1. Arrival · 10 minutes

Place: Displaced square

Read aloud

Ada’s bakery door opens onto the clinic’s waiting room. Outside, the market fountain stands on dry paving.

Run this scene

The grid caused a bounded transposition. Stabilize first and choose permanent new addresses later. Begin with the concrete request in the premise. Ask each character why they care and give them one ordinary useful item. Read both public observations without requiring a roll. Explain that the marked routes are safe to investigate, and offer a choice of the records or the visible trail. Let the group appoint a map reader; do not use hidden travel rolls to block the first lead.

Choices

• Visit Survey shed
• Follow the trail to Old signpost

If the group gets stuck

If conversation or a test fails, give the public card anyway. A clear sign points to Grid centre. A missing method can be found again at Anchor stones; no character skill is required.

People in this scene

Ada: Make the clinic reachable before its first appointment Offers directions and ordinary transport for news of the outcome. Voice: Patient, concrete sentences; ask one practical question.

Evidence to give

Timeline record: Only blocks inside the chalk boundary move; the old signpost stands outside it.
Give it: Inspect the visible labelled object. Give its full text automatically; a check affects time or extra colour only.
GM inference: The grid caused a bounded transposition.

Fallback instruction: HOLD fixes the current layout; new signs can make it usable.
Give it: Inspect the visible labelled object. Give its full text automatically; a check affects time or extra colour only.
GM inference: Stabilize first and choose permanent new addresses later.

Continue: Records and tools or An independent trail

2. Records and tools · 15 minutes

Place: Survey shed

Read aloud

Niko compares two anchor labels. The north arrow on one points through its own letter.

Run this scene

Correct anchors restore the original layout. The surveyor is at the grid centre. Put the method card and destination note on the table. Ask what the two objects suggest, then answer direct practical questions from their wording. The maker can trade tools for help carrying or recording them, but refusal never removes these public documents. The trail remains another route. A check, if your rules use one, changes the time or tidiness of the work rather than whether this evidence exists.

Choices

• Proceed to Grid centre
• Compare evidence at Old signpost

If the group gets stuck

If conversation or a test fails, give the public card anyway. A clear sign points to Grid centre. A missing method can be found again at Anchor stones; no character skill is required.

People in this scene

Niko: Find which anchor label was reversed Lends supplies if a character helps carry or catalogue them. Public instructions remain available. Voice: Quick, exact words; point at tools while speaking.

Evidence to give

Method diagram: North label goes to the northern socket, east to the eastern; scratched arrows match.
Give it: Inspect the visible labelled object. Give its full text automatically; a check affects time or extra colour only.
GM inference: Correct anchors restore the original layout.

Destination note: Tessa’s survey slip says GRID CENTRE, alignment watch.
Give it: Inspect the visible labelled object. Give its full text automatically; a check affects time or extra colour only.
GM inference: The surveyor is at the grid centre.

Continue: An independent trail or The immediate problem

3. An independent trail · 15 minutes

Place: Old signpost

Read aloud

Brin carries an old signpost that still points to the clinic’s former location. The ground beneath it feels steady.

Run this scene

A physical trail locates her. A witness confirms the destination. Describe the physical trail before asking for a decision. The witness tells what they actually observed and admits what they did not see. If the group refuses conversation, the physical route supplies the destination. Let a character compare the timeline and another trace the map. For a divided group, take one short turn per side, then reunite at the meeting; do not add another travel encounter.

Choices

• Proceed to Grid centre
• Compare evidence at Survey shed

If the group gets stuck

If conversation or a test fails, give the public card anyway. A clear sign points to Grid centre. A missing method can be found again at Anchor stones; no character skill is required.

People in this scene

Brin: Help neighbours navigate without blaming them Guides the party if they share a plan. If refused, points to the visible trail. Voice: Cautious, distinguish observation from assumption.

Evidence to give

Physical trail: Fresh chalk tracks run from the shed to the grid centre.
Give it: Inspect the visible labelled object. Give its full text automatically; a check affects time or extra colour only.
GM inference: A physical trail locates her.

Witness statement: Brin saw Tessa step inside the central chalk square before dawn.
Give it: Ask any direct question, or read the witness’s signed statement if conversation is refused.
GM inference: A witness confirms the destination.

Continue: Records and tools or The immediate problem

4. The immediate problem · 20 minutes

Place: Grid centre

Read aloud

Tessa stands at a glowing chalk grid. Two blocks slide one paving stone, then stop while everyone looks.

Run this scene

Surveyor Tessa used a civic rearrangement grid to shorten access routes for a festival. She transposed two anchor labels, rotating whole blocks instead. Correcting the labels restores locations; fixing paths to the new arrangement stabilizes it but obliges the town to choose permanent new addresses. State the immediate stakes and offer both listed approaches. Before resolving action, ask who observes, who acts and who helps. Make any cost visible before a player accepts it. Avoid demanding a special ability or spell. When a plan fails, use the slower listed route and mark its time cost; people remain recoverable. Once the goal is safe, mark the immediate goal safe and continue. A refusal by the keeper cannot hide the marked safety instructions.

Choices

• Pull HOLD and mark a path from the old signpost to the current clinic door.
• Ask Tessa to freeze one block at a time while neighbours escort visitors.

If the group gets stuck

Ask Tessa to freeze one block at a time while neighbours escort visitors. Explain a five-minute delay before they accept it; mark the immediate goal safe when the people or resource are secured.

People in this scene

Tessa: Stop block movement and accept public oversight of the grid Explains both solutions when the party agrees to protect the immediate goal; the marked instructions are available regardless. Voice: Calm under pressure; admit the decision and its cost.

Evidence to give

Safety marks: Pull HOLD before touching an anchor. Keep the clinic route marked while the blocks settle.
Give it: Inspect the visible labelled object. Give its full text automatically; a check affects time or extra colour only.
GM inference: Stop movement before changing the plan.

Encounter: Create a stable route to the clinic while stopping the moving blocks.

A delay leaves less time for the final repair or decision. Explain costs before resolving an action.

Approach A: Pull HOLD and mark a path from the old signpost to the current clinic door.
Approach B: Ask Tessa to freeze one block at a time while neighbours escort visitors.

4 players: Two pairs take observation and action tasks. Resolve them in two short alternating turns.

Mark the immediate goal safe after either safe approach; a setback costs time, not access to the next scene.

Continue: The final choice

5. The final choice · 20 minutes

Place: Anchor stones

Read aloud

Anchor stones read NORTH and EAST, but their scratched arrows face the opposite sockets. A latch is marked HOLD.

Run this scene

Correct anchors restore the original layout. Stop movement before changing the plan. Reveal the method and fallback together. Ask the group which tradeoff it accepts and give every character a small contribution. Mark the complete method for the first choice or the fallback method for the second. A risky improvisation should inherit one of these outcomes after its cost is explained, rather than create a third unprepared lock. Keep the immediate goal safe. Return by the known marked route; no new location needs to be invented.

Choices

• Correct the anchor labels under HOLD, then restore the old layout.
• Keep HOLD engaged and approve a public map of the new arrangement.

If the group gets stuck

Keep HOLD engaged and approve a public map of the new arrangement. Mark the fallback method, keep the immediate goal safe and read the cost ending. Do not repeat a failed test.

People in this scene

Niko: Find which anchor label was reversed Lends supplies if a character helps carry or catalogue them. Public instructions remain available. Voice: Quick, exact words; point at tools while speaking.

Tessa: Stop block movement and accept public oversight of the grid Explains both solutions when the party agrees to protect the immediate goal; the marked instructions are available regardless. Voice: Calm under pressure; admit the decision and its cost.

Evidence to give

Method diagram: North label goes to the northern socket, east to the eastern; scratched arrows match.
Give it: Inspect the visible labelled object. Give its full text automatically; a check affects time or extra colour only.
GM inference: Correct anchors restore the original layout.

Fallback instruction: HOLD fixes the current layout; new signs can make it usable.
Give it: Inspect the visible labelled object. Give its full text automatically; a check affects time or extra colour only.
GM inference: Stabilize first and choose permanent new addresses later.

Encounter: Choose the town’s next map.

The complete method preserves the planned service; the fallback preserves the immediate goal at a visible cost.

Approach A: Correct the anchor labels under HOLD, then restore the old layout.
Approach B: Keep HOLD engaged and approve a public map of the new arrangement.

4 players: Work in two pairs, one following the method and the other preparing a fallback or record.

Mark the complete method for the first approach or the fallback method for the second. Both allow return and an ending.

Continue: Home and aftermath

6. Home and aftermath · 15 minutes

Place: Displaced square

Read aloud

The square holds still. Neighbours post either restored addresses or agreed new ones before opening their doors.

Run this scene

Choose a complete resolution or a resolution with a cost, then ask the group what happens next. Read the ending matching the selected outcome. Invite each character to add one ordinary detail to the aftermath, then ask the keeper for a concrete next action. Record who accepted the cost and which clues went unused. Spend the last few minutes on one enjoyable moment and one thing to change next time. Characters need not solve every optional inference to earn a resolved ending.

Choices

• Describe who follows up tomorrow
• Ask who helped whom and what it cost

If the group gets stuck

If no method was chosen, first confirm the immediate goal is safe, use the final fallback method and then read the cost ending. Record the unresolved work and give every character an epilogue.

People in this scene

Ada: Make the clinic reachable before its first appointment Offers directions and ordinary transport for news of the outcome. Voice: Patient, concrete sentences; ask one practical question.

Tessa: Stop block movement and accept public oversight of the grid Explains both solutions when the party agrees to protect the immediate goal; the marked instructions are available regardless. Voice: Calm under pressure; admit the decision and its cost.

Evidence to give

No new evidence required.

Continue: Read an ending and close the session.

Endings

Complete resolution

The blocks settle into their old places. Tessa hands the grid key to a public committee, and the clinic opens on time.

First secure the immediate goal at Grid centre. Choose this ending only after final method A is used at Anchor stones.

Resolution with a cost

The new layout stays. Neighbours paint temporary addresses together, knowing some familiar routes have changed and will need patient adjustment.

First secure the immediate goal at Grid centre. Choose this ending only after final method B is used at Anchor stones.

• Correct the anchor labels under HOLD, then restore the old layout remains for a later visit.

Clue reasoning

The grid caused a bounded transposition.
Timeline record

Proceed to Grid centre
Destination note OR Physical trail OR Witness statement

Stop movement before changing the plan.
Safety marks · the marked safety instructions supply a fallback.

Choose the town’s next map.
Method diagram OR Fallback instruction

Handout answers

h-order: The grid caused a bounded transposition.

h-fallback: Stabilize first and choose permanent new addresses later.

h-method: Correct anchors restore the original layout.

h-note: The surveyor is at the grid centre.

h-trail: A physical trail locates her.

h-witness: A witness confirms the destination.

h-safe: Stop movement before changing the plan.

After the session

Record the ending, one memorable choice, and any unresolved work. Ask what was enjoyable and what needs to change. The time plan is a starting point; adapt it to your group.