“But only if…”
- Ritual Phrase
- But only if…
- Use
- Establishes conditions to achieve a goal.
- Available
- After a player describes her character doing something.
Use this ritual phrase in response to a player’s narration of something hens main character does to establish what it will take to do that. These things should pertain directly to the Fifth World (e.g., you’ll need to get this character’s support, or you’ll need to accomplish this deed, etc.). See “That sounds difficult…” to establish the difficulty of a task, or “That sounds dangerous…” to establish the peril of a task. You can certainly use “But only if…” to require things that seem difficult, dangerous, or both, but give the player the chance to declare how hens character goes about those things before invoking those ritual phrases. You can also use “But only if…” to add requirements for the tasks required for a previous task — for example, you might have to accomplish a particular deed in order to win a character’s support. Again, though, let the player attempt the action before invoking the ritual phrase again.