RULES AND MECHANICS

The core rules for Liminal Horror are quite streamlined and fit onto a one page rules reference. Often the Liminal Horror team includes the rules one pager in our official first party publications. Depending on the length and space we are working with, we may only highlight a few important mechanics we want included. While not a necessary inclusion in a publication, it does help make your adventure scenario support anyone picking it up, even if they aren’t familiar with Liminal Horror as a system.

The Bureau (2022) included a page called: EMPLOYEE CODE OF CONDUCT (p. 4) that featured an abbreviated version of the one-page rules reference (Abilities & Saves, HP, Inventory, Combat, Actions, Damage, Stress & Fallout, Healing, Deprived)
The Bloom (2023) included a page called: RULES TO TAKE NOTE (p. 4) that featured five mechanics we felt would benefit emphasizing for Facilitators (Critical Damage and Wounds, Critical Stress and Fallout, Deprived, Healing, Vehicles).
EINFÜHLUNG (2025), our starter scenario, includes a complete rules reference in its introduction.

Additional rules reference explanation and text can be found in SRD v2.0 and SRD v1.0. The Rules Summary acts as a resource that you can include in your adventures.

RULES SUMMARY

Note: You can include this, or a modified version, in your publications. (maybe include a image version or downloadable text file)

ABILITIES:

STR (Strength): Physicality, brawn, and toughness.
DEX (Dexterity): Readiness, grace, subtly, and precision.
CTRL (Control): Willpower, charm, and the weird.

SAVES
For risky actions, roll a d20 equal to or under the target ability score.

HP - HIT PROTECTION
An Investigator’s ability to avoid serious harm (both physical and Stress). HP recovers quickly when Investigators take moments in safety.

ARMOR AND STABILITY
Armor reduces incoming damage by that amount. Stability reduces incoming Stress by that amount.

INVENTORY
Investigators have 10 Inventory Slots. Most items take up one Slot, bulky items take two Slots. Carrying items beyond 10 Slots reduces HP to 0.

DEPRIVED AND FATIGUE
The Deprived condition comes from a lack of critical need (food, sleep, etc.) and prevents HP recovery. Being Deprived for 24hrs adds a Fatigue condition to an Inventory Slot, and requires rest to recover that Slot.

CELLPHONE STABILITY
When an Investigator uses a cellphone, handheld camera, CCTV, etc., to view a horror they receive +1 Stability. If Stress exceeds Stability, roll on the table:

6: Everything keeps working.
4-5: The battery is dying, it has one more instance of providing Stability before it dies.
2-3: It powers down, no longer providing Stability until charged.
1: It breaks, no longer providing Stability until it’s repaired

RESONANT ARTIFACTS
Resonant Artifacts are objects imbued with the weird. An Investigator can use the power of a Resonant Artifact as part of their normal action, provided the activation trigger can be completed within a few seconds.

ACTIONS
On their turn, investigators may move 40 feet and take a single action. Actions are attacking, additional movement, or some other reasonable action. These are simultaneous.

Retreating from a doomed situation requires a successful DEX Save and a safe destination.

If Investigators are surprised, then they must pass an DEX Save in order to act during the initial round. Subsequent turns have Investigators acting, then adversaries.

COMBAT
All attacks auto-hit under reasonable circumstances. Attackers roll Damage or Stress die, subtract Armor (damage) or Stability (Stress), and deal remaining total to the target’s HP. Multiple attackers roll together and keep the single highest die.

DAMAGE AND WOUNDS
Damage that exceeds HP is deducted from STR. Target must make a STR Save or suffer a Wound, which fill Inventory Slots.

STRESS AND FALLOUT
Stress that exceeds HP is deducted from CTRL. Target must make a CTRL Save or suffer Fallout, which fills Inventory Slots.

HEALING
A quick rest in a safe location fully restores HP. Ability Score loss and healing Wounds requires medical attention or extended rest. 0 STR means death, 0 DEX means paralysis, 0 CTRL means the Investigator is lost.

PROCEDURE OF PLAY

Note: This is another resource you could adapt and include within your scenario. It acts as a quick reference for players and facilitators for how a game like Liminal Horror flows. This could be presented as a list, flow chart, or other graphic.

Once a scenario is introduced, Liminal Horror follows a loose procedure of play:

The Facilitator sets the scene by describing the situation.
The Players decide how they would like to proceed with their investigation.
The Facilitator describes any obvious clues or overt dangers.
The Players determine how they would like to respond to or interact with the situation.
The Facilitator determines if those actions require rolls.
- Most simple tasks (opening doors, searching locations, etc) simply happen without the need for a roll.
- If the outcome of an action is unclear, determine who is most at risk of failure and ask them to make a corresponding Save.
- A Player’s action may also result in Stress or damage directly without a roll.
The situation is resolved and the Facilitator describes any changes based on the outcome of the rolls.
Repeat.

Next Section: Making an Investigator
Previous Section: Front and Back Matter

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