Introduction: During the Fall of 1812 Napoleon was gripped in a fight for control of Russia. His soldiers were working their way forward and the end was in sight. At the doors of Moscow, the Russian emperor called for his cabinet and asked for any way they could turn back the enemy. A plan was hatched to use the most powerful magics at their disposal. A burst of magic flowed from that camp and city far and wide. It is said that the explosion could be seen from the eastern parts of Scotland and heard in the heart of the Levant.
Moscow became a gateway. Creatures imbued with magical properties are tearing through Capitals and villages. National boundaries meant nothing to them. Europe, the grand palaces, and the heart of modern civilization, is in jeopardy. England, perhaps because of the water of the Channel, is so far untouched.

What this game is about: Journey, Improvisation and Exploration. The players are specialists hired by the newly formed Crisis Congress who are going to make their way to Moscow. They have been tasked with closing this fount of magical beings and restoring Europe to its former glory. But the road to Moscow is long and far from easy. Thanks to the magical blight, Europe is more foreign and even more alien than the Far East or Deep Afrika. 
This game is powered by Freeform Universal system by Nathan Russell. Quick overview of the mechanics will be posted later in this document. For now, what you should know, is that each beneficial aspect/descriptor you have relating to your task, the success will be a little easier. Feel free to check out the Freeform Universal RPG if you want to go indepth into the system. 

Game Masters should read or paraphrase this to players: London 1812: the streets are loud with the sounds on industrialization. Cities are booming, but the beyond the United Kingdom’s borders, strange things are happening in war torn Europe. A bright flash was visible several weeks ago. News travels slow, finally the British officials receive reports of the most bizarre nature. A gateway to somewhere else has opened in Moscow, and strange things are coming out of it. You are summoned by newly formed Crisis Council to venture to Moscow and try to end this madness. Introduce yourself to the Council.

Create your characters: Think of what kind of character would be called upon by the Crisis Council and what kind of character you would like to play as. Soldiers, academics, and diplomats come to mind as types of people who would be called upon, but the Council is not afraid of trying to employ hermetic mages, mediums and other seemingly supernatural persons, as the existence of magic has now been proven. Is your magic real?
Now choose a short descriptor for your character’s Body, Mind, Edge and Fault. Descriptors are adjectives or very short phrases that identify a character’s skills and flaws, the things that make their life easier and harder, and ultimately make them who they are. They indicate the kinds of things that a character is good at, their physical and mental traits, and any abilities or drawbacks they might have. They are both guides for your roleplaying and modifiers to the rolls.
Characters have four Descriptors:
 
●	Body describes what your character excels physically. Maybe you are strong, nimble, handsome or resilient. Even being short or scrawny can be beneficial at times. 
●	Mind covers both smarts and personality. Think of what other people think of your character once they speak to them. Are you smart, charming, observant, wise or something completely different?
●	Edge is a special skill or sets of skills you have. It might be your profession, or simply something you excel at. Veteran Soldier, Fencing, Arcane Knowledge, Medicine, Eastern European Diplomat are all examples of an Edge beneficial for the mission. What makes you stand out from the crowd?
●	Flaw is a hindrance that your character struggles with. It is something that makes their life more difficult. Maybe you are Missing a hand, are clumsy, old or a coward? Each and everyone of us has some kind of flaw, what is yours?

You only need those four short descriptors to start playing. Choose an adjective or phrase to describe the most distinctive feature of your character.

Game Masters should read or paraphrase this to players after they have created their characters: You are accepted by the Crisis Council. Over next two days you are briefed on the mission. The consensus is that the fount can be closed by destroying the surrounding area. The council will try to arrange a contact in Moscow to provide you with explosives. You can also risk it and try to close it by crossing its threshold, as rumors are it is possible. The Council’s cartographer explains the fastest route to Moscow. You need to be quick because many fear that the fount is expanding and the blight might soon reach the British shores. You are each given your travel gear - bedroll, cooking implements, iron rations and other miscellaneous items packed into a sturdy backpack. You each get a pistol and a knife. You need to travel light, the council allows you to bring only two more items each.

Choose your gear: Pick two items you will take with you on your mission. Those items will help with your rolls, just like character descriptors do. Those items can be anything that your character or the Council could have access to. 

How it works: The game has a standard Game Master and Players divide. The GM will take on the role of all NPCs and the world in which the players interact. Players will take on the role of a team sent from England to close the fount of magic. Unlike in traditional roleplaying games, players will also have some input into shaping the story. The journey itself is divided into seven stages. Each stage has two phases: the city play nd the road play. The Journey will is planned as follows:
1.London - 10 days on the road - 2.Dortmund - 8 days on the road - 3.Berlin - 9 days on the road -  4.Warsaw - 9 days on the road - 5.Minsk - 5 days on the road - 6.Smolensk - 6 days on the road - 7.Moscow

City Play: Good ways to start each play is to remind the players how long/ how far the fount is from this location, and then to ask each player how it is affecting the city. Use the answers to paint the picture of city and the world. Use the previous answers as well. Ask each character one question from the list below or make up your own. Don’t be afraid to ask leading questions.
●	What is the government doing to cope with the creatures that are now in or around the city? 
●	What is surprising to your character about what has happened in this city? 
●	How are people of this city organizing against the blight?
●	What is the strangest thing you have seen in this city?
●	What are people doing about the war?
●	Who took charge of the people when the government failed?
●	How did the city benefited from the blight?
●	How are people reacting when they find out about your mission?

In each city the players need to be trying to find allies, shelter and supplies. This may be tricky as everyone is still suspicious of outsiders because of the war. Time in cities will also be a chance for players to resupply for the journey. The success of their politicking many determine how supplied they are for the road ahead. Mechanically, players can exchange any cards they have for extra gear or information about the road ahead. Those cards are shuffled back into the deck. You can exchange any card for a piece of Gear that could be obtained within the city. You can also declare an vague event that will take place during next road play ahead of time. This declaration overrides any card drawn and makes it obstacle free. E.g Player declares that on day 4, they will encounter a village of friendly locals, and Petr, the town’s huntsman will aid them. Even if the card drawn on the fourth day would be a Blight card, the village will still be there. It might have issues with the blight monsters, but it will not pose a threat to the players (unless someone declares that it does - see road play).
It will be important to think about how close the fount is to the current city: the further in the game the players get, the more the cities will be affected by the creatures and phenomena coming from the fount. It will crazier and crazier the closer they get to the fount.

Road Play: road play will be when the players have most interactions with the creatures that come from the fount. These do not necessarily need to be violent, but likely will be. The GM should consider what kinds of things may come from the fount. What is the motivation of the creatures? To colonize? Seek food? Enslave? Or are they completely different from our understanding?
This is not a game about survival or combat. It is about discovery and the journey. There are no complicated systems to govern those aspects of the game. The GM should assume that the characters can camp and feed themselves accordingly, until something in the story will say it otherwise. With that in mind, let’s go on the road.
Each day on the road, a GM draws a card. If it is a face card, or a card of value lower than the current stage, an event occurs. Face cards (Jack, Queen, King) represent mundane events. If the card is black, the event has to be some kind of obstacle. Cards of value equal or lower to the current stage (ace on stage one, ace and 2 on stage two and so on…), represent supernatural events caused by the blight. Players can suggest events after the card is shown, by giving a brief overview of the situation. GM should choose a suggested event and proceed with framing the scene around it. The player who suggested this event takes the card into his hand. Players’ suggestions should be inspired by what they have learnt so far and kept within the constraints of the game world. They should be a kicker to an interesting scene and a roleplaying opportunity.
If a card is not an event card by the rules above (or the event was declared during city play ahead of time), a player can still make a suggestion for an obstacle scene and receive the card as a reward. The Game Master is under no obligation to accept such suggestion.

Mechanics: When a character attempts an action where the outcome is not immediately and/or completely obvious, you make a roll. To resolve an action roll a number of d6s. Tell the GM what you want to achieve. You always get one die if the action is within human capabilities. Everything beyond that is dependent on modifiers.

Circumstances, equipment and skill will make actions easier or harder. modifiers change the number of dice you get to roll when taking action. Making Things Easier: Roll an additional die for each Descriptor (including gear) that provides some advantage to the action being
taken. The result is the single highest die roll, as the player chooses. Making Things Harder: Roll an extra die for each Descriptor, bit of Gear, Condition or Detail that makes the action harder. The result is the single worst die roll. Cancelling Out: one beneficial die cancels out one hindering die, so you will never be rolling ‘negative’ and ‘positive’ dice at the same time.
Check the highest result on your dice. The higher the number, the better the result. 
Did you succeed?
6- Yes, and...
5- Yes
4- Yes, but...
3- No, but…
2- No
1- No, and...
			
Use the result chart to create interesting narratives. Both successes and (especially) failures can add an temporary descriptor to your character. After all, if you didn’t avoid that bandit ambush, you are now Wounded and Missing your Supplies. Now, if you won’t get any supplies fast, you might starve to death.
You can use any card to either re-roll all your dice, or add an extra die to your roll. All cards used during the scene, should be re-shuffled back to the deck. 			

Playing the game: The game is focused on narrative and improvisation. It is set in uncertain times and no one truly expects what they will encounter. World is not only changed by the recent war, but even more so by the blight. Be creative in what you encounter and make this one memorable journey.
Meta-gaming is encouraged. Cards, while working in the same way for the players, no matter the value, can be used strategically. If you use a card that is guaranteed to generate an obstacle (like a black face card, or a card of a value lower or equal current stage) you basically make the game a bit harder, because that card is shuffled back into the deck that the GM draws cards from. This meta-gaming, is supposed to abstract character planning during travel, but as with any travel, unexpected things might happen. Remember, it is more about the journey than the destination.