System Conversion
Lightweight standalone optionMar de Oro 2d6 Resolution Bridge
A compact resolution method for groups that want to play Mar de Oro without adopting another complete ruleset. Mar de Oro itself remains system-neutral.
Begin with the core vessel tracks and range bands from the System-Neutral Adaptation chapter, then express them through the selected ruleset.
On this page
The 2d6 Resolution Bridge is an optional lightweight way to play Mar de Oro without bringing a larger rules engine to the table.
It is not a mandatory Mar de Oro system. Its job is simply to resolve uncertain actions quickly while preserving the setting’s focus on pressure, changing situations, and consequences.
For the complete first-party game, use Tales of Mar de Oro: Native Rules. The Bridge remains the optional lightweight standalone option.
For the broader play philosophy behind it, read How Mar de Oro Plays.
When to roll
Roll when the outcome is genuinely uncertain, the result matters, and both success and failure can change the situation.
Before the dice are picked up, establish what the character wants and what is at risk.
A failed roll should rarely mean that nothing happens. It should change the situation, introduce pressure, expose someone, consume time, reveal a cost, or force a new decision.
How to resolve an action
Roll 2d6 and add a Capability modifier (Familiar +0, Trained +1, Expert +2, Master +3). San Telmo is deliberately capped at Expert. Characters who continue beyond the introductory adventure can grow into Master as their stories develop.
Read the result on the outcome ladder:
- 6 or lower: failure with a complication. The situation changes against the character, but existing progress is not erased.
- 7 to 9: partial success at a cost. Choose a cost from the pressure track.
- 10 or higher: full success. Advance a clock or resolve the beat cleanly. There is no separate critical-success tier: a natural 12 or higher is simply a full success.
Worked examples
Example: Investigation
A character searches an office for a missing shipping manifest.
- 10+: they find it and identify what was altered.
- 7 to 9: they find it, but someone notices the search or part of the record has already been removed.
- 6 or lower: they discover enough to keep moving, but the evidence is now in someone else’s hands or their search creates immediate attention.
Example: Negotiation
A character tries to persuade an officer to release an injured worker.
- 10+: the officer agrees without demanding anything significant in return.
- 7 to 9: the worker is released, but the character must invoke authority, accept responsibility, owe someone a favour, or accept another meaningful cost.
- 6 or lower: the request exposes a conflict of jurisdiction and another authority becomes involved.
Example: Technical danger
An engineer tries to stabilise an unstable system.
- 10+: the system stabilises cleanly.
- 7 to 9: it stabilises, but equipment is damaged, pressure must be vented, or the engineer accepts exposure.
- 6 or lower: the immediate problem changes rather than disappears. The system remains accessible, but the danger escalates.
Pressure and consequences
Use the pressure track and consequences from the System-Neutral Adaptation chapter. Failure introduces a complication rather than removing progress.
Clocks and extended challenges
Segmented clocks (four, six, or eight segments) track extended challenges: research, chases, infiltration, negotiation, repair, or vessel damage.
Fortera and Overdraw
On a 7 to 9 result while performing a Fortera task, the player may choose Overdraw to convert the partial success into a full success. The cost is strain, instability, or another meaningful consequence chosen by the group.
2d6 Resolution Bridge v1.1 · 11 August 2026