Turns & Actions
or, Why Everything Doesn’t Happen at Once
In Death Before Dishonor! each turn represents a month in the life of your character. To give the system structure, that turn is further broken down into various Actions, each a discrete order to do something.
Some actions are assumed to require a week of the character’s time to accomplish (which might include travel, dealing with bureaucracies, sleeping off a hangover or whatnot). These are called Primary Actions, and make up the structure of the monthly orders. While a character is within their rights to be indolent and take fewer than four Primary Actions, they may never take more than four in any given turn. (See below for Contingencies.)
A second type of Action is one which is taken concurrently with, and dependent upon, a Primary Action. These are the Secondary Actions, and include things such as Carousing at a club or bawdyhouse. Absent the necessary Primary Action, the Secondary one will be impossible.
Secondary Actions are, in effect “bolted onto” the Primary; as such, they are easy to overlook. The referee is forbidden to make assumptions regarding “what my character would do” in a given circumstance, so it is important to remember to specify which (if any) Secondary Actions you wish to perform for a given Primary.
Lastly, we have a type of Action which takes little time and is not dependent on other Actions. These are the Free Actions. Some of these are assumed (indeed, they are required actions), such as paying Support. Others are assigned as Premonthy or End-of-Month for sake of sequencing. For the sake of maintaining a regular turn schedule, a maximum limit of five Free Actions (which includes Support) is observed.
Additions to the orders (in-character or not) such as letters to the Gazette are not considered Actions at all.
Below are brief examples of various Actions:
| Primary Actions | Secondary Actions | Free Actions |
|---|---|---|
| Join a Regiment | Gamble | Buy Theatre tickets |
| Court a Mistress | Toadying | Fight a Duel |
| Go to Church | Hire an Assassin | Bribing a Lackey |
| Buying Property | Slander | Buy Horses |
| Barracks Duty | Bonne Vivant | Consult a Tailor |
| Seek a Lackey | Hire Yobs | Purchase a Coach |
Contigencies
Contingencies are something of an exception to the “number of actions” limitations, and are expressed like an “if/then” order. For example, “Join GDMD/PLLD” indicates to the referee that in the event that the character is rejected by the Grand Duke Max’s Dragoons, they will automatically apply to Princess Louisa’s Light Dragoons. Any number of contingencies are allowed, subject to the rules governing them.
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