Circle Master Reference Screen — Darrington Press
← GM ScreensCandela Obscura uses pools of d6s. When a roll is called for, the Circle Master names the relevant Action. The investigator rolls a number of d6s equal to their Action rating (0–3), then takes the single highest die as the result.
Before rolling, the player may spend any number of Drive points from the applicable Drive to add extra dice, up to a pool maximum of 6 dice total.
| Highest Die | Result | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | Full Success | You achieve your goal cleanly, with no complications. |
| 4–5 | Partial Success | You succeed, but with a complication, cost, reduced effect, or unwanted consequence. |
| 1–3 | Failure | You fail to achieve your goal. The CM describes what goes wrong; things get worse. |
| All 1s | Critical Failure | The worst possible outcome. Every die shows 1 — maximum narrative consequence. |
If the diamond icon next to an action on the character sheet is filled, that action is Gilded. When rolling a Gilded action, one die in the pool is replaced with a gilded die — a die of a distinct colour.
If you take the gilded die as your final result (it shows the highest value), you immediately earn back 1 Drive point in the category that governs that action (up to your maximum).
Investigators have three categories of Resistance: Body, Mind, and Bleed (supernatural). Each has a number of boxes.
On a failed roll, you may always spend a Resistance to reroll a number of dice equal to your Action rating. If the action is Gilded, you may choose one of the gilded dice to include in the reroll.
Drives are a resource representing your investigator's determination and focus. There are three drives: Nerve, Cunning, and Intuition. Each has an available value (current) and a maximum value.
At character creation, fill both the top (available) and bottom (maximum) sections of all Drives you possess. When you spend a Drive point, erase only the top section.
Governs: Move, Strike, Control
Physical courage, endurance, and force. Spend Nerve to add dice to Move, Strike, or Control rolls.
Governs: Sway, Read, Hide
Wit, deception, social grace, and perception. Spend Cunning to add dice to Sway, Read, or Hide rolls.
Governs: Survey, Focus, Sense
Sixth sense, supernatural awareness, and deep insight. Spend Intuition to add dice to Survey, Focus, or Sense rolls.
Nine actions, grouped by their governing Drive:
Rush, chase, dodge, climb, leap. Any act of physical movement under pressure.
Attack, defend, grapple. Physical violence or the credible threat of it.
Operate machinery, restrain someone, maintain steady aim, resist being moved.
Convince, command, consort. Social persuasion, seduction, intimidation, performance.
Decipher, research, recall. Extract information from text, people, or evidence.
Sneak, conceal, disguise. Move without being detected; conceal objects or truths.
Observe, track, map. Examine a scene, follow a trail, case a location.
Concentrate, endure, attune. Maintain mental discipline; resist supernatural influence.
Detect auras, read emotions, perceive the uncanny. Supernatural awareness.
The Circle receives a case from Candela Obscura — the secret society dedicated to understanding and containing supernatural threats. The Lightkeeper (NPC handler) outlines the situation: the location, the apparent threat, and any known casualties.
Investigators enter the scene and begin to explore. The CM presents details through Description, and investigators declare their actions. The CM calls for rolls when the outcome is uncertain and the stakes are meaningful.
Evidence is gathered through actions: Survey the scene, Read documents, Sense supernatural residue. Clues combine to reveal the nature of the phenomenon — and ultimately how it can be stopped.
Failed rolls introduce complications: physical harm (Body resistance), psychological damage (Mind resistance), or supernatural corruption (Bleed resistance). The CM frames consequences before or after the roll depending on the situation.
Once the investigators have sufficient understanding of the phenomenon, they confront it. This may involve banishment, containment, or sacrifice. The resolution is guided by what was learned during the investigation.
After each case, investigators may have a Downtime scene. Scars from the supernatural — Illuminations — accumulate. Drive maximums may decrease. The circle grows stronger and stranger with each case.
The social investigators. They move through society with ease, gathering information through conversation, performance, and misdirection. Primary drives: Cunning & Intuition.
Journalists gather information from people and places. They use press credentials, social connections, and relentless curiosity to hunt down stories others cannot find.
Illumination Keys: Gather Statements, Hunt Down a Lead, Speak Truth to Power
Magicians use sleight of hand, showmanship, and an intuitive grasp of how people want to be deceived. Their performance skills make them natural infiltrators and deceivers.
Illumination Keys: Perform a Trick, Spot a Ruse, Seek Out Real Magick
The physical investigators. Trained for action, endurance, and confrontation. Primary drive: Nerve.
Explorers venture into dangerous locations and face physical challenges with skill and daring. They bring a scholar's eye to the field and an adventurer's resilience to the unknown.
Illumination Keys: Study an Artifact, Discuss History, Run into Danger
Soldiers are the circle's physical backbone. Seasoned by war or private violence, they know when to fight and when to retreat. They protect their circle and act with disciplined force.
Illumination Keys: Use Violence of Action, Protect Someone, Act Tactically
The analytical investigators. They apply knowledge, science, and research to the uncanny. Primary drives: Intuition & Cunning.
Doctors provide vital support — tending wounds, analysing physical evidence, and applying scientific rigour to phenomena that defies it. Their clinical detachment makes them surprisingly resilient to horror.
Illumination Keys: Aid an Ally, Heal a Wound, Apply Scientific Knowledge
Professors are scholars steeped in hidden history, supernatural lore, and ancient languages. They excel at research, translation, and identifying phenomena from fragmentary evidence.
Illumination Keys: Consult Expertise, Identify the Unknown, Preserve Knowledge
The covert investigators. They infiltrate, deceive, and operate in shadows. Primary drive: Cunning.
Criminals bring streetwise cunning to Candela investigations. They can pick locks, forge documents, steal without being seen, and navigate the underworld that respectable society pretends doesn't exist.
Illumination Keys: Get In Where You Don't Belong, Take Something That Isn't Yours, Make a Shady Deal
Detectives piece together what happened from fragments of evidence and human behaviour. They know how to read people, follow cold trails, and extract information from sources who don't want to give it.
Illumination Keys: Follow a Lead, Read Someone Accurately, Solve the Puzzle
The supernatural investigators. They perceive and interact with forces beyond the veil. Primary drive: Intuition.
Mediums bridge the living and the dead. They speak with spirits, sense the imprint of past events, and understand the emotional logic of those who have passed beyond the veil.
Illumination Keys: Contact a Spirit, Channel Supernatural Energy, Bring Peace to the Restless
Occultists have already brushed closer to the unknown than most investigators ever will. They perceive supernatural presences instinctively and understand the strange logic of the forces Candela investigates. That proximity comes at a cost.
Illumination Keys: Act Bizarre, Attempt a Ritual, Commune with the Beyond
Each circle's primary contact within Candela Obscura. Assigns cases, provides initial briefings, and serves as the organisation's face. They are not infallible — they may have their own agendas.
Body marks manifest as physical transformation. The investigator's flesh, senses, or physical capabilities shift in response to whatever uncanny force they have encountered. These changes are visible to those who know what to look for.
Mind marks affect how the investigator perceives and processes reality. They have glimpsed things that cannot be unseen, and this knowledge has reshaped their cognition. These changes may not be visible, but they are profound.
Bleed marks represent the most profound and dangerous form of corruption. The investigator has not merely witnessed or been affected by the supernatural — they have absorbed some portion of it. The division between them and the forces Candela investigates has thinned.
Illuminations are awarded by the Circle Master at dramatically appropriate moments — typically after:
Investigators who accumulate many Illuminations become liminal figures — not quite human, not quite something else. The game's long arc follows what becomes of investigators who stare too long into the dark. Some become protectors. Some become threats. Some simply vanish between one moment and the next.
Set the number of each die type. The pool maximum is 6 dice total. The highest die determines the outcome.
| Situation | Pool to Roll | Outcome Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Standard action | Action rating (0–3) + Drives spent | Take highest die |
| Zero-die pool | Roll 2d6 | Take lowest die |
| Gilded action | Replace one die with a gilded die | Take highest; if gilded is highest, recover 1 Drive |
| Risk dice in pool | CM adds risk dice to pool | If highest die is a risk die, success but consequence occurs |
| Resistance reroll | Reroll dice equal to action rating | Spend a Resistance box; take new results |
Avail (top): Current points you can spend.
Max (gold): Maximum you can have. Earned back through Gilded results.
Fill both at creation. Erase only the top when spending.
Body: Physical harm.
Mind: Psychological trauma.
Bleed: Supernatural corruption.
Spend a box to reroll dice equal to action rating on a failed roll.
Drive points recover between scenes (at the CM's discretion) or via Gilded die results during play. Some Illuminations also restore Drive in specific circumstances.