The Dark Quarter Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Important: The Two Cardinal Rules!
  • Read Everything Out Loud!
  • Play in a Quiet Place!
• The Components
  • The App
• Setup
• Team Inventory
• Player Characters and Play Area
• Character Skills and Abilities
  • Moving the Skill Cubes
• Character Abilities
• Unlocking Abilities
• Ability Card Elements
• Item Cards
  • Story Cards
  • Consumable Cards
• Important Concepts
  • Points of Interest
  • Location
  • Leads
• Flow of Gameplay
• Effort Dice
• Character Markers
• Tapping the Location Marker
• Interacting with a Point of Interest
• Skill Tests
  • Selecting and Rolling Dice
• Item Card Scans
• Interactions
• Purchases
• Questions
• Scan Questions
• Investigation
• Passwords
• Hints
• Entry to the Finale
• Events
• Pivotal Choices
• Time Pressure
• Cooperation
• Intermission
• Finale
• End of the Game
• Icon Reference
• Credits

Important: The Two Cardinal Rules!

Story is King in the Dark Quarter: not only the core narrative but also each Character's personal journey. Therefore, before playing, it is important to understand two important guidelines for fully enjoying the game. Those choosing the solo game experience can ignore this section.

Read Everything Out Loud!

Players will pass the device between one another as they take their turns. It can be easy for a player to take their turn, silently read what happens to their Character, and then summarize the decisions they made for everyone else at the table. Don't do this! Each player should read aloud everything they encounter as they take their turn.

The game was written and designed to be experienced as a whole. If all players don't get to fully experience each turn, they will miss out on important moments, clues, and plot points. It can be tempting to quietly speed through turns but this can lead to a poor and isolating play experience for everyone involved. The Dark Quarter is a cooperative story meant to be enjoyed collectively.

Play in a Quiet Place!

Because everything is intended to be narrated, playing The Dark Quarter in a loud or crowded location is highly discouraged. Shouting to be heard or straining to hear what is being said will be frustrating at best and miserable at worst. Think of The Dark Quarter like you would your favorite TV show: you wouldn't want to watch the newest episode in a crowded room where you could only hear every other word. That would be maddening! So, for the best experience, we strongly recommend you play the game in a relatively quiet location.

The Components

NPC Miniatures - These Non-Player Character miniatures mark particularly important NPCs.

NPC Markers - Used to mark NPCs that are not represented by a miniature.

Story Cards - These cards form a Story deck. Each of them is unique and identified by its number.

Consumable Cards - These cards form a Consumable deck. They are identified by a card number and there can be several identical copies of a card with the same number.

Character Miniatures - Each playable Character has a unique miniature.

Character Boards - Each Character has their own board. Its main purpose is to keep track of that Character's Skills. It also has a designated area for storing Character-specific components and, in general, serves as an anchor to organize each player's personal gaming area.

Ability Cards - Each Character gets access to a unique deck of Ability cards.

Skill Cubes - These cubes mark the Skills on Character boards. They come in four distinct colors, corresponding to four Character Skills.

Character Markers - Each player gets a set of Character markers in their Character's color.

City Board - The main board, used for movement and exploration. It depicts the central part of New Orleans, with a zoomed-in section showing the famous French Quarter. Points of Interest and Location markers will be placed on this board.

Location Cards - Location cards serve as zoomed-in views of the Locations visited by the players and the detailed art can provide visual clues. The most important role of these cards is to hold Points of Interest markers that you can interact with.

Experience Tokens - Used to track the Experience obtained by Characters. Large tokens have a value of 5.

Location Markers - Used to mark Locations on the City Board.

Generic Point of Interest Markers - Used to mark Points of Interest that are not NPCs.

Finale Marker - Used to mark the Point of Interest that initiates a scenario's Finale.

Main Dice - Each player gets 2 Main dice in their Character's color.

Effort Dice - Each player gets 3 Effort dice in their Character's color.

The App

The Dark Quarter requires a free app, which can be downloaded from Apple's App Store, Google Play, or Steam. You only need to install the app on a single device to play but it's impossible to play without it. Once downloaded, the app will only require an Internet connection when downloading and updating scenarios.

Setup

1. Place the City Board at the center of the play area.
2. Beside the City Board, place the Story, Consumable, and Location card decks face down.
3. Beside the City Board, create a supply containing Experience tokens, Skill cubes, Location markers, generic Points of Interest markers, and the Finale marker. IMPORTANT: Keep the NPC markers and NPC miniatures inside the box insert for easier access and identification.
4. Start the App and select a campaign to play.
5. Pick your preferred settings, including the Time Pressure level.
6. Follow the App's instructions to finish setup.

You are now ready to explore The Dark Quarter!

Team Inventory

This special area should be established close to the City Board in a spot accessible to all the players. This is where obtained Story cards and Experience tokens are stored for common use

Story Cards - While Consumable cards always belong exclusively to a Character, whenever a player receives a new Story card the app will inform them whether it should be placed in the Character's personal inventory or the Team Inventory.

Cards in the Team Inventory are shared and any player can use them.

Experience Tokens - Most Experience tokens obtained throughout the game end up in a common pool in the Team Inventory. Such accumulated Experience is shared by all players and distributed equally during Intermissions.

Player Characters and Play Area

As part of the in-app setup, each player will choose one of the four Characters to play. Players must learn about each Character by reading the short introduction presented on the back of each Character board.

Players will not be able to change Characters mid-campaign, nor will they be able to add or remove Characters between scenarios. Once the campaign has started, the Characters selected at the beginning are the ones that will complete the story!

IMPORTANT: When playing solo, the player must choose at least two Characters. This ensures balance and narrative cohesion. In general, there's nothing wrong with a single player controlling several Characters.

Each Character has their own personalized set of components:

1. Character Board
2. Ability cards deck
3. 2 Main dice and 3 Effort dice
4. Character markers

Above the Character board, place the Character markers, exhausted Effort dice, and all remaining Ability cards in a face down deck.

In the space above the Skill tracks, place the player's Main dice, available Effort dice and personally awarded Experience tokens.

To the left of the Character board, place that Character's Story and Consumable cards face up; they are common knowledge but only that player can use them.

Hint: All components are color coded but otherwise quite similar, except for each Character's Ability cards, which are unique to that Character.

Each Character has four Skill tracks. Their current Skills are marked by placing the appropriate Skill cubes as instructed by the App.

To the right of the Character board, place all unlocked Ability cards face up.

Character Skills and Abilities

Each Character has the following Skills, defined by the positions of the associated Skill cubes on their Character board.

Talent - Investigation, observation, and agility.

Combat - Attack and defense.

Arcane - Spellcasting and knowledge of the arcane.

Charisma - Charisma and communication, which often determines how many questions a Character can ask during a turn.

At the start of the game, every player will have three Skill cubes on each track. Over the course of the game, Skill cubes may either drop off or be added to a track, but a player can never have fewer than one Skill cube or more than four Skill cubes on any given track.

Moving cubes to the left is called improving, while moving them to the right is called degrading.

Moving the Skill Cubes

Skill cubes can move along their respective tracks as a consequence of various actions: test results, Character abilities, and via the Skill improvement that occurs during Intermissions.

Moving cubes to the left is called improving, while moving them to the right is called degrading.

Mandatory Cube Movement

The App may instruct you to move Skill cubes using the following iconography:

These icons always apply to the rightmost (weakest) cubes.

If the Skill cube is colored, it refers to any Skill cube on that specific Skill track (for example, red refers to Combat Skill cubes). If the Skill cube is white, you can choose a Skill cube on any track.

Blue arrows facing left indicate that you should improve the indicated Skill cube, while red arrows facing right indicate you should degrade the indicated Skill cube. There can be multiple arrows present, which dictates the number of moves required.

Skill Improvement

Skills may be improved during Intermissions by spending Experience tokens to move any Skill cubes to the left, one slot at a time.

The cost to move a Skill cube depends on what slot the cube is moving into:

• Moving a cube into slot 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 costs 4 Experience.
• Moving a cube into slot 7, 8, or 9 costs 3 Experience.
• Moving a cube into slot 10 and 11 costs 2 Experience.
• Placing a new cube into slot 12 costs 2 Experience.

When moving Skill cubes, players must follow these rules:

1. Only 1 Skill cube can occupy the same slot at a time.
2. When being forced to move and a rightmost cube would end its move in an occupied slot, do not move that cube. Instead, move the next rightmost cube (the 2nd cube from the right). Repeat as needed with the 3rd cube, etc. until a cube is able to move onto an unoccupied slot. If no cubes of the required color can legally move, the movement is forfeited.

Example: Moving the rightmost cube 3 spaces to the left would land on an occupied slot; therefore it is moved only 2 spaces to the left and the 3rd move is done instead using the 2nd cube from the right, which moves 1 space to the left.

3. If the rightmost cube would ever move off its track to the right, remove the cube and place it back into the common supply. That player will now have one fewer cube on that Skill track (these can be re-purchased during Intermissions).
4. If the leftmost cube is in the leftmost slot, it cannot be upgraded any further.

Character Abilities

Each Character has their own set of unique Abilities presented on Ability cards. Their graphic design allows each set of Ability cards to be easily distinguished from other sets.

Unlocking Abilities

Until Abilities are unlocked, they are not in play and do not impact gameplay in any way. Unlocking only happens during Intermissions.

Players can unlock any available Ability card by paying the printed cost of 3 Experience tokens and discarding another available, locked Ability card. After unlocking a card, place it to the right of the Character board. The discarded card is permanently removed from the game, and any remaining locked cards are put back into the Ability cards deck and may be unlocked during future Intermissions.

Availability

The icon in the corner of the card's back shows when a card is first available to be unlocked.

• S: Starting Ability - At the start of the campaign you will be instructed to choose and unlock an Ability from a set of starting cards. Remaining, unselected Abilities go into the pool of available Abilities, which can be unlocked like any other Ability during Intermissions.
• 1 - 3: Abilities that are only available upon reaching the numbered scenario. For example, cards marked with a 2 would only be available for unlock during Scenario 2 or later. They are not available during Scenario 1.

Ability Card Elements

Each Ability card shows its Availability, Name, Unlocking Cost, and Effect.

Using Unlocked Abilities

Characters can use their Abilities to overcome challenges encountered throughout the story. The vast majority of them affect Skill tests.

• Only the active player who is currently taking their turn can use Abilities. As an exception, an Ability marked with the Abilities in Cooperation icon breaks this limitation.
• Character Abilities can be used alongside Consumable card effects, but each effect needs to be completely resolved before another one is triggered.
• All effects can be used in any order, following these restrictions:
  • Abilities that contain the "before the roll" icon need to comply with this priority.
  • Any effects that cause physical manipulation of the dice (rerolls, additional rolls, setting different results) need to be used and completed before players trigger remaining effects based on the final result of the dice.
• Each Ability can be used only once per single trigger or single test.
• If it ever happens that the result of combining several effects seems ambiguous, choose the resolution most favorable for the players.

Once per Scenario or Intermission

Some Ability cards say: "Once per scenario". After using such an Ability, flip the card over. It cannot be used again during this scenario (but will be available again at the start of the next). Identical treatment is applied to "Once per Intermission" Abilities, which become available once again after the next Intermission.

Abilities in Cooperation

Normally, only the active player's Character Abilities can be used. However, non-active player Abilities marked with the Abilities in Cooperation icon can be triggered during other players' turns. Some of these Abilities only benefit their owner, while others specifically state how they can benefit other Characters.

Use Before the Roll

Some Abilities and Consumable cards contain the Use Before the Roll icon. It means that the decision to use their effect has to be made before the player rolls the dice.

Item Cards

There are two types of Item cards in the game: Story cards and Consumable cards.

Story Cards

These cards represent various Items important to the story, such as crime scene evidence. They do not have any effects but they can be scanned. They are identified by a number and an icon. Story cards typically end up in the shared Team Inventory but occasionally, based on the App's instructions, end up in a Character's personal inventory.

Those few Story cards that end up in a personal inventory cannot be exchanged between Characters.

Consumable Cards

These cards represent various Items that Characters can equip themselves with to help during their investigation. They are identified by a number and an icon. Each of these cards can be scanned but will also have a potential effect, providing an alternate way to use them.

Consumable cards are always placed in a Character's personal inventory. They can be exchanged between Characters at any time, as long as both Characters are present within the same Location.

Using Consumable Card Effects

Each Consumable card has a special discard effect which may be used at any relevant moment during a player's turn (in most cases, even after seeing the results of a dice roll). The following rules must be followed:

• A Consumable card used for its discard ability is immediately discarded and returned back to the Consumable deck.
• Only the active player currently taking their turn can use their Consumable cards. However, remember that these can be exchanged while in the same Location.
• A Consumable card's discard effects can be used alongside Character Abilities, but each effect needs to be completely resolved before another one is triggered.
• Any number of Consumable cards may be used during the same event.
• All effects can be used in any order, following these restrictions:
  • Consumable cards that contain the "before the roll" icon need to comply with this priority.
  • Any effects that cause physical manipulation of the dice (rerolls, additional rolls, setting different results) need to be used and completed before players trigger remaining effects based on the final result of the dice.
• If it ever happens that the result of several Consumable card effects seems ambiguous, choose the resolution most favorable for the players.

Limited Consumable Card Components

Most Consumable cards have several copies. However, it could happen that when a player is instructed to take a card, there are none left in the deck because they are all in the player's possession. If this occurs, the draw is forfeited. Therefore, players are encouraged to use their Consumable cards rather than hoard them.

Important Concepts

Moving forward, there are several important concepts that need to be explained.

Points of Interest

Various world elements that players can interact with are marked as Points of Interest (POIs). These represent anything the Characters might encounter, such as people to speak with, separate objects to examine, or entire rooms to investigate.

POIs are represented both on the table (with markers or NPC miniatures) and within the App. Markers and miniatures both function the same way; the term "POIs" can apply to either.

POI markers are divided into four distinct types, which all share a hexagonal shape. They are differentiated by their narrative nature:

Finale Marker: This is a single, special marker. This POI indicates the start of the scenario's Finale. It has the same image on both sides.

NPC Markers: These markers are double-sided and represent specific Non-Playable Characters. Each has an identification number on one side and the NPC's portrait on the other.

NPC Miniatures: Some important NPCs are represented by miniatures instead of markers. Just as with NPC markers, they have unique numbers located on the bottom of their bases for identification purposes.

Generic POI Markers: These markers represent all other non-NPC POIs. They have the same image on both sides.

Location

There are two types of Locations in The Dark Quarter. They both function the same and the term Location applies to them all. This concept is important for cooperation because, by default, Characters can help each other only if they are at the same Location.

Location Markers: Location markers are placed exclusively on the City Board. These represent the Locations that players can visit and serve as a link between the City Board and Location cards. These markers have two distinct sides: unexplored and explored.

City Board Location: This is represented by a single POI marker (of any type) placed directly on the City Board. A Character is at a Location if their Character miniature stands next to that POI.

Card Location: Such a Location consists of one or more Location cards with POI markers placed on them. A Character is at a Location if their Character miniature stands next to any POI on any of the Location cards.

All Location cards have a Location name printed on them. Some Locations consist of several Location cards and therefore these cards might have the same Location name printed on them. When instructed to place Location cards, put them anywhere that is convenient for the players. Cards belonging to the same Location must be placed adjacent to one another, as indicated by the App.

Example: Two Characters are standing on two different Location cards, but they are considered to be at the same Location.

Leads

Whenever important new information is revealed, such as a fact about an NPC's mysterious past or the identity of an unknown faction, players will receive a message marked with a Lead icon. This usually indicates that new questions have been unlocked, but not necessarily at the POI where the Characters are currently located!

Flow of Gameplay

Players take turns in order as directed by the App, passing the playing device on to the next player when their turn begins. During a player's turn, that player is considered the active player. All the information presented by the App is public and must be read aloud to other players! Players continue to take turns until they reach the scenario Finale, which triggers the end of the scenario. The App will make it very clear how to read the Finale and when the scenario is over, so don't worry if that isn't immediately clear at the start!

On your turn, perform the following steps in order:

1. (Mandatory if able) Refresh 1 Effort die.
2. (Optional) Scan Item cards.
3. (Mandatory) Interact with a Point of Interest.

1. (Mandatory) Refresh 1 Effort Die

At the start of your turn, refresh one of your Effort dice, placing it on your Character board. If all 3 of your Effort dice are already available at this time, skip this step.

2. (Optional) Scan Item Cards

Choose an Item card (from either your Character's personal inventory or from the Team Inventory) and scan it. Items from other Character inventories cannot be scanned. While in the City Board view in the App, tap the scan icon in the upper left-hand corner of the screen. Then, point the camera at the QR code to scan it. You can scan both the Story and Consumable cards.

Effort Dice

Each Character has 3 Effort dice in their own color. Effort dice are represented with the die icon. Effort dice and Main dice have slightly different possible results. The most notable difference is the Additional Success result on Effort dice.

Available, Exhausted, and Refresh

Available: Only Effort dice which are available - those located on a player's Character board - can be chosen to be rolled in a test.

Exhausted: Exhausted Effort dice are kept beside a player's Character board and cannot be used in a test. Effort dice become exhausted immediately after they are used in a test.

Refresh: Exhausted Effort dice become available when they are refreshed. To refresh an exhausted Effort die, take it from beside the Character board and place it onto the board.

Refreshing can occur for various reasons, including:

• Automatically refreshing a die at the start of a player's turn.
• Being directly instructed to refresh dice as a result of certain actions
• Character Abilities
• Consumable card effects

The consequences of scanning an Item vary depending on the nature of the Item, its context within the scenario, and the specific Character interacting with it. Most of the time, scanning an Item will represent examining a piece of evidence more closely to provide the players with additional observations. At times it could trigger complex interactions in the form of events, some of which are large enough to constitute the player's entire turn, effectively becoming a mandatory visit to a POI.

3. (Mandatory) Interact with a Point of Interest

Interacting is the means by which most of the adventure unfolds. Choose any Point of Interest on either the Main Board or a Location card, move your miniature to it, and tap it in the App. If a POI has been placed on a Location card, you must first tap that Location marker on the App to reveal the Location and the relevant, sought-after POI. It doesn't matter where your miniature starts: you may move it to any POI and tap its representation in the App.

Character Markers

Some storylines within the scenario are directly linked to a specific Character; furthermore, some Locations and POIs can only be interacted with by that Character. Whenever a Character-specific Location or POI marker is placed, the App will indicate that a Character marker should be placed next to it.

Tapping the Location Marker

If a player taps an explored Location, a zoomed-in view of the Location will be displayed. Then, they must tap one of the now-displayed POIs and move their miniature to it.

If an unexplored location is tapped, the App will instruct the player to place any new Location cards and POIs. Then, they must tap one of the newly displayed POIs and move their miniature next to it.

Interacting with a Point of Interest

After a player moves their miniature next to a POI and then taps that POI in the App, the App will describe what happens and provide options on how to act. If there are several options to choose from, the player should choose the one that most interests them or makes the most sense for their Character. Afterwards, the player may have the option to make a follow-up choice, but in most instances the App will end their turn after the conclusion of a single choice. However, this heavily depends on the context of the story. Some options might cause other options to disappear... or new ones to appear!

Overall, the options when interacting with a POI can be divided into these categories:

• Skill Tests
• Item Card Scans
• Interactions
• Purchases
• Questions
• Scan Questions
• Investigations
• Passwords
• Hints
• Entry to the Finale

Skill Tests

Skill tests are made when you try to do something that is not certain to succeed. When you choose a Skill test in the App, you know what you are trying to do and which Skill will be used, but you will not know the test's difficulty or the exact results possible - this must be deduced from the description.

There are four main types of tests, each of which challenge a specific Character Skill:

Talent, Combat, Arcane, Charisma

There also exist the following variants of those aforementioned tests:

Investigation Test

A specific type of Talent test, typically used when examining a crime scene. Successes indicate how many Investigation actions you can perform right after the test.

Questioning Test

A specific type of Charisma test encountered when interacting with NPCs. The number of Successes influences how many questions you may ask during a single turn.

Cumulative Tests

These work the same as normal Talent, Combat, Arcane and Charisma tests, except for its results. Successes in a Cumulative test can pile up from turn to turn and therefore be performed multiple times, until a certain threshold of total Successes is reached. Achieving this threshold will bring the interaction to a close, disabling further attempts. For example, the process of digging a hole does not have a binary result of success and failure, but rather a measure of the progress attained on the way to the bottom.

Some Character Abilities and Consumable cards only affect tests of a particular Skill or a specific test variant. If an Ability or card stipulates a Skill, its effect can be used for default tests of that Skill as well as all its variants. For example, Charisma-affecting Abilities can be used for Questioning tests and Cumulative Charisma tests, as well as default Charisma tests.

On the other hand, effects that are associated with a specific test variant cannot be used in other tests. To illustrate, an Ability that specifically affects a Questioning test cannot be used for other (non-Questioning) Charisma tests.

Selecting and Rolling Dice

After choosing the test, a roll is made to determine how well a Character performed.

Players always use their Character's Main dice in every test. Main dice are represented by the Main dice icon. In addition to rolling the Main dice, they may optionally choose to roll any number of their available Effort dice.

Additionally, and following the rules of cooperation described in a later section, other Characters present within the same Location can loan their own available Effort dice to the player making a Skill test. This is optional and up to players.

There is no limit to the number of Effort dice that can be rolled on a single test.

Dice Results

This game features the following dice results:

Numerical Results: These are dice results that show a number. They provide their value to the roll total value. Some Abilities might refer to 'numerical results' and only apply to these dice results.

Star Result: Main and Effort dice both have a Star result. By default its value is 0 (zero), but different Character Abilities and Consumable card effects can use and modify Star results, adding value to them and triggering various other effects.

Additional Success Result: Each Effort die has a single Additional Success result. This is considered a 0 for calculating the roll total value, but it adds 1 Success to the total number of Successes.

Character Abilities and Consumable Cards

Players can influence test results at various points using their Character Abilities and Consumable card effects.

Effect Priority

Remember that effects marked with the "before the roll" icon need to be used first. Afterwards, all effects that cause physical modification of the dice (rolling additional dice, rerolls, and changes to the die results) need to be used and resolved before the final dice results are used to trigger any remaining effects.

Rerolls

Both Abilities and Consumable cards can call for rerolls. Whenever an effect allows for rerolling several dice, all of those dice must be rerolled at the same moment - not one by one.

Determining the Result - Roll Total Value and Successes

After rolling the dice and triggering all desired effects, add the results to get a roll total value. Then, compare this roll total value with the positions of the Skill cubes on the Character's tested Skill track. For each Skill cube on the tested track that is less than or equal to the roll total value, 1 Success is gained.

The number of Successes gained may be further modified by various Character Abilities, Consumable cards, and by any Additional Success dice results. Success, regardless of its source, is represented by the Success icon.

Once the final number of Successes has been determined, input that number into the App and confirm it. This will progress the story and reveal the consequences of the attempted action. Many tests have a range of diverse possibilities depending on the number of Successes attained.

Example: Susanna performs a Skill test for Combat and rolls a roll total value of 7. She checks how many cubes are at position 7 or less on her Combat track. That track has cubes at positions 3, 7 and 10. 2 cubes are at position 7 or lower, so Susanna gains 2 Successes.

Item Card Scans

Players often have an option to scan their Item cards. Both Consumable and Story cards can be scanned, which can come from either the active player's personal inventory or from the common Team Inventory. A player cannot scan Items from another Character's personal inventory.

Most scanning opportunities depend on the situation. Players will need to use their best judgment to decide which Item might fit the given situation or resolve a presented problem. Depending on the context, bad scan decisions might lead to Item cards being lost.

Note that unless mandated by the narration within the App, the act of scanning the Item alone does not call for discarding it.

Interactions

Interactions allow Characters to perform an action without a Skill test roll. These can be activities such as looking at something more closely, opening a door, picking something up, or asking an NPC a question without first having to perform a Questioning test. Be mindful that these interactions can trigger tests as a result. Nothing will stop you from entering the dark chamber, but the act could lead you to a challenging encounter.

Purchases

At some POIs, players may have the option to purchase Items. Choosing this option will display all the Items that can be purchased. Each Item usually costs 1 Money card.

To buy a displayed card, discard 1 Money card and add the chosen Item to the Character's personal inventory (the App will guide players through this process).

A player can make any number of purchases until their Character runs out of cash or a shop is out of stock. If the physical limit of a card's copies prevents you from finalizing an exchange, you can reclaim the Money card you attempted to exchange.

Questions

Question options are unlocked through a Questioning test, and the number of questions that can be asked of an NPC is determined by the number of Successes in said test.

The number of available questions will be displayed on the screen in the following window: "Questions Remaining (3)"

Questions are a key method of obtaining new information. Very often, new questions will become unlocked as players uncover Leads.

When an NPC is questioned, they will provide their answer. Whenever an NPC seems reserved in their response, the players will be presented with three approaches as possible follow-ups in the conversation:

• Coax: Try to sympathetically persuade the NPC to reveal more information.
• Intimidate: Attempt to force the NPC to reveal more information.
• Drop the Subject: End the given question.

Choosing the correct approach for each NPC is critical and, to reveal further information, players need to figure out the most appropriate approach given the context. Factors to consider are whether the NPC is aggressive or friendly, the relationship of the Character to that NPC, and whether they seemed to be lying or telling the truth in their initial response. Be advised that the same approach might not be universal for all questions directed to a given NPC; coaxing might be a good approach for topics the NPC is comfortable speaking about, but in other cases intimidation might work better.

Take note that, depending on context, interpretation of a particular approach might vary dramatically. If Characters are interrogating a thug who they have just beaten up for attacking them, intimidation might escalate to outright torture. When speaking with a friendly old lady, intimidation could be considered asking determined and unpleasant follow-up questions in an insensitive, tenacious way, as opposed to literally grabbing her by the collar.

If the incorrect approach is chosen, NPCs will keep some information to themselves. Since the same question cannot be repeated on that same turn, players will have the option to repeat questions again in consecutive turns, picking a different approach. Such Incorrectly Challenged Questions are marked with a unique dialogue icon. Be warned that some uncooperative NPCs may end the conversation if an incorrect approach is picked, and doing this repeatedly might antagonize them to a point where they are no longer willing to speak unless placated. Some NPCs might leave altogether, entirely closing off access to them!

Types of Questions

There are four types of questions.

• Unasked Questions: These are questions that an NPC hasn't yet been asked.
• Unlocked Questions: These are questions that have been unlocked, usually by uncovering a Lead. As with Unasked Questions, they are questions that an NPC hasn't been asked yet.
• Asked Questions: After an NPC answers a question, the icon will become grayed out. A player can often ask that question a second time if they wish, although the NPC will give the same answers.
• Incorrectly Challenged Questions: If the player chose an incorrect approach, the icon will become red. This indicates that the question should probably be asked a second time, but in this instance the player should choose a different approach. For example, if the player thought an NPC was lying and incorrectly chose to intimidate them, the icon for that question would become red. On future turns, players could ask that question a second time and respond by coaxing the NPC. In most instances, their change of tact would be rewarded with valuable information.

Scan Questions

Most NPCs who can be questioned also have the option to be asked about an Item. Just like questions, this is revealed using the Questioning test, and this option counts against a number of available questions. Technically it works the same as scanning any other Item, but it will trigger dialogue similar to questions.

Investigation

Often players need to investigate a crime scene. Similarly to questions, investigations only appear after the player passes an Investigation test. The number of Successes obtained in that test will determine the number of investigation options that can be selected in that turn - the App will display how many actions are available.

Passwords

This option opens a window into which the player can type a password. These passwords, depending on the context, can be words or numbers. Correct answers will push the story forward.

Hints

Hints are only available at your team's base of operations. The App will clearly note the exact POI at the moment it instructs you to set it up. Selecting this option presents the players with a hint explaining how best to proceed in their current situation.

Note that Sophie Romero, the director of the Beaumont Agency, does not appreciate incompetence and will let the players know when she is disappointed in them, usually in a very colorful manner.

Entry to the Finale

This option will begin the Finale. From this point onwards, there is no going back. Once any player enters the Finale, the entire team will take part in the events that follow.

Events

Beyond the regular gameplay flow described in the previous section, the game can also trigger events that interrupt standard procedures. These events can happen at various moments, such as at the start of a player's turn or when entering a new Location. Scenario Finales tend to be much more cinematic and can trigger a lot of these. Events can be anything, from a single message displayed before play returns to its regular flow, to events that throw players into forced interactions with predefined POIs, to long event chains which provide a lot of choices and can constitute a player's entire turn. Try not to stress over these: generally, they are moments in which the App steers players in a particular direction - just follow along and make decisions whenever presented with them.

Pivotal Choices

During the course of a game, players will be offered the chance to make crucial decisions in real time, called Pivotal Choices. These choices are incredibly important and will impact both the Character's progression and the overall story. When a Pivotal Choice is about to occur, the App will warn the active player, asking them not to proceed until they are prepared. They will only have a specific amount of time to make their decision once the choices have been presented. A countdown will begin, and the amount of time players have to decide is determined by the Time Pressure level chosen at the start of the campaign.

• Two or three options are presented during a Pivotal Choice. If a player fails to select one before time runs out, the App will automatically make a decision for them!
• Pivotal Choices are permanent and irrevocable. Players should consider who they want their Character to be, as the consequences of these choices will determine their destiny as well as the destiny of New Orleans itself.
• During the final scenario of the campaign, close to the end, these choices will come to a head for each Character. At this point, the culmination of their decisions result in a fixed outcome for the Character. Players will not get to decide how their Character acts during this final moment; rather, the choices they made during every previous Pivotal Decision will determine the outcome.

Time Pressure

During setup at the beginning of a campaign, players will be asked how much pressure they want to experience during Pivotal Choices. The chosen level will determine how much time will be available for decisions during Pivotal Choices. There are three levels:

The Pressure Cooker - This is the level the game was designed to be experienced at. However, for non-native English speakers, slower readers, or those who simply don't enjoy such pressure, this level may be too much.

A Little Tension Never Hurt Anyone - This is the moderate level. Players will experience some tension, but not to the same degree as in the previous level.

Very Relaxed - Players will have plenty of time to read and consider their choices. This is the best option for non-native English speakers, slower readers, and those who find the previous two levels too intense.

Note: This setting can be changed at any time in the menu, so if players discover the level of pressure is too much or not enough, they can alter it.

Cooperation

Characters can help each other. This can take various forms, such as lending available Effort dice for use in their companions' tests, exchanging Consumable cards, and activating any relevant Character Abilities marked with the Abilities in Cooperation icon, some of which can influence their companions' tests.

Limited by Location

An overarching general rule is that unless an Ability or Consumable card effect states otherwise, Characters need to be in the same Location in order to cooperate in the ways described below.

Exchanging Consumable Cards

Any number of Consumable cards can be exchanged, and the exchange itself can be one-sided; players may release ownership of a card without receiving one in return. This can be done at any moment, even in the middle of a Skill test.

Loaning Effort Dice During Skill Tests

Players may help one another during Skill tests. To do so, other Characters can loan any number of their available Effort dice to the Character who is currently performing the test. This decision has to be made before any of the dice are rolled. There is no limit to the number of dice that can be loaned or the number of dice that can be rolled in a single test.

The active player who triggered the test still rolls, following all the standard rules of performing a test, and only the active player is affected by the test's consequences - both positive and negative.

All loaned Effort dice are exhausted at the end of the test as normal. They immediately return, exhausted, to their original Characters.

Characters' Abilities in Cooperation

Abilities marked with the Abilities in Cooperation icon can be used by non-active players, influencing the active player's turn.

Intermission

At various moments during a scenario, including the very end following a Finale, the App will pause and give players an Intermission. There are four parts to an Intermission, which the App will guide players through:

1. Divide Experience: Players will have placed the majority of the Experience tokens earned during the scenario into a Team Inventory. At this point, they should divide that Experience equally between all Characters. If this pool does not divide evenly and there are Experience tokens left over, add Experience tokens to the pool so that every Character receives the same amount. Afterwards, the pool should be empty.
2. Draw New Abilities: This only applies to the first Intermission in a scenario. Using the current scenario number (1-3), players should take any Ability cards with that number on them and add them to their deck of available Ability cards. For example, during the first Intermission in the second scenario, players should take their Character Ability cards marked with a '2' and add them to their deck of available Ability cards.
3. Upgrade: Players can now spend their Experience to upgrade their Characters. After choosing how to spend this Experience, any remaining tokens are kept on the Character board and can be saved for a future Intermission (they do not return back to the common pool but instead stay with the player).

There are two ways a Character can be upgraded, which are further described in their appropriate sections:

• Unlocking new Abilities
• Improving the position of Skill cubes

4. Refresh Abilities: 'Once per Intermission' Abilities become available once again. If this is the Intermission at the end of the scenario, refresh also 'Once per Scenario' Abilities.
5. Save and Exit or Continue: A scenario in the Dark Quarter can take a long time to complete, so players should decide whether they want to take a break and come back to the scenario at a later time, or carry on with the story.

If choosing to Continue, the App will pick up where it left off and either queue the next Character's turn or start the next scenario.

If choosing to Save and Exit, the App will walk players through the process of saving the game. This involves instructing them to mark the positions of their Skill cubes, scanning the Consumable cards in their possession, recording which Abilities they have unlocked as well as how many available Effort dice and Experience tokens they have accumulated.

Note: Another common way to save and quit the game is presented at the start of each player's turn. By tapping the "Save and Exit" button present on the "It's Your Turn" screen, players can trigger the same saving sequence.

Finale

As players progress towards the scenario's stated objective, they will eventually be presented with a Finale Point of Interest marker. Any player can interact with this marker (although this should be a joint decision made by all players). Once interacted with, the Finale will trigger for the entire team. From this point forward, the usual sequence of play is suspended and the game enters a much more cinematic flow. Players will be locked to a specific Location or forced to follow a chain of events until a climactic conclusion, which will trigger the end of the game. While in the Finale, all Characters are considered to be at the same Location and can therefore assist each other as normal.

End of the Game

After the Finale has been completed, players will be given an epilogue. This will describe where their Characters are in the story and what happened at the end of the scenario.

Then, unless it was the final scenario of the campaign, a final Intermission will occur and players will decide whether to continue playing or save and exit the game to continue another time.

Icon Reference

Main Dice - the two dice every Character always rolls in a test.

Effort Dice - the up-to-three optional dice a Character can add to a roll.

Success - the icon representing a Success gained on a Skill test.

Talent - Investigation, observation, and agility.

Combat - Attack and defense.

Arcane - Spellcasting and knowledge of the arcane.

Charisma - Charisma and communication.

Investigation Test - a specific type of Talent test.

Questioning Test - a specific type of Charisma test.

Cumulative Tests - Talent, Combat, Arcane, and Charisma tests whose Successes pile up over multiple turns.

Cooperation - marks an Ability usable by a non-active player.

Before the Roll - marks an effect that must be used before dice are rolled.

Skill Cube - a generic (white) Skill cube, usable on any track.

Talent Skill Cube, Combat Skill Cube, Arcane Skill Cube, Charisma Skill Cube - the colored Skill cube for each track.

Improve Skill - a blue arrow indicating a Skill cube should be improved (moved left).

Degrade Skill - a red arrow indicating a Skill cube should be degraded (moved right).

Story Card, Consumable Card - the two types of Item cards, each identified by a number and icon.

Location Card, NPC Marker, NPC Miniature - identified by number.

Location Marker - unexplored and explored sides.

Generic POI Marker, Finale Marker - the two remaining Point of Interest marker types.

Lead - marks a message that reveals important new information.

Item Card Scan - marks the option to scan an Item card.

Interaction - marks the option to perform an action without a Skill test roll.

Purchase - marks the option to buy an Item.

Unasked Question, Unlocked Question, Asked Question, Incorrectly Challenged Question - the four question states.

Scan Question - marks the option to ask an NPC about an Item.

Investigation - marks the option to investigate a crime scene.

Password - marks the option to enter a password.

Hint - marks the option to receive a hint.

Entry to the Finale - marks the option that begins the Finale.

Dice Roll Results - the numerical results 1, 2, 3, and 4, the Additional Success result, and the Star result.

Credits

Game Designer: Evan Derrick

Game Director: Karol Górniak, Rafał Wojda-Wołkowycki

Writing & Implementation: Evan Derrick, Rafał Wojda-Wołkowycki

Development: Karol Górniak, Tomasz Napierała, Grzegorz Szczepański, Rafał Wojda-Wołkowycki

Art Director: Mateusz Komada

Illustration: Piotr Arendzikowski, Jakub Chełstowski, Barbara Gołębiewska, Mateusz Komada, Kacper Kutrzeba, Magdalena Leszczyńska, Damien Mammoliti, Artur Mósca, Maryna Nesterova, Jarek Nocoń, Juliana K. Ponzo, Yelyzaveta Yuzepolska

Sculpts: Medusa Project: Michał "Bafioz" Bafia, Jakub Kozłowski, Robert Orzoł

Graphic Design: Marek Baranowski, Agnieszka Jakimiec, Mateusz Komada, Magdalena Płoszaj

Music: Barry Doublet & The Balance Of Power

Lead Programming: Marcin Musiał

Programming: Paweł Bogusławski, Simon Fournier, Macéo Vivier

Cultural Consultation: Omari Akil

Cajun Translation: BJ Rozas, Elodie Nelow

Game design based on the concepts of Destinies by Michał Gołębiowski and Filip Miłuński.