies reach their goal: If the enemies earn 10 Disaster, something terrible happens. The heroes may have lessened the effects, but things did not go well.

Creating Your Own Adventure

You can create entire adventures from your own imagination using an adventure planner. For more details on how to use adventure planners, check the Preludes Adventure Book.

1. Overview

Write down the overall story of the adventure.

The Invitation

Answer these 4 questions to determine what the heroes can learn at the start of the adventure and what problem they are going to have to solve:

• How does the adventure start?
• Why are the heroes needed?
• What is at stake?
• How can the heroes help?

Then pick a Scene card and pick an Ally.

2. Journey

Come up with 3 to 6 obstacles or challenges that the heroes will have to overcome to solve the problem in this adventure.

Pick a Scene card.

3. The Big Finish

Describe the Danger

• Earning Progress: What is the heroes' goal? Write the type of actions that will earn progress towards it.
• Lowering Threat: What makes things safer for the heroes? List some examples.

Fill in the Action Grid:

• BIG ACTION: Heroes are in trouble.
• LESSER ACTION: Still dangerous.
• COMEBACK ACTION: Enemy is struggling.

Use the Basic Conflict template on p57 for suggested Disaster/Effects and ideas.

Resolution: Write 2 possible outcomes.

• Enemies reach their goal: The heroes still help, but something bad also happens.
• Heroes reach their goal: Everything works out well.

Pick a Scene card and pick an Enemy.

Add details as needed: If you want to create more details, use the scene keys in the rest of the Adventure Planner to add things like Reveals (p52), Magic Bursts (p54), and Rules Shifts (p55)!

Creating Your Own Adventure: Scenes to Go

A great way to begin creating your own adventures is with Scenes to Go (Preludes p68).

These are pre-made Invitations, Journeys, and Big Finishes. Just pick one of each and create your own story about how they connect! With a little creativity, you can come up with some fun combinations and some amazing stories.

Example: build it this way.

• Invitation: A Night With No Stars (p72). Scene to Go: A terrible storm is spreading from Bittershade that darkens the entire sky. The heroes must stop it.
• Journey: Reveling in the Dark (p76). Story you could add: The heroes learn that the villain responsible is supposedly at a meeting of Nameless Ones in the Thuderdrum Forest! Scene to Go: The heroes discover a dark meeting. They must sneak to learn who is in charge and what they are plotting.
• Big Finish: Up the Winding Way (p98). Story you could add: The heroes find the villain and steal the artifact that's causing the storm. To stop the storm they must bring the artifact up a peak in the Blast Rock Badlands. Scene to Go: The heroes must get up a mountain guarded by landsharks to do a ritual with the artifact and save the day.

Example: or build it this way.

• Invitation: A Night With No Stars (p72). Scene to Go: A terrible storm is spreading from Bittershade that darkens the entire sky. The heroes must stop it.
• Journey: Mixing the Magic Portal (p86). Story you could add: There is an ancient lab with potions for making a portal that will lead to where you most need to go. The heroes just have to figure out how to use it. Scene to Go: This lab has odd potions and a strange riddle. The heroes must mix the right potions to create a magic portal.
• Big Finish: Cage Door Trap (p94). Story you could add: The magic portal bounces off some dark magic. The heroes appear at a puzzle door inside Bittershade. They must open it to reach the source of the storm. Scene to Go: One hero is caught in a cage in front of a puzzle door. The puzzle must be solved to stop the trap and open the door.

You can flip between the different pages of the premade scenes and make up the connecting details as you go along or you could write all the info down in an adventure planner and add your own details.