Breachpoints

Breachpoints are sudden, violent, three-dimensional tears rimmed in necrotic-green, lightning-like arcs, with a dark, translucent center that overlays the world with vistas of the Rift. Their shapes morph constantly—often described as ovals or spheres for ease, though that is never quite accurate. Most appear at night, when the veil thins.   The table below details certain information about the different sizes of Breachpoints. Their sizes use the same size rules as those for creatures. Their reach refers to any effects or attacks that might have a limited range, such as their Rim Arcs. For any effects that have a DC use the DC reference for both ability checks and saving throws. Whenever a Breachpoint deals damage it deals damage of any referenced damage type(s) listed in the damage column. Its Modifier is used for various calculations such as the distance of a Rift creature’s tether. Finally, these are the values used unless specified otherwise.

Size	Reach	Aura	DC	Damage	Modifier	Initiative
Medium	5 ft.	10 ft.	12	1d4	+0	12
Large	10 ft.	20 ft.	14	1d6	+1	14
Huge	15 ft.	30 ft.	16	2d4	+2	16
Gargantuan	20 ft.	40 ft.	18	2d6	+3	18

Breachpoint Properties

All Breachpoints share the following properties regardless of size:

• Two-Way Passage. Creatures and objects can path through Breachpoints in either direction between the Rift and the world of Duskfall
• Tethered Incursions. Many weaker Rift creatures cannot persist far from the Breachpoint nor after the veil reasserts; when stability returns, they are drawn back through the aperture unless anchored (see Anchored below for more).
• Population Effect. Breachpoints are far less likely in densely populated areas. The predominant theory for this posits that just as like-natured masses can stabilize regions within the Rift, gatherings of sapient mortals in the world of Duskfall actually thicken or harden the veil between the world and Rift, discouraging tears. Though this mechanism is not fully understood, the catalogued Breachpoints support this theory statistically at least.
• Layer Access. Most Breachpoints open to the Verge in the Rift. Opening directly into the Conflux seems to require some external influence such as: high-level or complex magic (typically level 5 or higher), a powerful Rift entity, a potent mortal, or a powerful magic item. Other means may be possible at the GM’s discretion but are otherwise unknown to the people of Duskfall as such things have either never been encountered or remain uncatalogued.

Signs of a Breach

Prior to the tear fully flowering, the world around it strains and misbehaves.

• Air & Sound. Ozone sting; hair-raising static; distant echoes misaligned by a heartbeat.
• Light & Shadow. Green-black strobing along cracks; reflections that lag; thin dark “glass” where space looks wrong.
• Material Strain. Pebbles roll uphill toward a point; fabric pulls in a slow inhale.

Size & Throughput

The size of a Breachpoint limits the size of a creature or object that can pass through it. Items of equal or smaller size can can pass through without issue. However for creatures, the geometry “gives,” but only so far. A creature up to one size larger than the Breachpoint can still force passage; anything two or more sizes larger cannot. The maximum number of creatures that can emerge each round is determined by the number of creatures that could pass through that given size. Each round on the Breachpoints turn a number of creatures can come through that take up that space. The table below shows the maximum number of each creature size could pass through each Breachpoint size on a turn.

Size	Tiny	Small	Medium	Large	Huge	Gargantuan
Medium	4	2	1	1*	—	—
Large	16	8	4	1	1*	—
Huge	24	12	6	1	1	1*
Gargantuan	36	18	9	2	1	1

*One-step larger override

Tether, Reassertion, and Anchor

When a breach opens, what slips through does not arrive free. The Rift leaves invisible geometry on every trespasser: a tether that limits how far it can stray, a daily reassertion of the veil that pulls the unmoored back, and the rare escape clause—an anchor—that lets a creature linger against the world’s will.   Tether. A non-anchored Rift creature is naturally bound to the tear that brought it through. Its safe range from that Breachpoint is equal to the creature’s CR plus the Breachpoint’s modifier, then multiplied by 100 feet. Anytime it ends its turn beyond this range, it must make a Strength saving throw or be pulled back to the maximum range and be knocked Prone. Anchored creatures ignore this tether while their anchor holds.   Reassertion. The veil reasserts with the coming of dawn when the veil between the world and the Rift thickens. Unanchored incursions, especially those of creatures CR 4 or lower, typically cannot remain past this reassertion and are drawn home when stability returns. Creatures that have found a way to anchor themselves, or that are contained by mortal means, resist this pull only so long as those conditions persist. At the GMs discretion the time of reassertion may change tied to local conditions or phenomena.   Anchor. An anchored Rift creature has a sustaining tie in the mortal world that overrides both tether range and dawn reassertion for as long as the anchor endures. If the anchor is suppressed or destroyed, the creature begins making Wisdom saving throws at the end of each of its turns; on a failure it is reclaimed—drawn back through the tear—at the end of its next turn, unless the anchor is restored. Common anchors include a living host (possession or a willing mortal), an object (raw Rift Stone shard, pact-marked effigy), a site (blood-sigil cellar, containment lattice), or a binding (summoner’s oath or contract magic other anchors may exist at the GM’s discretion.

Rim Arcs

Each Breachpoint acts on a static initiative and lashes nearby creatures with arcane, necrotic-green arcs. On the Breachpoint’s turn, each non-Rift creature within Reach rolls 1d6; on a 1 or 2, an arc targets it. The target makes a Dexterity saving throw. On a failure, the creature takes force & necrotic damage, or half as much damage on a success.

Anomaly Surge Triggers

Breachpoints dislike meddling magic. Whenever a Breachpoint takes damage from a spell, roll 1d20 (DC 8 + the spell’s level + Breachpoint modifier). On a failure, a random Arcane Rift Anomaly triggers. Likewise, when an arcane spellcaster casts a leveled spell within the Breachpoint’s Aura, the caster makes a Constitution saving throw (DC = 8 + spell level). On a failure, they trigger a random Arcane Rift Anomaly. The caster has Disadvantage on this save if a raw Rift Stone was used as a material component or focus.

Closing a Breachpoint

To seal a Breachpoint, a creature adjacent to the rim may take an Action to make an Arcana check against the Breachpoint’s DC. On a success several things occur in a specific order:

1. The Breachpoint pulses releasing a Rim Arc against all Non-Rift creatures within its reach.
2. The Breachpoint size is then reduced to the next smallest size.

The size of the Breachpoint determines how many successes are required to reduce its size. To reduce the Breachpoint’s size you must have a number of successes equal to 1 + the Breachpoint’s modifier. There is no penalty for failing the check to close a Rift Breachpoint.