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Story and goals

The sandbox is now alive but directionless. A ## Narrative chapter gives it a spine: a chain of story beats that reveal one another, like chapters. A ## Goals chapter decides how the campaign ends.

The story (Narrative)

Each beat has a completion trigger (Done when: - the same English phrases as job goals) and points at the next beat (Then: reveal ...).

## [Narrative](narrative)

### [The Dimming: A Cold Lane](dimming_1)
---
Scope: shared
State: active
Done when: reach -4, 2
Then: reveal dimming_2
---
Three Combine convoys have gone dark in a month, and the Combine is
quietly asking for outside help. Their harbormaster waits at the home
lanterns at (-4, 2).

### [The Dimming: Ash on the Manifest](dimming_2)
---
Scope: shared
State: secret
Done when: scan 2 derelicts
Then: reveal dimming_3
Reward: 200 credits
---
The lost convoys did not vanish - something left the wrecks adrift off
the lanes. Find them and read what is left in the hulls.

### [The Dimming: The Long Answer](dimming_3)
---
Scope: shared
State: secret
Done when: destroy 5 veil
Reward: 600 credits
Standing: lantern honest 15, lantern generous 10
---
The manifests all point one way: the Red Veil is bleeding the lanes dry.
The Combine will not say the word "war" - but they will pay well for
captains who end this quietly.
  • Scope: shared - the whole crew works these together; one shared story. Write it on every beat.
  • State - active means live from the first moment; secret means hidden until an earlier beat reveals it. Your first chapter is active, the rest are secret - that's the whole pattern.
  • Then: reveal - chains to the next beat. The chain is your table of contents: dimming_1 -> dimming_2 -> dimming_3.
  • Reward - beats can pay credits and shift reputation, exactly like jobs. Reward: earns lantern honest 15 reads: with the lantern side, along the honest trait, gain 15.

In play

The first beat is in the crew's quest log at launch; each completed chapter reveals the next. Your prose is the briefing text for each.

How it ends (Goals)

A goal is written exactly like a story beat, plus one fact: Win: true (or Lose: true) ends the campaign when it completes. The Citation: is the text on the end card - write it like the closing lines of the episode.

## [Goals](goals)

### [Break the Veil](goal_break_veil)
---
Scope: shared
State: active
Done when: destroy 15 veil
Win: true
Citation: The Red Veil is broken and the lanterns burn the length of the Reach. The convoy families will tell this captain's story for a generation.
---
End the Veil's grip on the Reach for good - fifteen of their hulls, however
long it takes - and win the lanes their peace.

Skip this chapter entirely and your universe is an endless sandbox. That is a legitimate choice, not a missing feature.

Next: Painting the map - regions and landmarks.