When traveling over land, you can model the voyage as an Expedition - basically, a montage of short vignette scenes focusing on moments along the voyage, each of which accrues Progress. When you've accumulated enough Progress, you reach the destination.
Each scene is framed by a Travel Action, listed below. The travel actions aren't necessarily the only things that happen - every voyage involves lots and lots of things like these, encounters with monsters and other travelers, obstacles that need to be dealt with, and even long meandering marches and various conversations - but the idea is that you focus in on the ones your group is interested in actually having scenes about, and gloss over the rest.
Travel Actions contain different kinds of scenes. Some of them focus on skill checks. Some of them might lead to monster encounters. Some of them might simply be roleplay moments. The players should select Travel Actions based on what they feel is appropriate and want to do at the table at that time, factoring in what they think the voyage is like. The GM can insist certain Travel Actions are chosen to model events that they know will happen and are important, as well as include their voice in negotiations about what travel action to choose.
Expedition Flow
At the start of the Expedition, the GM picks a Distance, and sets a gauge to that distance. It will be filled up with Progress. Try choosing Distance 10 for the first big voyage! (TODO: How long in realtime does a given Distance tend to take?)
The next travel action is then chosen. Some methods you might choose include:
- Someone shouts a travel action they want to see next!
- The GM points to a player (one who hasn't chosen recently, one who's leading) and asks them what Travel action comes next.
- The GM poses a leading question: "How do you make it over the Vinyes Canyon, and survive its poisonous fumes?" and chooses a Travel Action based on the discussion of it.
- The GM picks a travel action.
A brief scene is framed around the travel action, using its description and rules. Be quick: frame it, lead it towards the action, resolve it once the moment feels passed. Feel out the rhythm and move on as soon as the PCs have briefly reflected on what happened.
Add Progress to the distance gauge. If the gauge is now full, the party has reached the destination. (TODO: Camping opportunities every X distance?)
Travel Actions
Charting a Course
You consider and discuss the road ahead…
Roll Wayfaring.
For each success, you and the GM both choose a travel action, representing something ahead.
Next invocations of chosen travel actions this expedition are worth +1 Progress.
On a failure, there's two Unforeseen Dangers ahead - the GM will, sometime during this expedition, secretly change the nature of a declared travel action. (As in, it won't be what you picked.)
Blazing a Trail
You cut your way through brush.
Roll Wayfaring, spending successes:
- You mark 1 progress.
- You mark 1 progress, and skillchecks associated with the next travel action are at +1 die.
- You mark 1 progress and are Wearied.
A Difficult Climb
There's no way forward but up, and the going is hard.
Roll Prowess, spending successes:
- The climb is careful: no one drops an item from their pack, where it's lost below.
- The climb is sure: No one slips and hurts themselves, taking a Wound (10).
- The climb is well-paced: You aren't Wearied.
If you make at least one success, Gain 3 Progress and a view from a great height, surveying that which lies ahead.
A Precarious Crossing
You lead a treacherous path over peril - rushing water, or a sharp fall.
Everyone 10 Weight or above, or with all their item slots full, roll Prowess.
Characters that have full packs and are above 10 weight need two successes, others need 1.
Those that fail fall into danger - they may need rescuing, suffer a bad condition, or both.
Gain 3 Progress and breathe a sigh of relief - the party recovers from Distracted.
Unnatural Passage
You attempt to navigate through spirit-ways.
Locate a spirit-way, make an offering, and roll Mysticism, counting successes.
0: Passage will be grudging, or hazardous if the offering is inappropriate or meager.
1: Passage will be good, or grudging if the offering is inappropriate or meager.
2: Passage will be good.
If Passage is hazardous, you will encounter evil spirits, and will be hexed.
If Passage is grudging, evil spirits will make you an offer or extend an invitation along the way - if you reject them, they'll hex or fight you.
If Passage is good, evil spirits may try to tempt you, but you may ignore them safely.
Afterwards, gain 3 Progress. Many cannot follow you through these routes.
A Choice of Paths
You consider two paths forward.
The GM presents two routes (Left or right, over or under, etc.) They secretly assign a travel action to each one, representing what lies ahead. One is secretly fast, one is secretly slow.
Roll Navigation, spending successes:
- Ask what travel action lies along a route
- Ask whether a route is fast or slow
After picking a route, its travel action will occur next. If you pick the fast route, gain 3 progress. If you pick the slow route, gain 1 progress.
A Grueling March
You press forward at an unrelenting pace through harsh conditions.
Roll Determination, choosing an unwearied ally for each success:
Ask them if they keep the pace.
If they say yes, they're Wearied and you gain 2 Progress.
Making Camp
You stop and secure shelter for the night, then camp.
Roll Wayfaring to locate a site:
2: You find an excellent campsite,
1: You find an ordinary campsite
0: You have to settle for a dangerous campsite
Then, use the camping rules.
Waiting out the Storm
You take shelter against bad weather.
Choose: Tell stories to pass the time, or stew in silence, rolling Determination.
On a failure, you're Wearied.
Either way, the weather shifts to normal and you make 1 Progress.
A Moment of Wonder
You encounter a marvel of the natural or unnatural.
Take respite and relief as you experience a beautiful thing - a place to relax, a spring to drink from, a flower of beauty.
Those who stop and appreciate it, even a little, recover from Wearied.
Aftewards, you better get going.
Looking Back
You reflect on where you came from.
In a quiet bend of the trail, talk with your allies about some of the other encounters along your voyage.
Make 1 Progress.
Squabbling
You assess what just happened - and assign blame.
Choose after a Travel Action resulted in failure. Discuss who's to blame.
If it's a party member, roll Coercion. If it's outside forces, roll Charm.
Count successes and restore that much LP to whoever led that travel action.
Navigating by the Stars
You lead the way by the stars in the sky.
Roll Academics, naming a constellation for each success, up to three.
Muse briefly about them.
For each one, make 1 Progress.
Dodging Patrols
There's enemies in the region - you slow down and proceed carefully.
Roll Stealth, and move carefully.
If you get no successes, you're caught, and fight.
Spend successes after the first:
- You steal supplies, finding 1d3 ordinary items. (One is probably a Potion.)
- You uncover a bit of intelligence.
Either way, make 1 Progress.
Signs of Hardship
Roll Insight, and observe life in the country you're traveling through.
For each success, ask the GM to detail a sign of the trouble common folk are experiencing, such as:
- Their suspicions
- Their worries
- The things they're doing to get by
- What they've had to abandon
Discuss, reflect, and then move on.
If you roll no successes, you're Distracted.
Either way, make 1 Progess.
Signs of the Past
You pass through shadows of the old world - ruins half-buried, relics overgrown.
Roll Insight, and inspect that which you move past.
For each success, ask the GM to detail a sign of the past, such as:
- A ruin,
- A wreck,
- A skeleton,
- The scar of a battle
And so on. Interpret what the sign means.
Another ally should interpret it differently.
If you roll no successes, stumble into ancient danger.
EIther way, make 1 Progress.
Things which are often fights:
A Daring Rescue
A fellow traveler is under attack!
If you fight off their attackers, receive news of what's ahead, gratitude, a token gift of an ordinary item.
Either way, make 1 Progress.
A Blockade
Travel is stopped by armed force.
Submit to their demands or fight your way through.
Make 2 Progress.
Runts in the Supplies
They got into your food!
Lose 1d6 rations and deal with a pack of weak enemies.
Make 2 Progress.
Signs of a Monster
A quiet in the air, scars left in its wake.
Roll Wayfaring and count successes:
0: Ambushed by a difficult enemy.
1: Pursued by a difficult enemy.
2: Learn about a difficult enemy from its tracks.
Make 2 Progress.
Evading a Pursuer
Something's chasing you. Can you lose them?
Propose a means of losing your pursuer and make a skill check to do so. Then, choose an ally to do the same, repeating.
When you count seven successes in total among these checks, lose your pursuer.
If a roll comes up with no successes, be caught by a difficult enemy.
Make 4 Progress.