![](https://i.imgur.com/ib9H9rB.jpg)

# What is Threads of Lachesis?

Threads of Lachesis (TOL) SRD, is a system reference document to create games with branched random **Prompts** that the player organizes into a cohesive sequence via a single roll.

Games created with this system can hyper-focus on the span of a second, an hour, a day or zoom out and view the span of a family’s generational legacy, a civilization, or a galaxy. It can be used to quickly create rich and varied character backstories, or used for world building to generate the major and minor events of a nation or continent. 

Although Threads of Lachesis’ focus is on solo games and generators, this system was adapted from a traditional TTRPG mechanic defined in the **Additional Adaptations** section.

## What this Isn't

Threads of Lachesis SRD is not a complete game. As such, this document is not player-facing and does not include sections, verbiage, or **Prompts** to play a specific game.

# Licensing

You are free to create Threads of Lachesis games. We ask that you credit Pandion Games using the Attribution Text below. The Content of this SRD is available under the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0). Its full text can be found here: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

## Attribution Text
> This work is based on Threads of Lachesis SRD (https://pandiongames.itch.io/ThreadsofLachesis), by Pandion Games and is licensed for use under the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

You are free to make use of the Threads of Lachesis logo in your games, promotional materials, etc. If you use Threads of Lachesis logo in your game, also add the following text:

>The Threads of Lachesis logo is copyright Pandion Games and is used with permission.

The Threads of Lachesis logo can be downloaded from: https://pandiongames.itch.io/ThreadsofLachesis or https://i.imgur.com/KDlL6O4.png

You are free to color and resize the Threads of Lachesis logo to suit your project, but the logo should not be materially altered in any other way.

If you are publishing electronically, you can make “Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0” a link to https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ and “Threads of Lachesis SRD” a link to https://pandiongames.itch.io/ThreadsofLachesis 

## Limitations

You can’t imply that Pandion Games or Andrew Boyd is endorsing you or sponsoring you unless a special arrangement has been made directly with you. You cannot use the Pandion Games logo in your own game without explicit, written permission from Pandion Games or Andrew Boyd.

You can’t use the Threads of Lachesis SRD to make anything that would be prejudicial to Pandion Games or Andrew Boyd’s honor or reputation.

Finally, nazis, homophobes, transphobes, and other bigots are expressly forbidden from making content using the Threads of Lachesis SRD. If you have to ask whether this includes you, it does.

# A Note on Complexity

I’ll be up front: To use this system requires writing a lot of **Prompts**. Like the complex, intertwined, and multivariable nature of fate, destiny, and time itself, Threads of Lachesis can quickly become a very large unruly beast to keep track of. 

Keep in mind how the number of available options to the player multiplies if **Acts** are added or dice sides are increased. It’s not addition, it’s multiplication.

Threads of Lachesis was designed to have a large number of options to produce a myriad of interesting and unique outcomes though each play session may be short.  Depending on the **Prompts** created, a player could churn through ten sessions in an evening and have wildly fun and interesting outcomes that are completely different from each other.

You can find options to reduce the number of total **Prompts** needed for Threads of Lachesis in the **Reducing Complexity** section.

For the standard rules as written, you will need 15 Concepts, 12-36 **Prompts** per **Concept** and 45 Closing **Prompts**. Or 225-585 total written **Prompts**.

![](https://i.imgur.com/JfadLsth.jpg)

# Themes and Tone

Threads of Lachesis games can create awe at the grand expanse of the life of a civilization, or the frenzied twists of a zany trip to the grocery store or the construction of wondrous and flawed characters. Ask how you want your players to interact with the **Prompts** of each **Concept** and what the flow between the **Acts** means - advancement of time? A different event in a character’s backstory? 

What emotions or gameplay can be garnered from those interactions and transitions?

# Definitions
**Fate Die**
The die whose value the player can spend to manipulate the dice values.

**Storyboard**
The collection of all the dice, minus the **Fate Die**. Normally contains three **Acts**.

An **Act**
A set of three dice that defines a specific **Concept**: A location, epoch, or scene for which the 6 **Prompts** generated from the three dice are all related.

**Concept**
The generalized term to describe the overarching **Concept** an **Act** is about. Defined by summing all dice in the **Act** and using that number on a **Concept** Table.

**Prompts**
Questions, narrative, statements, or options on lookup tables that players discover by taking or summing dice values in each **Act**.

Lachesis 
A Fate from Greek Mythology whose job was to measure the thread of life spun by Clotho. She is the decider of destiny.

# Core Mechanics

## The Dice and **Storyboard**

![](https://i.imgur.com/a6Hd58um.jpg)

The player begins with 10 six-sided dice and rolls all of them at once. The die that lands furthest away from the others becomes the **Fate Die**, the others are used to create the **Storyboard**.

Take the remaining 9 dice and randomly split them into three **Acts**, each containing three dice. It’s from these that the story and events build.

The **Fate Die** is used to manipulate the value of dice in the **Acts**. If the player rolls a 3 on the **Fate Die**, they have 3 points to spend to increase or decrease the value of dice as they see fit.

![](https://i.imgur.com/Vk3OW3Om.jpg)

Each **Act** will relate to one of 15 major Concepts. And each Prompt generated is a subsection exploring that **Concept**. 

> So much happens in a single moment. To explore the random events taking place around the world, a single second can be broken into three **Acts**, with their Concepts defining types of events that will unfold (births, deaths, successes, failures, etc.) and the **Prompts** define specific events happening within that second.

## Reading the **Storyboard**

Each **Act** has a **Concept** the player defines by summing the values of the three dice. The dice values are then taken or summed to direct players to six **Prompts** related to the **Concept**.

Dice are read one **Act** at time. I use the word **Concept** below, but it can be anything you can imagine: It can describe a moment, a space, an epoch, street intersections or the central context of your game. The values are calculated, in order, as follows:

- Sum all the dice = **Concept** #
- Die 1 = Prompt 1
- Die 2 = Prompt 2
- Die 3 = Prompt 3
- Sum of Dice 1+2 = Prompt 4
- Sum of Dice 2+3 = Prompt 5
- Sum of Dice 1+3 = Prompt 6

![](https://i.imgur.com/ILRrmj7m.jpg)

Players complete  each step sequentially: Look up the value on the appropriate table, read and answer the prompt, then go to the next Prompt. 

At any time, they are allowed to use their **Fate Die** to manipulate a die in the **Act**, especially if they don’t like the Prompt. Lachesis intervenes. 

Changing the dice values does not change any previously calculated numbers, only the numbers going forward.

After the last **Act** is complete, the player sums all dice in the **Storyboard** and looks up the Closing prompt with that number to wrap up the game.

![](https://i.imgur.com/YAOUKwRh.jpg)


# Repeated Numbers - Tiers or Redirection for Events
With three 6 sided dice per **Act**, the likelihood of rolling or summing duplicate numbers is high. It is recommended to have two to three tiers of each Prompt, with the player reading them in order as duplicates arise. 

Or, to keep the number of **Prompts** to a minimum, direct them to a different Prompt (maybe even on a different **Concept**) for their second or third duplicate number. How you choose to handle this is up to you. What your game is about will likely dictate the best way to deal with repeated numbers.

# Reducing Complexity
To decrease the number of **Prompts**:
- Consider dropping the summing of dice in each **Act**
- Use a d4 or d3 instead of a d6
- Omit Closing **Prompts** in favor of a final-die table. The player simply takes the final **Act** 3 dice number and uses it on the Closing table
- Reduce the number of dice in each **Act**

## Examples of Reducing Complexity:
- If we drop the summing of dice and omit the Closing table in favor of the final-dice Ending Table, the number of needed **Prompts** drops to 15 Locations, 6 Events per location + 6 Endings = 96 **Prompts**. 
    - Add 2 additional Event tiers for duplicate numbers and you get 276 **Prompts** to write.
- Using a d4 instead of d6: 9 Locations, 8 Events per Location + 27 Endings = 99 **Prompts**
    - Add 2 additional Event tiers for duplicate numbers and you get 243 **Prompts**

# Additional Adaptations

Threads of Lachesis’s **Storyboard**-like design was originally created as a tool in one of our upcoming traditional tabletop roleplaying games - *Opprobrium* -  to facilitate montage scenes: a chase scene, hunting for clues, a trek across the country. I would be remiss if I did not add our original design here for use in your games. 

If you adapt or tweak Threads of Lachesis for a different usage or style of play, please let us know and we will add it to this section with credit to you.

## MONTAGES

Montages are special events that **Act** as cinematic scenes by having the players roll 10 total dice to create a **Storyboard** of action. These are designed to be used during intense, action-heavy moments, complications, or provide more cinematic investigation scenes.

Work with the players to define the potential outcomes at the beginning.

If the characters are trying to find a witness trapped in the burning building, a final successful outcome is a rescue of the witness and the failure outcome is the building burning down around them.

If the players only have failures, the witness could die or become hospitalized and the characters themselves may be seriously injured in the effort.

### Create The **Storyboard**
- Split 10 dice among all participating players.
- The players performing most of the action or taking lead should receive a greater number of dice, but all players involved should be rolling at least 1 die.
- Players select a Skill they will use for this Montage - They must explain how the skill is relevant to the task.
- The Players roll the dice.
- After the roll, players can distribute their Skill’s Ability number as points to increase the value of any rolled dice.
- Line up each player’s dice in front of the Narrator. This is the **Storyboard** for the Montage.

### Narrate the Dramatic Parts of the Attempt
The Narrator interprets the **Storyboard** in front of them and describes each character’s shortcomings (1’s or 2’s) and wonderful successes (5’s or 6’s) trying to accomplish the task.

The Narrator can also point to Players and have them describe the success or failures of their character in the moment.

**Tip:** Pair off Success and Failures. Narrate the events as one step forward, one step back. The goal of a Montage is to keep the tension high until the final outcome is reached.

### The Final Outcome
The final outcome of the Montage is determined by the total number of Successes vs. Failed dice. 5s and 6s are successes, all others are failures. The more successes, the more positive the outcome, and vice versa.

### Convert Montages to D20 Systems
It is possible to convert this to a d20 system. Define what a successful and failed dice roll is: 15+? 10+? Depending on the system being used, have players use either their Ability Points, Ability Modifiers, or Skill Points. Generally, you want them to be able to manipulate at least one die from a neutral position to success, or a failure to neutral for sake of the narration.

# Credits
This SRD wouldn’t exist without the Sealed Library for the assistance designing Montages, the supportive solo RPG community Alone Together, and Armanda who convinced me that maybe this could be something more and helped to make it such. 
**Thank you.**

>Created and released for The TTRPG SRD Jam hosted by Lynxen RPGS. https://itch.io/jam/the-ttrpg-srd-jam. Threads of Lachesis Logo and Art Direction by Elyssa Boyd. Editing by Armanda https://armandah.itch.io SRD layout and format created with the help and reference of “Guide to Building a System Reference Document by hexavexagon https://hexavexagon.itch.io/ and The Wretched & Alone SRD by Matt Sanders and Chris Bissette https://sealedlibrary.itch.io/wretched-alone-srd