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Based on the Pulp Alley 2E League Roster rules (p. 8): every league starts with 10 roster slots. Leader = 0 slots (only 1 per league), Sidekick = 3 slots (normally only 1), Ally = 2 slots, Follower = 1 slot. Perks permanently remove slots from the pool. Associates (p. 27) cost 1 slot each.
0 / 10 slots used
Colleagues
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Perks
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Associates
Non-character support cast (p. 27) — a helpful butler, bartender, mentor, and so on. Build one as an Associate card in the Card Designer, then add it here. Each costs 1 roster slot. A league normally starts with at most 2.
No Associates yet. Save some Associate cards in the Card Designer first, then add them here.
Cards render at true Standard Playing Card size (2.5″ × 3.5″) on A4 pages with crop marks, 9 per page — select more than 9 in My Cards and they spill onto additional pages automatically. Print at 100% scale / “Actual size” — do not use “Fit to page.”
A two-page cheat sheet distilled from the Core Rules, Terms & Flow, and the official Action Sequence reference — everything you need at the table without opening the rulebook. Save as PDF and print on two sheets of A4.
Turn & Activation
Fighting
Moving & Evading
Dice, Modifiers & Saves
Actions, Perils & Scenario
Remember
Every die that rolls 4+ is one success.
Moving and fighting are not Actions.
Health drops one dice-type per failed check, never more.
A fight ends the attacker's activation.
Director & Initiative
- The Director picks any player with a ready character, including themselves, to activate one. Repeat until none are ready, then go to End of Turn. Only one Director at a time, and they keep the role until another player takes it.
- You become the Director by clearly winning a fight: inflict an injury without suffering one.
- Or by taking a Reward card, normally from passing a plot point.
Key Terms
- Ready: a character is ready before and during their own activation. A character that is down is never ready.
- Activation: the Director selects a player, who activates one ready character. Only one at a time.
- Active character: the one currently activated. In any fight they are the attacker and the other is the defender, whatever skill either chooses.
- Action: attempting a plot point, using an ability that says it is an action, and so on. Moving and fighting are not Actions.
- Engaged: in contact with an enemy. A fight between engaged characters is a brawl, between unengaged characters a shootout.
Activation Sequence
- Fortune Effects. Pause so other players may play cards.
- Automatic Effects. Resolve effects from your situation and position: perilous areas, horror, and so on.
- Fight On. Already engaged? A brawl starts. Your activation ends when it resolves.
- Move up to 12". (see Moving)
- Attack or Action. Fight, or perform one Action. Your activation ends when it resolves.
- End of Activation.
The sequence stops the moment your activation ends.
Moving
- Move up to 12". Up to 6" has no effect on fighting or actions.
- Over 6" (running): −1 Shoot this activation, and no Action this activation. You may still fight.
- You cannot move while engaged. (see Disengage)
- Path cannot come within 1" of an enemy you don't mean to engage, and cannot cross impassible terrain.
- Over 6" touching a perilous area is not allowed; touching a difficult area gives you a peril.
One Action Per Turn
- Only during your own activation, only if you are not engaged, and once per turn, not per activation.
- Cannot move over 6" and act in the same activation. A full action allows no movement at all.
- Your activation ends automatically once the action resolves.
When a Fight Starts
- Fight On: you activate already engaged → brawl.
- Rush: you move into contact with an enemy → brawl.
- Ranged attack while unengaged → shootout.
- Rush target: normally the nearest enemy by the shortest path. You may ignore an enemy already engaged, any enemy farther from the major plot point than you, or one you simply cannot reach.
- Shoot target: normally the nearest unengaged enemy, in range and in line-of-sight. Needs at least 1d6 Shoot before modifiers.
Fight Sequence — Brawl & Shootout
Both kinds of fight use the same five steps.
- Skills. Attacker declares first, then the defender. In a brawl: Brawl or Dodge. In a shootout: Shoot or Dodge. If you cannot attack, you must Dodge.
- Modifiers. Attacker applies first, then the defender.
- Roll. Both players roll. Each 4+ is one success.
- Block. Only one player blocks: the defender if they chose Dodge, otherwise the attacker. (see Blocking)
- Results. Each unblocked success scores 1 hit. The target rolls a Health check (see Health). Dodge successes never inflict hits. Both sides can be hit in the same fight.
The attacker's activation ends. Both characters count as having been in a fight, whatever the result.
Blocking
- Only one player blocks in a fight. The attacker normally has it. The defender has it instead if they chose Dodge.
- To cancel one of the opponent's successes, spend one of your own successes showing an equal or higher number, one for one.
- Example: your 6 cancels their 4, 5 or 6. Your 4 cancels only their 4.
Health, Hits & Injuries
Health: d10 → d8 → d6 → Down → Out
- Take one or more hits: roll a Health check using your current dice-type, 1 die per hit. Every die must roll 4+ to pass.
- Pass: no injury. Fail: Health drops one dice-type. It can never drop more than one per check, however many dice failed.
- In cover: re-roll 1 (only 1) failed Health die. (see Cover save)
- Injured: current Health below your starting dice-type. Your skill dice-type is capped at your current Health.
- Down (Health below d6): never ready, cannot activate, and cannot be engaged, rushed or attacked. Rolls no Health checks, blocks nothing, drops all plot points.
Fight Modifiers
- Close range (target up to 6"): +1 Shoot.
- Long range (target over 24"): −1 Shoot.
- Moving fast (you moved over 6"): −1 Shoot. Active character only.
- Multiple fights: −1 Brawl and −1 Shoot for each earlier fight you had this turn, whichever skill was used, even if you rolled no dice.
Modifiers change the number of dice you roll and are cumulative; below 1 die you roll none. They never apply to challenges, and most do not apply to Dodge.
Opposed Checks
Both characters roll the named skill. To win you must roll more successes than everyone else, so a tie wins nothing.
End of Turn: Recovery
- Roll 1d6 for each injured character. 4+: Health improves one dice-type. Fail: no effect.
- If down, pass: Health returns to d6 and you stand up. If in contact with an enemy you may disengage.
- If down, fail: knocked out. Removed for the rest of the scenario.
- End-of-turn scenario effects resolve after all recovery checks.
Turn & Activation
Fighting
Moving & Evading
Dice, Modifiers & Saves
Actions, Perils & Scenario
Remember
Dodge is always available, in any fight or peril.
Disengage must end 1" clear of every enemy.
Splitting dice counts as one fight.
Hidden characters cannot be targeted at all.
Dodge
- Dodge replaces Brawl or Shoot in any fight. Dodge successes never inflict hits, they only block.
- Most fight modifiers do not apply to Dodge, but deep water, injuries and cards still do.
- The attacker may Dodge too: a harrying attack or suppressive fire.
- Dodging a peril: roll Dodge instead of the skill the challenge lists. Pass: no hits. Fail: hits equal to the challenge number (see Perils & challenges). Either way your activation ends.
Disengage
- Each time you choose Dodge for a fight or a peril, you may move 1" away if you also took no hits.
- You must end that move at least 1" from every enemy. If that is impossible, you cannot disengage.
- The 1" must be away from the enemy or peril, or any direction if you are inside it, such as in a perilous area or burst. You cannot move through any character or barrier.
- Contacting a perilous or difficult area while disengaging does not trigger a peril.
- Two characters disengaging from each other: the active character moves first. You may also disengage when you recover from down (see End of turn).
Defensive Fire
- If the attacker moved over 3" to rush you, you may answer with Shoot as well as Brawl or Dodge.
- Defensive fire always gets the close range +1 (see Fight modifiers), even if the attacker rushed from over 6" away.
- Not available if you are already engaged with another enemy.
Splitting Dice: Multiple Enemies
- You must split when you rush, or activate in contact with, more than one enemy.
- Brawl: choose Brawl or Dodge (not both), assign at least 1 die to each enemy, and resolve the fights in any order.
- Shoot: assign dice starting with the nearest enemy. Every target must be within close range (6"), but only the first target gets the +1.
- Splitting counts as one fight for the multiple fights penalty (see Fight modifiers), however many targets.
- Injured partway through: it applies at once and may drop your dice-type or knock you down before the rest resolve.
- Dodge and take no hits: you may disengage (see Disengage), which cancels every remaining fight and ends your activation.
Cover Save
- You are in cover when in contact with terrain between you and the shooter, or on ground at least 3" above them.
- In cover, re-roll 1 (only 1) failed Health die (see Health). One cover save per fight.
- Obscuring areas (smoke, scattered foliage) do not block line-of-sight, but one that fully crosses the line-of-sight puts the target in cover without contact.
Shooting Into an Engagement
- Only when you have no unengaged enemy to attack, and never into a group containing a friendly.
- Resolved as an unopposed attack: the targets choose no skill and roll no dice. Apply your modifiers, roll, and assign each success as a hit to a random character in the group.
- Counts as a fight for you and for anyone you hit.
Perils & Challenges
- A challenge card names one or more skills and a challenge number. Choose a listed skill, or Dodge, and roll that many successes to pass. Several characters caught at once: draw one card, each rolls against it.
- Peril. Pass: no effect, continue your activation. Fail: hits equal to the challenge number, and your activation ends.
- You meet a peril each time you attempt a plot point, and when you activate or move in a perilous area.
Plot Points
- Attempting one is an Action; you must be in contact with the marker and you meet a peril first (see Perils & challenges).
- Pass: draw a Reward card, take the plot point, and become the Director.
- Fail: the challenge stays in play and every success counts toward the next attempt, by you or a colleague. A new peril is drawn each time.
- Held plot points cannot be attempted by anyone else; all are dropped when you go down or out.
- Transfer to a colleague within 6" is an action: automatic in contact, otherwise roll a challenge. It does not make you Director.
Bursts
- Placing a burst is an Action and a special attack, not a fight. Needs an ability such as Burst Fire or Long Burst.
- 3" burst: centre within 12" and in line-of-sight. Short/long burst: narrow point against your base. Placed touching your own base, it does not affect you.
- Its edge cannot be within 1" of a friendly or of an enemy engaged with one, and cannot pass through walls or barriers.
- Resolving: if anyone is in contact, draw one peril, everyone touching rolls against it, then the burst is removed.
- Hold fire: nobody in contact and it stays as a trap. The first character to touch it, friend or foe, meets the peril and it is removed. It blocks no line-of-sight and is not perilous ground.
- Also removed the instant its owner is injured or fights, otherwise at end of turn.
Stealth, Spotting & Ambush
- Hide is an Action, available only when out of every enemy's line-of-sight.
- Hidden characters cannot be rushed, attacked or targeted, and block no line-of-sight or movement.
- Sneak: move up to 3" and stay hidden. Move farther, act, or get spotted, and hiding ends.
- Spotting is automatic when an enemy activates or moves within 12" of your hidden character and would otherwise see them; once per activation each. Searcher rolls Cunning against the hidden character's Finesse, who must win to stay hidden, so a tie means spotted.
- Ambush: a hidden character attacking rolls a spotting check first. Win: the attack is unopposed (see Shooting into an engagement); if the target goes down or out you stay hidden, otherwise you are spotted. Lose: spotted at once, and the attack is a normal fight.
Where Do I Look?
An enemy rushed me from over 3" away
Defensive fire · p. 2
I'm behind terrain and just failed a Health check
Cover save · p. 2
I'm in contact with two or more enemies
Splitting dice · p. 2
Every enemy I can see is already fighting
Shooting into an engagement · p. 2
I want out of this brawl
Disengage · p. 2
We both rolled successes
Blocking · p. 1