The Guy in the Chair
The Navigator guides the players through the maze-like undercity. They are responsible for seeking out threats and helping to come up with solutions to the trials that the Duelists in their care encounter. They can't duel against shadows in their own right, but what they lack in presence they more than make up for in insight. The best Navigators leverage their bird's eye perspective to forewarn Duelists about upcoming encounters and inform them of the presence of hidden things they might not be able to see.
Navigator Decks
Navigators have decks like any other NPC duelist. However, their cards manifest in very different ways. Each time the players enter a new area of the dungeon, the Navigator gains one {insight}. Navigators can spend {insight} to use Navi Moves which help player Duelists overcome challenges. Unlike other duelist NPCs, Navigators are background helpers rather than adversaires. As such, they have very different functions. A Navigator can have a deck for battling players AND a deck for Navigation, or they can have one deck that functions in both ways. To make an Navi NPC feel more unique, you can create their deck as you would any other NPC adversary and then use the Player Navigators section below to determine what their card effects do.
Player Navigators
Navigation isn't rellagated just to NPCs. A player can choose to be a navigator as well. When they do, they use their regular deck as their Navigator Deck. Each time the party enters a new area in the dungeon, the Navigator draws two cards from their deck. They may play one card from their hand and one staple per room, choosing from their normal staples and the cards they've drawn for that room. A single staple cannot be used two rooms in a row, and the player shuffles their hand/deck/graveyard together and draws two new cards at the beginning of every room. When a Player Navigator plays a card to help another player Duelist overcome a challenge, you can use the Parallel Card Effect column of the Navi Moves table below to determine what happens. If nothing in the table matches the effect, the judge and player can work together to determine what happens. A Player Navigator can also play a warrior card from their hand and have that warrior use any General Move as if the player were in the room with them. This still counts towards the number of cards they can play in a room.
Bonus Move: The Navigator's Ace
(Player Navi Only)
The Navigator has an ace as well, and just like the Duelists on the ground, they can play their ace for extra effect.
Once per dungeon, when you want to help the party avoid a catastrophic outcome, you can roll+Friendship:
On a 10+, you successfully saved the day. Describe how, even from behind a screen, you were able to pull the party back from the brink.
On 7-9, you successfully avert disaster, but there are complications. Choose one:
- The help came too late, and the party lost something precious. The judge describes what you failed to save.
- Your hasty attempt at helping the party reveals a secret you've been trying to keep from them. Describe how you've put your reputation on the line to protect them.
- Your intervention was a little TOO impactful, and you've displaced the party further from their original objective.
Navi Moves
| Navi Move | Parallel Card Effects |
|---|---|
| Avoid a Catastrophic Outcome (1/dungeon) | {Establish a plan to win} and {Ace} (see The Navigator's Ace). |
| Remove or Bypass an Obstacle | destruction effects, or warriors with specifically applicable skills. |
| Give a player +1 when entering a dangerous situation | effects which strengthen or otherwise buff a warrior, effects which create items or equipment |
| Ask an additional question when Investigating Your Surroundings | effects which draw cards, or search the deck. |
| Repress a new baggage as it is created, until the dungeon ends | effects that gain life, grant inconspicuous to a warrior |
| Create an opening to escape/attack | effects that create barriers or obstacles, effects that {weaken} or otherwise debuff warriors. |
| (Battle) counter an enemy's counter | effects that give {underwhelm} or disrupt gameplay, warriors with {sniper}. |
| (Battle) give the player 1 advantage | effects that give {overwhelm} to a warrior, warriors with {pressure}. |
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