Velvet Chains & Voidlight — Codex Companion Appendix ✨⛓️📜

“The dice are sacred not because they decide, but because they listen.”

---

⚙️ Core Dice Ritual: The Duality Roll

Roll two d12s — one Hope, one Fear — add the relevant trait.

Result	Meaning	Narrative Consequence
Hope > Fear + meets Difficulty	Success with Hope	You succeed gracefully; gain 1 Hope Token.
Fear > Hope + meets Difficulty	Success with Fear	You succeed but at a cost; the Guide gains 1 Fear Token.
Hope > Fear + fail Difficulty	Failure with Hope	You fail, but grow; gain 1 Hope Token.
Fear > Hope + fail Difficulty	Failure with Fear	The Guide acts with consequence; +1 Fear Token.
Matching Dice	Critical Harmony	Auto-success; clear 1 Stress & gain 1 Hope.

---

🪐 Traits & Engines

Trait	Engine	Descriptive Focus
Presence	Velvet	Charm, empathy, desire
Instinct	Velvet	Emotion, intuition
Strength	Chains	Power, endurance, devotion
Agility	Chains	Grace, risk, defiance
Finesse	Voidlight	Precision, illusion, perception
Knowledge	Voidlight	Understanding, insight, revelation

---

💋 Core Currencies

Resource	Gained When…	Spent To…
Hope Tokens	Success with Hope, roleplay vulnerability, poetic acts	Add +2 to a roll, fuel powers, or help an ally.
Fear Tokens (Guide)	Players roll Fear or fail dramatically	Introduce new stakes, adversaries, or emotional twists.
Consent Tokens	Affirming or offering consent; sharing vulnerability	Cancel Fear results, co-author flashbacks, or rewrite scenes.
Stress	Emotional strain or Fear escalation	Clear during rest, intimacy, or catharsis scenes.

---

🔥 Emotional & Narrative Moves

Move	Trigger	Engine	Hope Outcome	Fear Outcome
Entwine Hearts	Share emotion or attraction	Velvet	Mutual trust; form a Thread.	Reveal vulnerability; gain 1 Fear.
Defy Command	Resist expectation or control	Chains	Stand free; clear Stress.	Resist but harm a relationship.
Unmask Desire	Reveal what you want	Voidlight	Gain clarity; +1 Hope.	Create tension or temptation.
Mend the Broken	Heal or forgive another	Velvet	Clear Stress or restore a Thread.	Reopen old pain; mark Stress.
Command the Storm	Act with reckless courage	Chains	Achieve victory with flourish.	Gain a Scar, but succeed.
Gaze into Voidlight	Seek forbidden truth	Voidlight	Learn insight safely.	Discover truth too soon; lose comfort.

---

🧭 Guide Drama Beats (Fear Token Reference)

Beat	Cost	Purpose
Reveal a Secret	1	Expose hidden truth or temptation.
Offer a Dangerous Choice	1	Create dilemma or moral test.
Complicate a Bond	2	Strain or twist a Thread.
Invite a Rival	2	Introduce mirrored antagonist.
Transform the Environment	2	Warp tone, time, or psychic space.
Call a Consequence	3	Demand payment or sacrifice.
Trigger a Consent Ritual	3	Initiate negotiation, intimacy, or revelation scene.

---

🕯️ Ritual Framework

Every ritual has three phases:

1. Opening Consent Oath — participants state emotional or narrative stakes.
2. Pulse Surge — roll Duality Dice; interpret Hope/Fear.
3. Mind Reflection — narrate emotional impact, gain Hope or mark Stress.

Common Ritual Uses:

• Merge two Threads.
• Cleanse Fear Tokens via trust.
• Invoke divine or cosmic empathy.

---

🌈 Downtime & Recovery

Between scenes, take Rest Moves:

Action	Effect
Reflect	Clear 2 Stress by speaking truthfully about fear.
Train	Gain +1 to your next roll with a chosen trait.
Connect	Share a Thread or Consent Token with another PC.
Perform a Ritual	Cast minor magic, prayer, or art scene.

---

🪞 Advancement: Transformation Table

When you would level up, instead choose one:

Path	Description
Confess	Speak a hidden truth aloud; gain new Ritual.
Forgive	Release resentment; clear all Stress.
Transcend	Name and integrate a Fear; raise one trait +1.

Mark this in your Codex as your Evolution Statement: “I have learned that…”

---

🎭 End of Session: Rite of Mirrors

At session’s close:

1. Each player praises one act of vulnerability from another.
2. Each acknowledges one discomfort or boundary moment.
3. Together say:

   “We see each other. We are fiction. We are free.”

Then:

• Each player restores 1 Hope.
• The Guide clears 1 Fear.
• The group resets Threads as desired.

---

💕 Key Principles (Table Creed)

All drama is collaborative. > All boundaries are sacred. > No cruelty without consent; no silence without care.

When uncertain, return to the Tri-Engine:

• Velvet soothes — lead with empathy.
• Chains protect — act with integrity.
• Voidlight reveals — speak truth to illusion.

---

🕯️ Codex Closure

“Hope is the inhale, Fear the exhale — the story breathes between them.”