Beats
BEATS
Beats are the smallest narrative construct, and are themselves too small to contain an actual story unit, but several together will comprise the building blocks of a story to form a Scene.
When designing beats, it’s important to note that while moving from one beat to another should emphasize the 3-act model in micro: each beat should represent either a distinct beginning, middle, and end, or the more specific exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.
Beat Types
EXPOSITION
From conceptual introduction of new settings, characters, and lore, through to the inciting incident, which kicks off the scene’s conflict. This can often be very, very short in games, since much of the exposition is handled in a Session 0 context
Exploration
Planning
RISING ACTION
Bad decisions or poor luck leading to conflict, obstacles, and complications, while gaining key information like motives, weaknesses, and vulnerabilities.
Diplomacy
Exploration
Investigation
Surprise
CLIMAX
The story’s conflict peaks, and conflict occurs. This is the turning point, and the one-way door: a decision is made and cannot be undone.
Alliance
Betrayal
Combat
Escape
Pursuit
FALLING ACTION
Actions have consequences, and the falling action beat explores those consequences. What lies on the other way of that one-way door is now clear in ways it wasn’t before, and this can be both good and bad.
Imprisonment
Redirection
Regrouping
RESOLUTION
A moment that notes the specific end of the cycle. Loose ends get tied up, but threads to other destinations emerge.
Celebration
Mourning
A Beat has the f
Types of Beats
HOT
Conflict
Where the party must defeat an enemy, defend a position, raid a location, or overcome a deadly obstacle.
A Conflict segment doesn’t need to be all action, all the time, but the party should be aware at this point that there’s simply no way out but through, and “through” means some kind of direct confrontation.
Escape
Pursuit
WARM
Setback
Wherein the party suffers a reversal of fortune or learns a difficult truth.
Typical setbacks include
- being accused of wrongdoing by an ally or neutral party,
- having a key item stolen,
- betrayal by an ally or learning that an enemy wasn’t an enemy,
- becoming lost or captured
Subterfuge
In which the party must capture someone alive and unnoticed, sabotage or assassinate a key asset, rescue a captured ally, or extract vital information
Typical subterfuge beats include:
- Any kind of heist or theft that isn’t a smash and grab,
- Kidnapping, blackmailing, or assassinating a key enemy,
- Sabotaging a key asset,
- Rescuing a captured ally, or
- Espionage with the intent to acquire or extract otherwise hidden information
Survival
In which the party is required to travel, either away from or into peril
COLD
Diplomacy
In which allies must be made and enemies weakened without thrust of sword
Investigation
Where the party must locate or identify forces currently unknown to them
Exploration
Recovery
Where the party licks its wounds, retreats to a safe place, repairs a fortification, or otherwise retreats temporarily