WHAT IS SHIFT?

SHIFT is a pick-up-and-play roleplaying game system that offers diverse options for Game Masters (GMs) and players alike. Its minimal rule set contains everything a GM needs to facilitate an exciting, character-driven story for the players.

Every aspect of SHIFT is powered by the same core building block: Traits (the narrative abilities of characters, monsters, equipment, anything!) with an associated Shift die. As characters use their Traits to interact with the world around them, the Trait’s die changes, shifting to better or worse dice as the narrative unfolds. Every die roll in SHIFT risks your dice shifting, which keeps the action exciting and dynamic. Traits are highly customizable, and creating new Traits from scratch is easy and fun.

With its simple, central mechanic and fast gameplay, SHIFT makes it easy to build and play in any world you can imagine.

 

SHIFT DICE, TRAITS AND MAKING ACTION ROLLS

Everything in SHIFT is built out of one, powerful puzzle piece: the Trait, a narrative description of an ability, skill set or other aspect (a PC, an NPC, a monster, a vehicle, etc). Traits describe anything and everything—whether it’s your superhero’s fire manipulation powers, a monstrosity’s gnashing teeth or a vehicle’s ramshackle engine. If you want to bring something into your SHIFT setting so your characters can interact with it, you’re going to want to turn it into a Trait!

Their narrative description is only half of what makes a Trait tick; they also have a Shift die associated with them that you roll when that Trait comes into play.

 

SHIFT DICE

Every Trait has a die assigned to it, ranging from D4 to D12. The assigned die represents the strength of that particular Trait.

When you want to see if your character can do something cool, you choose a relevant Trait and roll that Trait’s associated die to find out what happens. Regardless of which die you roll, a result of 1, 2, or 3 means that the action is successful. A D4 has the highest probability of success, while a D12 has the lowest probability of success.

Having your characters take dangerous and daring actions moves the story forward, but rolling dice comes at a risk. If when making a roll you roll the highest possible result on the die (a 4 on a D4, a 10 on a D10, etc.), you have to shift it down to the next worst die. A D6 becomes a D8, a D10 becomes a D12, and so on. If things have turned really bad and you need to shift down a D12, then its associated Trait is Exhausted. An Exhausted Trait can’t be used until its die shifts back up to a D12 or better.

 

TRAITS

Traits come in a few different varieties, but they all follow the same basic rules. At its simplest, a Trait consists of a name (a word or short phrase
describing the broad function of the trait) and an
associated die. This die is the highest die the Trait
can have, also known as the trait’s Max Die.

CORE TRAITS

In SHIFT, the fundamental abilities of all player characters are represented by three Core Traits: Mind, Body, and Soul. Like all Traits in SHIFT, these Core Traits are assigned a die to represent how capable a character is when using that Trait. The outcome of each action taken in the game is determined by rolling one of these three Core Traits. Exhausting a Core Trait can be disastrous; it could result in your character falling unconscious or even dying, depending on how perilous the situation is. Let’s take a look at how these Core Traits work in the game:

MIND

The Mind Core Trait relates to a character’s ability to focus, think through, and process information. Understanding an ancient tome, hacking a computer and making a solid logical argument could all be resolved with your character’s Mind Core Trait. Shifting its die down might represent mental exhaustion, confusion or your character seeing something cosmically incomprehensible.

BODY

The Body Core Trait is a character’s ability to act physically in any given situation. Knocking down a door, lifting debris off a friend or clobbering a minion all fall under the Body Core Trait. The Body Trait’s die shifting down can mean broken ribs, physical fatigue or getting knocked down. Ouch!

SOUL

The Soul Core Trait represents a character’s ability to interact and connect with others, whether that’s rallying allies or talking down an angry opponent. If your character is interacting with something or someone that can understand them in some manner, their Soul Core Trait is going to come into play. When a Soul Trait’s die shifts down, it could reflect shaken confidence or a growing distrust of others.

 

FOCUS TRAITS

While the three Core Traits represent the fundamental abilities of the characters, Focus Traits represent a character’s honed skills, unique abilities, and specialty equipment. These are more specific than Core Traits and allow each character to have their own cool specializations.

In addition to a word or short phase, and a Max die, a Focus Trait has one or more Keywords that define what the Trait does. Most Focus Traits don’t have a Max Die higher than a D6, but each character has a Primary Focus Trait whose Max Die starts as a D4.

When a Focus Trait is Exhausted, the character can’t use the Trait until they have rested or otherwise shifted the Trait’s die back up again. You should be creative when explaining what happens when a Focus Trait’s die is Exhausted. F, for example, describing a power source flickering out or the click of the pistol as the character realizes they are out of ammo.

KEYWORDS

While the name of a Focus Trait provides a general idea of what the Focus Trait can do, Keywords define what the Focus Trait does well. A Keyword can be a single word or a short phrase that describes a more specific way that Focus Trait can be used. When you create a character, you get to pick a couple Keywords for each of your starting Focus Traits to really make your character your own. Keywords mean that two characters with the same Focus Trait will still be unique - and good at different things!

DRAWBACKS

If a Keyword is what a Trait does well, then a Drawback is something that hinders the use of a Trait, making certain situations more uncertain or dangerous when that Drawback comes into play. There are a few ways a Drawback can get attached to a Trait. A GM could apply a Drawback after a roll with the Trait fails or when the Trait’s die shifts down. For example, after a failed roll with a Ray Gun Focus Trait, your GM may decide to give the Trait the unstable Drawback as it sparks and sputters from being misused. Drawbacks can be applied at any time, as long as it can be explained in the narrative. A GM could choose to apply a Drawback to a Trait when its die shifts down to provide a more permanent consequence to the outcome, or could even apply a Drawback instead of a Trait’s die shifting down, to keep the down sides of the failed action purely narrative.

If a roll is being made using a Focus Trait with a Drawback attached to it, the GM and player should decide if the Drawback would hinder the action being taken. If it would, the roll is considered Risky.

Drawbacks applied to Core Traits represent temporary injuries and other lingering status effects. For example, a character who receives a leg injury might have the slow Drawback applied to their Body Core Trait. Another character that catches the attention of a demon looking to possess them might receive a hunted Drawback attached to their Soul Core Trait.

MAKING ACTION ROLLS

When a character wants to do something dangerous, difficult or anything where the success of the action is uncertain, it’s time to make an Action Roll! Action Rolls are made with the following steps:

Step 1: Choose a Core Trait.

• Every action starts with deciding which Core Trait is most relevant to the action; the Body Core Trait for physical actions, the Mind Core Trait for actions requiring accuracy, focus, or technical know-how, or the Soul Core Trait for interactions with other people and creatures.

Step 2: Choose a Focus Trait.

• If your character has a Focus Trait relevant to the action they are attempting, they can roll that Focus Trait’s die alongside the Core Trait’s die. The attempted action should relate to one or more of the Focus Trait’s Keywords; otherwise, the GM may decide the Action Roll is Risky (see Risky Rolls) to account for the character doing something outside of their specializations. Choosing a Focus Trait is not mandatory, but does improve the chances of the Action Roll succeeding.

Step 3: Roll!

• The player rolls the applicable dice they’ve selected.

Step 4: Determine Results

The possible results of an Action Roll are as follows:

• All Dice Rolled Show 1s: Critical Success! Not only does the action succeed, but the character or adversary taking the action chooses a Critical Success Bonus (see Critical Success Bonuses) as well.
• At least one die shows a 1, 2, or 3 and no dice show their highest value: Success! Whatever the attempted action is succeeds with the expected results. Noting which die is assigned to which Trait before rolling helps the GM describe a narrative reason why one Trait may have Succeeded while the other did not.
• One die shows a successful 1, 2, or 3, but a second die shows its highest value: Mitigated Success. The action is accomplished, but it comes at a cost. The Trait’s die that rolled its highest value was strained and had to shift down. Noting which die is assigned to which Trait before rolling helps the GM describe a narrative reason why a trait may have shifted down.
• No dice show a successful result: Failure. None of the rolled dice resulted in a 1, 2, or 3, nor did they roll their highest value. Therefore, the attempted action does not have the intended results, nor do new problems arise that need to be resolved.

No dice show a success, and one or more dice show their highest result: Critical Failure. Not only does the action not occur as intended, but the Trait was also pushed too hard during the attempt and is required to shift down. New problems may arise that need to be resolved.

CRITICAL SUCCESS BONUSES

When you roll a Critical Success during an action, you get to choose an option from the following choices as a bonus:

Shift Up One Of Your Characters Traits. Shift up any one of your own Traits’ die by 1 die so long as it doesn’t exceed the Max Die for that Trait.

Shift Up An Ally’s Trait. Choose a willing ally and allow them to shift up any one of their Traits by 1 die so long as it doesn’t exceed the Max Die for that Trait. This could be a fellow PC or a friendly creature or NPC controlled by the GM.

Shift An Adversary’s Trait Down Twice. If the success of this Action Roll would cause a target’s Trait’s die to shift down, shift it down by one additional die.

Another Cool Narrative Boost. If none of these options fit the current scenario, you and your GM should work together to come up with a cool narrative effect that occurs as part of this action. This could include, but isn’t limited to: removing an appropriate Drawback, gaining information that might give you an advantage on a future Action Roll or creating an opening for an ally to do something cool.

RISKY AND INSPIRED ROLLS

Sometimes a specific action poses a greater threat to a character, such as doing so while traversing unfavorable terrain, or smart tactics or good roleplay make your GM want to reward you with an improved chance of success. In these dramatic moments, your GM can increase a roll’s threat by making it Risky or easier by making it Inspired.

When a roll is Risky, you make the roll as usual, except any die that does not show a successful result will shift down, not just on a Critical Failure. A GM may decide a roll is Risky for several reasons. For example, the character is outnumbered, lacks the appropriate resources, or the action is outside the scope of a Trait’s Keywords.

When the GM designates that an Action Roll is Inspired, any successful result counts as a Critical Success.

 

This brings us to the end of the SHIFT Quickstart. Updates and expansions to these rules will be delivered in future SHIFT products based on your playtesting feedback and further internal development.

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CREDITS

Writers & Game Design: Graeme Fotheringham, Jordan Richer
Editing: Andrea Bruce, Sebastian Yūe, Verity Lane
Project Manager: Katherine Frein
Community Manager: Sebastian Yūe
Graphic Design: Ricardo Evangelho Madison Pflance
Art Direction: Brian Scott Walters
Art: Justin Chan, Antonio Demico
Producer: Ricardo Evangelho

LEGAL

SHIFT: Quickstart is Copyright © 2024 Hit Point Press Inc. All rights reserved. All characters and their distinctive likenesses are property of Hit Point Press Inc. in Canada, US and other countries. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein is prohibited without the express permission of Hit Point Press Inc. Reference to other copyrighted material in no way constitues a challenge to the respective copyright holders of that material. Hit Point Press, SHIFT and its associated logos are trademarks of Hit Point Press Inc. Hit Point Press Inc., 2487 Kaladar Ave, Unit 213, Ottawa, Ontario, K1V 8B9, Canada.