STRUGGLE AS ONE

When you Defy Danger as a group, establish the party's approach and each roll +STAT (per Defy Danger): on a 6-, you find yourself in a spot, the GM will describe it or ask you to; on a 7-9, you pull your weight; on a 10+, you do well enough to get someone else out of a spot, if you can tell us how.

If you roll a 6- but someone saves you, don't mark XP.

This move triggers when the whole party works together in the face of the same danger(s), usually over a period of time and when you don't want to dwell on the details. If you're about to have everyone Defy Danger, you should probably use this move instead. It's intentionally more forgiving than everyone Defying Danger, and it moves the action along more quickly. With that said: they aren't Struggling as One if one PC is essentially responsible for everyone else's fate. If they risk getting lost and the Ranger is navigating, then the Ranger is Defying Danger (maybe with someone providing Aid). They'd only be Struggling as One if they faced some additional danger or challenge, against which they all contended.

When you call for them to Struggle as One, clarify the danger and the stakes. Use the same trick you use with Defy Danger: "Sounds like you're Struggling as One, and the danger is getting stuck or exhausted by the muck and mire."

It's possible—likely, even—that the PCs will strive against multiple dangers. If the dangers are sequential (like scaling the cliff and then rushing to get back to camp before the storm hits), then resolve it as two separate moves. But if they're dealing with multiple dangers at once (like trying to reach the hilltop before nightfall while also avoiding hunting drakes), then it's a single set of rolls.

"Establish the party's approach" means "figure out how they're going about this." What's the plan? Who's going first? Are they using, say, a rope? Who's on lookout? And so forth. From there, figure out which stat(s) make the most sense. Use the same guidelines you would for Defy Danger. Everyone might roll the same stat, or (if they break up the jobs), they might each roll something different.

Those participating in the struggle can't Aid each other—they're already involved! In order to Aid, a PC or follower must be somehow unaffected by the struggle (like a Ranger's bird flying ahead to scout as the party trudges through the fen).

Everyone rolls at once and figures out what they got. Encourage them to keep their results quiet for the moment.

Ask who got a 6-. Put them in a spot, following your principles and exploiting your prep. (If someone received Aid, then put the helper in the spot with them, or instead of them.)

Once you've described the spot, ask if anyone got a 10+. Ask them to describe how they get the character(s) out of their spot. If they come up with something plausible, then they do it—no more rolls required.

If multiple characters get a 6-, you've got a few choices:

Put them in the same spot, or close enough. "Caradoc, Vahid, you're trudging along, and… the hill isn't really moving, is it? But then you realize, yeah, it is, it's a mudslide! The path you're on starts to give way." In this case, a single 10+ might save everyone, depending on the fiction and what that player comes up with.

Put them in different spots at the same time. "Blodwen, as twilight falls, you find yourself falling behind, breathing hard, losing sight of the others. Meanwhile, Rhianna, you realize that you've lost track of Eira in the grass. Like, oh crap, where is she?" In this case, each 10+ will save only one of them.

Pick one and put them in a spot, ignoring the other 6- results for now. Resolve that spot. Then, say how time has passed and put the next character in a different spot. This is a great technique to demonstrate a really long and arduous trek, or one with multiple dangers. In this case, each 10+ can be used only once.

If anyone finds themselves in a spot and there isn't a 10+ to save them (or the player who rolled 10+ can't come up with something plausible, or chooses not to), then zoom in and play out the scene from there. Ask the affected character what they do. Or, tell someone else what they see and ask them what they do. Maybe they just Defy Danger and roll a 10+ and it's all good. Maybe it snowballs into an absolute disaster. Play to find out.

If the scene resolves and they've gotten themselves out of the spot, don't make them Struggle as One again against the same challenge. Just skip ahead to the end of the struggle. But if, in the process of resolving any 6- results, the situation changes such that they face a new or different danger, then it's okay to have them Struggle as One again.

Regardless of the results, this move is a great time to ask questions. "Blodwen, have you ever been up this high before? How does the view make you feel?" "Vahid, as the path slipped out from under your feet and you started to fall, what went through your mind?" "Rhianna, after you've hauled Caradoc back up on the path, huffing and puffing… what do you say to him?"

One of Rhianna's crew just came back with a rusty spade and Rhianna's sure of it—this is crinwin territory. They hope to sneak through and avoid a fight, kill the bears, then find a way up the bluffs and head home via the Flats.

"So, you're being sneaky?" I ask. "Sounds like you're Struggling as One, and the danger is that the crinwin notice you. What does this look like? Are you all together, or spread out, or what?"

"We go single-file, weapons out," says Rhianna. "Just a couple paces between us. Lowri scouts ahead, he's got the sharpest eyes. I'll go next, and you three follow me. Step where I step. The rest of my crew will bring up the rear. I'll look for the firmest ground, least likely to make noise. There's no point in hiding… we'll just have to move quietly and hope that no one's watching."

Okay! I tell Rhianna she can roll +INT or +WIS, since she's looking for the firmest and quietest path, but everyone else will be rolling +DEX to follow her steps. Rhianna's crew rolls +1 (they're stealthy*), but Andras rolls +0 because none of his tags apply. The dice hit the table.*

"Okay, anyone get a 6 or less?" Vahid did. "Okay, cool. Don't mark XP just yet. Let's see… oh, yeah. All that weird gear you carry, because of Magpie? It's not stowed right for this stealthy stuff. You're snagged on something and if you try to move, it's going to fall and make a lot of noise. What do you think it is?"

"Marbles," says Vahid. "I've got a big pouch of them." He moves an undefined mark on his Inventory sheet to a slot and writes in "pouch of marbles."

"Why do you… no, never mind. That pouch is now snagged on a branch, suspended like this, and one of the marbles fell out, hit a rock. CLINK! Everyone's stopped, holding their breath. If you shift even a little, it'll spill open and make a ton of noise. Anyone got a 10+, able to help him out?"

Rhianna does. "Any sign of crinwin? Like, did they hear that clink?"

"Yeah," I say. "It's painfully quiet. You're all stock still, not even breathing, and you then you hear it. 'Clink! Clink! Clink clink CLINK!' in the distance. Crinwin, mimicking the sound. A way off, but maybe getting closer? What do you do?"

"I motion for everyone to be still, then I take that rusty spade we found and I hurl it behind us, north and east. I'm hoping it'll hit a tree and draw their attention while we skedaddle. Yeah?"

"Smart. Sounds like you're Defying Danger with INT?"

"I got a 10+ on my Struggle Together. Doesn't that mean I can just do it?"

"Oh, right, sorry. Yeah, it's like you say… you throw the spade, hurl it maybe 30, 40 paces away. It ricochets off a tree, PING. And then the crinwin start going 'PING! PING!' and you can tell they're moving in that direction. What do you do?"

"I slip back to Vahid, unsnag his pouch, give him a dirty look, and we get out of here."

"Cool! Okay, off you go. And, Blodwen, what was racing through you mind during all of that?"

The PCs have put fire to the crinwin nest and started heading back toward Stonetop. I tell them the requirements. "Between the fight, and the nest, and the bears… it's getting late. If you want to get home before dark, you're going to have to Struggle as One. The danger is that you exhaust yourselves, or take too long, or run into something else out here. How do you do this?"

"Let's put two people on each sled and haul ass. Vahid, Caradoc, and I will each take one, pared up with one of my crew. Blodwen, you take point with Eira and Lowri, keep us going the right direction and watch for trouble. Yeah?"

Everyone agrees. "Blodwen, you'll be rolling WIS. Everyone else, I think either STR or CON, your choice. Vahid, you've got a heavy load, so roll with disadvantage. Rhianna, your crew isn't hardy or athletic or the like, right? So I think they're +0?"

"Really? Lowri and Eira are navigating and watching for trouble. And they're all Woods-wise*." That works for me, so, sure, they roll +1.*

Everyone rolls. Vahid and Caradoc both get a 6-. I could put Vahid and Caradoc in a spot together, but I feel like spreading it out.

"Vahid, you're hauling, hauling, hauling, right? Your nose is running, your eyes are watering, your lungs are burning. When was the last time you worked this hard for this long?"

"Oh, I pull my weight around the village," he says. "It's not a matter of hard work, it's the damn cold that's doing it to me. My lungs are just raw."

"Sure, cool. Anyhow, you start stumbling. You get up each time, but you and Andras are falling behind. Does anyone have a 10+ and a way to help them out?"

Rhianna does. "I curse a little, then tell Lowri to take over for Vahid. And I have Eira to take over for me. We'll rotate through, every ten minutes or so, two people get a breather."

That takes care of Vahid, but Caradoc still has a 6-. "Okay, you rotate like, three times, pacing yourselves but making progress. Then, Caradoc, there's a lurch on your sled. And a grinding sound. Something tears. Vahid, you see that they've hit a log, buried in the snow. A branch snagged the sled, and the whole thing is stuck. Anyone else got a 10+?" They all look around, but no one does. Blodwen and Rhianna's crew both got 7-9s. "Okay, Caradoc, mark XP. What do you all do?"

And we play out the scene from there.