Introduction, Principles, and Roles

Structural basis: Cairn 2e — Overview & Principles.

In This Chapter

• What Is DAIRN?
• What You Need
• Player, Character, and Warden
• The Game World Comes First
• Information and Danger
• Decisions and Consequences
• The Party and Cooperative Play
• Exploration and Preparation
• Danger
• Character Change
• How Play Proceeds

What Is DAIRN?

DAIRN: Ұлы Дала Ғаламы is a tabletop roleplaying game about journeys, discoveries, dangers, and stories of the Great Steppe. One participant takes on the role of Warden. The others are Players, each controlling a Player Character.

The game takes the form of a conversation. The Warden describes the world and the current situation, the Players say what their characters do, and events in the game world determine the consequences of their decisions. Rules and dice come into play when the outcome is genuinely uncertain and involves risk.

What You Need

• A character sheet and writing supplies.
• Dice: d4, d6, d8, d10, d12, d20.

Player, Character, and Warden

A Player makes decisions for their Player Character. Ability Scores and other game statistics help resolve risky situations, but they neither define the character's personality nor replace the Player's decisions.

The Warden describes the world, portrays Non-Player Characters, gives Players the information available to their characters, and applies the rules impartially. The Warden does not play against the Players and need not guide them through a predetermined plot.

The Party consists of the Player Characters who usually act together and pursue a shared goal.

The Game World Comes First

What happens in the game world comes first; game mechanics are applied only afterward.

A Player describes not only the desired outcome but also how the character tries to achieve it. The Warden considers the circumstances, preparation, equipment, the character's Life Path, and the obvious consequences of the chosen approach.

If an action is feasible, the chosen approach is reasonable, and there is no significant risk, it proceeds without a Check. If an action is impossible under the current circumstances, a roll cannot make it possible. A Check is required when a character tries to avoid a dangerous consequence and the outcome remains uncertain.

Information and Danger

A Player does not need to make a Check merely to learn something their character already understands from the situation.

The Warden provides such information directly and answers the Players' questions as clearly as the characters' knowledge and perception allow. Players may clarify details, examine their surroundings, speak with Non-Player Characters, and seek additional information.

Serious danger should be apparent before a decision is made. The more severe the possible consequences, the more clearly the Warden signals the threat.

Decisions and Consequences

There is no single correct way to approach an Adventure in DAIRN. Players may explore, talk, negotiate, prepare, seek another route, retreat, or take a risk.

A Player should understand what information their decision is based on and what obvious risks it entails. Those decisions change the characters' position and the world around them.

Combat is one possible way to resolve a conflict, but it is not mandatory. The people and creatures the Party encounters have their own interests and are not necessarily hostile.

The Party and Cooperative Play

Characters usually act as a Party. Players benefit from coordinating their goals and considering one another's decisions, especially when one character's action places the others at risk.

Cooperative play does not require the characters to share the same views. Disagreements can be part of the story if they do not prevent the participants from continuing to play together.

Exploration and Preparation

Paying close attention to the world, asking thoughtful questions, and preparing are often more important than game statistics. Information lets Players reduce risk, change the circumstances, and sometimes avoid a Check entirely.

A character's equipment, Bonds, Life Path, and opportunities discovered in the world are tools available to the Player. The game encourages finding solutions within the game world instead of searching for a numerical bonus to a roll.

Danger

Characters are vulnerable. Combat, harsh conditions, mistakes, and other dangers can lead to severe consequences and death.

Danger should not be used as an arbitrary punishment. Players should have an opportunity to notice a threat, gather information, and decide whether to take the risk. Retreat, caution, and preparation are all valid decisions.

Character Change

A character develops as a result of events in the game world. The dangers they survive, relationships, discoveries, training, and other significant events may change their abilities, connections, and place in the world.

Character development is a consequence of lived experience, not merely a reward for victory in Combat.

How Play Proceeds

1. The Warden describes the situation and provides the important information available to the characters.
2. The Players ask questions and decide what their characters do.
3. The Warden determines the consequences based primarily on the circumstances in the game world.
4. If the outcome of a risky action remains uncertain, apply the appropriate rule or Check.
5. The result changes the situation, and play continues under these new circumstances.